This year the port of Vlissingen (Netherlands) and the port of Thessaloniki (Greece) are being used. At October 16th the ARC Endurance, a specially designed Ro-Ro (Roll on Roll off) transport vessel arrived in the port of Vlissingen. The ship will bring 1.260 vehicles, including 49 helicopters (27 Black Hawks, 16 Apaches and 6 Chinooks) to northern Europe. All helicopters will be flown from a Temporary Military Zone (TMZ) at the property of Verbrugge Zeeland terminals B.V. , towards Woensdrecht Airbase where all helicopters will change crew and will be refueled for their onward trip to Illesheim in Germany.

The entire operation is coordinated by the Host Nation Support operation from the Dutch armed forces. The Task Force Host Nation Support plans and coordinates all involved parties, like the air force fire department, air traffic control, navy/marines and army reserves for security, police, stevedore company, local municipalities, civil suppliers, etc.

Unloading a CH-47F Chinhook Helicopter from the ARC Endurance at the port of Vlissingen, after unloading still some work has to be done to make the CH-47 in flyable condition, the rotorblades, the gearboxes and other equipment need to be installed. The H-60 Blackhawk and the H-64 Apache helicopters keep their rotorblades on the airframe during transport on the vessel so for these helicopters it is easier to bring them in flyable condition after transport.

The facilities at Vlissingen Harbour are quite unique, direct from the vessel the helicopters can be stored in a huge hangar, where the US Army staff has all the possibilities to make their helicopters in flyable condition. A US Army spokesperson complimented the collaboration with the Dutch Armed Forces for its flexibility and willingness to assist the operation on all fronts. "The port of Vlissingen is one of our favorite ports in Europe for this operation".

Another UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter is ready! Now transport towards the platform, created within the TMZ, where an enginetest will be executed. After the test the helicopter will fly to Woensdrecht Airbase, a Royal Netherlands Air Force base close to Breda, roughly 15 minutes flying from Vlissingen Port.

Unfortunately during the mediaday we could not take pictures of a departing helicopter. These pictures are made upon arrival of the helicopters at Woensdrecht Airbase. The top picture an AH64 Apache on approach of runway 25. The other picture a HH-60 on approach on runway 07.

The weather was typically Autumn style for the Netherlands, heavy rainshowers with some sunny spells. So all helicopters need to be wrapped up for the harsh weather circumstances before being flown to Germany.

All equipment belongs to the 1st Infantry Division Combat Aviation Brigade which is stationed at Fort Hood, Texas and will replace the 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division’s Atlantic Resolve. This unit arrived in Europe via the ports in Esbjerg, Denmark; Riga, Latvia; and Thessaloniki, Greece, during late March and mid-April. This unit will return to the USA end of November 2023, via Eindhoven Airbase and the port of Vlissingen.

The mediaday at Vlissing offered a excellent possibility to witness a very unique operation where military and civilian staff from the Netherlands works smoothly together with staff from the US Armed Forces from Germany and from the USA.

Its hugely important because of the current situation we are in with the illegal attack from Russia on Ukraine. The ability of the alliance of NATO to stand together to support each other is more important than ever. That’s really fundamental to this operation.

Thanks to the Sectie Communicatie Staf Commando Landstrijdkrachten Koninklijke Landmacht who organized the mediaday at Vlissingen.