Spangdahlem Air Base

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Spangdahlem Air Base
52d Fighter Wing.png
Characteristics
ICAO code ETAD
IATA code SPM
Coordinates

49 ° 58 '22 "  N , 6 ° 41' 33"  E Coordinates: 49 ° 58 '22 "  N , 6 ° 41' 33"  E
Height above MSL 365 m (1198  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center 7 km east of Speicher
Basic data
opening 1953
operator United States Air Force
surface 6600 ha
Start-and runway
05/23 3055 m × 45 m asphalt [1]

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The Spangdahlem Air Base ( ICAO code : ETAD , IATA code : SPM ) is an agency of the US Air Force ( US Air Force ) that the place Spangdahlem in Rhineland-Palatinate between Bitburg , Trier and Wittlich borders. The units stationed here are part of the 3rd Air Force based on Ramstein Air Base and part of the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) with its headquarters there .

Mission and aircraft

In addition to being used by the fighter squadron, the base is a transshipment point for transport aircraft. Commodore of the base and the 52nd Fighter Wing ( 52nd Fighter Wing ), the main user, is Colonel David Epperson.

52nd Fighter Wing

In the event of a conflict, the squadron's task is to carry out so-called SEAD missions - also known as wild weasels - to ensure the suppression of opposing air defenses. In order to meet this order, General Dynamics / Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon of the latest generation (F-16CM / DM Block 50) are stationed in Spangdahlem . The 52nd FW is divided into the 52nd Operations Group, the 480th Fighter Squadron (480th Fighter Squadron with 28 F-16CM / DM), the 726th Air Mobility Squadron (no aircraft of its own), the 606th Air Control Squadron (air surveillance squadron and a. 2 mobile Radar systems TPS-75) will soon be relocated to Aviano Air Base , the background is the planned deployment of the 352nd Special Operations Group from Mildenhall with ten Lockheed MC-130 J Commando II and Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey each .

In addition to these units, support units also belong to the 52nd FW, such as the 52nd Maintenance Group (maintenance units), the 52nd Medical Group (medical care), the 52nd Mission Support Group (various support units for security, logistics, etc.) and the 38th Munitions Support Group. Among other things, it is responsible for the security of American nuclear weapons and has four sub-units in Kleine Brogel ( Belgium ), base of the Belgian 10th Tactical Squadron with F-16, Büchel (Germany), base of the German fighter-bomber squadron 33 with tornadoes , Volkel ( Netherlands ) Base of the Dutch 306th, 311st, 312nd and 313rd squadrons with F-16s and in Ghedi ( Italy ), base of the Italian 154º and 102º Gruppo / 6º Stormo with tornadoes .

Air Mobility Command

In addition, the Air Mobility Command supports freight and troop transports with the 726th Air Mobility Squadron and provides command, maintenance and handling capacity for all types of transport aircraft of the AMC.

Infrastructure

The existing infrastructure includes more than 500 buildings, a runway (23/05) with the dimensions 3055 x 45 m, a 2461 m long, parallel taxiway and 72 hardened aircraft shelters . A holdover from the time when Bitburg Air Base closed on September 30, 1994 is a complex of around 1200 apartments, called Bitburg Housing .

About 4,000 Americans and more than 800 German employees work on the base. About 7,000 American family members also live on or near the base.

history

Construction and the Cold War

In 1951, French occupation forces began building an airfield. The first landings took place as early as 1952; however, the square was not completed until 1953. In the same year the US-American 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing ( 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing , abbreviation: 10th TRW) was stationed coming from Toul , it was withdrawn again in 1959. From the end of 1954, an F-86F squadron of the 388th Fighter-Bomber Wing was added for almost a year , whose intended base Etain was not yet completed. In Niederstedem 1954 a storage tank for the air base was built, in which there was a severe that year explosion came.

