Giant Antonov AN-124 Ruslan low on final approach at Gilze Rijen airport

In the 1980s, you could see U.S. F-4 Phantoms or RNlAF (Royal Netherlands Air Force) NF-5 low overhead the road just outside the airport fence at Gilze-Rijen airport.

Nowadays, if you are lucky, you can have a close encounter with a giant airlifter leased by the Dutch Government to support overseas deployments.

The image in this post was taken by Jimmy van Drunen in 2009 when an Antonov 124 of the “Antonov Design Bureau” (Ukraine’s state-owned company currently known as Antonov State Company), visited the base to bring some local Apache attack choppers back home from Afghanistan.

The Aviationist