s of January 1, 2018, Lufttransport-
geschwader 61 (LTG 61, Air Transport
Wing 61) based at Landsberg/Lech
air base in Penzing, Bavaria was consigned
to history. An official disbandment ceremony
took place in Penzing on December 14, 2017.
On December 31, the wing closed its gates for
the last time after chalking up 361,200 flying
hours with the C-160D Transall tactical airlifter.
The wing’s demise was part of the latest
structural reform of the German armed forces.
It came as no surprise – detailed plans were
published by Luftwaffe headquarters in June- With the end of LTG 61, the Luftwaffe
loses its oldest flying operational wing. At
the same time, the European Air Transport
Command (EATC) will lose a reliable partner.
Multitasking
The list of missions undertaken by LTG 61
around the world seems never-ending. Its workincluded humanitarian missions in Africa, relief
flights after earthquakes in Turkey, flood disaster
relief in Germany, over three years of transport
flights during the Sarajevo airlift, operations
on behalf of the Kosovo Force (KFOR) in the
Balkans and civilian evacuation missions in
Libya. For 13 years, the Bavarian Transalls
were continuously deployed in support of the
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
in Afghanistan as well as various peacekeeping
and stabilisation operations for the United
Nations. Numerous humanitarian missions
included the fight against famine in Ethiopia,
Somalia, Rwanda, Chad, Niger, Mali, Sudan
and Mauritania, as well as delivering aid to
Dakar, Senegal to combat the Ebola outbreak
in West Africa. The Transall’s ‘Engel der Lüfte’
(‘Angel of the Sky’) nickname was well earned.
The last major transport operations
undertaken by LTG 61 continued until mid-
2017 in support of the United NationsA
Bavaria
Lufttransportgeschwader 61 was
disbanded at the end of 2 0 17.
Florian Friz visited the unit’s
Landsberg/Lech base during its
final weeks.Farewell from
Above: The final boss of LTG 61, Colonel Daniel
Draken, in the aircraft commander’s seat of
Transall 51+01 for the farewell flypast over Penzing.46 // FEBRUARY 2018 #359 http://www.airforcesmonthly.comLTG 61 disbands