Zeltweg Air Base, known in German as Fliegerhorst Hinterstoisser, is a military airfield in Styria, Austria near Zeltweg. It is the main airfield of the Austrian Air Force. It was also used as a motor racing circuit in the 1960s.
History Zeltweg Air Base has been home to the Austrian Air Force's Surveillance Squadron since 1976, operating a variety of jet types, including Saab 35OE Draken until 2005, Northrop F-5E Tiger II, and Eurofighter Typhoons since 2007.
It is also a base for training aircraft, such as the Saab 91 Safir (retired 1992), the Pilatus PC-7 (12 in service, since 1984) and the Diamond DA 40NG (4, since 2018).
AirPower air show Since 1997, the AirPower show is held at Zeltweg. The 2003 and 2005 editions featured Red Bull Air Race events. The show was held in 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2016 and 2019. It is scheduled to be held again in 2022.
Franz Hinterstoisser, after whom the airfield was named, was an early pioneer of Austrian aviation (1863-1933).
Zeltweg Military Aviation Museum Hangar 8 of Hinterstoisser Air Base is home to the "Zeltweg Military Aviation Museum" (Militärluftfahrtmuseum Zeltweg), a branch of the Vienna Museum of Military History (Heeresgeschichtliches Museum). The collection includes over 25 historic aircraft, and associated military equipment.
Aircraft on display include; Aérospatiale Alouette III helicopter Agusta-Bell 204 helicopter De Havilland DH.115 Vampire Fouga CM.170 Magister Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21R (Yugoslav AF) Saab J29F Saab 35OE Draken Saab 105 jet trainer Short SC.7 Skyvan Yakovlev Yak-18 - the first aircraft to enter service with the Austrian Armed Forces of the Second Republic
Motorsports
Built in 1957 in Styria, the idea for the track came from the United Kingdom's success at Silverstone Circuit, also built on the site of an airfield. However, the track engineers at Zeltweg failed to take into account the abrasive nature of the surface. A lone Formula One World Championship Grand Prix was held in 1964. The World Sportscar Championship Zeltweg 500 Kilometres was held later, until the track was abandoned in 1969 following the construction of the purpose-built Österreichring nearby at Kattigar.
Lap records The Formula 1 lap record on the Zeltweg Airfield circuit is 1:10.560 by Dan Gurney in a Brabham BT7, while the overall lap record is 1:04.820 and was set by Jo Siffert in a Porsche 908 during the 1968 Zeltweg 500 Kilometres. The fastest official race lap records at the Zeltweg Air Base are listed as:
Category Time Driver Vehicle Event Grand Prix Circuit (1957–1968): Group 6 1:04.820 Jo Siffert Porsche 908 1968 500km of Zeltweg Group 4 1:09.400 Denny HulmePaul Hawkins Ford GT40 1967 Sports Car Grand Prix Österrich Formula One 1:10.560 Dan Gurney Brabham BT7 1964 Austrian Grand Prix Formula Two 1:16.000 Stirling Moss Porsche 718 1960 Flugplatzrennen
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