Message posted on
9 July 2025 by HIVE
On Wednesday, July 9 2025, an important milestone took place at Woensdrecht Air Base for both the Royal Netherlands Air Force and HIVE: the official establishment of the Air Support Command (ASC). The ASC combines the capabilities of two units at the air base: the Royal Air Education and Training Center and the Woensdrecht Logistics Center. This merger creates a single integrated organization that supports the Air Force in the areas of training, maintenance, and logistics.
The command is in the hands of Commodore Cengiz Sahan, who received the unit flag from Commodore Erwin van Beljouw during the ceremony. Van Beljouw led the intensive preparatory phase in the run-up to the official establishment of the ASC. He will continue his military career in a new post in the United States.
During the founding ceremony, Lieutenant General André Steur, Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air and Space Force, emphasized the strategic importance of the new command: “Without the ASC, everything comes to a standstill; without the ASC, there is no Air & Space Power. Because those who fly must be able to land. Those who deploy must be able to recover. Those who grow must be able to train, maintain, and support. And that is exactly what you provide here.”
At HIVE Aerospace Collective, this development is welcomed with pride. The establishment of the ASC fits seamlessly with the objective of our cluster: to strengthen civil-military cooperation. This cooperation directly contributes to the core task of the Air Support Command: providing the continuity that the Air Force and its partners need to remain deployable, relevant, and future-proof—a crucial mission in a time when security can no longer be taken for granted.
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