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Saw this in the Aerospace World section of the November issue of Air Force magazine (http://www.afa.org/magazine/nov2007/1107world.pdf)...

\"The 51st Fighter Wing, Osan AB, South Korea, has revived the Korean War-era checkerboard tail. The new old markings are part of an official Air Force heritage program.\"

(see pic in third page of link)

I wonder if that means the 81 FS at Spang will get their Panther head back on the engine cowlings? It is as much heritage as Osan's mustangs and checkerboards on the tail!

Cheers! M2

Looked good on WWII planes, I'm not so sure it looks good on an A-10 though. I'll email a friend over there and try to get some better pics.

The only ones that have it right now are the wing king and squadron jets.

Having just been with the Draggins at Osan, I can tell you the new tails, in the opinion of the majority, look kind of silly on a Hog and Viper. I loved them on the WWII planes, but they don't quite fit with the gray on the jets.[/url]

I'm sorry Guys,


Those Checkered Tails , not mentioning the \"Green and Red\" tail cap looks like

It would be more fitting really to have a \"Dragon\" on the Jet like the one on your coin up towards the nose.Then do the \"High lighted Tail Code and wing on it instead.Then you could get away with the \"Christmas Tail Cap\"

That would be more in the spirit of the Area and the Unit Mascot .

The \"Checker Board\" are they trying to play on the \"F-86\"'s that were there during the Korean War? They were \"Black and Yellow\".
Yokota AB use to have an F-86 on static at the circle with those markings.

I know someone probably was trying to \"Be historical\" but if you are then put on either the \"Black and White or Black and Yellow\" checker board on the either tail.

Believe me having those \"Colors\" on your tail ain't going to make a difference, Beside when it did it would be too late for the Dumb SOB that your shooting at.

Goose

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\"Live Free Or Die\"

I'm all for celebrating a units heritage, but those markings don't quite work.
I echo m2's thoughts about the 'Panther heads' though.

I love checkerboards, there were some awesome WWII cowlings on
P-47's, Corsairs and the like; but frankly I dont think it really works in this case. Two thumbs down. Now if the entire redder was bright yellow with black checkers or red and white checkered that would be cool. But like this, naw it aint workin' for me.

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YGBSM !

If they are going to do the checker board they should to it on the top of the tail like they were when I was there in 97-98.....

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Holy Cow, that looks incredibly stupid! It demonstrates a lack of focus by our leadership when we get caught up in that kind of superficial crap.

Maybe it just means we think the North Korean threat is subsiding...when I got to Bentwaters in 84, the jets were all green, no colors at all...seriously good camo! By 89, only two years before the wall fell, the jets looked like Christmas trees with squadron colors, tail flashes, etc.

Coach

Like Coach, I am partial to the \"non-decorated\" jets; although I don't mind the FT's teeth, the Panther head at Spang or the mustang at Osan. However, the jets at the 81 TFW got ugly after I left.

And here's the blurb from the AFA magazine, sorry for the poor resolution but I copied it from the PDF file...



Cheers! M2

Prkiii,

I'm with you on this one, that is a \"Sharp\" looking tail cap and Logo.
It doesn't have to be \"Flashy\"

As it stands like I posted before and what Billy said, they dont look good like they are now.

You can \"Personalize \" a Jet Camo or Not without them looking like \"Christmas trees \"

Look at are Jets in the 80's at The 23rd TFW,

We had \"Oversized Tail Codes, Teeth, and the Tail \"Flashings\" . It made the Jet.

Now I remember the \"Big Debate\" going to the \"SandBox\" to \"REMOVE THE TEETH\"

but those \"Concerns\" were pretty much because of the \"other Conflicts with Basically the same thing. Wild Weasels , The Flying Tigers WW2, etc...

If your close enough to see the \"Art\" on an A-10 your either
1. Assigned to them
2. At an Air show
3 See it in a Picture
4 flying along side
5. About to DIE!

