Connect with us

Popular Science

Flying in an Air Force F-16 | I PUKED 3 TIMES 🤮

PopSci’s Rob Verger recently flew in an F-16 fighter jet with the Air Force’s elite demonstration team, the Thunderbirds. And though he was grateful for the chance to take to the skies with them, it did not go well for him—he threw up three times during and after the flight. So in the weeks since…

Published

on

PopSci’s Rob Verger recently flew in an F-16 fighter jet with the Air Force’s elite demonstration team, the Thunderbirds. And though he was grateful for the chance to take to the skies with them, it did not go well for him—he threw up three times during and after the flight.

So in the weeks since he landed, Rob couldn’t help but wonder: why did the flight kick his butt so hard, while professional pilots seem to have no problems enduring all the forces of the jet?

Learn more:

SUBSCRIBE! for more Popular Science on YouTube ►►

Producer/Video by: Jason Lederman

Narrator/Researcher: Rob Verger

Cameras:
Canon EOS C100 –
Canon EOS 5D Mark III –

Additional equipment:
Canon EF50mm Lens –
Canon Zoom Lens EF24-105mm –
Sachtler Ace XL Tripod System –
Sennheiser EW100ENG G3 Camera Wireless Mic Kit –
Litepanels Astra E 1×1 Daylight LED Panel –
Lowepro Magnum 650 AW Shoulder Bag –
The North Face Base Camp Duffel –

Music: APM Music

Special Thanks: U.S. Air Force, The Air Force Thunderbirds, Maj. Jason “Flack” Markzon

Media: Department of Defense, NASA, Wikimedia Commons, Pixabay, archive.org, Prelinger Archives, Looney Tunes (1943) Warner Bros.

GET MORE POPULAR SCIENCE

E-mail newsletter:

Facebook:

Twitter:

Instagram:

Flipboard:

Podcasts:

#usairforce #usaf #thunderbirds #f16 #popsci #popularscience #f16 #f16d #usafthunderbirds

Continue Reading
Advertisement
38 Comments

38 Comments

  1. Ivory

    August 1, 2019 at 10:40 am

    Wow! That’s insane! Now I have so much more respect for air shows! Thanks for sharing!

  2. @ivorydelights

    August 1, 2019 at 6:40 am

    Wow! That’s insane! Now I have so much more respect for air shows! Thanks for sharing!

  3. JogBird

    August 1, 2019 at 10:59 am

    Fighter pilots need to be very physically fit

  4. @JogBird

    August 1, 2019 at 6:59 am

    Fighter pilots need to be very physically fit

  5. Q T

    August 1, 2019 at 11:38 am

    jeez i don’t blame you for getting ur ass kicked lol

  6. Don't, Jimm

    August 1, 2019 at 11:45 am

    Wow!

  7. @jimmyshrimbe9361

    August 1, 2019 at 7:45 am

    Wow!

  8. alex3261

    August 1, 2019 at 12:17 pm

    You got it right only in the end, as it is the motion sickness that makes you throw up, not the g force. The small sensors in the internal ear transmit to the brain information that is different from that coming from the eyes, and here’s where the trouble starts. This is why there are air sickness bags in airliners, wgere the g forces are negligible. The only sensible g force influence is during the negative g’s, when the content of your stomach is being pushed up an can trigger vomiting.

  9. awesomesauce666

    August 2, 2019 at 1:01 am

    didn’t know that fighter pilots did butt clenches.

    • boonmouche

      August 4, 2019 at 11:19 pm

      Oh yes, a lot! Keeps you conscious which is a very useful thing.

    • marshmallowbudgie

      September 1, 2019 at 1:04 am

      Kegeling’s useful for so so many things

  10. Jeremy Reger

    August 4, 2019 at 10:43 pm

    I flew in an F15 and puked 3 times haha and pulled 8.2Gs ????

  11. @JRegerWVOH

    August 4, 2019 at 6:43 pm

    I flew in an F15 and puked 3 times haha and pulled 8.2Gs 😂

  12. Wagner Gitirana

    August 6, 2019 at 9:47 pm

    Oh man, you are lucky. I wished I would get this experience. If you would control your breath and body muscle, you’d never vomit. I want to go on this ride!!! :))

  13. @wagnergitirana

    August 6, 2019 at 5:47 pm

    Oh man, you are lucky. I wished I would get this experience. If you would control your breath and body muscle, you’d never vomit. I want to go on this ride!!! :))

  14. j mcmann

    November 1, 2019 at 1:34 pm

    Consider its a 1970s design 🙂

  15. j mcmann

    November 1, 2019 at 1:35 pm

    He forgot to mention with heavy G forces come ..hemorrhoids

  16. @Chrisprara

    January 23, 2020 at 9:55 pm

    “around 155lb” yeah bullshit lmao.

  17. @chadlau3106

    April 5, 2020 at 11:54 am

    can you tell us how much it cost to get this flying experience ? i have FAA license though

    • @drdrift8787

      May 12, 2020 at 3:06 am

      Chad Lau they give media rides to journalists/reporters. The whole point of demo squads is to show people what they can do after all, so they want journalists involved.

  18. @soccerguy2433

    April 7, 2020 at 10:37 pm

    So you had”zero fun, sir!” ?

