Courtesy Photo | Members of the E-3A Component refuel a Belgian Alpha Jet Feb. 11, 2014, at NATO Air...... read more read more
GEILENKIRCHEN, Germany - Three Belgian Alpha Jets landed at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen, Germany, for refueling Feb. 11, 2014.
The Alpha Jets stopped at the NATO E-3A Component’s main operating base while flying from Cazaux Military Air Base in France to Beauvechain Air Base in Belgium.
The jets are from the Belgian Armed Forces’ Air Component, which refers to the air forces of the Kingdom of Belgium. In the Flemish part of the country, they are called “Lucht Component” and referred to as “Composante Air” in the French-speaking Wallonia region. The Air Component consists of about 8,600 men and women.
History of the Alpha Jet
The roots of the Alpha Jet date back to the 1960s when the German “Bundeswehr” leadership decided to bring the training of fighter pilots back to Europe, instead of having them trained in North America. Also, they were looking for a lightweight fighter-bomber to replace the Fiat G.91. At the same time, the French “Armee de l'Air” was looking for a successor for the Fouga Magister, which was used for the basic training of the French jet pilots.
These considerations steered the respective inspectors of the German and French air forces, Lt. Gen. John Steinhoff and Gen. François Maurin, to meet and initiate the groundwork for the Alpha Jet on July 2, 1968. Shortly after, a government agreement was drawn up and the project was launched by the defense ministers of the two countries on May 1, 1969.
After several prototypes were developed, the first flight of the Alpha Jets took place on Oct. 26, 1973. By 1975, the test phase was completed and Dornier, of Germany, and Dassault-Breguet, of France, began to co-manufacture the aircraft. During this time, Belgium had now expressed interest and ordered 33 Alpha Jets.
On May 21, 2008, the French and Belgian air forces in Cazaux celebrated the one-million flight hours of the Alpha Jets.
| Date Taken: | 02.11.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 02.11.2014 08:46 |
| Story ID: | 120439 |
| Location: | GEILENKIRCHEN, NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN, DE |
| Web Views: | 121 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
No keywords found.
