Jaworze Airfield

The primary reason for closure was geopolitical: the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact led to the withdrawal of Soviet military forces from Poland. The Polish military had no operational need for the vast number of former Soviet bases, and the airfield was handed over to the state. Its subsequent failure and deregistration as a civil airfield were due to economic reasons, including a lack of investment, competition from other airports, and the absence of a viable business model for sustained aviation operations.

The site is no longer recognizable as an active airfield and has been comprehensively repurposed for industrial and renewable energy use. A large-scale photovoltaic power plant (Farma Fotowoltaiczna Recz) has been built over a significant portion of the former airfield, including one of its runways. The main concrete runway and adjacent aprons are now used for the large-scale open-air storage of wind turbine components, such as blades and tower sections. Most of the former military buildings and hardened aircraft shelters are either derelict, demolished, or used for non-aviation storage purposes. The site effectively functions as an industrial and energy park.

The airfield was originally built and used by the German Luftwaffe during World War II, known then as Fliegerhorst Reetz. After the war, it was taken over by the Soviet Air Forces and became a significant Cold War military installation within the Northern Group of Forces stationed in Poland. It served as a forward operating base for Soviet tactical aviation units, primarily fighter-bomber regiments. Notably, the 58th Fighter-Bomber Aviation Regiment, flying aircraft such as the Sukhoi Su-7 and later the Su-17, was based here. The airfield, with its hardened aircraft shelters and long runway, was a key strategic asset for the Warsaw Pact, positioned to project air power towards Western Europe.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening Jaworze Airfield. The extensive and permanent nature of the current land use, particularly the large solar farm and the established industrial storage operations on the runways, makes a return to aviation activities practically impossible and economically unfeasible. The land has been permanently repurposed, and any potential for aviation use has been eliminated.