Lelystad likely base for Dutch F-35 fleet, city says only if holiday flights can begin
Lelystad Airport is currently the Ministry of Defense’s first choice for expanding its fighter jet capacity. Research has shown that practicing with the F-35 fighter jets in Lelystad would cause the least noise nuisance for locals, State Secretary Gijs Tuisman announced on Thursday. Lelystad is open to the idea, but only if holiday flights can also finally start operating from the airport.
“We have really looked at all possible locations. We are looking at various criteria such as nature and housing. But the most important is how much nuisance it causes for local residents,” State Secretary Tuinman told Omroep Flevoland. The Defense sector will have to practice more, there’s no way around that, but the Ministry is trying to be as considerate as possible about it, he said.
Defense wants to add 2,300 additional F-35 take-offs and landings to its current available space of 5,200 flight movements per year. The Ministry’s first choice is for all 2,300 flight movements to happen at one location, but two locations with 1,150 flight movements each are also an option.
Lelystad is Defense’s first choice. The Ministry is also looking at the former De Peel air base on the border of Noord-Brabant and Limburg and Groningen Eelde Airport near the border of Drenthe and Groningen.
The municipality of Lelystad will only consider fighter jets at Lelystad Airport if the airport also opens to holiday flights, alderman Dennis Grimbergen told the regional broadcaster. The arrival of the F-35s also must not hinder economic development in the region, he said.
The provincial government of Flevoland agrees. Allowing fighter jets is only negotiable if the airport also opens for wholesale traffic, the provincial government said. “In this respect, maintaining a good living, working, and residential climate is essential.”
The airport told the broadcaster that it has been in contact with the Ministry of Defense and it is not clear whether the airport is suitable for the fighter jets. “Lelystad Airport is set up for its current activities and for commercial trade in the future. Further research by the Ministry of Defense must determine whether Lelystad Airport is a suitable location.”
Lelystad Airport was intended to take over holiday flights from Schiphol Airport, but it never got that far. A majority in parliament is opposed to opening the airport, though Minister Barry Madlener of Infrastructure has said that he hopes to open Lelystad Airport for holiday flights next year.
Limburg, Groningen, and Drenthe are also less than thrilled that their airports are on the Defense Ministry’s shortlist. Drenthe provincial executive Yvonne Turenhout called it incomprehensible that the government is considering another drastic plan before even repaying the debt of honor it owes the people of Groningen for years of gas extraction earthquakes. “We really expected that Groningen Airport Eelde would not be investigated further and that it would be rejected as a potential location for fighter jets,” she told RTV Drenthe. "It is crystal clear to us: it is non-negotiable. Fighter jets at Eelde would ask too much of our residents."
Limburg has never been in favor of reopening De Peel Air Base. The provincial government and the surrounding municipalities in Limburg and Oost-Brabant are all against the idea, L1 reported.
