with photosQueen Máxima flies a lot, but rarely like Thursday afternoon. The Queen paid a working visit to Gilze-Rijen Air Base and boarded a Chinook transport helicopter, which tackled a fire in a fictional area with an extinguisher bag.
Such an exercise is called a Fire Bucket Operation training. Experts from the KNMI predict more and more wildfires in a larger part of the Netherlands, whereby the fire brigade can call on the Defense Helicopter Command (DHC), which can also assist abroad. For example, Dutch helicopters flew to Albania in 2021 to help fight severe forest fires there.
On arrival, the Queen, who was dressed for the occasion in green Air Force overalls provided by Defence, was welcomed by the Air Force Commander, the Defense Helicopter Command Commander and the 298 Squadron Commander. They told their royal guest about the work of DHC and the helicopters, among other things. Máxima asked questions about the effect of wind at work and about the deployment of the unit abroad.
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After a safety briefing, the queen and crew then departed in the Chinook in the direction of the Oirschotse heath, about 30 kilometers from the airbase. The Chinook is the larger of the two helicopter models used by the DHC to extinguish fires. The other model is the Cougar, a number of which can also be found at Gilze-Rijen.
Last summer, members of the DHC played a crucial role in fighting a wildfire at the Zeeuwse Brouwersdam. This site searched the DHC the next day. At the time, the flying fire extinguishers jokingly referred to their work as ‘nail poop for advanced people’. Because give it a try. Plop a water bag filled with 2000 liters of water right on the flames from a distance of about 50 meters.
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