Letece zvezde
Encyclopedia
The Leteće zvezde was the aerobatic team of the SFR Yugoslav Air Force
.
, a pair of SFR Yugoslav Air Force
Jungmeisters made regular appearances at air displays in the late 1940s.
These were followed by team of three Yakovlev Yak-3
s, a five-plane grouping of the Ikarus S-49Cs (redesigned Yak-9s) and in the late 1950s, the Air Force's first jet display team, flying F-84G Thunderjets. A new team formed by the 204th Fighter Aviation Regiment based at Batajnica
(the unit's Canadair Mk 4 Sabers being responsible for the defense of Belgrade) flew over a crowd of 200.000 spectators attending the 1960 Belgrade
Air show held at Zemun.
This team lasted for five years until a four–ship group using the indigenous G-2 Galeb basic jet trainer that performed for the first time at Ljubljana
in July 1968, replaced it. The Galeb was replaced by single–seat light attack variant of the G–2, the J-21 Jastreb which was flown until 1979. In that year a pair of Czech Zlin Z-526
trainers, flown by Yugoslav Air Force
instructors, took over and became the first postwar YAF demonstration team to an overseas invent, the Venice International air show in 1979
They were replicated in 1990 by the G-4 Super Galeb
advanced jet trainer and light attack aircraft which had made its debut in the West at the 1983 Paris air show
.
However, almost exactly a year after their first public appearance, at the 1990 Batajnica
airshow – and just before they were to make their international debut in Italy – the Flying Stars were grounded by the outbreak of hostilities
in Slovenia
at 1991.
During the years of isolation and sanctions, the team's Super Galebs were used for advanced training by the Air Force, although some the retained their red, white and blue color schemes. Once the decision to reform the Flying stars had been made at the October 9, 1996, Major General Blagoje Grahovac, Commander of the Aviation Corps, gave the 172nd Air Brigade – controlling units at Podgorica
– the responsibility of choosing new pilots and working out new routines.
Pilots were selected from a large number of volunteers, all of whom were experienced instructors and included two former members of the 1990 team, Major Predrag Vukašinović and Captain Saša Ristić. Under the leadership of Major Vukašinović and Captain Ristić each pilot was put through five test flights of the Super Galeb, two solo flights with the "boss" in the back seat, and another three outings, flying as a member of the full team.
By February 1997, the team manager and commentator (who is also the reserve pilot) and six pilots with varying backgrounds – one is a former MiG-21 pilot, while another flew the J-22 Orao – had been chosen and training begun in earnest. New routines were practiced using a basic formation of four, interspersed with a synchro pair. The display is flown at between 160-435 mph (260–700 km) with the main formation maintaining a separation of only 2 ft (60 cm)! A "flat" program for use in low cloud base condition was also designed and practiced. The final program, which lasts for 20 minutes, was demonstrated before senior officers in April 1997 after which approval for public appearance was given.
The new Flying Stars, with the three – bar roundel replacing the former SFR Yugoslavia Air Force roundels with new ones, were seen in public for the first time at the Batajnica
air show on June 15, 1997. Other domestic shows followed at Podgorica
, Niš
and Vršac
, culminating in the first overseas appearance of a Yugoslav Air Force display team for nearly two decades. On September 27/28 1997, the Flying Stars and their support aircraft, a YAF An-26 with the ground crews and ground handling equipment, appeared at the Bulgarian air show at Plovdiv Airport – Krumovo Airbase in front of more than 50,000 enthusiastic spectators. General Veličković, piloting his own Super Galeb accompanied them to Krumovo. The Flying Stars also appeared at the CIAF 1998 in Czech Republic
.
All seven aircraft of the Flying Stars team were destroyed on Podgorica
airfield during the NATO air campaign in Yugoslavia
. General Veličković was killed on Batajnica
airfield at the end of the war, he was a high ranking Yugoslav officer who was killed during the war.
After the war Flying Stars have appeared Air Force day—August 2, 2000, at Golubovci air base, flying on regular G-4 Super Galeb aircraft painted in standard green-gray-blue color schemes. Soon after that, the bad situation in military and air force both, lack of fuel, aircraft and money have influenced the disband of Flying Stars. Its pilots continued aerobatic flying as test pilot of Flight Test Center—VOC (now Flight Test Section of Technical Test Center—TOC) performing their program on solo flight at Super Galeb aircraft at various airshows in Czech Republic, Hungary, Greece, Slovakia and Romania.
Soko IJ-21 Jastreb
1985–1990
The Flying Stars had for a short time, used seven Jastreb light attack-reconnaissance aircraft. They were painted yellow with the colours of the Yugoslav Flag in blue, white and red. After being replaced by G-4 they were returned to service in the Yugoslav Air Force
combat units.
