Beirut Air Base ( ar, قاعدة بيروت الجوية ''Kaidat Bayrut al-jawiya'') is a military base owned by the Lebanese Armed Forces and operated by the Lebanese Air Force. It is located 9 km (5.6 mi) from the city center in the southern suburbs of

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. Currently, the Lebanese Air Force occupies part of the west end of the

Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of ...

and has been the base of most of the helicopter force for almost 50 years, which include the

Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a transonic British jet-powered fighter aircraft that was developed by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was designed to take advantage of the newly developed Rolls-R ...

s, Fouga Magisters and other aircraft during certain periods.

History

After the formation of the air force, the Beirut Air Base was established in 1950. During the early years,

Rayak Rayaq - Haouch Hala ( ar, رياق), also romanized Rayak, is a Lebanese town in the Beqaa Governorate near the city of Zahlé. In the early 20th century and up to 1975 and the outbreak of the civil war, it was Lebanon's most important railway ...

was the main air base; however, the air force wanted to establish another air base close to the capital and after studying most of the areas around Beirut, it was concluded that the new site for the Beirut International airport in Khalde was best fit.

Inventory

* 30 Huey II Helicopters * 2 Twin Huey Helicopters (3 more to be restored) * 3

Cessna 208 Caravan The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA ...

close air support planes * AW139 Presidential Helicopter The Twin Huey's will have multiple role purposes like fire-fighting, utility and patrolling the ocean to protect the oil extraction as well as modifications for light attack purposes.

References

{{authority control Airports in Lebanon Lebanese Air Force bases Military airbases established in 1950

History

Inventory

See also

References