Redzikowo Air Base / Słupsk-Redzikowo Airport

Military Conversion. The primary reason for the airport's closure to all aviation activities was its selection as the site for the United States / NATO Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System. The Polish government agreed to host the site in 2008, leading to the eventual transfer of the former air base to be repurposed into a high-security missile defense installation. The preceding disbandment of the Polish fighter regiment and the economic failure of establishing sustained civilian traffic made the base available for this new strategic purpose.

The site is now the **Aegis Ashore Missile Defense Site Poland (AAMDS-P)**. It is a critical component of the NATO Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) system, designed to protect Europe from short- and intermediate-range ballistic missile threats. The facility is operated by the U.S. Navy and houses a deckhouse with the AN/SPY-1 radar, a Vertical Launch System (VLS) for Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) interceptors, and associated command and control systems. After significant delays, the site was declared operational and officially handed over to NATO in December 2023. It is a highly secure, active military installation and is not accessible to the public. While the runway still exists, the facility's primary function is missile defense, not aviation.

The airport has a rich and multi-layered history.

1. **German Era (WWII):** Originally built by the Luftwaffe before World War II as Fliegerhorst Stolp-West, it was a significant German air base. It was used during the 1939 invasion of Poland and later for operations on the Eastern Front, hosting various fighter and bomber units.

2. **Cold War Era (Polish Air Force):** After the war, the base was taken over first by the Soviets and then transferred to the Polish Air Force. It became a key frontline air base for the Warsaw Pact, located strategically near the Baltic Sea. For decades, it was home to the 28 Słupski Pułk Lotnictwa Myśliwskiego (28th Słupsk Fighter Aviation Regiment), which operated a succession of Soviet-made fighter jets, including the MiG-15, MiG-17, MiG-21, and finally the MiG-23. The base held a high-readiness alert status throughout the Cold War.

3. **Post-Cold War Era (Dual-Use Attempts):** Following the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, the military importance of the base diminished. The 28th Fighter Regiment was disbanded around 1999-2000. In the 1990s and early 2000s, there were attempts to establish scheduled civilian passenger flights from the airport, then marketed as Słupsk-Redzikowo Airport, primarily to Warsaw. However, these services were not economically viable and were short-lived, ultimately failing to create a sustainable civilian airport.

Effectively zero. The site has been fundamentally and permanently transformed into a strategic, high-security military installation for a core NATO mission. The infrastructure is dedicated to the Aegis Ashore system, and the entire facility is under U.S. Navy operational control. There are no known plans, discussions, or realistic prospects for it to ever revert to a civilian or Polish military aviation role. Its current strategic importance precludes any other use.