Karelia Air Wing
| Karelia Air Wing | |
|---|---|
| Karjalan lennosto (Finnish) Karelens flygflottilj (Swedish) | |
Distinctive unit insignia of the Karelia Air Wing | |
| Active | 1918– |
| Country | Finland |
| Branch | Finnish Air Force |
| Size | 20-30 F-18 Hornet fighters 500 active duty personnel, 250 conscripts |
| Garrison/HQ | Rissala, Kuopio Airport |
| March | Sinivalkoinen marssi |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Johan Anttila |
| Insignia | |
| Flag | |
The Karelia Air Wing (Finnish: Karjalan lennosto, abbr. KarLsto; Swedish: Karelens flygflottilj) is the peace-time Finnish Air Force unit responsible for the protection of the airspace of eastern and southern parts of Finland. The headquarters of the air wing are located in Rissala, Siilinjärvi, near Kuopio Airport in the North Savo region.
The wing consists of some 20 F-18 Hornets, belonging to the No. 31 Sqn and six radar stations. The unit has about 600 personnel, of whom 450 are commissioned officers, NCOs and professional enlisted men and the other 150 are conscripts. The Headquarters no 7 is also located at the air force base.
The unit was created in 1918 as the Lento-Osasto II. During World War II it was to encompose the Fighter Squadrons 24, 26 and 28. The unit was moved to Rissala after the wars, and the fighter wing was divided between Flying Regiments 2 and 3. Flying Regiment 2, was later equipped with Fouga Magisters and MiG-21s. The unit flew MiG-21s from 1960 until 1998, when it received its F-18 Hornets.
In 2023 the English name for Karelia Air Command was changed to Karelia Air Wing along with the two other Air Commands.