Colonel Olav Spanjer

Commander, Netherlands Groundbased Air Defence Command Netherlands Army

Colonel Olav Spanjer (58) started his military career in 1988 as an Air Defence Officer in the Royal Netherlands Air Force. He held various operational positions at Twenthe Airbase and the Netherlands Missile Group. This was followed by an employment at the Royal Netherlands Air Force Headquarters as the Aide-de-Camp to the Commander-in-Chief. In 2012, he went on a year-long deployment to Afghanistan as the Military Assistant to the NATO Senior Civilian Representative (NATO SCR), stationed in Kabul. In summer 2014, he was Commander of the Netherlands Ballistic Missile Defence Task Force in Adana, Turkey. In 2018, he became Chief of Cabinet to the Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. Since August 2024, Colonel Spanjer is the Commander Ground Based Air Defence Command. He is a graduate of the Royal College of Defence Studies in London.