Earlier this year the Royal Canadian Air Force deployed six CF-188 Hornets to Keflavík as part of Operation Reassurance/Air Task Force-Iceland, as Martin Scharenborg and Ramon Wenink report.
CF-188 IN ICELAND
It is a rainy and windy day at Keflavík Airport when suddenly the alarm sounds in the old 57th Fighter Squadron shelter area. Canadian aircrews dash to their Hornets and within minutes two aircraft roll to the active runway for a so-called ‘Tango scramble’. This is a typical scene from Operation Reassurance/Air Task Force-Iceland, which took place between May 11 and June 19.
The skies above and around Iceland have always been very busy with civilian and military aircraft. Nevertheless, Iceland is the only NATO country without a standing military. Early in the Cold War, Soviet long-range bombers began regular incursions into Icelandic airspace. From 1953 the US Air Force’s 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron ‘Black Knights’ protected Icelandic airspace. Until 1962 the unit operated the F-89C Scorpion, followed by the F-102 Delta Dagger. These were replaced in early 1973 by the F-4C Phantom II, in turn relieved by the more sophisticated F-4E Phantom II in 1978. By 1985 the last Phantom II had left Ke…
