The brand new paint scheme of Prime Aces’ F-16 mimics that of the Russian Su-57 “Felon” fighter jet.
On Aug. 4, 2025, one in every of Prime Aces’ former Israeli Air Pressure F-16A Netz plane was noticed flying for the primary time with an attention grabbing new adversary paint scheme. The livery is clearly impressed by the Russian Su-57 and has been dubbed the “Felon paint job.”
The plane flew from Mesa Gateway Airport, the place Prime Aces performs upkeep on its F-16s, to Luke AFB, Arizona, as ACES 51. It then carried out an area mission from Luke over Arizona underneath the callsign ACES 1. The mission might be tracked on-line on flight monitoring web sites Flightradar24.com and ADSBExchange.com.
One or two images of the jet being wheeled out of the paint barn at Mesa had surfaced on-line, however its return to Luke AFB provided a greater take a look at the brand new shade scheme, due to the photographs taken by William Ellison.
The F-16, tail quantity N871TA and bort quantity “284” Crimson, includes a low-visibility, splinter-style gray camouflage sample just like that utilized by Russia’s fifth-generation stealth fighter. The 2-tone scheme contains angular transitions throughout the airframe, mimicking the faceted radar-evading design philosophy of the T-50/Su-57.
The jet additionally carries Soviet-style purple stars on the tail and wings and, on the tail fin, a Cyrillic script that reads “Опыт Важен” (translating to “Expertise Issues”), a delicate nod to Prime Aces’ core mission of offering extremely skilled pilots and practical menace emulation for U.S. and allied forces.
Apparently, the plane additionally retains the kill marking it earned in September 1981, when Netz #284 shot down a Syrian MiG-23.
The F-16A Netz (Hawk) is among the plane which have been retired from the Israeli Air Pressure on the finish of 2016 and delivered within the US in 2021. Whereas plane N871TA had retained a paint scheme just like the one worn whereas nonetheless in service with the Israeli Air Pressure, Prime Aces had already begun repainting its F-16s with extra Aggressor-style liveries. Final yr, we reported on one in every of their jets sporting a “Flanker Blue” shade scheme, impressed by the one utilized by some F-16s of the U.S. Air Pressure’s sixty fourth Aggressor Squadron at Nellis Air Pressure Base, Nevada. It’s secure to imagine Prime Aces will undertake extra paint schemes past the Flanker Blue and Felon to its F-16 fleet.
In 2021, Prime Aces Corp. acquired its first batch of 4 F-16 Preventing Falcons from the Israeli Air Pressure, out of a complete order of 29 plane. These jets, have been delivered to the U.S. firm with unspecified configurations and subsequently upgraded to a regular that is named F-16 AAF (Superior Aggressor Fighter).
The enhancements included the proprietary Superior Aggressor Mission System (AAMS), which permits the F-16s to precisely replicate near-peer adversary fighters, enhancing coaching realism for U.S. pilots. This technique, mixed with AESA radars, Scorpion Helmet Mounted Shows, datalinks, and digital countermeasures, offers a complete suite of simulated superior threats, though the plane function in a clear configuration with simulated weapons solely. Apparently, the Prime Aces’ F-16s have been outfitted with IRST pods since 2024.
Such upgrades make them credible surrogates for superior menace plane, such because the Su-35 or Su-57.
