Soesterberg Air Base
 | Soesterberg Air Force Base has a long history in military aviation, beginning in 1910 when a Dutch auto company established the field for building and testing airplanes. In 1913 the Dutch Army bought the field and established the Army Aviation Division. The base its motto is Principia perficimus. The spread wings eagle which is in the emblem trace back to the eagle on the monument for Fallen Aviators. |
During World War I the Netherlands was a neutral country and flew border patrol missions from Soesterberg. The Dutch confiscated all foreign aircraft landing inside the borders of their country during the war and added the operational ones to their inventory to be used for pilot training at Soesterberg.
 | At the beginning of World War II, the Dutch again declared neutrality but the German force's blitzkrieg overran the country in 5 days and Soesterberg was occupied by the German Luftwaffe on 15 May 1940. A variety of German aircraft was stationed there during the war, flying anti-shipping missions along British convoy routes in the North Sea, bombing missions over England, and fighter defence against Allied bombing missions. Throughout the war, Allied Air Forces caused enormous damage to the airfield and by September 1944 the Luftwaffe acknowledged Soesterberg to be more or less useless. In May 1945, Canadian forces liberated the field. |
After the War an extensive construction program was started to build, new hangars, extending the runways and several locations around the base, used as service areas during the War, were upgraded. In 1954 a part of the base, on the north side, was assigned to the Americans and became the home of the 32nd squadron, later group of the USAF. That side of the base received the name "
Camp New Amsterdam" (CNA) as a reminder to the first Dutch colony in America, New Amsterdam present day known as New York. In August 1987 CNA returned to its original name Soesterberg Air Base, representing the many communities surrounding the base that Wolfhounds called home. The conglomeration of Soesterberg comprehended beside the air base several camps like; Jessurunkamp (Soestduinen), Walaardt Sacré Kamp alos known as WS Kamp (Huis ter Heide), Kamp van Zeist (Soesterberg), Kamp Blikkenburg (Zeist), Swagermankamp (Zeist) and Bunker Driebergen (Driebergen). Through the years the base provided accommodation for several Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) squadrons that flew with many different aircraft and helicopters, such as the Auster Mk III, Gloster Meteor, Hawker Hunter, F-27 Friend/Troopship, Alouttes, Bolkow, Chinook, Cougar and more.
 | On the base are three monumens erected, the monument for Fallen Aviators (Monument voor Gevallen Vliegers) is the official Royal Netherlands Air Force Memorial and located near the main entrance of the base. On Memorial Day, May 4, the Royal Netherlands Air Force holds a ceremony to remember and commemorate the fallen of World War II. The second at the base is the monument for Fusilladed Resistance Fighters. It is the symbol for the sacrifice that 33 resistance fighters gave for freedom. Every year on November 19 there is a memorial service. The third monument is the Commemorative column for fallen aeronauts. The monument unveiled September 14, 2007 by Lieutenant General de Jong and Commodore Netto is dictated to the Dutch pilots and aircrews who lost their lives after World War II. |
In 1994 the USAF
inactivated the 32nd Group and left Soesterberg AB. The American side became Dutch again. In the nineties the former American school was converted into a courthouse and the clinic into a prison for the Lockerbie trial. Under treaty with the Dutch the area was considered Scottish territory and guarded by Scottish policemen as long as the trail took. On January 31, 2001, thirteen years after the bombing of Pan Am flight 103, the Scottish court of law passed judgement. After the trail the Scottish court of law, at Camp Zeist, is disbanded and the terrain is given back to the Netherlands.
In the Queens speech, on the opening of the 2003 Dutch parliamentary year, (known as Prinsjesdag) the Dutch government officially announced that the RNLAF will leave Soesterberg AB in at least 2007. The squadrons whom are based at Soesterberg move to Gilze-Rijen AB. The closures are part of the plan that is to result in the Defence organisation saving around EUR 380 million annually. On Tuesday April 17, 2007 the Ministry of Defense announced that the closing of Soesterberg AB was postponed until 1 January 2009. This comes through delay by the building of a part of the new infrastructure for the Defense Helicopter Command on Gilze-Rijen AB. On the third quarter of the 2008 hour has come and the RNLAF started to move its helicopter squadrons to Gilze-Rijen AB. It started with the 300 squadron its Alouttes on August 27. The next month it was the squadron and its Cougars turn, they left on September 10. Last on the list was the 298 squadron and its Chinooks, they left Soesterberg AB on October 6.
 | On November 12, 2008 the base closed its doors. That day base commander Colonel F. Gerards handed over its command to the Commander in Chief, Lieutenant General J. Jansen, of the RNLAF. With this Soesterberg lost its status as an Air Base. A small part on the north side (former CNA) of the base will be in use by the Department of Defense and Ministry of Justice. In 2010-2001 the Military Aviation Museum, now located at Camp Zeist will move to the base too. It is going to use the hangars at the north side of the base. The remaining area will be given back to nature and is nowadays owned by the County. |
The positive part of the story is that the "new" military terrain has the same name as the "old" one. With this difference it is in Dutch, Camp New Amsterdam became Kamp Nieuw Amsterdam.