We can take it to the next level too, I understand the wanting to \"Subdue\" the Jets in Europe in the 80's because I've seen the pictures of the \"Camo\" runways. Thats why they painted \"FRED\" (C-5's) starting in late 82 Euro-1 but with \"Forest\" on top of the wings and back. They later on did away with it. They looked like the \"Bunker at Osan AB\" back then.
But Come on, You can't hide a \"Aircraft Carrier\" on a quiet street\" using paint.

I would think the \"Cement\" would be bad because it might work looking \"UP\" but Flying over one looking down I'd think you'd spot it?
Thats a Pilots Question.

But after all is said \"It looks Tacky\" paint the Whole Tail \"Checkered\" or use those \"Nice Tail caps\"

Goose

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\"Live Free Or Die\"

I agree with coach, I like non christmas tree jets to. I like it on older WWII birds but I think collectively the Air Force tries to put way to much crap on the birds today.

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YGBSM !

this is my vtew on the tail here at Osan.
Only 3 jets have the markings, to me they are ok, but nothing to compare to the teeth. Tp be honest the mustang belongs on the back bone like it used to be. With the mustang and the checkertail it makes the tail look tyo clutered.

As Coach said,the 81st TFW jets started out with no colours on the first of the grey jets, that continued through to the camo jets until a little squadron colour appeared on the canopy rail, then a fin stripe, then the 'hippy headband'.....until finally the jets had just the squadron colour on the fin caps a couple of years before they left.
I thought the final look was the best balance.
The 81st always had low viz command and unit shields and the C.O.'s nose-art on 981,181 and 655 was'nt too over the top.
I've looked at the OS jet again, and I still cant take to it, although the sentiment of the marking presentation is a good one.

I don't think its the \"Too Much Crap\" that does it, its the \"Too Much Crap\" they put on it. Doesn't anyone do \"drawings or Proto types anymore?

This is their about Door Art, \"It TOO FLASHY, Not uniformed etc.... etc....\" Well we know our feelings on that one around here.

The tail should always have the \"2 Letter Base code\"( Really do es anyone Really think that No one knows where any Jet comes from??) The Command Patch and the Tail Flashing. I'm not against the \"Big Dipper or the Mustang\" either\" if done with in scale to the rest of it. The Wing Patch goes on the back bone or in another area like the Snoopy use too next to the intake scoops or even the Lawn Darts did the same but it depends on the jet.

The Panther looked \"Nice\" even the AFRES on the Birds looked nice, its just placement, color and size.

Because having a Fleet of \"Pale Gumbies\" with no \"Distinct Markings\" would make it \"Pretty boring and less unit pride in my Book.

Goose

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\"Live Free Or Die\"

That's a bit much for my taste, I'm with prkiii I like the \"old\" tailflash and checker-board.

What do you think of these unit colours?
Viper haters look away now.......
http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123076954

Those colors are \"Great\" ,

Oh wait, that's not a 1930's Bi-Plane trainer

Now a \"Viper\" color was the \"RED-WHITE and BLUE\" Painted one , I got to see alot of jets at Scott AFB back in the early 81-83 time frame along with the F-18 painted in its \"Hornet\" colors with the first \"F-15E\" proto type with fast back tanks, and a \"Demo Load\" of MK 82's since \"McKey'D's was across the river.Even the NASA F-105 plus others.
It was a \"Happening Place \" back then.

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Break in Thread
Hey Dice,

Speaking of that, I was talking to a friend of mine for back then who spent 19 out of 21 years at Scott AFB (And moved back) I asked him if he remembered the \"2 seater A-10\" coming thru for the big \"Show\" ? He thought a minute and said \"I think I do remember it it was parked over by Fuel cell with 2 others for 2 days\"

I thought that was my memory of it too, he is going to ask around, and look thru his stuff to see if he can find a picture.
I told him too see if it was in the \"Airlifter\" .

So we'll see if it pan's out.

Goose

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\"Live Free Or Die\"