Alexander Schnitger (November 11, 1958 – June 27, 2020) was a general in the

Royal Netherlands Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = ''Parade March of the Royal Netherlands Air Force'' , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

who served as

Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force The Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (C-LSK) (Dutch: ''Commandant Luchtstrijdkrachten'') is the highest-ranking officer of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. He reports directly to the Chief of the Netherlands Defence Staff (CDS). The p ...

Biography

Schnitger was born in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, and received his

military education Military education and training is a process which intends to establish and improve the capabilities of military personnel in their respective roles. Military training may be voluntary or compulsory duty. It begins with recruit training, proceed ...

at the

Military Academy A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...

Breda Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from ''brede Aa'' ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. Breda ...

. He continued his training at

Sheppard Air Force Base Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the largest training base and most diversified in Air Education ...

and received his wing in March 1984. Back home in the Netherlands he was appointed pilot at the 314 squadron at

Eindhoven Airport Eindhoven Airport is an airport located west of Eindhoven, Netherlands. In terms of the number of served passengers it is the second largest airport in the Netherlands, with 6.2 million passengers in 2018 (well behind Schiphol, which serves m ...

. In 1988 he was the team lead of 'Double Dutch' the NF-5 demoteam of the Royal Netherlands Air Force at that time. In 1990 he was trained for the F-16 and assigned to the 312 squadron at

Volkel Air Base Volkel Air Base ( nl, Vliegbasis Volkel) is a military airbase used by the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) - Dutch: ''Koninklijke Luchtmacht (KLu)'', and is located near the village of Volkel in North Brabant, Netherlands. It is home to two F- ...

. In 2001 he was appointed as Planner of the

Ministry of Defence (Netherlands) The Ministry of Defence ( nl, Ministerie van Defensie; MinDef) is the Dutch Ministry responsible for the armed forces of the Netherlands and Veterans Affairs. The Ministry was created in 1813 as the "Ministry of War" and in 1928 was combined ...

. In this capacity he was involved in major restructuring operation of the

Dutch Armed Forces The Netherlands Armed Forces ( nl, Nederlandse krijgsmacht) are the military, military services of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The core of the armed forces consists of the four service branches: the Royal Netherlands Navy (), the Royal Nethe ...

. In 2004 he was Director of Operations in the

CAOC Combined Air Operations Centres (CAOCs) are multinational headquarters for tactical and operational control of NATO Air Forces below the Joint Force Command level''. They operate within the NATO Integrated Air Defense System (NATINADS) framework. ...

4 in Messstetten, Germany being promoted to the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

. Schnitger was appointed Commander of

in 2005. Three years later, in 2008, he was promoted to Air commodore and appointed Director of Operations at the Air Force Staff of the

Royal Netherlands Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = ''Parade March of the Royal Netherlands Air Force'' , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

. His appointment as Director of Operational Needs, Policy and Planning Division at the

followed in December 2009 while being promoted to

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

. He was

from March 9, 2012, till June 10, 2016. He died at the age of 61 on June 27, 2020.Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force lt.-gen. Luyt
reporting Schnitgers' death on Twitter

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schnitger, Sander 1958 births 2020 deaths Commanders of the Royal Netherlands Air Force Graduates of the Koninklijke Militaire Academie Royal Netherlands Air Force pilots Royal Netherlands Air Force generals Military personnel from Rotterdam