Flesland Air Station | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Joint (military and civilian) | ||||||||||
| Owner | Norwegian Defence Estates Agency | ||||||||||
| Location | Flesland, Bergen, Norway | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 50.6 m / 166 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 60°17′37″N 005°13′05″E / 60.29361°N 5.21806°E | ||||||||||
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Flesland Air Station (Norwegian: Flesland flystasjon) was a military air base situated at Flesland in Bergen, Norway. Part of the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF), it shares a 2,990-meter (9,810 ft) runway with Bergen Airport, Flesland. The air station has since 1999 had a mobilization status and is only staffed by six employees. Its main structure is a subterranean hangar with space for 25 fighter jets.
Construction began in 1952 and the following year the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) issued grants for a long runway. The facility cost 70 million Norwegian krone and opened on 14 September 1954. Flesland was never the permanent base of any squadrons. Its role was intended as a forward operating base for the United States Air Force (USAF) in case the Cold War turned hot. From about 1966 Flesland became a forward storage facility for nuclear warheads, which could be moved to the air station in case of war. From 1985 it became operational as a collocated operating base, with supplies and facilities for USAF aircraft. Flesland Air Station was gradually mothballed during the 1990s.