The ‘Tiger Meet’ air defense maneuver took off on Monday in the airspace above northern Germany, with aircraft and personnel from 11 NATO members plus non-NATO countries Switzerland and Austria taking part.
“The first planes have been in the air since 9 a.m. (0700 GMT),” a spokesperson for Jagel air base in Schleswig-Holstein state told dpa. About 60 fighter planes and helicopters from other countries, with some 1,100 additional troops, are accompanying the German air force during this maneuver.
Storms in the south of the country affected the original flight plans on Friday, the spokesperson said. “But they have all arrived,” he added. The first exercises were held in the morning and further take-offs were planned in the afternoon.
No night flights are planned in the coming days and flight movements are limited during the weekends. The German Tactical 51 “Immelmann” air wing is holding the exercise for the third time after previous exercises in 2004 and 2014.
Amateur enthusiasts filmed the flights on Monday, and around 1,500 people are expected to take part in two ‘spotting days’ on Friday and June 10. Traditionally, the aircraft are provided with special paint or foil for the exercise.
The exercises last until June 14.
The squadron in Jagel is also celebrating its 30th anniversary as part of the NATO maneuver.
The exercise aims to intensify cooperation with partner countries and share aviation and technical expertise, the German Armed Forces or Bundeswehr said.
Every day the host country comes up with a fictional scenario that becomes increasingly complex as the exercise progresses, the Bundeswehr said.
The meeting is one of the largest exercises for joint air warfare operations in Europe and provides extremely valuable experience for the participating aircrews, the Army said.