Serial numbers of Jastrebs:
Soko G-4 Super Galeb
1990-1999
The seven G-4 Super Galeb trainer–light attack aircraft replaced the J-21 Jastrebs. They were painted in colours of Yugoslav Flag, blue, white and red. In 1999 during NATO's attack on Yugoslavia, all aircraft of the Flying stars team were destroyed at the Golubovci Airbase despite at the time being non-combatant aircraft. After the war, team have appeared flying on standard Super Galeb aircraft of Air Force, painted in regular camouflage schemes until it was formally disbanded in 2000.
Serial numbers of Super Galebs:
SFR Yugoslav Air Force
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslav Air Force , was the air force of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia . Formed in 1945, it was preceded by the Yugoslav Royal Air Force which was disbanded in 1941, following the German occupation of Yugoslavia...
.
Predecessors
Yugoslavia has a long history of precision display flying which was first demonstrated to the public during and airshow at Zemun – Belgrade's military airfield – in June 1938. After World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, a pair of SFR Yugoslav Air Force
SFR Yugoslav Air Force
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslav Air Force , was the air force of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia . Formed in 1945, it was preceded by the Yugoslav Royal Air Force which was disbanded in 1941, following the German occupation of Yugoslavia...
Jungmeisters made regular appearances at air displays in the late 1940s.
These were followed by team of three Yakovlev Yak-3
Yakovlev Yak-3
The Yakovlev Yak-3 was a World War II Soviet fighter aircraft.Robust and easy to maintain, it was much liked by pilots and ground crew alike....
s, a five-plane grouping of the Ikarus S-49Cs (redesigned Yak-9s) and in the late 1950s, the Air Force's first jet display team, flying F-84G Thunderjets. A new team formed by the 204th Fighter Aviation Regiment based at Batajnica
Batajnica
Batajnica is an suburban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun.-Name:...
(the unit's Canadair Mk 4 Sabers being responsible for the defense of Belgrade) flew over a crowd of 200.000 spectators attending the 1960 Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
Air show held at Zemun.
This team lasted for five years until a four–ship group using the indigenous G-2 Galeb basic jet trainer that performed for the first time at Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
in July 1968, replaced it. The Galeb was replaced by single–seat light attack variant of the G–2, the J-21 Jastreb which was flown until 1979. In that year a pair of Czech Zlin Z-526
Zlin Z-526
- External links :**-See also:...
trainers, flown by Yugoslav Air Force
Yugoslav Air Force
The Yugoslav Air Force may refer to:Kingdom of Yugoslavia*Yugoslav Royal Air Force, active from 1918 to 1941.Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia*SFR Yugoslav Air Force, active from 1945 to 1991....
instructors, took over and became the first postwar YAF demonstration team to an overseas invent, the Venice International air show in 1979
The Flying stars
By 1985 the team had reverted to flying six IJ-21 Jastreb, and the following year it was officially named the Flying stars, nicknamed Kanarinci (Canarys). Over the next five years, the distinctive red, white, blue and yellow Jastrebs of the Flying Stars became a familiar sight at air show throughout Yugoslavia.They were replicated in 1990 by the G-4 Super Galeb
G-4 Super Galeb
The Soko G-4 Super Galeb is a single engine, advanced jet trainer and light ground-attack aircraft.-Design and development:First flown on 17 July 1978, with serial production beginning in 1982, the G-4 was designed to replace the G-2 Galeb in the Yugoslav Air Force.-Operational history:The G-4 saw...
advanced jet trainer and light attack aircraft which had made its debut in the West at the 1983 Paris air show
Paris Air Show
The Paris Air Show is the world's oldest and largest air show. Established in 1909, it is currently held every odd year at Le Bourget Airport in north Paris, France...
.
However, almost exactly a year after their first public appearance, at the 1990 Batajnica
Batajnica
Batajnica is an suburban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun.-Name:...
airshow – and just before they were to make their international debut in Italy – the Flying Stars were grounded by the outbreak of hostilities
Ten-Day War
The Ten-Day War or the Slovenian Independence War was a military conflict between the Slovenian Territorial Defence and the Yugoslav People's Army in 1991 following Slovenia's declaration of independence.-Background:...
in Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
at 1991.
During the years of isolation and sanctions, the team's Super Galebs were used for advanced training by the Air Force, although some the retained their red, white and blue color schemes. Once the decision to reform the Flying stars had been made at the October 9, 1996, Major General Blagoje Grahovac, Commander of the Aviation Corps, gave the 172nd Air Brigade – controlling units at Podgorica
Podgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
– the responsibility of choosing new pilots and working out new routines.
Pilots were selected from a large number of volunteers, all of whom were experienced instructors and included two former members of the 1990 team, Major Predrag Vukašinović and Captain Saša Ristić. Under the leadership of Major Vukašinović and Captain Ristić each pilot was put through five test flights of the Super Galeb, two solo flights with the "boss" in the back seat, and another three outings, flying as a member of the full team.
By February 1997, the team manager and commentator (who is also the reserve pilot) and six pilots with varying backgrounds – one is a former MiG-21 pilot, while another flew the J-22 Orao – had been chosen and training begun in earnest. New routines were practiced using a basic formation of four, interspersed with a synchro pair. The display is flown at between 160-435 mph (260–700 km) with the main formation maintaining a separation of only 2 ft (60 cm)! A "flat" program for use in low cloud base condition was also designed and practiced. The final program, which lasts for 20 minutes, was demonstrated before senior officers in April 1997 after which approval for public appearance was given.
