After flying for 30 years in front of millions of spectators worldwide, the PACAF F-16 Demo Team will disband in 2025, as Misawa Air Base transitions to F-35s, marking a shift in US regional defense strategy.
The Pacific Air Forces F-16 Demonstration Team hasn’t flown off into the sunset, though it did conduct its final demonstration flight at Misawa Air Base, Japan, on Friday, May 30. The PACAF’s F-16 Demo Team will deactivate on June 16, 2025, marking the end of 30 years of aerial demonstrations.
The move comes as Misawa Air Base, known as the “Point at the Tip of the Spear” due to its proximity to potential adversaries, including North Korea and China, has begun to transition to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. The fifth-generation stealth fighters will rotate to the base next spring, while the F-16 Fighting Falcons will be phased out in the summer of 2026.
“Misawa is transitioning to an F-35 fighter wing as part of US Forces Japan’s broader modernization efforts,” said Col. Matthew Kenkel, the 35th Fighter Wing deputy commander.
“Basing the F-35 here is a significant investment in regional security and deepens our integration with Japanese allies. This move doesn’t just enhance our deterrence posture today, it sets the tone for what Misawa will represent over the next 40 years: a forward, ready, and modern force at the edge of the Indo-Pacific.”
The first F-16s arrived at Misawa on July 4, 1985, and a Fighting Falcon assigned to the 13th Fighter Squadron at the base, hit the 10,000 flight hour milestone in September 2022.
The PACAF’s F-16 Demo Team Is Over
A decade after the Fighting Falcons landed at Misawa, the PACAF F-16 Demonstration Team was formed. Its primary mission was to “inspire goodwill and promote positive relations between the US and partner nations across the western Pacific by exhibiting an exciting display of aerial maneuverability.”
The team has served to enhance US relations with Japan. At the same time, it has performed in more than 20 other countries worldwide, carrying out aerial demonstrations in the Indo-Pacific and beyond, including South Korea, Australia, Malaysia, India, and the Philippines. In contrast, the team traveled to Mexico, the UK, Egypt, and other nations. The PACAF F-16 Demo Team has also performed at nearly 400 air shows in front of “estimated 24.7 million” people over the past three decades. During just its first two seasons in the 1990s, the team traveled to six countries and performed for more than four million people, including seven heads of state.
The PACAF’s Final Public Show
It is unclear whether the PACAF F-16 Demo Team will return with the F-35 once the transition at Misawa is completed. However, the final public display with the F-16 occurred at Yokota Air Base in May as part of the Japanese-American Friendship Festival. That event featured two F-16s and an aerial demonstration for more than 117,000 people.
“It was an honor and a privilege to fly alongside the Demo Team at their final public appearance at the Yokota Friendship Festival, more than 14 years since my last experience on the demo team in 2011,” added Kenkel.
“I am continually amazed at the caliber of the Airman selected to be a part of the team and the impact they continue to have all across the Pacific.”
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a thirty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image Credit: Shutterstock/Mike Mareen.
