Royal Norwegian Air Force - 21st Century RNoAF

21st Century RNoAF

In October 2002, a tri-national force of 18 Norwegian, Danish, and Dutch F-16 fighter-bombers, with one Dutch Air Force KC-10A tanker, flew to the Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan, to support the NATO ground forces in Afghanistan as a part of the Operation Enduring Freedom.

In 2004, four F-16s participated on NATO's Baltic Air Policing operation.

Since February, 2006, eight Royal Netherlands Air Force F-16s, joined by four Royal Norwegian Air Force F-16s, have been supporting NATO International Security Assistance Force ground troops mostly in the southern provinces of Afghanistan. The air detachment is known as the 1st Netherlands-Norwegian European Participating Forces Expeditionary Air Wing (1 NLD/NOR EEAW).

Libyan no-fly zone : – In a statement, Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre condemned the violence against "peaceful protesters in Libya, Bahrain and Yemen", saying the protests "are an expression of the people’s desire for more participatory democracy. The authorities must respect fundamental human rights such as political, economic and social rights. It is now vital that all parties do their utmost to foster peaceful dialogue on reforms.". On 19 March 2011 the Norwegian government authorized The Royal Norwegian Air Force to head for Libya and prepare for missions there. Norway has approved 6 General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters and necessary personnel. These fighters will head for Greece on 21 March and operate from the Souda Air Base in Souda Bay on Greece . On 24 March 2011, F-16s from the Royal Norwegian Air Force was assigned to the United States Africa Command and the Operation Odyssey Dawn. A number of Norwegian F-16s took off from their base in Greece for their first mission over Libya. On 25 March 2011, 3 laserguided bombs were launched from 2 F-16s of the Royal Norwegian Air Force against Libyan tanks and during the night towards 26 March an airfield was bombed. . Equipment also depolyed to Operation Unified Protector on 26 March 2011. By July 2011 the Norwegian F-16's had dropped close to 600 bombs, some 17% of the total bombs dropped at that time. It was Norwegian F-16s that on the night towards 26 April, bombed Gaddafis headquarter in Tripoli

From September to December 2011, the Air Force contributed personnel and one P-3 Orion to Operation Ocean Shield. Operating from the Seychelles, the aircraft searched for pirates in the Somali Basin.