Departure
98%
vs 95% ▲ 3
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Hinterstoisser Air Base, better known internationally as Zeltweg Air Base, is the principal airfield of the Austrian Air Force, set in the Mur valley near Zeltweg in Styria. It combines a lengthy hard runway used by Eurofighter Typhoons with a shorter grass strip and a secondary cross runway, and hosts a military aviation museum alongside its operational squadrons.
Hinterstoisser Air Base lies in Styria, Austria, near the town of Zeltweg, and is the main airfield of the Austrian Air Force. Named after Franz Hinterstoisser, an early pioneer of Austrian aviation, the base is home to fast-jet, surveillance and training units, and its runways sit on the same ground once used for the Zeltweg Grand Prix motor-racing circuit in the 1960s. For a simulator pilot, it offers a distinctive mix of a long hard-surfaced military runway, a shorter grass parallel strip and a separate grass crosswind runway, all within an active military flying environment.
The airfield is a military aerodrome in Styria, Austria, close to the town of Zeltweg. It sits in the Mur valley and is described as the main airfield of the Austrian Air Force, with fast-jet operations conducted alongside training flying.
The field has three physical runways. The main hard runway, 08R/26L, is around 8,419 to 8,518 feet long, hard-surfaced and lit. A parallel grass runway, 08L/26R, measures 4,523 feet, is grass-surfaced and lit. A shorter grass crosswind runway, 02/20, measures 3,108 feet, is also grass and lit. There is no ILS approach. Field elevation is 2,224 feet.
Approach can be contacted on 129.475 MHz, with the tower operating on 118.7 MHz.
The base takes its German name, Fliegerhorst Hinterstoisser, from Franz Hinterstoisser (1863-1933), an early pioneer of Austrian aviation. Since 1976 it has been home to the Austrian Air Force's Surveillance Squadron, which has operated a succession of jet types including Saab 35OE Draken aircraft until 2005, Northrop F-5E Tiger IIs, and Eurofighter Typhoons from 2007 onward. The base has also long served as a training station, having operated the Saab 91 Safir until its retirement in 1992, and continuing with Pilatus PC-7 aircraft since 1984 and Diamond DA40NG trainers since 2018. Between 1957 and 1968 the airfield perimeter doubled as the Zeltweg Grand Prix Circuit, a 3.186 km motor racing track inspired by Silverstone's similar airfield-circuit layout. It hosted a Formula One World Championship round in 1964 and rounds of the World Sportscar Championship, including the Zeltweg 500 Kilometres, before being abandoned in 1969 in favour of the purpose-built Österreichring nearby. Since 1997 the base has hosted the AirPower air show, staged in 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2016 and 2019, with the 2003 and 2005 editions including Red Bull Air Race events.
The base remains an active Austrian Air Force station, serving as a surveillance and fast-jet base as well as a training and simulation centre for the Eurofighter Typhoon. Training aircraft on strength include Pilatus PC-7s and Diamond DA40NG light aircraft. Hangar 8 houses the Zeltweg Military Aviation Museum, a branch of the Vienna Museum of Military History, with a collection of more than 25 historic aircraft including a Saab J29F, a Saab 35OE Draken, a Fouga CM.170 Magister, a de Havilland DH.115 Vampire and a Short SC.7 Skyvan among others. The base periodically hosts the AirPower air show, drawing large crowds to the airfield.