Leeuwarden Air Base

Last updated
Leeuwarden Air Base
Flag of the Royal Netherlands Air Force.svg
Vliegbasis Leeuwarden
Leeuwarden, Friesland in  Netherlands
VliegbasisLeeuwarden-NOV2018.jpg
An aerial view of Leeuwarden Air Base during 2018
Coat of Arms Royal Netherlands Air Force Leeuwarden Air Base.svg
MottoAmicis inimicis promptus
(Latin for 'Prompt friends become enemies')
Netherlands location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Leeuwarden
Location in the Netherlands
Coordinates 53°13′43″N05°45′38″E / 53.22861°N 5.76056°E / 53.22861; 5.76056
TypeMilitary airfield
Site information
Owner Ministry of Defence
Operator Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF)
ConditionOperational
Site history
Built1938 (1938) (as civil airport)
In use1949 – present
Events Exercise Frisian Flag (annual)
Airfield information
Identifiers IATA: LWR, ICAO: EHLW, WMO: 062700
Elevation0.91 metres (3 ft 0 in) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
05/232,452.1 metres (8,045 ft)  Asphalt
09/271,999.7 metres (6,561 ft) Asphalt
Source: Military Aeronautical Information Publication Netherlands [1]

Leeuwarden Air Base (Dutch : Vliegbasis Leeuwarden) is a military airbase used by the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) - Dutch : Koninklijke Luchtmacht (KLu), ( IATA : LWR, ICAO : EHLW). The airbase was formerly one of the two F-16 Fighting Falcon bases of the RNLAF. The airbase lies northwest of the capital of Friesland, Leeuwarden.

Contents

Leeuwarden Air Base is also one of the three military airbases (together with Gilze-Rijen Air Base and Volkel Air Base) that organise the twice-in-three-years Luchtmachtdagen ('Air Force Days') of the Royal Netherlands Air Force, consisting of air shows and static exhibits. In 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2016 Leeuwarden Air Base hosted these public demonstration days.

History

Sud-Aviation SE3160 Alouette III. These were used in the Search and Rescue (SAR) role at Leeuwarden until 1994. The aircraft is preserved at Soesterberg AF Museum. Alouette 3 KLu (22966670934).jpg
Sud-Aviation SE3160 Alouette III. These were used in the Search and Rescue (SAR) role at Leeuwarden until 1994. The aircraft is preserved at Soesterberg AF Museum.

The airport of Leeuwarden was built in 1938, and was used as an airport between Schiphol and Eelde. The airport was used only infrequently at first, but that changed after the Germans invaded the Low Countries in 1940. The Luftwaffe used the airport as a base for their fighter aircraft (including the Messerschmitt Bf 109) and bombers. From the airbase the Germans could reach Great Britain. During World War II, and especially on the 16th and 17 September 1944, the airbase was heavily bombed by the Royal Air Force.

After the liberation of the Netherlands the airbase was repaired, and during the first post-war years it was used as a civil airport, and KLM ran a commercial line to Schiphol. In 1949, Leeuwarden became a dedicated military airbase.

During the 1970s Vliegbasis Leeuwarden was used as a temporary home of the 32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron of the U.S. Air Force. Normally stationed at Soesterberg airbase, they needed to move temporarily in order to allow repairs to the runway. [3]

Two F-16 squadrons were based at Leeuwarden Air Base: the "swing-role" 322 Squadron RNLAF and the Tactical Training Evaluation and Standardisation (TACTES) 323 Squadron RNLAF. 323 Squadron stood down as an F-16 Squadron on 31 October 2014 (passing the TACTES task to 322 Squadron on the same day) before being reinstated as the F-35A Test Squadron on 5 November 2014 at Eglin Air Force Base.

In addition, Leeuwarden Air Base was the home base of 303 Squadron RNLAF (Search and Rescue), part of the newly formed Defence Helicopter Command (DHC). It employed three Agusta Bell AB 412SP helicopters before its stand-down on 1 January 2015.

Role and operations

A Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon "J-135". Note the depiction of the Frisian flag and the 322 Squadron mascot Polley Grey on the tail. Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon.JPG
A Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon "J-135". Note the depiction of the Frisian flag and the 322 Squadron mascot Polley Grey on the tail.

Leeuwarden Air Base was one of two Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16AM Fighting Falcon bases, which are being replaced by F-35A Lightning II, the first of which arrived at Leeuwarden on 31 October 2019. [4]

The base is the location of the Fighter Weapons Instructor Training (FWIT) and the annual multinational NATO exercise "Frisian Flag". On 31 March 2015 six F-15C's from the 125th Fighter Wing of the Florida Air National Guard landed at Leeuwarden Air Base to take part in Frisian Flag 2015. [5]

Four MQ-9 Reapers with a Ground Station will be fully air-deployable and self-supporting for global operations will be based at Leeuwarden from 2020. [6] Future use by public services related to homeland security and surveillance (including the National Police; and customs, naval and environmental surveillance) is also planned.

