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The Blue Diamonds is the primary aerobatic team of the Philippine Air Force .

It is the main counterpart the Blue Angels Blue Angels The United States Navy s Navy Flight !emonstration S"uadron# popularly $no%n as the Blue Angels# first performed in &'() and is currently the oldest flying aerobatic team... of the USN and the Thunderbirds of the USAF. It is based in Basa Air Base# in Pampanga.

History
The team %as organi*ed in &'+, by &-t. .ose /on*ale* and his group. The team first used P0 +&! in their performances before 1et aircraft %ere ac"uired by the Air Force. As the Air Force gre% its popularity and strength# so is the team. Transformation in to the 1et age started in &'+'# %hen the F02)! has been ac"uired by the air force through its moderni*ation effort. -t. -ino 3. Abadia %as the group commander of the team at the time. They performed in the country every Aviation 4ee$. Smo$e Smo$e This article is about the substance. For other uses# see Smo$e .Smo$e is the collection of airborne solid and li"uid particulates and gases emitted %hen a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis# together %ith the "uantity of air that is entrained or other%ise mi5ed into the mass... %as introduced in &'+2# and in &'+'# the team performed %ith the 6epublic of 3hina Air Force in August & and the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds . In &'),# the team did not perform# because most of the team s pilots %ere members of the )th Tactical Fighter S"uadron or the -imbas S"uadron# and they %ere called to 3ongo 6epublic of the 3ongo 7-8opoldville9 The 6epublic of the 3ongo %as an independent republic established follo%ing the independence granted to the former colony of the Belgian 3ongo in &'):... for a United Nations peace$eeping activity. The team continued to perform in &')+# and they used the F0+ Freedom Fighter in &')2. In &';: s# crisis came into the Philippines. But in &';&# the sister team of the Blue !iamonds# the 6ed Aces %as formed. In &';)# the team %as disbanded because of the problems that came about. But in &'2)# they %ere revived again# %hen military problems %ere eased out. In <::)# %hen the Air Force phased out their F0+ 1ets# the team %as temporarily disbanded. Presently# the 6ed Aces are no% dormant# until ac"uisition of modern e"uipment. Among the types in consideration is the American F0&) Fighting Falcon = F>A0&2 ?ornet # Israeli @fir # French Airage <::: or the S%edish .AS ,' /ripen

Aircraft
Planes of the Team P0+&! Austang + aircraft &'+,0&'+' F02)! 2 aircraft &'+'0&')2 F0+ Freedom Fighter &< aircraft &')20late <::+

'They would rather wait for a new commander-in-chief.'

Respect

he chief of the Philippine Air Force, Pedrito Cadungog, has a dream. It is a respectable

dream. He wants his air force to be "supersonic". I remember those years when the PAF had the lue !iamonds, a s"uadron of then ad#anced $et fighters which would %oom o#er the s&ies each time we celebrated Araw ng 'alayaan. (ow all we ha#e is one wor&ing C)*+,, and a few Italian)made -.)** that ha#e been labeled "widow)ma&ers" since we ac"uired them because they &ept falling from the s&y. Admitting the PAF/s woeful lac& of air materiel, Cadungog proclaimed that "a respected nation must ha#e a pro$ection of military power." Then he as&s, "0ithout it, who will respect us1" To which he himself replied, "(o one." ut his dreams will cost a lot. Fifty billion per year in a multi)year series of ac"uisitions. "Ha#ing a trillion would ma&e the Air Force more than respectable," Cadungog said. He &nows of course that his dreams will not be reali%ed under his watch. And he belie#es the procurement of new aircraft that would "ualify his institution to become "supersonic" will li&ely begin in .,**. Cadungog is on)tangent in his timetable. To ac"uire e2pensi#e air materiel re"uires financial accommodation from creditors, and that would be a function of respect. Creditors will not accord respect to his commander)in)chief, whose go#ernment is embroiled in multi)billion

