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313 Squadron

Armed Force
Koninklijke Luchtmacht
 (RNlAF)
Airfield
Vlb. Volkel
 (EHVK)
, NLD
Aircraft
F-35 Lightning II
Membership status
Full Member
Member since
1990
Facebook
@313Squadron
Instagram
@313Squadron
Silver Tiger Tropy Wins
Poznań-Krzesiny AB
, POL
Hosted Tiger Meets
Vlb. Volkel
, NLD
History

313 Squadron was officially formed in 1953. However for a squadron with such a long history there is little to tell, for the Sqn was mostly an Operational Conversion Unit (OCU). They started of flying Lockheed T-33's on VOLKEL AB the planes used where on lone from the United States and where (unofficially) named JVS II. They where formed to give an operational training to Dutch Pilots who returned from a training in the United States.

In 1958 the Sqn moved to Woensdrecht. Here the two Training Sqn's joined to form the JVO and on 1 January 1959, 313 Squadron was disbanded. The Sqn Reformed in October 1972 at Twente AB, again as an OCU Sqn but now on the NF-5A Freedom Fighter. For the next years 313 Sqn was the only Training squadron in the RNAF.

September 1986 was the year where 316 Sqn took over the Training Role, and 313 Sqn became for the first time in there Career a fully operational Squadron on the Northrop NF-5A. The Operational status came to an end in 1988 with the arrival of the F-16 Fighting Falcon By April 1990, 313 Became Operational again as an offensive and defensive Sqn. October 1990 was the month 313 changed there Sqn badge in to a Tiger and became a member of Nato's Tiger Association. From 1 April 1994 313 regained there training role as a Tactical Qualification Training (TQT). By the end of 2002 the squadron regained it's NATO operational standard. During 2004 the squadrons future looked quite dreary, when the decision was made to close 313 squadrons home-base Twente and disband it's 2 resident squadrons. Hope grew again when the decision was made to create a new squadron at Volkel AB. and only 2 day's after the disbandment of 313 squadron at Twente it was raised from its aches at Volkel.

In late 2020 the F-16's together with Pilots and groundcrew where all moved to 312 Sqn, and 313 Sqn started to opperate under the 3yy Squadron designation the start to prepare for the arrival of the F-35 Lightning II.

On June 30th 2022 the first F-35 Lightning II for 313 Squadron landed at Volkel Air Base, and the squadron started the next fase on their roadmap to ioc on the 5th generation fighter.