Originally Posted by Pontius Navigator
The Belgiques were also enthusiatic operators. At the Cottesmore air show in about 1966 a Belgique staff pilot rolled the F104.
He did twinkle rolls at 20 feet and touch and go rolls at 50 feet. The latter involved a touch down at about 1500 feet, a roll at 50 feet, followed by a further touch down and a further popup roll.
Our attention was then divided between the F104, exiting stage left before a re-entry, stage left about 4 minutes later, and OC Ops doing about 90 down the peritrack to tell him to foxtrot oscar.
The response was, I believe, "Say again. Please speak slower." Rolling all the time
OC Ops was Wg Cdr Digman and the staish was Gp Capt, later Air Cdre, Eric Wright and later Director of Flight Safety.
Hi,
We were indeed enthusiastic operators.
That must have been the great Bill Ongena doing his routine at Cottesmore. Sadly, he later died in a car crash.
The F-104 was not more dangerous to fly than its contemparies. I believe it got its bad name in Germany from people who didn't like fast jets in the first place.
Archimedes,
The downwards-firing ejection seats were only in the early USAF models, the Germans always had upward-firing seats. Initially the Lockheed C-2 and from about 1969 Martin Baker seats were retrofitted.
Cheers, Transall.