At the same time, the 49th Tactical Fighter Wing ( 49th Tactical Fighter Wing , abbreviation: 49th TFW) was ordered to Spangdahlem. In 1968 this was relocated to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. A three-year transition period followed, which was marked by the 49th TFW before the 52nd Tactical Fighter Wing was activated in 1971 . After Bitburg Air Base was closed in 1994, Spangdahlem was assigned to the 53rd Fighter Squadron until 1999 . The 606th Radar Surveillance Unit ( 606th Air Control Squadron ) was also relocated from there to Spangdahlem and still exists there today. The current name "52nd Fighter Wing" goes back to a renaming in 1991.

Since 1990

Spangdahlem Air Base tower and F-16C fighter planes in February 2010

With the closure of the Rhein-Main Air Base in Frankfurt in 2005, the Frankfurt hub function for freight and troop transports of the Air Mobility Command to Ramstein Air Base (70%) and to Spangdahlem ( 30%). In November 2005 the first C-17 Globemaster III landed in Spangdahlem.

Due to structural changes within the US Air Force Europe (USAFE), Spangdahlem also changed. The projects “Eifel Evolution 2010” and the relocation program ( Rhein-Main Transition Program ) were of particular importance .

In 2009 the Royal Canadian Air Force accepted an offer from the US armed forces to use the air base as a hub for the transit and provision of transport aircraft in Europe. This is also intended to help the Canadian armed forces supply their troops deployed around the world. Following an agreement with Germany and the USA, Canada began implementing this project. In the same year, the Canadians were stationed in Afghanistan with 2,500 soldiers . The use of Spangdahlem became all the more important when the government of the United Arab Emirates prohibited Canadians from continuing to use the "Camp Mirage" from November 2010 (due to disputes regarding the landing rights of their airlines Emirates and Etihad ) .

From 2010

Landing of an F-117 Nighthawk in Spangdahlem in February 2005

As part of the reduction in the USAF's active combat aircraft fleet, the withdrawal of an F-16 squadron began in the spring of 2010 with the relocation of 18 aircraft to Duluth , Minnesota. 575 posts were affected; the program that called for the construction of 271 new houses was stopped. The 22nd and 23rd Fighter Squadron were finally merged into the 480th in August 2010 .

After the conversion in Spangdahlem, the large transport aircraft (C-17 (in the picture) or C-5) can now land on the air base without any problems

On June 18, 2013, the 81st Fighter Squadron "Panthers" stationed at the US air force base was disbanded after a total of 71 years of stationing in Europe. However, the last of the formerly 18 A-10 Thunderbolt II fighter aircraft were already back in the USA on May 17, 2013 been convicted. The staff was withdrawn by December 31, 2013. 500 people were affected by the disbandment of the squadron stationed in the Eifel since 1973. In 2015, a good dozen A-10s returned temporarily due to the Ukraine crisis as part of a “Theater Security Package” (TSP). These machines belonged to the 355th Fighter Wing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base . They also operated from forward NATO bases between February and July 2015, particularly in eastern Central Europe.

Several F-22 Raptors in August 2018 at Spangdahlem Air Base shortly before their return flight to Florida
One of several F-35s will land on Spangdahlem in July 2019

As part of a further TSP, four F-22s were temporarily stationed in Europe for the first time from the end of August 2015 . These machines belonged to the 325th Fighter Wing at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida . In August 2018, several F-22s were relocated from Florida to Spangdahlem, from where they completed a training program lasting several weeks with other NATO partners and the first TSP contingent with 12 F-35A arrived in the Eifel in June 2019 . These machines were part of the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base , Utah .

