Luftwaffe resumes flight operations from Büchel Air Base following F-35 refurbishment

Seen on static display at the ILA Berlin Airshow earlier in June 2026, a Luftwaffe Tornado IDS that has since returned to Büchel Air Base following an extensive refurbishment at the site in preparation of the arrival of the first F-35As from 2027. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)

The Luftwaffe has resumed flight operations out of Büchel Air Base following a four-year refurbishment ahead of the arrival of the first Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) in 2027.

The service announced on 15 June 2026 that the Panavia Tornado Interdiction Strike (IDS) aircraft currently stationed at the Tactical Air Wing 33 base, and that had to be relocated to Nörvenich Air Base during this work, had now returned.

“First Tornados back in Büchel!” the Luftwaffe said. “Today, the first two Tornados from our Tactical Air Wing 33 landed back at Büchel Air Base from the ILA 2026 air show. This also means that the wing's flight operations are once again being conducted from its home base. For the past four years, the Tornados had been relocated to Nörvenich Air Base due to extensive construction work at Büchel. Welcome home!”

Located near Bonn, Büchel Air Base has been receiving the upgrades that an airbase would typically need to undergo prior to receiving F-35s. As previously described to Janes , this work includes removing a lot of the legacy equipment that is no longer needed, as well as adding new equipment that is.