Exhibition '100 years Naval Aviation Service' at Aviodrome opened!

The interactive exhibit "100 Years of Naval Aviation Service" opened in a special way this afternoon at Aviodrome. Prominent former MLD personnel arrived for the opening after a spectacular sightseeing flight in the Catalina. Commander Polet, who as group elder of the Naval Air Service was authorized to open the exhibition, arrived in an NH-90. A special event during this opening was the hoisting of the original flag of Naval Air Station Valkenburg.

Photo left: Catalina and NH-90 arrival.
Photo right: Commander Polet (right) is welcomed by Serena van Kammen, Aviodrome branch manager (center).

100 years of Naval Aviation Service

The Naval Air Service was established in August 1917 and has officially been out of service since 2008, but not disbanded. For the 100th anniversary, Aviodrome has collected exploits and highlights from 100 years of Naval Aviation Service in a special exhibition. Visitors will discover stories about spectacular highlights of flying naval heroes and can test their own skills with various brainteasers and active exercises. In addition, Aviodrome has brought together various aircraft types with an MLD background in the indoor exhibition especially for this occasion.

Special collection pieces on display

Two collection pieces are on display complete for the first time after being specially built at Aviodrome in recent years:

Van Berkel WA
For 15 years, the Neptune Association Foundation worked on the replica of the Van Berkel WA with registration number W57. This type of seaplane flew for the Naval Air Service from 1919 to 1933 and was built by the Dutch scale manufacturer of the same name. At that time, the Navy did not yet have aircraft carriers. This seaplane was mainly used for patrolling and landed next to the ship after its mission and was then hoisted onto the ship with a large hoist. The replica of the Van Berkel WA, which has been reconstructed with extreme precision, can be admired for the first time completed from July 6 in exhibition 100 years of naval aviation service.

Spyker V2
The 1:1 model of the Spyker V2 with registration number C16 equipped with the original Thulin engine of the C16 and a propeller of this model are on display complete for the first time in the exhibition on the Naval Air Service. This Spyker V2 C16 was built by the Dutch aircraft and car manufacturer Spyker in 1918 as a training aircraft for the Naval Air Service.

Skills testing on interactive course

In addition to these special collection pieces and all the collected highlights, visitors can test themselves in the interactive part of the exhibition whether they have what it takes to become a flying naval hero. A special course has been laid out for this purpose, which begins inside the museum with challenging brainteasers that require a lot of concentration. Once these exercises have been completed, participants can proceed to the assault course, which Aviodrome has specially constructed for this exhibition. The assault course consists of several challenging obstacles that test judgment, stamina, strength and agility, among other things. For those who successfully complete the full test and answer the knowledge questions correctly, Aviodrome of course has a diploma as proof!