As of today, quite a few national and international helicopters can be seen above various parts of the Netherlands. They participate in the large international exercise Falcon Autumn. Over the next 3 weeks, soldiers from Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and the United States will train for large-scale airborne operations.
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A total of 37 helicopters and more than 1,000 soldiers are taking part. Defense supplies Apache attack helicopters, Cougar transport helicopters and Chinook transport helicopters. The Americans are coming with Black Hawks, among other things, while the Poles have flown over their MI-8 and MI-17 transport helicopters.
The aircraft will fly up to and including 18 November (excluding Sundays) over various locations in the provinces of Drenthe, Friesland, Groningen, Gelderland, Limburg and South Holland. With the exercise, the military will keep their skills realistic and on a large scale in the coming weeks. During the complex missions, the ground troops use, among other things, practice ammunition and smoke grenades.
One of the main tasks of the allies is to defend NATO territory. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine forces everyone to face the facts: security and freedom cannot be taken for granted. It is therefore important to be able to deploy quickly. Deployment, moving to and setting up a military camp, are things that are practiced.
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Organization
The training scenario is organized by 11 Airmobile Brigade and the Defense Helicopter Command. The airmobile brigade, recognizable by its red berets, is one of the most heavily trained units of the Ministry of Defense. All helicopters are housed in the helicopter command. The Lieutenant General Best Barracks in Vredepeel will be the home base for all participating aircraft in the coming weeks.