F-16 for sale (This is for real!!!)

[Tripp]

If any of ya'll out there have some major $$$ to spend on an airplane, Air Capitol Warbirds has an F-16 for sale ( first $100,000 non-refundable deposit takes it). Any takers? And if that isn't enough, they've also got a number of A-4s, TA-4s, A-7s, F-8s, F-101s, F-86s, & C-130s. Rich boys and their toys...

Air Capitol Warbirds - Lockheed-Martin F-16

Edited by - Tripp on 19 June 2000

 

[Phoenix]

Offer me a Hornet and i take it .

DEATH FROM ABOVE!

 

[Kenny Husin]

How much do you think a Tomcat would cost? If the Cat was put up for sale, I bet that thing would be gone faster than you could say 'how much!'

 

[Dave Shutter]

As silly as it his all sounds, it's not that unrealistic if you got the $$$, all you have to do is post an ad on the net for retired or ex-service members to work on it, I figure all you need is one really solid senior maintenace guy and a couple of ex-plane captains to turn the wrenches. Parts would be the only problem but there are probably surplus stockpiles somewhere you could dip into. If not, in this dollar range, anything not available could be fabricated or replaced with something new altogether, long as it fits.

As for a Tomcat or any other Navy jet, well...decades of ocean exposure and a couple hundred or even thousand carrier landings...it'd be nice, but no thanx.

D

 

[Phoenix]

I wonder if I could buy an F-22 or maybe JSF with a discount to get all the hot babes... Or maybe an SR-71 to scare off pesky neighbors? A B-2 to show off? An F-14 if you want to be Tom Cruise? An F/A-18 maybe, if you´re into landing on a 1000 foot landing strip, moving along at 30 knots? Or perhaps an F-15 if you enjoy the air force that much. Of course we can´t forget the good old F-16 "Fallen Falcon" which is a cost efficient aircraft that only crashes in combat, usually by self induced engine failure. Maybe the F-117, if you like ejecting that much? Naw! I would just take a Cessna, arm it with rocket pods and go to a rampage. At least until I would try to take off that is .
---------------------------------------
You´re right Dave. The sea does take a toll. I myself would preffer the E-6 Mercury. Now that´s cruising!
Well, i hope I didn´t offend anyone with this post. It has the sole intention of making a person laugh.

DEATH FROM ABOVE!

 

[Kenny Husin]

Nah man. If I had that kind of bucks, I'd still give anything for a Tomcat, even just for a static display, thousands of sea hours of not! Hey maybe I'm just too sprung over the jet.

 

[Dave Shutter]

Something that no one here has really talked about, with all the Hornet love/hype...you can still fly the Tomcat There are only two VF's retiring their Turkeys and that will take the next two years, that leaves ten other squadrons who will need pilots for the next several years. The RAG is still very much open for business. The first squadrons to transition and become VFA's will be the ones with the oldest "A" model Cats. If your going pilot in the next two years or so, that increases the chances that you could end up in a VF that flys "B" model's or even the mighty "D" SuperBombcat. There's still time left to be Maverick!

Regardless, if you can swing jet grades and avoid getting swallowed by some evil black hole, service wide prop or helo need, there are now three fighter platforms up for grabs. All of which will probably land you, somwhere down the line, in an E/F.

Sweet dreams.

D



Edited by - Dave Shutter on 24 June 2000

 

[Kenny Husin]

You know what Dave, your post really brightened up my day . I never really thought about it that way, I thought the Tomcat will be phased out much earlier. You think the Tomcat will still be in service seven or eight years from now though? Hey, just as long as I get a jet when I get there, I'm good! And with all these SuperHornets coming in, hopefully the odds will be much bigger.
But damn, three platforms is definitely good!

 

[Dave Shutter]

The Boeing website, the manufacture of the SuperHornet, said in press relase (I posted the article earlier) that Tomcat replacement won't be completed until 2006, but I've read elsewhere that they'll be around as long as 2010. But you figure: twelve squadrons to finish up by 2006 with VF-41 starting next spring '01, when they return from a cruise followed by VF-211 late '02, then they need to transition 2.5 VF's a year to meet the '06 deadline, providing everyone completes transition without any hitches (yeah...right) But then again, some other squadrons could be scheduled in between these times, not every VF has a site and the others may not say when they trans.

