Aerial refueling revolutionized aerial warfare. The first such
documented refueling took place in June of 1923 when a specially
modified DH-4B piloted by Lts. Virgil Hine and Frank Seifert took
off from Rockwell Field in San Diego and managed to refuel another
DH-4 piloted by Capt. Lowell Smith. The success of this aerial
refueling permitted an attempt at a world record of flight duration.
Taking off again from Rockwell Field Smith kept his aircraft
airborne for more than 33 hours. Aerial refueling remained a novelty
until many decades later when the jet age arrived. Modern
jet-powered fighters are awesome machines, but they can consume
enormous amounts of fuel, especially when flying at maximum speeds
or climbing under maximum power. A jet taking off with a full
weapons load that climbs to 60,000 feet under full power may consume
more than half its fuel capacity. Aerial refueling was necessary to
make jet powered fighters and bombers a practical weapon. In the
1950s the Air Force developed a flying boom method of refueling
whereas the Navy utilized a probe and drogue system. The former
required a specially trained boom operator but can pass fuel very
quickly. The Navy system could handle multiple aircraft at the same
time, but required a higher standard of flying. Both in Vietnam and
later during the Gulf War, aerial refueling proved invaluable to the
success of the air campaigns. In Stan Stokes’ painting F-16 Falcons
approach their tanker for refueling. The F-16 Fighting Falcon,
designed by Harry Hillaker, first rolled out of the General Dynamics
assembly line in Ft. Worth Texas in October of 1976. The aircraft
was originally built as a technology demonstration exercise to show
how much weight and cost could be eliminated from the F-15 Strike
Eagle. In 1975, at the Paris Air Show, the F-16 prototype with test
pilot Neal Anderson at the controls competed in the “Great Fighter
Competition.” To the winner; billions of potential sales to
countries like Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway. The
F-16 duked it out against the French-built Mirage F1-E and the
Swedish Saab 37 Viggen. The F-16 was the winner. Interest in a new
lightweight, cost-effective, fighter-interceptor evolved in the
mid-1970s as a replacement for the aging F-104. The F-16’s outward
appearance has remained the same for twenty-five years while
remarkable advances in technology have been incorporated into the
aircraft’s internals. Improved engines, enhanced radar and avionics,
and superior missiles have kept the F-16 effective. The F-16 can
carry nearly ten tons of armament on its external stores stations.
This range of armament includes air-to-air missiles, air-to-ground
missiles, intelligent and traditional bombs, 6000 round per minute
Vulcan guns, and external fuel tanks.
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Collector Sized Lithograph:
$40
16" x 11 1/2"
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Giclee on Canvas:
$445
18'' x 27''
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