Eskadrille 724 is a Danish Air Force helicopter squadron, housed at Karup Air Base in central Jutland

Jutland

Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...

.

It was official erected August 7, 2003, when the Danish Army's Hærens Flyvetjeneste (HFT) was disbanded and transformed into Eskadrille 724. The name "Hærens Flyvetjeneste" was used onto August 2005.

The squadron consist of 12 AS 550 Fennec

Eurocopter Fennec

|-See also:-References:* Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK:Jane's Information Group, 2003. ISBN 0-7106-2537-5.-External links:* * *...

. In the Danish Defence agreement 2005-2009

Danish Defence agreement 2005-2009

Danish Defence agreement 2005–2009 for the military of Denmark was signed June 10, 2004.It calls for a significant reconstruction of the entire Danish military...

, Eskadrille 724 is to be disbanded; the Fennec helicopter loses its anti-tank capability and will likely be used in a light transport- and observation unit.

Until September 12 2005 the squadron also operated 10 H-500 Cayuse

Hughes H-6

The Hughes OH-6 Cayuse is a single-engine light helicopter with a four-bladed main rotor used for personnel transport, escort and attack missions, and observation...

 helicopters.

Previous Eskadrille 724

A previous Eskadrille 724 did exist in the Danish Air force.

On January 8, 1951 Eskadrille 724 at Karup Air Base was established and in a matter of month equipped with 20 Gloster Meteor

Gloster Meteor

The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...

 fighters. In June 1952 the squadron moved to Aalborg Air Base

Aalborg Air Base

Aalborg Air Base is a military base for the Danish Air Force . It is located near Aalborg, Denmark.Aalborg Air Base shares its runway system as well as some services with Aalborg Lufthavn.Residing Royal Danish Air Force units are:...

 and here it was in 1956 equipped with Hawker Hunter

Hawker Hunter

The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...

 fighters. In 1958 it moved back to Karup Air Base, but already in 1959 it was again moved, this time to Skrydstrup Air base.

With the Danish defence agreement on April 26, 1973, Eskadrille 724 was to be disbanded. The last Hawker Hunter fighter was flown to Aalborg

Aalborg

-Transport:On the north side of the Limfjord is Nørresundby, which is connected to Aalborg by a road bridge Limfjordsbroen, an iron railway bridge Jernbanebroen over Limfjorden, as well as a motorway tunnel running under the Limfjord Limfjordstunnelen....

Air Base on March 30, 1974, to be disbanded and stored.

Source

• FOV Newsletter no.15, 2003 ISSN: 1602-4982
• Karup Air Base tjenestestedsblad "Vindposen", December 2003
• FLV12-okt2005