Gripen marks 100 years of Czech Air Force
Jens Schymura/Marcus FülberA SPECIALLY painted
Gripen of the Vzdušné síly
Armády České republiky
(the air component of the
Czech Republic’s army)
is marking the air arm’s
100th^ anniversary. The
jet – operated by 211.
taktická letka (211. TL,211th Tactical Squadron),
the service’s ‘tiger’ unit- was unveiled on May
11 at Čáslav air base
in eastern Bohemia.
The then Czechoslovak
Republic was
founded on
October 28,
1918, after the collapse
of the Austro-Hungarian
Empire, and the following
day is considered the
foundation date of the Czech
Republic’s army air service.
Single-seat JAS 39C
serial 9234 has adopted
the colours of the CzechAir Force and silhouettes
of local military aviation
achievements on its tail.
The fighter also wears tiger
stripes on the fuselage
for participation in the
annual NATO Tiger Meet
at Poznań-Krzesiny in
Poland (see p68-71).Dutch
Apaches to
be upgraded
as AH-64Es
THE DUTCH government
has announced plans
to upgrade the RNLAF
AH-64D fleet to the
new AH-64E standard.
Secretary of State for
Defence Barbara Visser
informed the House
of Representatives
on May 1 that the
upgrade will enable the
Apaches to remain in
service until 2050.
Through a cost benefit
analysis, the defence
ministry has determined
that remanufacturing 28
existing RNLAF AH-64Ds
to AH-64E standard is
the best solution for
continued service. The
estimated cost is between
€250m and €1bn and,
if all goes according to
plan, the RNLAF will
begin taking delivery of
its new AH-64Es from- Dave Allport
Portugal
proceeds
with Koala
purchase
THE FORÇA Aérea
Portuguesa (FAP,
Portuguese Air Force)
has confirmed the AW
MkII Koala will succeed
its Alouette III fleet. A
contract for five aircraft
was signed last December
27, but the Portuguese
Court of Audit returned
the case to the defence
ministry, requesting
additional documentation.
The tender called for
all units to be delivered
within 28 months and
the first two were
scheduled to arrive
before the end of this
year. Owing to the delay,
the FAP may be forced
to continue Alouette
operations at Beja air
base until next year.
Leonardo’s Koala
fought off the rival
Airbus Helicopters H
Ecureuil in a competition
launched in May last year.
Currently the Alouette
III’s missions include
transport, flight training,
coastal search and
rescue (SAR), medical
evacuation and firefighting
support. Jose MatosAbove: F-16AM J-879 had 322 Squadron anniversary markings applied to its tail in early May. Kees van der Mark
Below: F-16BM J-882 of 313 ‘Tiger’ Squadron at Volkel. The unit came away from May’s Tiger Meet with the Silver Tiger Trophy
and was recognised as the Best Flying Unit. Jeroen van Veenendaal
Dutch anniversary ‘Vipers’
TWO UNITS of the
Koninklijke Luchtmacht
(Royal Netherlands Air
Force, RNLAF) have
prepared specially
painted F-16s to mark
anniversaries this year.
The oldest, Leeuwarden-
based 322 Squadron,
celebrates its 75th
anniversary on June
- Established at RAF
Woodvale on June 12, 1943,
the famous No 322 (Dutch)
Squadron flew Spitfires
until the end of the Second
World War and re-formed
in the Netherlands
after the conflict.
It entered the jet era
in 1951, flying Meteors,
Hunters and F-104Gs
before converting to
F-16s in 1980. It’s now to
become the RNLAF’s first
operational F-35A squadron,with the first two jets
expected at Leeuwarden
in November next year.
Meanwhile the winner of
a competition to design
an anniversary tail for one
of 313 ‘Tiger’ Squadron’s
F-16s to mark the unit’s
65th anniversary was
revealed on May 9 – just
days before six of the
squadron’s tiger-marked
aircraft flew to Poznań-Krzesiny, Poland, for the
annual NATO Tiger Meet.
Formed at Volkel in 1953,
313 Squadron initially flew
T-33s on loan from the
United States, and adopted
the tiger badge in 1990
when it became a member
of NATO’s Tiger Association.
It’s been based at
Woensdrecht, Twenthe
and Soesterberg, but has
now returned to Volkel.Subscribe to http://www.airforcesmonthly.com
for breaking news stories. E-mail the news team
at [email protected]http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #364 JULY 2018 // 11