Misrata International Airport is an international airport serving
Misrata
Misrata ( ; also spelled Misurata or Misratah; ar, مصراتة, Miṣrāta ) is a city in the Misrata District in northwestern Libya, situated to the east of Tripoli and west of Benghazi on the Mediterranean coast near Cape Misrata. With ...
, a
Mediterranean coastal city in the
Misrata District of
Libya. It also acts as an
air base and training center for the
Libyan Air Force
The Libyan Air Force ( ar, القوات الجوية الليبية) is the branch of the Libyan Armed Forces responsible for aerial warfare. In 2010, before the Libyan Civil War, the Libyan Air Force personnel strength was estimated at 18,000 ...
.
History
The airport was created in 1939 as a small landing site in the Misrata province of
Italian Libya.
On 15 December 2011 the airport celebrated its first regularly scheduled international commercial flights by a non-Libyan airline (
Turkish Airlines).
On 14 July 2014, the airport was closed to flights due to clashes at Tripoli International Airport, which Misrata International Airport is dependent on for its operations. Flights resumed on the night of 15 July.
On August 3, 2020, a fire destroyed the airport's passenger terminal.
Military use
The
Libyan Air Force
The Libyan Air Force ( ar, القوات الجوية الليبية) is the branch of the Libyan Armed Forces responsible for aerial warfare. In 2010, before the Libyan Civil War, the Libyan Air Force personnel strength was estimated at 18,000 ...
operates the
Soko G-2
The Soko G-2 Galeb ( en, Seagull) is a Yugoslav single engine, two-seater jet trainer and light ground-attack aircraft. The G-2 was developed during the 1950s by the Aeronautical Technical Institute at Žarkovo as a replacement for the Lockhee ...
aircraft extensively at Misrata in both a training and
counterinsurgency capacity.
The first Libyan warplane to challenge the no-fly zone during the
Libyan Civil War was a G-2 from Misrata. It was reported to have been promptly shot down by the
French Air Force
The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...
.
A few hours later an armed forces spokesman specified that the plane was destroyed on the runway with an
AASM AASM may refer to:
* Armement Air-Sol Modulaire, a French precision guided munition
* Australian Active Service Medal
* American Academy of Sleep Medicine, a professional organization
* The Anglo-American School of Moscow
The Anglo-American Sch ...
air-to-ground missile just after it had landed.
Airlines and destinations
See also
*
Transport in Libya
*
List of airports in Libya
List of airports in Libya sorted by location.
__TOC__
Airports
Airport names shown in bold indicate the airport has scheduled service on commercial airlines.
, - valign=top
, Bani Walid
,
,
, Bani Walid Airport
, - valign=top
, ...
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Military installations of Libya
Airports in Libya
Misrata
Tripolitania