Melsbroek Air Base is a
Belgian Air Component
The Belgian Air Component ( nl, Luchtcomponent, french: Composante air) is the air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces, and until January 2002 it was officially known as the Belgian Air Force ( nl, Belgische Luchtmacht; french: Force aérienne belg ...
facility in
Steenokkerzeel
Steenokkerzeel () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Melsbroek, Perk and Steenokkerzeel proper. On December 31, 2010 Steenokkerzeel had a total population of 11,580. The ...
, northeast
of
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, the capital of
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. It is located on the northern side of the same site as
Brussels Airport, with which it shares runways and ground and air control facilities.
The
15th Air Transport Wing
The 15th Air Transport Wing ( nl, 15 Wing Luchttransport, french: 15 Wing Transport Aérien) is a wing in the Air Component of the Belgian Armed Forces. The 15th Wing's motto is TENACITY, which means; 'the quality or fact of being able to grip so ...
operates from Melsbroek Air Base with following types:
*
Airbus A310
The Airbus A310 is a wide-body aircraft, designed and manufactured by Airbus Industrie, then a consortium of European aerospace manufacturers.
Airbus had identified a demand for an aircraft smaller than the A300, the first twin-jet wide-bod ...
(retired)
*
Airbus A330
The Airbus A330 is a wide-body aircraft developed and produced by Airbus.
Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner in the mid-1970s. Then the company began development on the A330 twinjet in parallel with the A340 ...
(retired)
*
Airbus A321
*
Dassault Falcon 20
The Dassault Falcon 20 is a French business jet developed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation. The first business jet developed by the firm, it became the first of a family of business jets to be produced under the same name; of these, both t ...
*
Dassault Falcon 900
The Dassault Falcon 900, commonly abbreviated as the F900, is a French-built corporate trijet aircraft made by Dassault Aviation.
Development
The Falcon 900 is a development of the Falcon 50, itself a development of the earlier Falcon 20. The ...
*
Dassault Falcon 7x
*
Embraer 135 & 145
*
Lockheed C-130 (being replaced by A400M)
*
Airbus A400M Atlas
The Airbus A400M AtlasNamed after the Greek mythological figure. is a European four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. It was designed by Airbus Military (now Airbus Defence and Space) as a tactical airlifter with strategic capab ...
History
The aerodrome was constructed by the German
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. After the 1944
liberation of Belgium
The Liberation of Belgium from German occupation was completed on 4 February 1945 when the entire country was reportedly free of German troops with the liberation of the village of Krewinkel. The operation began when Allied forces entered on 2 S ...
, Melsbroek was operated by the
Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
and the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
when it was known as B58 Melsbroek.
Operation Bodenplatte
Operation Bodenplatte (; "Baseplate"), launched on 1 January 1945, was an attempt by the Luftwaffe to cripple Allied air forces in the Low Countries during the Second World War. The goal of ''Bodenplatte'' was to gain air superiority during th ...
, the German aerial attack of 1 January 1945, hit Melsbroek hard. According to
Emil Clade (leading III./
JG 27
''Jagdgeschwader'' 27 (JG 27) "''Afrika''" was a fighter wing of the Luftwaffe during World War II. The wing was given the name "Africa" for serving in the North African Campaign predominantly alone in the period from April 1941 to Septemb ...
), the AAA positions were not manned, and aircraft were bunched together or in lines, which made perfect targets. The attack caused considerable damage among the units based there and was a great success. The
Recce
Recce may refer to:
* Reconnaissance, military scouting
* SEAL Recon Rifle, a rifle used by US Navy SEALs also called the ''Recce Rifle''
* Recce (filmmaking), a pre-shoot reconnaissance of a film location
* South African Special Forces Brigade ...
Wings had lost two entire squadrons worth of machines.
No. 69 Squadron RAF lost 11
Vickers Wellingtons and two damaged. Possibly all
No. 140 Squadron RAF
No. 140 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a Second World War photo-reconnaissance squadron that operated between 1941 and 1945.
History
Briefly formed during the First World War on 1 May 1918 at RAF Biggin Hill as a home defence squadron with ...
′s
de Havilland Mosquito aircraft were lost. At least five
Supermarine Spitfires from
No. 16 Squadron RAF were destroyed.
No. 271 Squadron RAF lost at least seven
Handley Page Harrow transports "out of action". A further 15 other aircraft were destroyed.
139 Wing reported five
North American B-25 Mitchell
The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in ...
bombers destroyed and five damaged. Some 15 to 20
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
(USAAF) bombers were also destroyed.
[Manrho & Pütz 2004, p. 217.] Another source states that 13 Wellingtons were destroyed, as were five Mosquitoes, four
Auster
Auster Aircraft Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer from 1938 to 1961.Willis, issue 122, p.55
History
The company began in 1938 at the Britannia Works, Thurmaston near Leicester, England, as Taylorcraft Aeroplanes (England) Limited, ma ...
s and five
Avro Anson
The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCA ...
s from the Tactical Air Forces 2nd Communications Squadron. Three Spitfires were also lost and two damaged. At least one
RAF Transport Command Douglas Dakota
The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in ...
was destroyed.
After the war, Melsbroek replaced
Haren Airfield as the Belgian national airport. That title is now carried by the
Zaventem
Zaventem () is a Belgian municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant. It is located in the Dijleland area, one of the three large recreational areas which together form the '' Groene Gordel'' ("Green Belt") around the Brussels-Capital Region ...
terminal on the same aerodrome, built for the
1958 world exposition. At that time, the existing terminal was taken over by the then Belgian Air Force.
When
Trans European Airways existed, its head office was in Building 117 of Melsbroek Airport. When
CityBird existed its head office was in Building 117D.
[CityBird Offices]
" CityBird. Retrieved on 3 November 1999.
See also
References
{{authority control
Belgian airbases
Airports in Flemish Brabant
World War II airfields in Belgium
Military airbases established in 1940
Steenokkerzeel