A look at the Defence news 14 - 20 August
Minehunter HNMLS Vlaardingen on its way to NATO fleet
On 20 August, HNLMS Vlaardingen left the port of Den Helder with 34 crew members on board. Over the coming 3.5 months, the vessel will be part of the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1. This NATO fleet focuses among other things on clearing explosives in the Baltic Sea.
F-16 fighter aircraft deployed due to approaching Russian bombers
Last week, 2 Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16s took off to intercept 2 Russian bombers heading towards Dutch airspace. This type of action is known as a Quick Reaction Alert. The Russian ‘Bears’ were intercepted by the Danish air force before they reached Dutch airspace.
End of the Second World War commemorated in service at the Dutch East Indies monument
On 15 August, a ceremony was held at the Dutch East Indies monument in The Hague to commemorate the capitulation of Japan, 78 years ago. The Japanese surrender meant the liberation of the former Dutch East Indies, and the end of the Second World War in the whole of the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it was at that time. The ceremony honoured all civilian and military victims of the Japanese occupation in Southeast Asia. The Netherlands Chief of Defence, General Onno Eichelsheim, and the Acting Commander of the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee, Major General Roger Costongs, laid a wreath on behalf of the Netherlands armed forces.