Airforces

European maritime

patrol aircraft

oday, the only dedicated

maritime patrol aircraft

serving with the Dutch

armed forces are two Dornier Do

228-212s operated by the Royal

Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF)

on behalf of the Kustwacht

(Netherlands Coastguard).

The Royal Netherlands Navy

(RNLN) lost its MPA capability in

January 2005 when the P-3C-

II Orion was withdrawn from

service as the result of defence

budget cuts. Its 13 Orions –

still in the process of being

modified to Capability Upkeep

Program (CUP) standard at the

time – were sold to Germany

(eight) and Portugal (five).

Although wearing civil

registrations to ease the type

certification process, the two Do

228s (PH-CGC and PH-CGN)

are owned and operated by the

RNLAF. They are assigned to

the Coastguard Aircraft Unit at

Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport –

this reports to Eindhoven-based

334 Squadron, which also flies

the RNLAF’s two KDC-10s and a

single Gulfstream IV. The second-

hand Dorniers were refurbished

and modified by RUAG Aerospace

at its Oberpfaffenhofen plant

in southern Germany before

delivery in July and October 2007.

They replaced a single Do 228-

212 (PH-MNZ) with outdated

equipment that had been operated

by civil companies on behalf of

the Coastguard since 1992.

Both current Do 228s are

equipped with a sensor suite that

includes a Terma side-looking

airborne radar (SLAR) and FLIR

Systems AN/AAQ-22 Star SAFIRE

high-definition (HD) electro-

optical/infrared (EO/IR) turret. The

Do 228s have a variety of tasks

during their daily operations:

maritime and aeronautical

assistance, search and rescue

(SAR), law enforcement, fisheries

patrol, oil and chemical pollution

control and border patrol. Since

2011, the Coastguard Aircraft Unit

has regularly deployed one of its

Do 228s to the Mediterranean

region to fly surveillance missions

for Frontex, the European Border

and Coast Guard Agency.

The Dorniers are flown by a mix

of air force and navy pilots. A

standard Coastguard mission

crew consists of two pilots and

two aerial observers. One of

the latter usually comes from

the North Sea Directorate

within the Directorate-General

of Public Works and Water

Management; the other will

be a law enforcement officer,

either from the national police,

the military police or customs.

Almost all training is undertaken

within the unit, which dedicates

about 20% of its 2,000+ annual

flying hours to crew training.

In 2013-14, both Do 228s went

through a series of modifications

that included replacing the

old four-blade propellers with

lighter five-blade units, which

made the aircraft quieter and

more fuel efficient. At the same

time, the colour scheme was

slightly revised by removing the

black anti-glare panel on the

nose. Kees van der Mark

T

Coastguard Dorniers

Netherlands

ORBAT

Unit Aircraft Base

334 Squadron/

Coastguard Aircraft Unit

Do 228-212 Amsterdam-Schiphol

Inventory

Aircraft Number

Do 228-212 2

RNLAF Do 228-212 PH-CGC taxies back to the Coastguard

hangar at Amsterdam-Schiphol after a mission over the North

Sea. Flying from the largest Dutch airport enables the aircraft

to be available for Coastguard missions around the clock.

Kees van der Mark

The RNLAF operates two Do 228s on

behalf of the Netherlands Coastguard. The

aircraft carry civil registrations for airframe

certifi cation reasons. Kees van der Mark

http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #359 FEBRUARY 2018 // 55