The last two aircraft of the European F-16 Training Center landed at Fetești

Two F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft of the Royal Netherlands Air Force, the last to equip the European F-16 Training Center, landed at the 86th "Lieutenant Aviator Gheorghe Mociorniță" Air Base in Fetești, on Wednesday, November 20th.

 

The aircraft join the 16 ones already in Romania to enhance the training capacity of the Center, which currently has, in total, 18 such aircraft.

 

The first five aircraft arrived in Romania last November, 11 more aircraft being delivered afterwards. After having received today the two aircraft, the training squadron is complete, as the partners honored the undertaken commitments. 

 

By establishing the European F-16 Training Center, Romania has committed to providing a high-quality training environment, with access to technical resources and state-of-the-art know-how not only for the Romanian pilots, but also for those of the allied and partner states, including Ukraine. The first series of Romanian pilots completed the training program this year, in July, and four Ukrainian pilots perform training activities within the Center.

 

The F-16 Center contributes to the establishment of certain common operational standards and to strengthening the ability of the North Atlantic Alliance to face the complex challenges in the Black Sea region and in Eastern Europe.

 

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The European F-16 Training Center was established as a result of the collaboration between the Ministry of National Defence of Romania, through the Romanian Air Force, and the Ministry of Defence of the Netherlands, through the Royal Netherlands Air Force. According to the collaboration agreement, the Romanian Ministry of Defence provides the 86th "Lieutenant Aviator Gheorghe Mociorniță" Air Base in Fetești,  the training facilities and the host nation support, the Royal Netherlands Air Force delivers the F-16 aircraft, while Lockheed Martin Company provides the instructors and maintenance. The center was rendered operational on November 11, 2023.

 

As part of the NATO Summit in Vilnius, in July 2023, Romania signed, together with other allied states such as Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Joint Statement on the establishment of a coalition on training the Ukrainian Air Force in operating the  F-16 fighter aircraft. The Letter of Intent between the Ministry of National Defence of Romania, the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Lockheed Martin Company on the establishment of the European F-16 Training Center in Romania was signed in Toledo, Spain, on August 29th, 2023.

The Press Office