In the first week of September 2024, F-35 Lightning II of the United States Air Force and the Eurofighter EF-2000 of the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) combat aircraft performed their first highway landing operations. That remarkable accomplishment in history of both air forces took place in Finland, within the road base exercise Baana 24.
The Baana exercise, also known by its NATO codename as ´Imminent Field´, is an annual training of the Finnish Air Force (Ilmavoimat), aimed for enhancing its capability to quickly disperse combat aircraft across the country. The ability to operate from dispersed air bases, including highway strips, is included in the Finnish Air Force battle concept and forms a part of basic fighter pilots´ training.
This years´ edition of the exercise was held between 31st August and 6th September 2024, with additional participation of the USAF and the Luftwaffe combat aircraft. The active part of fighter pilots´ training was executed from two Finnish highway strips, Norvatie in Rovaniemi and Hosio in Ranua.
During the exercise, two USAF F-35 Lightning II 5th generation fighter aircraft executed the historic first highway landing of that type of aircraft. That milestone for both the air force and the aeroplane was made on 4th September 2024, by aircraft assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing from the Royal Air Force Lakenheath station in the United Kingdom.
´The successful first-ever landing of our fifth-generation F-35 on a highway in Europe is a testament to the growing relationship and close interoperability we have with our Finnish allies,´ said Gen. James Hecker, commander, U.S. Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa. ´The opportunity to learn from our Finnish counterparts improves our ability to rapidly deploy and employ airpower from unconventional locations and reflects the collective readiness and the agility of our forces.´
On the same day, a similar milestone was achieved by the Luftwaffe and its Eurofighter EF-2000 fighters. The aeroplanes from the 71st Tactical Air Wing (Taktisches Luftwaffengeschwader 71) ´Richthofen´ were the first German aircraft to perform highway operations since the World War II.
The Finnish Air Force participated in the Baana 24 exercise with F/A-18 Hornet fighters and Bae Hawk training jets, as well as transport and liaison aircraft.
Since Finland´s accession to NATO in 2023, the country provided several new training opportunities to the Allied air forces. Active participation in the series of Baana trainings and its specific road-based combat operations is one of them.
Already in September of 2023, two Eurofighter Typhoons from the Royal Air Force station Coningsby joined the annual Finnish exercise. The British jets performed the flight operations from Tervo highway strip in North-Savo region.
Cover photo: USAF F-35 Lightning II while taking-off from highway strip in Finland, exercise Baana 24 (USAF photo by Airman 1st Class Tabatha Chapman, cropped)
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