Photo by Ralph Blok for Kerosene Creations

In March of 2019, Kerosene Creations was approached to design a livery for the 75th anniversary of the Royal Netherlands Air Force 298 squadron. A long process started with various versions of the designs. On the left side of the fuselage, in addition to the “75 Years 298 Sqn” lettering, a large dragonfly decorates the helicopter. The dragonfly is part of the coat of arms of the unit. The anniversary lettering can also be found on the right side of the fuselage, supplemented by the image of a grizzly bear. The grizzly is the mascot and also the call sign of the unit.

On the panel of the aft pylon, the anniversary coat of arms is stickered on both sides, which in addition to the year of foundation and the number 75, also shows the plan views of all aircraft types that have been used by the squadron in the past 75 years.

The helicopter (registration D-666) with the nickname “The Beast” was given its special paint by the technicians of the 980 maintenance squadron of the Royal Netherlands Airforce (RNLAF) at Woensdrecht. The tan, grey, and green colors represent the different colors of Chinooks that fly with 298 squadron.

Video copyright Ministerie van Defensie

The squadron presented their anniversary helicopter at Woensdrecht Air Base on March 17, 2020. The squadron (motto: Nihil Nobis Nimium, in English: nothing is too much for us), which is based at the Gilze-Rijen Base, was set up 75 years ago. It was actually planned to host a big anniversary on 16 April, the anniversary date of the squadron. However, due to the currently rampant Covid 19 virus, this was postponed.

Photo by Ralph Blok for Kerosene Creations