Operation Red Cross Flight
- Duration
- 27 December 1989 - 3 January 1990
- Military personnel
- 30
- Fatalities
- none
- Decorations
- none
Towards the end of 1989, a velvet revolution took place in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, all except Romania, during the course of which the communist regimes were overthrown peacefully by their respective peoples.
Stubborn dictator
The Romanian dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu, would not yield, however, and used force to maintain his position. Hundreds of civilians lost their lives in various demonstrations against his government. Yet as the world watched, the Romanian people managed to overthrow the regime between 21 and 23 December 1989, at the cost of many lives.
Request for assistance
The woeful state of the country became clear soon afterwards. Because of the collapse of the state-run economy, the Romanians were largely dependent on outside help for their basic needs. That help came, some of it from the Netherlands. On 25 December, the Netherlands Red Cross asked the Dutch government to provide Royal Netherlands Air Force aircraft to take relief goods to Romania.