Based units

Units based at Leeuwarden. [7]

Royal Netherlands Air Force

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Netherlands Armed Forces</span> Combined military forces of the Netherlands

The Netherlands Armed Forces are the military services of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The core of the armed forces consists of the four service branches: the Royal Netherlands Navy, the Royal Netherlands Army, the Royal Netherlands Air Force and the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee. The service branches are supplemented by various joint support organisations. In addition, local conscript forces exist on the Dutch Caribbean islands of Aruba (AruMil) and Curaçao (CurMil). These operate under the auspices of the Royal Netherlands Navy and the Netherlands Marine Corps. The armed forces are organisationally part of the Ministry of Defence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Norwegian Air Force</span> Air warfare branch of Norways armed forces

The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian Armed Forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peacetime establishment is approximately 2,430 employees. 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF. After mobilization, the RNoAF would consist of approximately 5,500 personnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Netherlands Air Force</span> Air warfare branch of the Netherlands armed forces

The Royal Netherlands Air Force is the military aviation branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. It was created in 1953 to succeed its predecessor, the Luchtvaartafdeling of the Dutch Army, which was founded in 1913. The aerobatic display team of the Royal Netherlands Air Force, active from 1979 until 2019, was the Solo Display Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belgian Air Component</span> Aviation branch of Belgian Armed Forces

The Belgian Air Component is the air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces, and until January 2002 it was officially known as the Belgian Air Force. It was founded in 1909 and is one of the world's oldest air services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadair CF-5</span> Fighter bomber aircraft by Canadair

The Canadair CF-5 is a Canadian licensed-built Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter. It is a light, supersonic, twin engine, daylight air superiority fighter primarily for the Canadian Forces and the Royal Netherlands Air Force. The CF-5 was upgraded periodically throughout its service life in Canada. While Canadian Forces retired the aircraft in 1995, it continues to be used by other countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper</span> American unmanned aerial vehicle

The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper is an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations, developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) primarily for the United States Air Force (USAF). The MQ-9 and other UAVs are referred to as Remotely Piloted Vehicles/Aircraft (RPV/RPA) by the USAF to indicate ground control by humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soesterberg Air Base</span> Airport in Soesterberg, Netherlands

Soesterberg Air Base was a Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) military air base located in Soesterberg, 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) east-northeast of Utrecht. It was first established as an airfield in 1911, and in 1913, the Dutch Army bought the field and established the Army Aviation Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York Air National Guard</span> Military unit

The New York Air National Guard (NY ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of New York, United States of America. It is, along with the New York Army National Guard, an element of the New York National Guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gilze-Rijen Air Base</span> Military airport in North Brabant, Netherlands

Gilze-Rijen Air Base is a military airbase in the south of Netherlands. It is known for having the hottest temperature ever measured in the Netherlands, with a temperature of 40.7 °C, on July 25, 2019. It is between the cities of Breda and Tilburg, which are both in North Brabant. The airport is mainly, but not exclusively used as a base for Royal Netherlands Air Force helicopters. The airfield has two runways, the longest one is complete with an instrument landing system (ILS) and is 2,779 metres (9,117 ft) long by 45 m (148 ft) wide in the 10/28 direction. The shorter runway is 1,996 m (6,549 ft) by 30 m (98 ft) in the 02/20 direction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RoAF 71st Air Base</span>

The Romanian Air Force 71st Air Base is located in the commune Luna near the city of Câmpia Turzii, in Cluj County. The 71st Air Base was founded on 1 June 2002 from the previous 71st Fighter and Bombardment Base, according to the Romanian Armed Forces reorganization program. It is named after Emanoil Ionescu, a general who commanded the 1st Air Corps of the Royal Romanian Air Force during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No. 322 (Dutch) Squadron RAF</span> Squadron of the Royal Air Force during WWII

No. 322 (Dutch) Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a fighter squadron during the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volkel Air Base</span> Military airport in North Brabant, Netherlands

Volkel Air Base is a military airbase used by the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) - Dutch: Koninklijke Luchtmacht (KLu), located near the village of Volkel, Netherlands. It is home to one F-16 Fighting Falcon squadron, No 312 and a F-35 squadron No 313 and a maintenance, logistical, a base Squadron for the RNLAF.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">148th Fighter Squadron</span> Arizona Air National Guard unit

The 148th Fighter Squadron is a unit of the Arizona Air National Guard 162d Fighter Wing located at Tucson Air National Guard Base, Arizona. The 148th is equipped with the Block 20 F-16A/B Fighting Falcon. The squadron was first organized in England during World War II, moving to North Africa shortly after the invasion. It participated in combat in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, where it earned a Distinguished Unit Citation. The squadron returned to the United States after V-E Day and was inactivated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solo Display Team</span> Military unit

The Solo Display Team was the aerobatics display team of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) and consisted of three elements. The disbanded F-16 Solo Display Team used the fighter jet F-16 and the AH-64D Apache Solo Display Team uses the helicopter AH-64 Apache. The PC-7 Solo Display Team flew the low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft Pilatus PC-7.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No. 322 Squadron RNLAF</span> Military unit

No. 322 Squadron is the oldest operational squadron of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF). It currently operates the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II from Leeuwarden Air Base, Friesland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amendola Air Base</span> Airport

Amendola Air Base is a military airfield of the Italian Air Force. It is the home of 32nd Wing.

Exercise Frisian Flag Is a major NATO multinational aerial exercise, held annually at Leeuwarden Air Base, Netherlands, over the North Sea and in the skies above the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark.

This article represents the structure of the Royal Netherlands Air Force as of May 2020:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Onno Eichelsheim</span>

Onno Eichelsheim is a general in the Royal Netherlands Air Force serving as Chief of Defence of the Netherlands Armed Forces since 15 April 2021. Prior to his post, he served as the Vice Chief of Defence from 1 July 2019 to 8 March 2021.

References

  1. Defensie, Ministerie van (2018-01-15). "MilAIP: information for the aviation sector - Defensie.nl". english.defensie.nl. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
  2. "Google Maps".
  3. Member of US Air Force
  4. "Vliegbasis Leeuwarden". Koninklijke Luchtmacht. 9 February 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  5. "The U.S. Air Force is deploying 12 F-15 jets to Europe as first Air National Guard theater security package". theaviationist.com. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  6. "First Dutch Crews Fly MQ-9 Reaper". www.defense-aerospace.com. 17 January 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  7. "Squadrons Vliegbasis Leeuwarden". Koninklijke Luchtmacht. 9 February 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2020.