Summary
The 23rd Air Base (Polish: 23 Baza Lotnicza) is a Polish Air Force base, located 6 km east of Mińsk Mazowiecki. It was officially constituted on 1 January 2001, replacing the disbanded 1st Aviation Regiment "Warszawa". The main unit based there is the 1st Air Tactical Squadron flying MiG-29 fighters.
23rd Air Base | |
|---|---|
| Near Mińsk Mazowiecki in Poland | |
 | |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defence |
| Operator | Polish Air Force |
| Site history | |
| In use | 1 January 2001-Present |
| Garrison information | |
| Current commander | Col. Maciej Trelka |
| Garrison | 1st Tactical Squadron |
| Airfield information | |
| Identifiers | ICAO: EPMM |
On 18 December 2017, one of the MiG-29's stationed here crash landed in a forest near Kałuszyn while performing a landing approach.[1] The pilot survived. Reports afterward were contradictory whether he ejected or not.[citation needed] On 21 December 2017, the MoD confirmed that the pilot did not eject.[2] This was the first crash of a MiG-29 during its nearly 3 decades long operational history in the Polish Air Force.[3] The second crash followed on 4 March 2019. This time the pilot ejected and survived.[4]
References edit
- ^ "Polish Air Force MiG-29 Crashes in Minsk Mazowiecki. It's The First Ever Crash Of A Polish Fulcrum" The Aviationist, 19 December 2017
- ^ "Wiceszef MON o katastrofie myśliwca: pilot MiG-29 nie katapultował się", 21 December 2017. TVN 24
- ^ "Polish MiG-29 jet fighter crashes" Archived 22 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Jane's Information Group, 19 December 2017.
- ^ ""Zobaczyłam, jak spada samolot". Straż: to maszyna wojskowa" TVN 24, 4 March 2019
External links edit
- Official webpage
52°11′44″N 21°39′25″E / 52.19556°N 21.65694°E