The last flight operations personnel from Upjever airbase gathered together with their vehicles around the A-4N Skyhawk - 26Sep13.   (Source: German Air Force/Otto Kluge)

Last flight from the Fliegerhorst Upjever.

Schortens, 26Sep13.    On 26Sep13, after 77 years, the "flying era" at the Upjever airfield came to an end.   A target towing A-4N Skyhawk from BAE Systems was the last aircraft to leave the base.

The history of Upjever airbase began on 1May36, when the land was handed over to the German Air Force for their use.   Before and during the second world war various units used the airfield.   As Fliegerhorst Upjever was damaged very little during the war the allied forces took it over and first used it for accommodating former slave labourers before Danish military units were based there.   In 1951 the Royal Air Force built the runway and stationed flying squadrons at Upjever.   In 1961 the airbase was handed over to the Bundeswehr who from 1964 based the No. 10 Air Force Weapons School there flying the F-104G Starfighter.   From 1967 the Air Force Repair Shop No. 62 (today: Air Force Maintenance Group No. 21) was also based at Upjever in which at first the Starfighter, and later the F-4F Phantom were maintained.   Today and probably until the end of next year they will still do work on the Phantom and the Tornado, although dealing primarily with technical disassembly.   In 1983, the fighter bomber squadron Jagdbombergeschwader 38 "Friesland" was stationed in Upjever.   After the disbandment of the squadron in late 2005, the remaining operations, especially the Air Force Maintenance Group 21, were taken over by the newly established Airbase Squadron Jever.   According to the disposal plan , after 77 years and four months, flight operations will cease at the end of September 2013.

The "Flying Operations" Team.



The BAE Systems pilot Olaf Tutay and Norbert Determann get a final briefing from the Head of Geoinformation Consulting Office, government official Jan Bruns and Flugsicherheitsoffizer, Major Martin W... (Source: German Air Force/Otto Kluge)

In order to guarantee flight operations, numerous military and civilian employees are necessary until the last minute:

* The JEVER Air Base Squadron occupied the tower and pre-flight briefing, provided meteorological services, air traffic control equipment, numerous special vehicles for clearing and sweeping the flight areas and towing aircraft, they carried out refuelling and defuelling and when necessary provided for the loading and unloading of aircraft.

*   The Air Force Maintenance Group 21 provided the flight safety officer, the ground support equipment staff for the maintenance of the aircraft runway arrester systems and with their turn-round servicing and recovery staff.

*   The Flight Safety Officer came from the Weapon Systems Support Centre No. 2.

*   The Medical Services Squadron in Schortens was responsible for supplying medical staff for the pilots.

*   Finally, the Central Fire Brigade from the Flying Operations Squadron Jagdgeschwader 71 Richthofen provided the fire service for the airfield.

In addition, no flying operations would have been possible without the site servicing staff from the Bundeswehr Service Center in Leer - and especially in the final months - the personnel support from the air traffic control staff of Flying Operations Squadron 71 (Jagdgeschwader 71 Richthofen).   Finally, the German Air Force Regiment, the new owner of the airfield, for ground based defence of the air base and installations and wherever possible support with personnel and material.   The use of the drone ALADIN for "point protection" operating from the airfield by the Regiment was only a peripheral matter from a flight operations point of view.

The End



A Douglas A-4N Skyhawk from BAE Systems shortly before take-off.
(Source: German Air Force/Otto Kluge)

The last active flying users of Upjever airfield was not the Bundeswehr itself, but the company, BAE Systems.   They are contracted to provide target towers for the German Armed Forces and for this purpose use a small fleet of A-4N Skyhawk aircraft.   Usually, BAE Systems is based at Wittmund airfield, but that runway had to be repaired in September.   Therefore, BAE Systems, as they have often done in the past, used Upjever as an alternative.   [Web Master's Note: BAE Systems has provided six A-4N Skyhawks as target tugs for the German Luftwaffe since 2001, replacing the F-100 Super Sabre.   The Skyhawks are operated by the BAe subsidiary E.I.S. Aircraft GmbH at Wittmund.   The A-4N's are part of the 1991 contract with the Luftwaffe to supply visual target training for the F-4F Phantom and EF2000 Typhoon fighters.   The A-4Ns are the unofficial 3rd Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 71 Richthofen.]

Shortly after midday on the 26Sep13 the time had come: A Skyhawk flown by Olaf Tutay was the last to take-off from the runway.   Many servicemen and women, civilian employees, and those employees who. in some cases, had been entrusted with the safety of the flight operations all their working lives, watched the take off, visibly moved and most certainly also some with a "lump in their throat".   Finally, it was the task of the last SATCO (Senior Air Traffic Control Officer), Captain Heiko Steinberg, to log off the Tower, the control zone, and thus the entire airbase from active flight operations and with one last "click of the switch" the approach lights went out too.   Now it will still be the task of the experts to disassemble the entire flight operation and maintenance equipment in an orderly manner and where required send it to other airports for their use.   Some members from the flight operations in Upjever will already be in their new posts on other sites by 1Oct13.   Parts of the technology have already been dismantled and so it no longer matters that the German Air Force request for approval to close the air base has not yet been confirmed by higher command.   A return to manned flying operations at short notice will not be possible at Upjever.   In the future, at most, remote-controlled drones of the Point Protection Regiment of the German Air Force Regiment at Upjever will be able to take-off or land.   (Thanks to Joachim Frenk.)