Hilversum Airport () is a
general aviation airport south-southwest of
Hilversum, a municipality and town in the
Het Gooi region and the
province of
North Holland in the
Netherlands.
The airport has three grass runways, 07/25, 13/31 and 18/36 with the respective lengths of , and . An
asphalt runway is planned in the near future. The majority of flights are with smaller single engine piston aircraft, either for training or recreational purposes.
Though founded in 1939 with civil aviation in mind, because of the unrest in Europe, the
Royal Netherlands Air Force took control of the airfield, using it as a base for
Fokker C-5,
Fokker C-10 and
Koolhoven F.K.51 aircraft. On the 10 and 11 May 1940, the airport came under heavy attack by
Luftwaffe Messerschmitt Bf 109 aircraft. After
Germany occupied the Netherlands later that month, they expanded the airport significantly for further military use.
As it became clear that Hilversum Airport was going to be lost to allied forces, the German military destroyed most of airport to prevent use by the
allied forces. After the end of the war, the airport remained under military control briefly, but became a civil airport again in 1948.
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