Cabinet moves ahead with F-35 plans at Lelystad airport, delays civilian flights rollout

The caretaker Dutch government is deferring the decision on opening Lelystad Airport for passenger flights to the next Cabinet, in line with the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Dutch parliament, wishes. The airport will nonetheless be used to station F-35 fighter jets. The issue is set to be addressed at Friday’s Cabinet meeting, according to sources in The Hague, following reporting by De Telegraaf.

At the same meeting, the Cabinet will rule on Defense’s broader expansion agenda, which includes the final decision on the F-35s. Other proposals involve building a new barracks in Flevoland, creating a munitions depot near Staphorst, allowing more low-flying helicopter operations, and stepping up activities at Deelen Air Base outside Arnhem.

Defense has consistently stated that it aimed to decide on the plans this year. The ministry favors pairing the basing of F-35s at Lelystad with the arrival of leisure flights, citing substantial financial advantages, but that proposal found no support in parliament. A parliamentary majority has long resisted commercial flights from Lelystad Airport, while the stationing of F-35 fighter jets alone faces no opposition.

Flevoland province and the municipality of Lelystad have made clear they will support the stationing of F-35s only if passenger services are also launched. Jurisdiction over civilian flights lies with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, and any decision on that issue is separate from Defense’s expansion agenda. State Secretary Gijs Tuinman of Defense has said he is prepared to designate Lelystad as a new air base even without the addition of leisure flights.

Schiphol sees Lelystad Airport as a reserve airport, where leisure flights could be relocated so that Schiphol can concentrate on its function as an international hub. Schiphol CEO Pieter van Oord has warned that a Defense takeover of Lelystad could come with a price tag of roughly one billion euros.