Câmpia Turzii military airfield
| Baza Aeriană 71 Câmpia Turzii | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Characteristics | |
| ICAO code | LRCT |
| Coordinates | |
| Height above MSL | 324 m (1063 ft ) |
| Transport links | |
| Distance from the city center | 50 km southeast of Cluj-Napoca / Klausenburg |
| Street |
 / 
|
| Basic data | |
| opening | 1953 |
| operator | Romanian Air Force |
| Start-and runway | |
| 15/33 | 2500 m × 50 m concrete |
The Baza Aeriană 71 Câmpia Turzii is a military airfield of the Romanian Air Force about 2 km south of Câmpia Turzii / Jerischmarkt . The base named after Emanoil Ionescu is located in the area of the municipality of Luna / Lone in the district of Cluj / Klausenburg , about 50 km southeast of the district town.
Since 2009 it has been gradually modernized and expanded , largely financed by the USA .
history
Cluj Airport, located close to the city, was used for military purposes during World War II. After the beginning of the Cold War and the associated rearmament, a jetted military airfield for the Warsaw Pact troops was built between 1952 and 1953 50 km further south . After its inauguration, it became the location of Il-10 attack aircraft . Added to this was in 1969, a ground-based Luftverteidigunseinheit and 1980, an additional paratroopers - Regiment . The first squadron of interceptors was relocated to Campia Turzii in mid-1982. In 1986 the 71st Fighter Regiment emerged from this. The unit flew the MiG-21 .
After the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, little changed at first and in early 2001 the first modernized MiG-21 Lancer arrived on the base. In the course of a reorganization, the 71st air base was established in mid-2001 and as a result of the dissolution of the 93rd air base at Timișoara airport , the helicopters previously stationed there moved to Campia Turzii.
Following Romania's accession to NATO in 2009, a slow but steady expansion towards NATO standards began. In April of the previous year, the F-15E was first relocated to the Transylvanian base at the 20th NATO summit . As a result of the Crimean crisis , Canadian CF-18s were temporarily here in the summer of 2014 and, for the first time in 2019, the US MQ-9 drones stationed in Mirosławiec / Märkisch Friedland in western Pomerania operated from here for the first time . MQ-9 was also moved later.
Todays use
The Romanian Baza 71 Aeriana (as of 2018) has two flying squadrons
- Escadrila 711 Aviatie Lupta , fighter squadron, equipped with MiG-21
- Escadrila 713 Elicoptere SOCAT , helicopter squadron , equipped with IAR-330M / IAR-330SOCAT
Since around 2015, the airfield has also been regularly used as an advanced base for temporary relocations of smaller USAF contingents by units stationed in the Continental United States . The main operational bases of these contingents are the large US air bases in Western Europe such as the Spangdahlem Air Base .
