On June 25 and 26 the Belgian Air Force organized the biennial Air Force days at Florennes AB. Three major themes dominated the event; The 70th Anniversary of the Belgian Air Force, 20 years of Belgian F-16 operations and the 75th Anniversary of 350(F) Squadron. The fact that Belgium has not yet decided which fighter will replace their F-16’s made the Belgian Air Force Days very suitable to present the possible replacements. The Rafale, the Eurofighter and the Saab Grippen were all present on the static and in the show. The fourth competitor, the F-35, was not present.

High quality airshow in bad weather conditions
The organization managed to arrange one of the best airshows in Europe this year. A wide variety of aircraft and helicopters and a great airshow with modern planes varied with Warbirds. And because an international air show can’t do without top aerobatic teams – the Patrouille de France performed on Saturday and the Red Arrows on Sunday.
Although the organization hoped for 100.000 spectators, only 45.000 showed up. 20.000 on Saturday and 25.000 on Sunday. The poor weather was probably one of the reasons people decided to stay home.
Recce Reports visited the Belgian Air Force days on the arrival and the departure day. Especially during the departure day the weather was gruesome.