Sjöbo Air Base

The air base was closed due to a strategic shift in the Swedish Armed Forces following the end of the Cold War. The extensive network of wartime dispersal bases (the Bas 60 system) was deemed obsolete and too costly to maintain in the new geopolitical landscape. This led to a large-scale decommissioning of military infrastructure as part of national defense budget cuts and restructuring.

The site has been completely repurposed and is now a well-known motorsport venue called **Sövdeborgs Motorstadion**. The former main runway is used as a drag strip for drag racing events (often referred to as Sjöbo Dragway). The area also hosts drifting competitions, car shows, and driver training. While the outline of the runway and some taxiways are still clearly visible, the land is no longer maintained for aviation purposes and the surrounding areas have largely returned to agricultural use.

The facility was not a publicly accessible airport but a Swedish Air Force wartime air base known as **Krigsflygfält 16 Sjöbo (War Airfield 16 Sjöbo)**, or simply **Fält 16**. It was a key component of the **Bas 60 (Air Base 60)** system, which was a cornerstone of Sweden's defensive strategy during the Cold War. The system was designed to disperse combat aircraft away from their vulnerable peacetime bases in the event of war. Fält 16 was built to support fighter and attack aircraft such as the Saab 32 Lansen, Saab 35 Draken, and Saab 37 Viggen. Its operations focused on rapid turnaround services like refueling, rearming, and basic maintenance from concealed and dispersed locations around the main runway. The base was kept in a state of readiness and primarily used for military exercises rather than daily operations.

None. There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the site as an airport. Its successful and permanent conversion into a popular motorsport complex, combined with the lack of any military or civilian requirement for its reactivation, makes a return to aviation use extremely unlikely. The nearby Sjöbo Airport (ESMI) serves the local general aviation needs.