The new Flying Stars, with the three – bar roundel replacing the former SFR Yugoslavia Air Force roundels with new ones, were seen in public for the first time at the Batajnica
Batajnica
Batajnica is an suburban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun.-Name:...
air show on June 15, 1997. Other domestic shows followed at Podgorica
Podgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
, Niš
Niš
Niš is the largest city of southern Serbia and third-largest city in Serbia . According to the data from 2011, the city of Niš has a population of 177,972 inhabitants, while the city municipality has a population of 257,867. The city covers an area of about 597 km2, including the urban area,...
and Vršac
Vršac
Vršac is a town and municipality located in Serbia. In 2002 the town's total population was 36,623, while Vršac municipality had 54,369 inhabitants. Vršac is located in the Banat region, in the Vojvodina province of Serbia. It is part of the South Banat District.-Name:The name Vršac is of Serbian...
, culminating in the first overseas appearance of a Yugoslav Air Force display team for nearly two decades. On September 27/28 1997, the Flying Stars and their support aircraft, a YAF An-26 with the ground crews and ground handling equipment, appeared at the Bulgarian air show at Plovdiv Airport – Krumovo Airbase in front of more than 50,000 enthusiastic spectators. General Veličković, piloting his own Super Galeb accompanied them to Krumovo. The Flying Stars also appeared at the CIAF 1998 in Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
.
All seven aircraft of the Flying Stars team were destroyed on Podgorica
Podgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
airfield during the NATO air campaign in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
. General Veličković was killed on Batajnica
Batajnica
Batajnica is an suburban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun.-Name:...
airfield at the end of the war, he was a high ranking Yugoslav officer who was killed during the war.
After the war Flying Stars have appeared Air Force day—August 2, 2000, at Golubovci air base, flying on regular G-4 Super Galeb aircraft painted in standard green-gray-blue color schemes. Soon after that, the bad situation in military and air force both, lack of fuel, aircraft and money have influenced the disband of Flying Stars. Its pilots continued aerobatic flying as test pilot of Flight Test Center—VOC (now Flight Test Section of Technical Test Center—TOC) performing their program on solo flight at Super Galeb aircraft at various airshows in Czech Republic, Hungary, Greece, Slovakia and Romania.
Aircraft
1985–1990
The Flying Stars had for a short time, used seven Jastreb light attack-reconnaissance aircraft. They were painted yellow with the colours of the Yugoslav Flag in blue, white and red. After being replaced by G-4 they were returned to service in the Yugoslav Air Force
Yugoslav Air Force
The Yugoslav Air Force may refer to:Kingdom of Yugoslavia*Yugoslav Royal Air Force, active from 1918 to 1941.Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia*SFR Yugoslav Air Force, active from 1945 to 1991....
combat units.
Serial numbers of Jastrebs:
- 24404
- 24409
- 24412
- 24417
- 24418
- 24422
- 24423
Soko G-4 Super Galeb
G-4 Super Galeb
The Soko G-4 Super Galeb is a single engine, advanced jet trainer and light ground-attack aircraft.-Design and development:First flown on 17 July 1978, with serial production beginning in 1982, the G-4 was designed to replace the G-2 Galeb in the Yugoslav Air Force.-Operational history:The G-4 saw...
1990-1999
The seven G-4 Super Galeb trainer–light attack aircraft replaced the J-21 Jastrebs. They were painted in colours of Yugoslav Flag, blue, white and red. In 1999 during NATO's attack on Yugoslavia, all aircraft of the Flying stars team were destroyed at the Golubovci Airbase despite at the time being non-combatant aircraft. After the war, team have appeared flying on standard Super Galeb aircraft of Air Force, painted in regular camouflage schemes until it was formally disbanded in 2000.
Serial numbers of Super Galebs:
- 23693
- 23694
- 23695
- 23696
- 23697
- 23698
- 23699
See also
- J-21 Jastreb
- G-4 Super GalebG-4 Super GalebThe Soko G-4 Super Galeb is a single engine, advanced jet trainer and light ground-attack aircraft.-Design and development:First flown on 17 July 1978, with serial production beginning in 1982, the G-4 was designed to replace the G-2 Galeb in the Yugoslav Air Force.-Operational history:The G-4 saw...
- SFR Yugoslav Air ForceSFR Yugoslav Air ForceThe Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslav Air Force , was the air force of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia . Formed in 1945, it was preceded by the Yugoslav Royal Air Force which was disbanded in 1941, following the German occupation of Yugoslavia...
- FR Yugoslav Air ForceAir Force of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia / Serbia and MontenegroThe Air Force of Serbia and Montenegro , also named Air Force of Yugoslavia in the 1992-2003 period, was the air force of the former Serbia and Montenegro. It had around 300 fighter aircraft, ground attack aircraft, and other...