    • @mzamroni

      May 29, 2021 at 4:22 am

      But too much Gs

  19. @mauronobili327

    October 11, 2020 at 1:39 pm

    thank you for sharing

  20. @i4detail

    February 11, 2021 at 2:05 pm

    i really would love the visual experience but i know I’d puke constantly… kudos to you! thx for sharing, great view from inside the canopy. keep it up!

  21. @marshkid1

    May 21, 2021 at 1:45 pm

    Did you take dramadine or anything?

  22. @alan30189

    October 3, 2021 at 8:28 pm

    This would have been a good video if we didn’t have to put up with the annoying background music throughout the video. Geez.
    Figher pilots get to that level over time. They would probably puke too, if they never flew in an F-16 and had to sustain 6 g’s.

  23. @jeremycook4670

    October 6, 2021 at 4:09 am

    I smoke three packs a day and I still say ‘break er damn wings off son’ not because I’m trying to breathe right just trying to keep my a**hole from falling out.

  24. @MG2318-r6u

    October 6, 2021 at 12:58 pm

    The human body is delicate compared to machinery.
    That is why unmanned drones are the new airforce.
    A drone can spin and turn so fast it would make mush out of the body of a pilot.
    “Spam in the Can”.

    • @MG2318-r6u

      October 6, 2021 at 1:12 pm

      P.S. There is nothing to stop a ummanned drone from spinning as fast as a car engine.

  25. @gruivis

    April 24, 2022 at 11:31 am

    I already know I would toss my cookies before the ride is over. You couldn’t pay me to take that punishment. 🤪

  26. @briandavis849

    July 4, 2022 at 2:34 pm

    wuss

    • @lunchbox1553

      November 2, 2022 at 8:37 pm

      So, how did your first flight without any prior training in an F-16 go?

    • @lunchbox1553

      November 3, 2022 at 9:55 am

      @briandavis849 7Gs with no training and you’re ok? I doubt that. You’d need to at least know how to breathe, unless it wasn’t sustained.

  27. @andrebonneau9919

    November 3, 2022 at 1:15 pm

    where’s the ejection seat sequence?

  28. @pavloskairis9994

    April 18, 2023 at 11:20 am

    Pilots have scrambled eggs for breakfast. Why? … because they taste the same way going in or coming out.

  29. @kzzzkt-lost

    March 27, 2024 at 6:05 am

    Educational and awesome footage!

  30. @dirtrider88

    April 5, 2024 at 11:34 pm

    quick question, is an air force f 16 different than a civilian f 16?

  31. @limabravo6065

    March 29, 2025 at 1:33 am

    I got a rride in one of these as an incentive ride for good performance while in the air force. I couldnt understand why the pilot was grinning at me so much… until we got airborne. I swear the landing gear had just been stowed when he punched the warp drive and we went into a vertical climb and i had an elephant swan dive onto my chest. Coolest thing was going supersonic out over the pacific ocean because its like barely contained chaos and then silky smooth. And that aircraft in particular is just mental, designed to be unstable, its like a flying death machine with the personality of a methhead. And seeing how little the stick actually moves broke my head a little. Oh and i didnt puke, definitely lost consciousness twice but i didnt get sick mostly because i didnt want to have to clean the thing afterwards

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Popular Science

The Baffling Cases of Spontaneous Human Combustion

In 17th, 18th, and 19th century Europe, there were potentially 200 reported cases of spontaneous human combustion, where bodies were burned away, leaving limbs behind and no apparent source of of the flames. These cases captured the popular imagination, showing up often in literature of the time. So, is it possible for a human body…

Published

on

In 17th, 18th, and 19th century Europe, there were potentially 200 reported cases of spontaneous human combustion, where bodies were burned away, leaving limbs behind and no apparent source of of the flames. These cases captured the popular imagination, showing up often in literature of the time.

So, is it possible for a human body to burst into flames without warning? The similarities between these cases have lead modern scientists to fascinating conclusions.

Read more:

Hosted by Annie Colbert
Reported by Lauren Leffer
Editing and graphics by Avital Oehler
Written and produced by Matt Silverman

Continue Reading

Popular Science

The Real Reasons Permanent Daylight Savings Time Never Stuck

Whether you’re pro-Daylight Savings or pro-Standard Time, the science is clear: Switching *between* the two every year is terrible for human health. So why haven’t we stuck with one system all year? The answer is both scientific AND political. Hosted by Annie Colbert Reported by Tom Hawking Edited by Avital Oehler Written and Produced by…

Published

on

Whether you’re pro-Daylight Savings or pro-Standard Time, the science is clear: Switching *between* the two every year is terrible for human health.

So why haven’t we stuck with one system all year? The answer is both scientific AND political.

Hosted by Annie Colbert
Reported by Tom Hawking
Edited by Avital Oehler
Written and Produced by Matt Silverman

Continue Reading

Popular Science

Let’s launch our garbage into the sun!

Ummm, no. Earth is messy. So can’t we just send our junk somewhere else? Aside from the moral quandaries raised by such poor stewardship of our already disheveled solar system, Earthlings probably haven’t made a habit of beaming literal garbage into space yet because we simply can’t afford to. Full video: #pollution #science #space

Published

on

Ummm, no.

Earth is messy. So can’t we just send our junk somewhere else? Aside from the moral quandaries raised by such poor stewardship of our already disheveled solar system, Earthlings probably haven’t made a habit of beaming literal garbage into space yet because we simply can’t afford to.

Full video:

#pollution #science #space

Continue Reading

Trending