Rheine-Hopsten Air Base is a former German Air Force military air base, located 9.3 km northeast of Rheine in Westphalia, Germany. The runway was closed in 2005 with the retirement of the F-4F Phantom II aircraft.HistoryIn 1939 works to build an air base for the Luftwaffe began. These works were completed in 1940.World War IIHopsten AB played only a secondary role as an operational base for the Luftwaffe in the opening stages of World War II. In the years between 1939 and 1944, the base was used only for short periods by different day and night fighter units as well as various bomber wings.As part of the "Defense of the Reich Campaign" begun in 1944 as Allied air attacks became more intense against Germany, Hopsten AB became a hub for a multitude of Luftwaffe activity. Daily operations were conducted with the Bf 109. Bf 110, Heinkel He 111, He 219 and Focke Wulf 190 aircraft. Starting in September 1944, the Me 262 equipped Kampfgeschwader 51 (KG 51) "Edelweiß" was based at Hopsten. Known Luftwaffe units assigned to the base were:  II./Jagdgeschwader 1 Oesau from Drope near Lingen. III./Jagdgeschwader 1 from Rheine-Bentlage AB. Stab and I./Jagdgeschwader 26 Schlageter from Drope and Fürstenau, II./Jagdgeschwader 26 from Nordhorn, III./Jagdgeschwader 26 from Plantlünne, Stab and l./Jagdgeschwader 27 Afrika from Rheine-Bentlage, II./ Jagdgeschwader 27 based locally at Hopsten, III./Jagdgeschwader 27 from Hesepe, IV./ Jagdgeschwader 27 from Achmer and III./Jagdgeschwader 54 Grünherz with its JG 190D-9 from Varrelbusch, Vörden and Fürstenau.  Towards the end of the war, Hopsten Air Base was a frequent target for allied air raids. But due to the extremely heavy air defence - with up to 500 AAA guns based in the vicinity of the base - and the fast repairs done to the runways, it remained relatively intact. Good camouflage and widely dispersed aircraft parking kept the airfield operational until the occupation by British troops. During the last days of the war, German units destroyed the infrastructure and made the airfield useless.