corruption scandals, and whose "go#ernance" is ad$udged by the 0orld an& as the most corrupt in all of 3ast Asia. They would rather wait for a new commander)in)chief. To begin with, $ust as respect from fellow human beings is earned by good deeds and word of honor, the community of nations respects those who are led by men and women of honor, who understand self)respect, who comport themsel#es with dignity, not the least of which is leading with a real mandate. Certainly not one who would call an election commissioner and as& about the certitude of her winning with no less than a million #otes. Certainly not one who would traipse needlessly in foreign lands while her people drown in floods and sin&ing ships. Certainly not a commander)in)chief who could withstand the indignity of ha#ing a press conference on the sidewal&s of Foggy ottom in 0ashington !C, beside an undersecretary whose ran& beggars hers by ten notches. 4 ut then she is illegitimate, ne c/est pas15 And go calling on a defense secretary at the Pentagon, when she had in tow her own defense secretary, who effecti#ely became absent from his duties as chair of the (!CC where he was needed most in the aftermath of Fengshen. Certainly not one who would herself arrange to meet with a senator 4at his con#enience5 who wants to be the ne2t president of a another so#ereign nation, in the lobby of the 0illard Hotel, and is gi#en a scant ten minutes of his time to reminisce about his 6 and 6 at Clar& Air ase which she has now renamed after her own father, after he was tortured and imprisoned by re#olutionaries of a country once much poorer than hers, but has ne#er e#er lost its self)respect, and succeeded in defeating the world/s most powerful country. Certainly not a commander)in)chief who would chase another senator who hopes to be his country/s ne2t president, and would be in "high spirits" after he condescendingly treats her to a short telephone call, to e2press his "condolences" o#er the tragedies that ha#e recently befallen her benighted islands, as if to remind her that her duty was to be bac& home, and not at the 0aldorf)Astoria. To spend her people/s money to alle#iate their suffering, and not in 7,,,, dollar per table lunches with bored businessmen forced to suffer her uni"uely) #oiced braggadocio, while lapdogs flown in from thousands of miles away politely applaud e#en in their disbelief, Certainly not one who would call upon her so#ereign nation/s head of state and in the presence of half her cabinet, discuss nothing more significant than how pleased he is with his "Philippine)American" chef/s e2pertise at ma&ing culinary delights of his fa#orite Te2)8e2 mess hall chow. And at that, claim before this "emperor of the world" that "we are family," going beyond all "special relations" foolishly touted through all these years of our post) colonial history. "Family" my foot. 8uchachos 4a term the Te2an ush understands5 is more li&e it, the way our #eterans ha#e been waiting for two generations and more for the pittance that comes with final recognition as "comrades)in)arms" in the last great war of our American "family." 9es, :eneral Cadungog, dream about the legitimate ambitions of your "supersonic" Air Force. ;uite unfortunately, those legitimate ambitions ha#e no place under the illegitimate leadership your subordinates are forced to ser#e, partly because the man who recommended you to your lofty posting, your former Chief of -taff of all the Armed Forces, conspired with her to cheat, and closed his eyes to all the stealing, and sustained her lies throughout. And $ust to lighten up your wee&end, here/s a "$o&e only" concocted by "Philippine) Americans" based in Illinois, supporters all of arac& <bama=

<bama/s campaign strategist enters his principal/s room. He faces his candidate and says, " arry, there/s this umpteenth re"uest from President :loria Arroyo of the Philippines for an appointment." 4 y the way, audience is not used in America. I thought only royalty or the Pope would see people in audience, but somehow, both media and politicians in this benighted country describe a meeting with a relati#ely high official an "audience." -illy.5 "!idn/t I tell you so many times I ha#en/t got the time of day or night for someone li&e her1" <bama answers in dismay. "9eah.I &now, but I $ust thought you ought to &now the latest persuasi#e sweetener coming from her lobbyists in !C", says the aide. "0hat/s that1" <bama as&s. "They said she has with her someone who could help you win, an elections commissioner in her country named :arci)ya.oh, I forget those lengthy >atino names". A Filipino waiter inside the room suddenly inter$ects, ":arcillano, sir1" "9eah.than&s.that/s the name". "0ho the hell is he1", <bama faces the waiter. "He/s the guy who 8rs. Arroyo tal&ed to o#er the phone in .,,?, as&ing him to ensure her win in the presidential elections. To cheat for her, sir", the waiter replies. "0hat the hell@ And she wants to meet me1 >et her tal& as much as she wants with that dor& ush, but don/t let her get near me e#en with a thirty)foot pole", arac& fumes. AAA

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