On this day, the CT-01 with the Luxembourg roundel, went to the Koksijde base to carry the necessary equipment for the deployment; technical and telecommunication equipment essential to run an advanced operational base. This day was also the day of the press conference intended for the local media in order to warn the local population of an increase in flights from the Koksijde base as well as over the neighbouring towns and villages.
During the conference, an introduction was given by Lieutenant-Colonel Aviator Stéphane Roobroek, commander of the Koksijde airbase.
Afterwards, the briefing on the flight operations within the framework of the 'Arizona Dream' exercise was given by Lieutenant-Colonel Aviator Thomas Deberdt, second-in-command of the 15th Transport Wing's flight group.

No reprieve for the Communication and Information System team (CIS) of the 15th Wing, as a high-tech aircraft such as the A400M "Atlas" requires a complex data network to connect to maintenance data servers. The network and the strategic data link were set up today.
A UHF/VHF radio system allowing the operations centre to communicate with the aircraft has also been implemented and WiFi connectivity has been upgraded to operational status. But at this stage, there is still a lot of work to be done before flight operations can begin on Monday.

Third and final day of setting up the operations centre and, once again, a busy day for the CIS team (Communication and Information System). Today, a high frequency antenna was installed to establish long range communication with the crew and the aircraft. Camera surveillance was also set up to ensure security and monitoring of the operational area. The secure computer systems in the mission planning room were brought online and a test of the entire network was conducted. After three days of intense work, everything is in place at the forward base to welcome aircraft and crews and begin operations.

CT-03 left its home base at around 11.00 a.m. local time to head for the forward operating base and from there to carry out its assigned mission of the day. This was an opportunity to take some more equipment and especially the rest of the contingent. But before reaching the advanced base, the crew made a few circuits at Ostend airport as training. After an unloading and a quick check by the technical team, the plane left for its second mission of the day. The mission ended at about 16.00 local time and the aircraft was refueled and underwent the necessary routine checks to ensure that everything was ready for the next day's missions.

This week in March was exceptionally beautiful and the sunrise offered an image of the "Atlas" aircraft as it could have been taken under the Arizona sun.
But no more daydreaming, the day's missions took place in the Orleans area of France as the concentration of birds in the coastal region was too high and safety was an issue. At the time of departure, the CT-01 joined the advanced base with a supply of material and it was the occasion to test the refueling with two twin hoses.

CT-03 took off just before noon for a 5-hour flight to Bordeaux, Marseille, Luxembourg, Cologne and Liège airfields. During this time, ground support technicians carried out the necessary inspections and repairs on the support vehicles. After the aircraft landed, the technicians carried out the post-flight inspections and some ground tests of the high-frequency radios. Everything went perfectly, but well after sunset.

This day's operations consisted of two short missions. The first flight, which took off just after 10 a.m., went from deep down Arizona to Brussels and Ostend airports to practice various approach patterns, while the second flight was to show the aircraft's performance to the Air Component Commander, General Major Thierry Dupont and other members of the Air Force. Our communications technicians performed additional tests using high frequency radio to get the best possible reception. After the day's flying activities, the detachment began packing up the equipment for the return to their home base.
"Atlas" CT-03 departed EBFN aka Arizona airbase for EBMB at 20:20 local time for a 21 minute flight.
Arizona (USA) - Melsbroek (Belgium) in 21 minutes... A record?... No simply a dream...The Arizona Dream!