Mustang, Fighting Falcon and Lightning II

A U.S. Air Force Heritage Flight is performed at the New York Air Show at Stewart International Airport, N.Y., July 1, 2017, with a P-51 Mustang, F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-35 Lightning II flying in formation. The U.S. Air Force started the Heritage Flight Program in 1997 to celebrate its 50th anniversary by flying a formation of military aircraft past and present.

Military Units Featured

U.S. Air Force Heritage Flight Demo Team

The U.S. Air Force Heritage Flight programme is managed by Air Combat Command Aerial Events (ACC/A3TA).  They coordinate static display and flyover support of ACC aircraft to airshows or expos and other events in the U.S., and abroad. ACC/A3TA provides the Aerial Control Teams that co-ordinate and execute AF and Joint flyovers in the National Capital Region (NCR).

Military Equipment Featured

P-51 Mustang

The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The definitive version, the P-51D, was powered by the Packard V-1650-7, a license-built version of the two-speed two-stage-supercharged Merlin 66, and was armed with six .50 caliber (12.7 mm) M2/AN Browning machine guns. The first flight was in October 1940, being introduced in January 1942 with the RAF. It has a maximum speed of ~440 mph (383 kn, 708 km/h) at 25,000 ft (7,600 m), with a range of 1,650 mi (1,434 nautical miles (2,656 kilometres)) with external tanks, and a service ceiling: 41,900 ft (12,800 m).

F-16 Fighting Falcon

The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics (now Lockheed Martin) for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,600 aircraft have been built since production was approved in 1976 and is the world’s most numerous fixed-wing aircraft in military service. The F-16C has a maximum speed of Mach 1.2 (915 mph, 1,470 km/h) at sea level and Mach 2 (1,320 mph; 2,120 km/h) at altitude, with a  combat radius of 340 mi (295 nmi; 550 km) and ferry range of 2,280 nmi (2,620 mi; 4,220 km), and service ceiling of 50,000+ ft (15,240+ m).

F-35 Lightning II

The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is a family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole fighters. The fifth-generation combat aircraft is designed to perform ground-attack and air-superiority missions. It has three main models: the F-35A conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variant, the F-35B short take-off and vertical-landing (STOVL) variant, and the F-35C carrier-based catapult-assisted take-off but arrested recovery (CATOBAR) variant. The F-35 descends from the Lockheed Martin X-35, the winning design of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. It is built by Lockheed Martin and many subcontractors, including Northrop Grumman, Pratt & Whitney, and BAE Systems. The aircraft’s first flight was in 2006, but was only introduced to service in 2015 (F-35B),  2016 (F-35A and 2019 (F-35C).The F-35A has a maximum speed of Mach 1.6+ (1,200 mph, 1,930 km/h) (tested to Mach 1.61), Ca combat radius of 669 nmi (1,239 km) and range of >1,500 nmi (2,800 km) on internal fuel, with a service ceiling of 50,000+ ft (15,240+ m).

Photographer

U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Sean Sweeney.