Air force exercises to protect a major city at Hanover Airport
The German Air Force will be training to protect major cities at Hanover Airport next week. The exercise will begin next Monday, as the air force announced on Tuesday. Three unarmed Eurofighter fighter jets are to take off from the airport on training flights towards the North Sea.
According to the information, the jets belong to the Tactical Air Force Wing 71 "Richthofen" in Wittmund, which has been using the civilian airport in Hanover as an alternative airfield for several years.
In the "Hannover Shield" exercise scenario, the fighter jets are tasked with protecting a major city like Hannover from potential airborne threats such as drones or low-flying cruise missiles. The aircraft can detect and counteract dangers in the air at an early stage and supplement ground-based air defense missile systems.
The Eurofighters are scheduled to land at the airport on Monday afternoon and the core exercise days are planned for Tuesday and Wednesday, said Brigadier General Frank Gräfe. Hanover had been selected because there had already been good cooperation with the airport in recent years. "In addition, if we want to protect a major city, we need to be as close as possible in order to recognize dangers early on." This is the first time that the protection of a major German city has been practiced in this way.
Airport Managing Director Martin Roll said that regular air traffic would not be restricted by the exercise. The airport's runway would not have to be prepared for the Eurofighters.
In June, Germany hosted "Air Defender 2023", the largest air force deployment exercise since the founding of NATO. Twenty-five nations with 250 aircraft and around 10,000 soldiers took part. A fictitious scenario was used in the airspace over Germany to train how the western defense alliance reacts to an attack by an eastern alliance and recaptures territories already occupied by the enemy.
During the exercise, civil protection authorities might need to coordinate with the military to ensure the safety and security of the major city. The military's role in such a scenario could involve providing additional support to the air force in countering potential airborne threats.
Source: www.dpa.com