Incidents

  • On January 9, 1961, a C-124C Globemaster II (registration number 52-0969 ) flew too low on the approach to Spangdahlem Air Base, collided with trees and crashed onto the airfield. The cause was an incorrect setting of the altimeter by the pilots . All 15 occupants survived, but the aircraft was ready for scrap.
  • On September 14, 2006, an F-16 stationed in Spangdahlem crashed near Oberkail after the pilot had "controlled exit" ( controlled bailout ) using an ejector seat. According to the Air Force, it touched a mast when it took off and damaged the landing gear. As a result of this event, it became known that an Airforce Operation Manual had defined the crash zones in the vicinity of the airbase in detail so that, in an emergency, an aircraft could crash in an area with a reduced risk of danger. However, the F-16 hit only a few hundred meters away from Oberkail because the aircraft had not moved in a straight line. Thereupon, an agreement was reached with the German authorities to use the Baumholder military training area as a crash zone in future emergencies . Furthermore, the cooperation with the German fire brigade and the THW was improved through joint exercises with the airfield fire brigade .
  • On April 1, 2011, a US Air Force Fairchild A-10C "Thunderbolt II" (registration number 81-0963 ) crashed into a field around 25 km northeast of the air base near Laufeld in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district. The pilot saved himself with the ejection seat.
  • On August 11, 2015, an F-16 of the 480th Fighter Squadron crashed in a forest area on a training flight from the Spangdahlem base to Grafenwoehr in Creußen .
  • On October 8, 2019, an F-16 from Spangdahlem crashed into a forest area during a routine training flight between Trier and Bitburg near the village of Zemmer- Rodt. The pilot was able to save himself with the ejection seat and was slightly injured.

Aircraft types in Spangdahlem from 1953 to the present day

Participation in missions

See also

Web links

Commons : Spangdahlem Air Base  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ faz.net July 29, 2020: America is withdrawing almost 12,000 soldiers from Germany
  2. ↑ Katharina Hammermann: Spangdahlem: Withdrawal of the F-16 season begins. Trierischer Volksfreund, April 7, 2010.
  3. ↑ Kali L. Gradishar: 22nd and 23rd FS merge to form the 480th FS. Retrieved February 17, 2020 . . Spangdahlem Air Base site, April 26
  4. ↑ 81st FS leaves Spangdahlem Air Base. Retrieved February 27, 2020 . Spangdahlem Air Base site, May 20, 2013.
  5. ^ USAF concludes A-10 TSP to Europe. (No longer available online.) In: Janes. August 3, 2015, archived from the original on August 7, 2015 ; Retrieved August 5, 2015 .
  6. ^ American-F-22-reach-Germany, Die Welt, August 28, 2015
  7. ↑ USAF F-22s on flightline at Spangdahlem AB, Aug. 29, 2018
  8. ↑ US Air Force temporarily moves jets from Utah to Spangdahlem. Volksfreund, June 19, 2019
  9. ^ Accident report C-124C Globemaster II 52-0969 , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on May 13, 2017.
  10. ↑ Manfred Reutter, Rolf Seydewitz: Behind the highway with the ejection seat out. Trierischer Volksfreund , September 20, 2006. p. 3.
  11. ↑ http://www.volksfreund.de/nachrichten/region/wittlich/aktuell/flugzeugabsturz-laufeld./Heute-in-der-Wittlicher-Zeitung-US-Kampfjet-explodiert-nach-Absturz-Eifeldorf-entgangs-Katastrophe; art8137,2735661? fCMS = qepflr10erh6p64nt33tr72av1 US fighter jet explodes after crash: Eifeldorf escapes catastrophe
  12. ^ Accident report A-10C Thunderbolt II 81-0963 , Aviation Safety Network WikiBase , accessed on May 13, 2017.
  13. ↑ https://www.merkur.de/bayern/flugzeugabsturz-oberfranken-us-kampfjet-stuerzt-waldgebiet-5337865.html Plane crash in Upper Franconia: US fighter jet crashes into a forest area with a training bomb on board
  14. ↑ F-16 fighter plane crashed near Engelmannsreuth - risk of explosion averted ( Memento from August 13, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) F-16 fighter plane crashed near Engelmannsreuth: risk of explosion | North Bavarian courier
  15. ↑ Unsuccessful training flight in the Eifel: US military has started to recover the F16 wreck swr.de, December 9, 2019, accessed December 9, 2019. - With video (1:27).
  16. ↑ US military aircraft crashed near Trier zdf.de, accessed on April 14, 2020