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Major General Aviator Bruno Beeckmans
Major General Aviator Bruno Beeckmans
Job Title
Commander
Organization
Belgian Air Force
Born in Brussels on the 23rd of April 1974, Major General Aviator Bruno BEECKMANS started his military career in 1992 at the Royal Military Academy.
Obtaining his master’s degree in 1997, he conducted the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training (ENJJPT) in Texas, USA. After his advanced jet training he joined C-130 at 15Wing. He was (and remains since) invested in documentation, readiness and operations.
After completing the Staff Course, Captain BEECKMANS went on to serve as Commander of the Training and Conversion Unit (TCU) of 15Wing Airlift. Besides his main job he was deeply involved in the C-130 software development.
He was then appointed as airlift operations officer of the Air Staff (COA A3.4) in 2008. Major BEECKMANS graduated the ITPS test pilot course in 2009 and served at the Material Resource command until 2013, introducing CPDLC and GPS approaches in the Belgian Air Force, performing numerous modifications on the C-130 fleet while being heavily invested in the A400M project and Risk Management.
He took command of the Flying Group of the15 Wing from 2013 until 2016, during which he was Detachment Commander for the first Airlift National Evaluation (NATEVAL).
Between 2016 and 2020, he filled the position of project officer for Capability Development Airlift Fixed Wing, where he was in charge of A400M, MRTT, Falcon 7X projects and started up the Special Operations SOF Air. During this period, he also led the multinational Requirement Development Work Strand for future A400M developments.
Between 2020 and 2022, he took command of 15 Wing Airlift, enjoying the operational, people and administrative sides of leadership.
On April 24th, 2025 he took the position of Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff Operations at the Readiness and Operations Department, where he was commissioned Brigadier General on July 1st, 2025. On March 26th, 2026 he was promoted to Major General.
On May 29, 2026 he was appointed as the 18th Air Force Commander.
Throughout his career he has always remained an operational pilot, first on C-130, then A321, and currently A400M, serving all theatres where Belgium was involved (AFG, AFR, IRQ, SYR, LEB, …). He has been deployed numerous times and held the positions of Ops Officer and Detachment Commander in different theatres in a joint and multinational environment.
He is a man of passion, and his motto 'Spirit is Power' embodies his relentless drive and deep conviction to lead a life of purpose.
With his lovely wife Greet and their two children, they enjoy family life in the neighbourhood of Brussels.
