A former Republic of China Air Force (RoCAF) pilot, identified as Huang Yang Te in a recent interview, has revealed details of an unusual exchange that saw him fly a French Air Force Mirage 2000B during the 1996 Asian Aerospace airshow in Singapore. The pilot, a former F-16 instructor and also an instructor in the Fighter Weapon School, detailed his unexpected opportunity to fly the French delta-wing fighter, which was serving as a back-up to the Rafale prototype demonstrator that was flying at the show.
The RoCAF pilot was selected for the trip to Singapore along with another officer, Wang Ming-I, who was a former squadron leader and who later became a Deputy Chief of the General Staff. Both of them were fighter pilots and were English-speaking, which was a requirement put forward by the French. The invitation to fly the Mirage came from the French Air Force.
Upon arriving in Singapore, the RoCAF pilots were given a briefing on the Mirage 2000B, including ejection seat procedures and ground egress. “The atmosphere was completely different from the U.S.,” Instructor Huang recalled, describing his arrival at the French booth at the show site, where pilots congregated around small round tables, some enjoying cigars and red wine.
The first flight was conducted by Wang Ming-I, who was a qualified IDF squadron commander. He was assigned to evaluating the aircraft’s avionics systems. The next day, instructor Huang was assigned to evaluate the aircraft’s performance. He donned a French flight suit, complete with lambskin gloves, and after a pre-flight chat and breakfast with the French pilot, it was time to fly.
Strapped into cockpit of the Mirage 2000B, Instructor Huang took off from Changi airport with a French Air Force Lieutenant in the front seat. Their jet taxied behind the Rafale when it took off for the flight demonstration. During his flight, Instructor Huang pushed the Mirage to its limits, performing a series of high-G manoeuvres, including a negative-G pushover and sustained turns. The Mirage’s delta wing configuration proved particularly interesting to the experienced F-16 and Indigenous Defense Fighter (IDF) pilot. When querying about making a sustained G turn, he learned firsthand about the high-drag penalties associated with the delta platform. Instead both men flew maximum performance turns. Each 360-degree maneuver resulted in the Mirage 2000B losing 10,000ft of altitude.
The flight concluded with an autopilot-coupled instrument approach that Instructor Huang likened to landing a commercial airliner, complete with ILS capture indications. The physical toll of the high-G maneuvering became apparent only after landing, when he spent several minutes recovering in a portable toilet smoking a cigarette before joining the French contingent for a post-flight steak and wine debrief.
The day after the flight, instead of going to the airshow, he skipped the event and visited Sim Lim Square, a tech shopping center. He later chance upon the French pilot in Chinatown, and they enjoyed some drinks and food at Clarke Quay.
The instructor also discussed the diplomatic context of his trip. He noted that Taiwan has to rely on countries with which it does not have formal diplomatic relations to acquire equipment and technology. The instructor said the Singapore Airshow was a chance for Taiwan to cooperate with other nations and to explore defense technology, including working with Singapore on the RF-5 conversion. Seven Taiwanese F-5Es were converted into RF-5Es by ST Engineering. His father, Huang Hsien Jung, was the commander of RoCAF at that time and was at the airshow to discuss on the conversion.
Only way to get 7 RF-5Es converted by willing friends when all China could do was to bellow!