De Kooy Airfield (Dutch: Vliegveld De Kooy) (IATA: DHR, ICAO: EHKD) is an airfield 2.9 NM (5.4 km; 3.3 mi) south[2] of Den Helder, Netherlands, named after the nearby hamlet De Kooy. It serves as both a civilian airport under the name Den Helder Airport and a naval airport under the name Maritiem Vliegkamp De Kooy (Dutch for Maritime Aviation Site De Kooy).
Most movements on the De Kooy are made by helicopters, bringing workers to and from offshore oilrigs and naval helicopters such as the NH90 of the Naval Aviation Service of the Royal Netherlands Navy. Fixed-wing aircraft visit and operate from the airport alongside. Skyline Aviation operates from De Kooy, mainly operating business aircraft and also do airwork such as aerial photography for civilian and military contractors. Amongst its fleet of aircraft most noticeable are several Aero L-39 Albatrosjets.
The airport was constructed in 1918 for the Royal Netherlands Navy, whose primary base was and still is located in Den Helder. A seaplane base already existed nearby on the south side of Texel however the navy required an airport for conventional aircraft as well.[3] The base came under German control during the Second World War and was renamed Fliegerhorst De Kooy. It suffered heavy damage during the war, this despite the construction of heavy anti-aircraft defences in the area.[4] After the war, the need for a naval air base in the area remained, and the airport was repaired. In 1960 a concrete runway was constructed, the base using a simple grass field prior to that. The retirement of the last aircraft carrier operated by the Dutch navy, the HNLMS Karel Doorman, in 1968, meant that the navy started to replace its fixed wing aircraft based at De Kooy with helicopters. In the 1980s, the need for offshore helicopter services for oilrigs in the North Sea resulted in the military sharing the base with civilian users.[3]
Future
The oil fields in the North Sea will eventually be depleted and when that happens the airport would lose most of its helicopter movements and thus alternative markets are being looked at, such as business and holiday flights.
Airlines and destinations
There are currently no scheduled services to and from Den Helder. A service to Manchester and Norwich offered by Loganair was briefly operated in March 2013. This route was terminated after only two weeks of service due to weak demand.[5][6]
References
^Den Helder Airport 14 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine, official site
^ abEHKD – DEN HELDER/De Kooy. AIP from AIS the Netherlands, effective 13 July 2023
^ abOntdek Den Helder – Marine Vliegkamp De Kooy (1), article retrieved 14 December 2014.
^Nationaal Comité 4 en 5 mei – Den Helder, Luchtdoelgeschut Fliegerhorst de Kooy, article retrieved 14 December 2014.
^"Lijndienst Den Helder - Norwich na twee weken opgeheven - Binnenland - de Volkskrant". volkskrant.nl. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
^"Loganair/flyBe Cancels Norwich – Den Helder Service". routesonline.com. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to De Kooy Airfield.
Skyline Aviation
Photos taken at Den Helder – De Kooy (DHR / EHKD) from Airliners.net
kooy, airfield, dutch, vliegveld, kooy, iata, icao, ehkd, airfield, south, helder, netherlands, named, after, nearby, hamlet, kooy, serves, both, civilian, airport, under, name, helder, airport, naval, airport, under, name, maritiem, vliegkamp, kooy, dutch, ma. De Kooy Airfield Dutch Vliegveld De Kooy IATA DHR ICAO EHKD is an airfield 2 9 NM 5 4 km 3 3 mi south 2 of Den Helder Netherlands named after the nearby hamlet De Kooy It serves as both a civilian airport under the name Den Helder Airport and a naval airport under the name Maritiem Vliegkamp De Kooy Dutch for Maritime Aviation Site De Kooy De Kooy AirfieldVliegveld De KooyDen Helder AirportMaritiem Vliegkamp De KooyIATA DHRICAO EHKDSummaryAirport typeMilitary PublicOperatorRoyal Netherlands Navy Den Helder Airport CVLocationDen Helder NetherlandsElevation AMSL4 ft 1 mCoordinates52 55 25 N 004 46 50 E 52 92361 N 4 78056 E 52 92361 4 78056Websitewww DenHelderAirport nlRunwaysDirection Length Surfacem ft03 21 1 275 4 183 Concrete asphaltSources Airport website 1 AIP 2 OpenStreetMap of the airfield A pilot next to his downed Fokker D XXI at De Kooy in May 1940 during the Battle of the NetherlandsMost movements on the De Kooy are made by helicopters bringing workers to and from offshore oilrigs and naval helicopters such as the NH90 of the Naval Aviation Service of the Royal Netherlands Navy Fixed wing aircraft visit and operate from the airport alongside Skyline Aviation operates from De Kooy mainly operating business aircraft and also do airwork such as aerial photography for civilian and military contractors Amongst its fleet of aircraft most noticeable are several Aero L 39 Albatros jets Contents 1 History 2 Future 3 Airlines and destinations 4 References 5 External linksHistory EditThe airport was constructed in 1918 for the Royal Netherlands Navy whose primary base was and still is located in Den Helder A seaplane base already existed nearby on the south side of Texel however the navy required an airport for conventional aircraft as well 3 The base came under German control during the Second World War and was renamed Fliegerhorst De Kooy It suffered heavy damage during the war this despite the construction of heavy anti aircraft defences in the area 4 After the war the need for a naval air base in the area remained and the airport was repaired In 1960 a concrete runway was constructed the base using a simple grass field prior to that The retirement of the last aircraft carrier operated by the Dutch navy the HNLMS Karel Doorman in 1968 meant that the navy started to replace its fixed wing aircraft based at De Kooy with helicopters In the 1980s the need for offshore helicopter services for oilrigs in the North Sea resulted in the military sharing the base with civilian users 3 Future EditThe oil fields in the North Sea will eventually be depleted and when that happens the airport would lose most of its helicopter movements and thus alternative markets are being looked at such as business and holiday flights Airlines and destinations EditThere are currently no scheduled services to and from Den Helder A service to Manchester and Norwich offered by Loganair was briefly operated in March 2013 This route was terminated after only two weeks of service due to weak demand 5 6 References Edit Den Helder Airport Archived 14 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine official site a b EHKD DEN HELDER De Kooy AIP from AIS the Netherlands effective 13 July 2023 a b Ontdek Den Helder Marine Vliegkamp De Kooy 1 article retrieved 14 December 2014 Nationaal Comite 4 en 5 mei Den Helder Luchtdoelgeschut Fliegerhorst de Kooy article retrieved 14 December 2014 Lijndienst Den Helder Norwich na twee weken opgeheven Binnenland de Volkskrant volkskrant nl Retrieved 20 August 2016 Loganair flyBe Cancels Norwich Den Helder Service routesonline com Retrieved 20 August 2016 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to De Kooy Airfield Skyline Aviation Photos taken at Den Helder De Kooy DHR EHKD from Airliners net Current weather for EHKD at NOAA NWS Accident history for DHR at Aviation Safety Network Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title De Kooy Airfield amp oldid 1135550967, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
