Grostenquin Air Base

The initial closure as a NATO fighter base was a direct result of a major political shift. In 1966, French President Charles de Gaulle announced France's withdrawal from NATO's integrated military command, forcing all foreign NATO forces to leave French territory by April 1967. In anticipation of this, the RCAF's No. 2 Wing at Grostenquin was disbanded in 1964. The later formal closure as a French Air Force base was due to military restructuring and the changing strategic needs of the French Armed Forces after the Cold War.

The site is an active, non-flying military installation operated by the French Army (Armée de Terre). It is known as 'Ouvrage de Grostenquin' or 'Quartier de Lattre de Tassigny'. The former air base is now a major center for intelligence and electronic warfare. It houses elements of the Intelligence Command (COM RENS), including the Centre de Formation Initiale des Militaires du Rang (CFIM) for the intelligence brigade and the 1st Intelligence Regiment (1er régiment du renseignement). While the original runway, taxiways, and hardened aircraft shelters (HAS) still exist, they are not maintained for regular aviation and are used for military vehicle training and other ground-based activities.

Grostenquin Air Base was a critical Cold War installation. Constructed between 1950 and 1952 under a NATO agreement, it was designed to counter the Soviet threat in Central Europe. Its primary user was the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), which established its No. 2 Fighter Wing at the base. The wing consisted of three squadrons (No. 416, No. 421, and No. 430) flying the Canadair F-86 Sabre jet fighter, a frontline aircraft of its time. The base was a key component of the RCAF's 1 Air Division in Europe. In the late 1950s, the base's mission shifted to all-weather interception with the arrival of the Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck. After the Canadians departed in 1964, the French Air Force (Armée de l'Air) took control, designating it Base Aérienne 139. It was later used by the French Army (Armée de Terre) for various purposes, including as a storage depot and training area.

There are no known plans or prospects to reopen Grostenquin Air Base as a public or active military airport. Its strategic purpose has been completely repurposed from an air base to a specialized ground-based intelligence and electronic warfare training center. The cost to refurbish the extensive airfield infrastructure to modern aviation standards would be prohibitive, and there is no strategic or commercial demand for another major airport in the region. Its current military role is considered vital and is well-established.