Granted, once VFA-122 get's in motion things will happen quicker and smoother but still, pilots I've met recently have said to count on the switch taking a little longer than scheduled (one guy, a LCDR from VF-41, the first squadron to transition.) The Navy may have the transition process down to a science from doing it so often for so long, but it's still a matter of individuals mating with brand spanking new aircraft. If I had to bet, based on what I've read and heard and on how the military does things, I'd say somewhere around 2008-09. Just my opinion though.

Regardless, if you're going pilot in the next couple of years, you could very well find yourself with orders to VF-101 after advanced jets and winging. With RAG training and your first sea tour, your looking at four solid years at NAS Oceana. (unless of course you get sent to the VF-154, Black Nights at Atsugi Japan)

Husin: As for "just getting a jet", A USMC VAQ Commander I met at an air show said that the E/F replacement of the Prowler is definately not just a rumor, he said they're working on it and it'll be f*cking bad! I said: "The Wild Weasel rides again huh?" and the leatherneck said "Yessir!" Smiling from ear to ear.

Sweet dreams y'all...

D

 

[Phoenix]

Cool! I wonder if the Prowler replacement will be able to carry A/G ordnance .

DEATH FROM ABOVE!

 

[Tripp]

Okay, here's an update on that F-16...

quote:
Be The First on Your Block... Civi F-16 For Sale

ONLY CIVILIAN F-16 IN THE WORLD
We are pleased to offer the first and only F-16 Arriving Tuesday the 27th of June. This aircraft is currently being offered on a first come first serve basis. First $100 000 (non-refundable) deposit reserves the aircraft.

Serious BUYERS only. If you have to ask how much...

According to our follow-up e-mail [we always follow up on stories like this one --ed.], the airplane was to have arrived yesterday at Wichita (KS) Jabara Airport, along with 25 other aircraft. The "file photo" on their website shows an F-16 bristling with ordnance (which you don't get). So, we called.

In an exclusive ANN interview with Ken Bryant, we learned that it's a Model A (single-seat, small tail), and probably of a Block 15 persuasion. Ken wouldn't tell us where it's from. "It's legal and all, but I don't want to tip my hand to competitors," he explained. Besides, who cares, as long as the title's clear, the Airworthiness Certificate and annual are current, and there's cubic money available to buy its particular favorite flavor of kerosene?

When will it be there? "It's here, a lot of it, already," he said. "We've got the wings, a lot of gear, lots of parts.. all the HUD equipment. The fuselage is coming in by truck this (Tuesday) afternoon."

I wanted to know when I could fly it, but it's not quite ready. It needs "some work," and "some parts." Specifically, what? Ken quickly got realistic: "It'll need a lot of TLC, and a lot of money. It's basically a ground-up project. For instance, the wiring is intact; but the flight controls, actuators, some of the landing gear -- all gone. We can get an engine easily enough... we're negotiating for several right now."

OK, so who gets to buy it? Can I buy it as a "kit," or will Airwarbirds put it together and get the AC? "Either way, but it's unlikely someone could just put this thing together themselves.

"We're equipped, we have the expertise, and we can get the parts." Ken said it's most likely that the bird, once completed, will wear an "Experimental, R&D" tag, which will go to "exhibition" after some flight hours, giving the fighter a one-hour radius (about 600 miles) to play in. When it's ready to fly, he expects it to sell for around $14 million, about one-third the price of a new one [but we're really not talking 'apples to apples,' since you can't get a new one unless you buy a friendly country first. --ed].

Airwarbirds (technically, Fulcrum Inc.) has been in business ten years, and has about two dozen aircraft on the "lot," in various stages of airworthiness, from "projects" all the way to "ready-to-fly." They can find airplanes for you, too, in case you've just always wanted to get your hands on a Mirage or an A-7, for instance. [Where do you get a check ride for this thing? --ed]


Edited by - Tripp on 28 June 2000