NATO loses air base in Norway. The reason… holes in the concrete and lack of fences

The commander of the air base on the island of Andoeya in northern Norway decided to close it. According to Forsvarets forum, the runway is unusable. The airport was to be a base for NATO winter exercises.

Base commander Lt. Col. Oeystein Dahlberg closed the unit when cracked concrete on the runway, erosion of the ground and lack of protection against wild animals made it impossible to conduct flight operations. In his opinion, continued use of the airport could pose a threat to pilots and aircraft.

In 2016, the parliament decided to liquidate the base in Andoeyi. Since then, investments related to its maintenance have been suspended. Despite this, it was used as a base and emergency airfield for NATO forces. It was also intended to serve as a center for the development of Norwegian drone forces. The unit was also to be the base during the Alliance exercises planned for March 2026, codenamed Cold Response. After the Norwegian commander's decision, other bases in the north of the country will have to take over its tasks.

There is also a Norwegian space center on Andoeyi, located north of the Lofoten Islands. The island attracted particular attention when, a few weeks ago, a local fisherman interrupted German air maneuvers by sailing his cutter into the local training ground.

From Oslo Mieszko Czarnecki (PAP)

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