From Monday 23 March to Friday 5 April 2026, the Orange Bull exercise will be held at Eindhoven Air Base. During these two weeks, training will focus on tactical landings and the dropping of cargo and parachutists at various locations in Groningen, Friesland and Belgium. Two C-130 Hercules transport aircraft from 336 Squadron at the Air Mobility Command will provide air transport. Dropping cargo is an important task of the Air Mobility Command. A recent example is the dropping of relief supplies over Gaza. Exercises such as Orange Bull are important to be able to carry out these types of missions in the future.
During this exercise, the focus is on integration and cooperation with partners. The exercise is organised with the support of units from other branches of the armed forces, such as 11 Airmobile Brigade, the Commando Corps, the Marine Corps and the Defence Para School. Units from the Royal Netherlands Air Force are also supporting Orange Bull, such as the Air Mobile Protection Team (AMPT), Operational Healthcare (OGZ) and units from the Air Mobility Command at Eindhoven Air Base.
All aircraft will depart from and land at Eindhoven Air Base. They will also use Twente Airport during this exercise. During flights to the exercise locations, the aircraft will fly at the regular minimum flight altitudes. Flights will take place daily from 14:00 to 17:00 and from 20:00 to 23:00. On Fridays, flights will take place from 11:00 to 13:30 and from 16:00 to 19:00.
The dropping of parachutists or cargo depends, among other things, on weather conditions. For this reason, a location may be changed at the last minute or a flight may be cancelled. To avoid crowds at a location, exact times and locations are not announced in advance.
Military exercises are carefully prepared. This is essential for the units participating in the exercises, but also to minimise disruption to the areas surrounding the exercise locations. It is possible that some disruption may still be experienced during these exercises. Any reports can be submitted via the complaints form at www.luchtmacht.nl/geluidshinder. If you would like to know more about flight movements, please visit www.luchtmacht.nl/vliegbewegingen.
