Autumn waves exercise, Gilze-Rijen AFB

I visited Gilze-Rijen Air Base during the ongoing Exercise Autumn Wave 2025, hoping to catch some rotary-wing and possibly fixed-wing action tied to what was expected to be a NATO or multinational military drill. However, the day turned out to be largely uneventful from an aviation spotting perspective.

Leading up to the day, local sources and some informal channels hinted at increased activity involving helicopters, possibly tied to joint airmobile operations — similar in nature to past exercises like Falcon Autumn. This set expectations for a steady stream of military helicopter movements: CH-47 Chinooks, AS532 Cougars, AH-64 Apaches, or visiting assets from allied forces.

Unfortunately, the reality was underwhelming. During my time on-site (approx. 8 hours), there was little to no flight activity. Only two Cougars broke the silence. Another highlight could have been the arrival of 2 AH-64 Apaches from the UK, making a fuel stop at Gilze. On their way home from Laage AFB. Sadly I made a wrong decision and  misjudged the runway they landed one. Resulting in a missed opportunity. Yep it can happen to the best.

For an advertised or anticipated military drill, the airfield was unexpectedly quiet.

More pictures can be found here.