On 5 April 2019, the Minnesota Air National Guard 179th Fighter Squadron/148th Fighter Wing'
General Dynamics F-16C Block 50B Fighting Falcon "90-0831" was seen at Leeuwarden Air
Base in the Netherlands during Frisian Flag 2019. The Minnesota Air National Guard 179th Fighter
Squadron/148th Fighter Wing is normally stationed at Duluth International Airport in Minnesota and
is equiped with F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcons. On 27 April 2010, the Minnesota ANG 148th Fighter Wing'
changed to the F-16C, starting with the arrival of three F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcons from
Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, at the 148th Fighter Wing Air National Guard Base, Duluth, Minnesota.
With the arrival of these block 50 F-16s at the wing, the unit became the first Air National Guard
unit to convert to the block 50 aircraft from Active Duty Air Force. General Dynamics F-16CM-50-CF
Fighting Falcon msn CC-31 "90-0831" is one of ten Fighting Falcons of the Minnesota Air National Guard
(nicknamed “Bulldogs”) deployed to Europe and temporarily stationed at Leeuwarden AFB. The U.S. Air Force deployed
not only ten F-16C Fighting Falcons of the “Bulldogs” but also a total of 24 pilots and 160 supporting airmen and
women to Leeuwarden AFB to participate in Frisian Flag 2019, a multinational exercise in the Netherlands. |