Thursday, March 28, 2024

Royal Netherlands Air Force just got its new F-35 stealth fighters

On 14 July, the Royal Netherlands Air Force has received two more F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters at Leeuwarden Air Base, with some delay.

New fighters were delivered to the Netherlands with delay due to the COVID-19 lockdown in Italy, where the aircraft were built.

According to the Scramble Magazine, the new F-35 fighters with serials F-011 and F-012 arrived on Tuesday with radio call sign Netherlands Air Force 322. Leeuwarden now hosts four F-35As.

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The Dutch Parliament approved an order for eight Lockheed Martin F-35As in March 2015, confirming the aircraft as the official replacement for the F-16 for the Royal Netherlands Air Force.

In May 2016, the F-35 landed on Dutch soil for the first time, showing the nation their new 5th Gen fighters. While in the Netherlands, the F-35 performed several “experience flights” to allow the Dutch public to evaluate the difference between the F-35 and legacy fighters, the F-16, noise levels. The test results showed negligible differences between the noise levels of these two aircraft.

The F-35 is highly interoperable and functions as the center for sharing information across military forces. With the ability to integrate into existing systems, the Netherlands continues to be a valued partner and contributor to global security.

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Executive Editor

About author:

Colton Jones
Colton Jones
Colton Jones is the deputy editor of Defence Blog. He is a US-based journalist, writer and publisher who specializes in the defense industry in North America and Europe. He has written about emerging technology in military magazines and elsewhere. He is a former Air Force airmen and served at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

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