Established in 1960, the Schwarzritter squadron has been a long-standing aspect of Belkan air policy. Flying the notorious MiG-21, Affectionately referred to the Belkan crews as “Der Bleistift”, the Belkan word for pencil due to the Aircrafts long narrow fuselage. The 74th TFS’ mission was primarily interception, interdicting any foreign aircraft that strayed into Belkan Airspace. The Squadron would be one of many to see action during the Recta Conflict in 1970, which saw them come out relatively unscathed, only losing a pair of machines and only one pilot. They would learn from this experience and when the Belkan War broke out in 1994, they were honed and ready.
The Squadron would participate in hundreds of combat sorties against Coalition forces during the war, downing dozens of Allied aircraft and even producing a handful of aces from its ranks.
Following the end of the war, the Squadron would remain active, operating today out of Hertzog Air Base in South Belka.
