Jēkabpils , also known as Krustpils, is an air base located northeast of Jēkabpils, a town in

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

. During the 1980s it was one of 17 airfields hosting the Soviet Union's tactical reconnaissance aircraft regiments.STATUS OF SOVIET TACTICAL RECONNAISSANCE FORCES USSR/EASTERN EUROPE/AFGHANISTAN(SANITIZED)
March 22, 1984, CIA-RDP84T00491R000101240001-9, Central Intelligence Agency, Washington, DC.

History

Its exact founding date is unknown. Until the occupation of Latvia, the airfield functioned as the Krustpils airfield of the Latvian Aviation Regiment. Around 1935, a new reinforced concrete hangar and two-storey barracks were built. Before 1939 it was planned to open a Valsts gaisa satiksme air route

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

- Krustpils -

Daugavpils Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...

, which, however, was not implemented. After the occupation of Latvia in 1940, the Gloster Gladiator fighters of the Latvian Aviation Regiment were redeployed here from

Rumbula Air Base Rumbula is an air base located southeast of Riga city centre in Latvia. The airfield was used for military purposes in the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1960s it was used as temporary passenger airport for bigger planes until the new Riga Internatio ...

. During the Second World War, bombers of the Luftwaffe 1st Fleet ('' Luftflotte 1'') were based at Jēkabpils airfield. During the Soviet occupation, since 1962 it was home to the 886 ORAP (886th Independent Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment) flying Su-17 and Su-24MR aircraft. In 1984 the normal complement of the air base was up to nine MiG-25RB, 14 Su-17M3, 8 to 12 Yak-28R, and 3 to 7 MiG-21R. At the time, the aging MiG-21R and Yak-28R were being retired from service at the air base. The 886th Regiment was subordinated to the

15th Air Army The 15th Air Army was a military formation of the Soviet Air Forces, active from July 1942 until December 1993. History It was formed between 11 July and 15 August 1942, in accordance with the directive of the commander of the Soviet Air Force ...

from April 1968 to 1977, then VVS Baltic Military District from 1977 to 1988, and then to the 15th Air Army again from 1988 to 1993. One squadron (Su-17M4R) operated in Afghanistan ( Bagram Air Base - 34 56 45N, 69 15 44E) from September 1988 to January 1989. Several reconnaissance units would take turns operating in Afghanistan, and would be known as the 229th Independent Reconnaissance Aviation Squadron while being based there. The regiment was disbanded in 1993. After the Cold War and the restoration of Latvian independence the air base was transferred from the Latvian Ministry of Defence to the Council of Jēkabpils District. From 1993 to 1999 the airfield was owned by AS ''Jēkabpils lidosta''. In 2000 the area was transferred to the state vacant plot fund. Buildings and communications, including ammunition depots, command points, technical and general purpose structures were privatized by SIA ''Reka'', except for 500 runway concrete plates, which were distributed to the district municipalities. In 2004, the

Latvian Police Latvian may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Latvia **Latvians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to what is modern-day Latvia and the immediate geographical region **Latvian language Latvian ( ), also known as Lettish, is an Easter ...

discovered a large warehouse with illegal tobacco products in one of the airport hangars, containing approximately 1,250,000 packs of smuggled cigarettes. Around 2008, an asphalt concrete plant was built on the territory of the airport, and a wood processing company operates in the barracks buildings. In 2013, 7 or 8 demolished large warplane hangars and more than ten smaller hangars remained. Activists have made some improvements in recent years, painting navigational road markings, adding windsocks etc.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jekabpils Air Base Jēkabpils Latvian airbases Soviet Air Force bases