A historic chapter in NATO’s Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) comes to an end as the F-16 Fighting Falcon flies last mission on January 6 and Bodø Air Base shuts down. Fighter jets have been stationed at Bodø since 1955 and the air base was Norway’s most important throughout the Cold War and until today. Located some 80 km inside the Arctic Circle, Bodø is strategically placed on the coast to the Norwegian Sea and in short flying distance to guard the northern air space against Russian military aviation flying out from the Kola Peninsula. The closure of the air base...