Tolemaida Air Base
Tolemaida Army Airfield (ICAO: SKTI) is a Colombian Army Airfield located in Nilo,[1] a municipality of the Cundinamarca department in Colombia.
Tolemaida Army Air Field | |||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Military | ||||||||||||||
| Operator | Colombian military | ||||||||||||||
| Location | Nilo, Colombia | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 493 m / 1,617 ft | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 4°14′41″N 74°38′59″W | ||||||||||||||
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  SKTI Location of the airport in Colombia | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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Facilities
The air base resides at an elevation of 1,617 feet (493 m) above mean sea level. It has two runways: 04/22 has an asphalt pavement measuring 9,280 by 96 feet (2,829 m × 29 m) and 04L/22R with a concrete surface measuring 1,431 by 65 feet (436 m × 20 m).[1]
It is the home of the Colombian National Training Center.[4]
Officially the "Teniente General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla" Army Air Field, the air facilities are part of the larger Tolemaida Military Fort which is located in the town of Nilo, Cundinamarca. Tolemaida is fully adjacent to the town of Melgar which is located in the Tolima Department, right across the Sumapaz river; therefore, Tolemaida is commonly mistaken of being located in Melgar.
Additionally, there is an actual Air Force Base located in Melgar, the Lieutenant Colonel Luis F. Pinto Parra Air Base, which is the location of the Comando Aereo de Combate #4 and the Escuela de Helicopteros de la Fuerza Publica, where aviators from all military services, National Police and allied armed forces undergo basic helicopter training.
History
A joint commission of the Colombian government and FAC released a report in 2015 documenting the alleged rape of at least 54 girls by United States military personnel between 2003 and 2007 concentrating in and around the Tolemaida Army Airfield and Melgar.[5] The "underage girls were sexually abused by nearby stationed military contractors “who moreover filmed [the abuse] and sold the films as pornographic material."[6] Due to bilateral immunity agreements the men were immune from prosecution by Colombia.[7]
In January 2020, the United States and Colombian troops conducted airborne insertion from U.S. and Colombian Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft and then carried out exercises simulating the capture of an airfield.[8] Consisting of around 75 paratroopers from the U.S. Army's 82nd Airborne Division and 40 personnel from U.S. Army South working with Colombian troops, the airborne assault exercise allowed personnel from both countries to co-operate and exchange tactical knowledge of parachute drops.[8]
Gallery
Colombian Army special forces
at Tolemaida Army Air Field, 2007
Colombian special forces
at Tolemaida Army Air Field, 2007
References
- Airport information for SKTI from DAFIF (effective October 2006)
- Airport information for SKTI at Great Circle Mapper.
- Google Maps - Tolemaida
- Rempfer, Kyle (January 27, 2020). "Paratroopers jump into Colombia for airfield seizure exercise". Army Times.
Tolemaida Army Airfield has hosted multinational jumps in the past and is also the location of the Colombian National Training Center.
- Alsema, Adriaan (23 March 2015). "At least 54 Colombian girls sexually "abused" by immune US military: Report". Colombia Reports.
- "At Least 54 Colombian Girls Report Being Sexually Abused by US Military". 24 March 2015.
- Reyes, Gerardo; Guillen, Gonzalo (3 September 2009). "U.S. soldier's immunity clouds 2007 Colombian rape case". El Nuevo Herald.
- Jump alongside the 82nd Airborne with a paratrooper's wild skydive video from Colombia. 5 February 2020. We Are the Mighty. Retrieved 15 July 2020.