The 33rd Air Base () is a

Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force () is the aerial warfare Military branch, branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 26,000 military personnel an ...

base, located near Powidz. The base functions within the structure of the Polish Air Force and is part of the three wings of Powidz air transport command.

History

The base was officially constituted in January 2000 as the 21st airbase, replacing the disbanded 7th Bomber-Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment. It was redesignated to its current name in January 2001. In 2010, the 2nd Airlift Squadron disbanded and its units were distributed among the newly formed units of the 33rd Air Base.

US military

M2A3 and M1A2s at LTESMC opening ceremony at Air Base Powidz

From the summer of 2019, the base will be the site of a depot and storage site for

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

combat vehicles in Poland. It will be mostly funded by

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

's NATO Security Investment Program, and cost around US$210m, with the USA's component capped at around 20-25%. The

US Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...

made an industry solicitation in 2018 requesting tree-cutting services for around the base. Two US investments could be sacrificed to pay for President Trump's border wall with Mexico: A bulk fuel storage facility at US$21m, and a "rail extension and railhead" project budgeted at US$14m.NATO foots bill for massive US combat depot in Poland
Sebastian Sprenger,

Defense News ''Defense News'' is a website and newspaper about the politics, business, and technology of national security published by Sightline Media Group. Founded in 1986, ''Defense News'' says it serves an audience of senior military, government, and in ...

, 2019-03-29

References

Airports in Poland Polish Air Force bases Łask County Buildings and structures in Łódź Voivodeship {{Poland-airport-stub