31 Tiger squadron – Online lair of the famous Belgian Tiger squadron

Meet the Thunder Tigers: four operational F-16 pilots of 31 “Tiger” Squadron.
Led by “TOBI”, they will show you their all during the Belgian Air Force Days.

Discover more…

The squadron

As a multirole squadron, 31 can be tasked to perform Air to Air missions as well as Air to Ground missions. In a nutshell, the Air to Air missions can be done to defend friendly territory from outsiders or to clear the way for bombers above enemy territory. The Air to Ground missions are mainly performed to slow down or eliminate enemy ground troops and ground based air defences. Fighters can also be "on call" to lend support to friendly ground troops having problems in the field. 31 squadron is part of NATO's High Readiness Forces and is permanently ready to fulfill these tasks in order to protect Belgian national airspace and territory, to support its NATO allies and to perform Peace Support missions under a United Nations mandate.

History

The history of the 31^st Tiger Squadron goes back to the 1^st of October 1951. On that day it was founded, as part of the 10^th Tactical Wing at Beauvechain Airbase, together with 23 and 27 squadron.

Structure

In order to maintain it’s operational capabilities, the squadron must constantly manage it’s personnel in an efficient way. This is key, to allow everyone to participate in operations, continue training, keep up with new tactics and technologies and improve day by day.

Commanding Officers

The Commanding Officer or CO is the ‘boss’ of the squadron. In the yard of the Tiger squadron there is a F-104 Starfighter wingtank with all the names of the 31 Co’s, dating back from 1951 til present CO.