THE RETURN of six F-16AMs to Leeuwarden and Volkel Air Bases on January 2 marked the end of a significant contribution by the Koninklijke Luchtmacht (KLu, Royal Netherlands Air Force) to the coalition of air forces conducting strikes against ISIS in Syria and Iraq. With multiple missions flown every day during 33 months, the Dutch F-16s amassed close to 14,500 flying hours in more than 3,000 missions over Iraq and eastern Syria. The Dutch jets employed their weapons against ISIS ground targets on at least 2,100 occasions. The F-16s of the KLu's Air Task Force Middle East (ATF ME) operated from an undisclosed air base in Jordan during two periods. The first deployment began in early October 2014 and involved eight F-16AMs, including two spare aircraft. It was meant to last a year, but a political decision to prolong the Dutch forces' involvement in the battle against ISIS - also (and still) including Dutch military training personnel in Iraq - meant that this deployment ended after 21 months, on June 30, 2016. The Dutch jets initially operated exclusively over Iraq, but by February 2016 ATF ME's mandate was expanded to attack ISIS targets in the eastern part of Syria, as well. In the course of 2015, the number of assigned F-16s was reduced to six, including two spares, to decrease the pressure of the Middle East ops on both the jets and pilots.
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