Dutch F-16s returned from a deployment to fight ISIS in Iraq and Syria on June 30. Dutch F-16s returned to Volkel Air Base, where Defense Minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert said despite the deployment, the “struggle continues” against ISIS, according to a translated release from the Dutch Ministry of Defense. The F-16s, deployed in January and were replaced by Belgian F-16s that deployed June 27, reportedly deployed 1,800 bombs during the deployment, according to the Defense Ministry. However, the aircraft were reportedly barely used in Syria. The NL Times reported in May that the F-16s were rarely deployed to Syria because the aircraft didn’t have the right equipment to communicate via satellite. Dutch parliamentarians, during a May visit to Jordan, said the deployment is “very limited” because the jets relied on radio communication with ground troops for targeting, the news organization reported.
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
