Mission Success: Last Three F-16s Land at Krzesiny Air Base
11 December 2008
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| F-16s at Krzesiny |
In the early afternoon on December 11th, three Polish F-16C aircraft landed at Krzesiny Air Base near Poznan, breaking through the clouds on final approach. They deployed their drag parachutes and taxied to a stop with the help of professionally trained Polish Air Force ground personnel. While F-16s are a common sight at Krzesiny, this was a very unique landing. The aircraft were the final three F-16s being delivered to Poland from the United States as part of the 48 aircraft, 3.6-billion-dollar Peace Sky Program.
Although the program is far from completion, the delivery of the last three aircraft was an important milestone.
The delivery mission was executed exactly as planned. The USAF has strict rules for these long duration ferry missions, one of which includes higher than normal weather requirements at the landing location. According to Lt Col Grimwood, one of the pilots, it initially looked like the aircraft would have to divert to Poland’s other F-16 base, Lask. "The changing weather at Krzesiny was initially below the minimums for landing and we were preparing to divert to Lask,” he said. When they were 25 miles out, the pilots received updated weather observation which met the minimums required to initiate an approach. Lt. Col. Grimwood commented on the excellent runway lighting system at the base, which became visible 2-3 miles from the runway.
The other two pilots were Major Orr and Major Hodges. All three were experienced F-16 pilots. They had experience in a wide variety of versions of the F-16. “The Polish AF version of the F-16 was a real pleasure to fly,” said Grimwood. “The avionics were well designed and provided the pilot with enhanced situation awareness." He said the support for the arrival of the aircraft at Krzesiny was outstanding. The radar and tower controllers were very professional and provided excellent guidance before and after landing. The crew chiefs did an outstanding job of receiving the aircraft. According to Grimwood, the welcome the pilots received by the Polish leadership was warm and enthusiastic. “They were clearly excited to receive the last three of their forty-eight aircraft," he said.