Five more locations in the Netherlands are being considered for conducting exercises with fighter aircraft. State Secretary of Defense Gijs Tuinman (BBB) wrote this on Thursday in a letter to the House of Representatives. Of those five, Lelystad Airport appears to be the favorite because, according to measurements, it has the least “negative noise effects on homes”. After the airport in Lelystad, flights to the former De Peel air base and Groningen Eelde Airport cause the least inconvenience.
The municipality of Lelystad says that the arrival of fighter planes is only possible if the airport also opens for commercial flights. “Only fighter aircraft at Lelystad Airport is not open to discussion for the municipality,” it says a statement from Thursday. Lelystad Airport would complement Schiphol and Eindhoven, and would also operate holiday flights. But the opening of the airport has already been postponed at least four times, partly due to opposition from local residents and local administrators.
It is necessary to expand “activities with fighter aircraft” in the Netherlands, State Secretary Tuinman writes in his letter. Exercises abroad, and using simulators, are no longer enough. Now there are 5,200 sorties (a take-off and landing) per year. Defense wants to increase that number by 2,300 to 7,500. The sorties can also be divided among the investigated air bases. Twente Airport and Woensdrecht air base are also being investigated, but would only facilitate part of the total number.