KeeBee COMAO photocall
Words and photographs Michael van der Mee
Kleine Brogel, home of the 10th Wing of the Belgian Defense - Air Component, hosted a large Operational Integration Exercise with the participation of 70 aircraft and almost 250 aircrew. Like previous year, the last day of the exercise a COMbined Air Operation was combined with a media and spottersday.
On Monday the 18th and Tuesday the 19th July some smaller DACT (Dissimilar Air Combat Training) missions took place. On Wednesday the 20th July a large COMAO was conducted with forty aircraft from nine countries. On this day Kleine Brogel opened for the public. With KeeBee getting famous for their impressive line-ups with "exotic" types thousands arrived early in the morning to see then 35 fighters, trainers, transport aircraft and helicopters.
The purpose of the exercise was to improve and train tactical co-operation and skills in a multinational environment. Together with the NATO Operations Centre in Kalkar, Germany, a complex scenario was set up, including all the elements of a modern air operation. These included attack on ground targets from low and medium altitude level and air-to-air refueling. After departing Kleine Brogel, the aircraft flew to a reserved air space in the north of Germany and the south of Belgium.
Many highlights participated in this COMAO like Greek A-7s, Swiss F/A-18’s, French Navy Etendards, Mirage 2000s, Alpha Jets, Danish F-16s, an RAF Jaguar, German Tornado's and Czech L-159s and a Mi-24 Hind.
With the retirement of the Canberra glooming at the horizon it was a nice surprise to see the arrival of a 39 (1 PRU) Squadron Canberra PR9. After a low pass she touched down to join the static line comprising of the Polish CN295, a SU-22 with full tiger color scheme, a Romanian Antonov 26 and four Lancer C's on their way home from an exercise in the UK.
A short mission was flown, so the competitors returned to base after two hours. And the end of the day the Air Component practiced some formation flying for Independence Day the 21st which includes a military parade and a flyby over the center of Brussels.
|
|
)
|
)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
)
;)
;)
;)
;)
)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)