Belgian Air Force has announced that the new F-16 solo display pilot for the 2022-2024 season will be Captain Steven “Vrieske” De Vries.

Captain Steven De Vries, a Forty-eight-year old Limburg-born Belgian Air Force pilot, is a very experienced fighter pilot from the 31st “Tigers” Squadron at Kleine Brogel Air Base. He is the sixth pilot in the world and the first Non-US pilot to cross the 5,000-hour mark in an F-16. Only five American pilots had crossed this symbolic milestone before him.

Those 5,000 flight hours were accumulated both during operational training missions and operational deployment. Captain De Vries, nicknamed “Vrieske”, has been a member of the Belgian Air Force since 1990.

Captain Vries is taking over the role as an F-16 demo pilot from senior captain aviator Stefan "Vador" Darte who displayed the F-16 since 2018.