During the first three weeks of November more than 1,000 soldiers and 37 helicopters descended on the Netherlands as part of Exercise Falcon Autumn. The annual combined air mobility exercise enables Dutch armed forces to train with foreign counterparts to prepare for large-scale airborne operations which require units and branches of different militaries to work closely together.
The exercise is spearheaded by the Defense Helicopter Command (DHC), part of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF). This most recent iteration enabled the unit to work alongside international partners as well as other elements of the Dutch military. For the first time in several years, the exercise involved transforming a dormant airfield – Lieutenant General Best Barracks, the former De Peel Air Base – into an operational site from which the participating helicopters flew, supported by more than 600 troops.
