On 8th June 2024, the 10th edition of the German armed forces open doors day – Tag der Bundeswehr – took place. The event was held on nine locations throughout the country and attracted over 230,000 visitors.
It was already the 10th edition of the event, however, just the 7th held in its traditional format. In 2020 and 2021, organisation of the open day at military facilities was not possible due to coronavirus restrictions. Therefore, Tag der Bundeswehr was turned into a digital event and only broadcasted online. Then, in 2022, facing outbreak of the war in Ukraine, the countrywide open day was replaced by just a single event, held in Warendorf (North Rhine-Westphalia).
Eventually in 2023, Tag der Bundeswehr returned to its initial format, that can be remembered from the 2010s.
The 2024 edition was initially planned to be held in ten different locations. However, the event in Mittenwald was cancelled due to catastrophic flood situation in Bavaria.
It should be noted that the German military facilities were showcased under the new motto. The pre-covid editions of Tag der Bundeswehr were marketed with a common slogan ´Willkommen Neugier´, which can be translated into English as ´welcome the curious ones´.
At that time, the main goal of those events was to initiate social bonds between the armed forces, local communities and general public, as well as allowed the Germans to learn more about their armed forces, get to know what soldiers are doing and why, and see what equipment they use.
In the 2020s, Tag der Bundeswehr adopted the new motto – ´Wir sind da´ (We are here). Within the new format, a particular emphasis was put on presenting Bundeswehr as an attractive employer, offering several modern occupational backgrounds, both with and without the uniform.
The aviation enthusiasts who wanted to visit one of the German military airfields could choose between the helicopter base in Holzdorf, located at the border of Brandenburg and Saxony Anhalt, and the joint air base of the Army Aviation Corps and the Luftwaffe in Fassberg. Both locations were already known to general public from previous editions of Tag der Bundeswehr (our report from Tag der Bundeswehr 2018 in Holzdorf is available here).
Last year, Fliegerhorst Holzdorf attracted more than 35,000 visitors. There, they could see static and dynamic displays of several aircraft from the Bundeswehr inventory, such as Airbus A400M Atlas, C-130J Hercules, Eurofighter EF-2000, CH-53, NH-90 and EC665 Tiger. In addition, the static exhibition included more than fifteen examples of heavy vehicles, including a Leopard II main battle tank, Patriot anti-aircraft system and heavy hauler Mammut.
However, the highlight of the Holzdorf show were the Lockheed-Martin F-35 Lightning II jets from the 48th USAF fighter wing at RAF Lakenheath station. The 5th generation fighter was showcased at the static exhibition, as well as performed a flying display.
Fliegerhorst Faßberg, located in Lower Saxony, covers approximately 574 hectares and is one of the biggest military facilities of the German armed forces. The air base was officially opened in 1934 and today is a home for Transporthubschrauberregiment 10 (10th Helicopter Transport Regiment) ´Lüneburger Heide´ of the Army Air Corps and Technische Ausbildungszentrum Luftwaffe (German Air Force Technical Training Centre). In addition, Fassberg one of locations within Internationale Hubschrauberausbildungszentrum (International Helicopter Training Centre), a joint Franco-German project to train the EC665 and NH90 crews, as well as hosts Fachschule der Luftwaffe (German Air Force Technical School) and one of the Medical Centres of Bundeswehr.
The 2024 edition of Tag der Bundeswehr in Fassberg was already the third event from the series organised there. Last year, the open doors day was held in relation to the 75th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift, as in 1948 and 1949, the air base was one of the main airfields for supplying the city during the blockade (more information about the Berlin Airlift in our article from July of 2019 – The return of Rosinenbomber – 70th anniversary of the Berlin airlift).
Therefore, the official open day was preceded by commemoration event held on 7th June, which included a memorial service in the morning and the evening concert of the US Army Band Europe.
The programme of the open day in Fassberg included an opening ecumenical service, traditional speech by the German Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius, two blocks of dynamic displays and the static exhibition.
The flying displays included performances of several German aircraft, such as Airbus H145M, CH-53, NH-90 and EC665 Tiger helicopters, Airbus A400M airlifter, Eurofighter EF-2000 fighter aircraft and P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft.
Especially worth mentioning was the solo flying display of the NH90 TTH helicopter of the German Army Aviation Corps / Heeresfliegertruppe – the aforementioned TrspHubschrRgt 10 in Fassberg. Apart from its combat tasks, the unit is also operating a NH90 demo team, which participates in public aviation events, showing the capabilities of the helicopter.
In 2024, the flight demonstration of the German NH90 was enhanced with a spectacular flare show, for the first time presented to general public at Fassberg. Obviously, the display was received with great enthusiasm and applause.
In addition to the classic solo flying performances, the German Army arranged a joint combat display Bundeswehr im Einsatz (Bundeswehr in action), based on a hostage rescue scenario. That interesting and very dynamic show was not only presentation of cooperation between different units of the armed forces, but also an opportunity to showcase their equipment in action.
During that display, the spectators enjoyed the performance of the NH90 TTH, EC665 and CH-53 Sea Stallion rotorcraft, Fennek and GTK Boxer armoured vehicles, as well as the German troops.
The static display at Fassberg pretty corresponded with the size of the air base and was really huge. It is not an exaggeration to say it was not possible to visit all the stands during the day. The exhibition included presentation of the German armed forces vehicles and weapon systems, aircraft of the Luftwaffe and the Army Aviation Corps, German police, fire-brigade and law enforcement agencies, historical vehicles, reenactors, Munster Armoured Museum and many others. One of the air base hangars hosted an exhibition related to the 75th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift, including presentation of the Airlift Museum and several live shows with music from the era.
Due to the fact that Fassberg is mostly the helicopter air base, the rotorcraft made up most of the static display. Visitors to the airfield could see up close not only all the helicopters from current inventory of the German armed forces, but also UH-1D Iroquois, Tigre HAP, the French variant of EC665 attack helicopter, as well as AH-64E Apache and CH-47F Chinook of the Royal Netherlands Air Force.
Among the aeroplanes showcased at Fassberg, there was the A400M Atlas and Panavia Tornado IDS, as well as some historical aircraft, such as F-4F Phantom, Piaggio P.149 and Dornier Do 28 D Skyservant.
Many of the aircraft were showcased together with additional exhibition of their weapon systems and equipment, including the powerplants, as well as gift stands with squadron souvenirs.
One of the airbase hangars hosted a display of maintenance units, aviation workshops and manufacturers. It offered the visitors to look inside the engine compartment of exhibited aircraft, take a seat in their cockpits and talk with the maintenance specialists.
Highlights of the reenactors´ part of the exhibition were presentation of MIM-23 Hawk surface-to-air missile system and collection of vehicles related to the British forces in Ulster.
As always, there were also plenty of stands with food and drinks, playground for children and exhibition of local agencies and government institutions.
In conclusion, Tag der Bundeswehr 2024 in Fassberg was an amazing opportunity to spend a day at one of the most-known German air bases, with possibility to see a plenty of aircraft and other military equipment, enhanced by eye-catching flying shows. The only negative aspect was the fact that one day was too short to see all the static display and watch the dynamic performances – so big the exhibition was.
Last but not least, those who waited for the end of the show and were not hurrying up to leave the area, not only avoided the crazy crowd at the shuttle bus station but also were awarded with the departure of the Dutch rotorcraft. And the short display performed by the Chinook crew just after the take-off was an amazing finale of the fantastic aviation event at Fassberg.
More images from Tag der Bundeswehr 2024 in Fassberg:
