Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport ( prs, میدان هوائی مزار شریف, ''Meydâne Havâyeye Mazâre Šarif''; ps, مزار شریف نړیوال هوايي ډګر) , also known as Mawlānā Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Balkhī International Airport, is located 9 km east of

Mazar-i-Sharif , official_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , pushpin_map = Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_label = Mazar-i-Sharif , pushpin ...

in northern

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

, a 15-minute drive from the center of the city. Though it was originally constructed with 2 parallel runways, the northernmost runway has since been converted into a

Taxiway A taxiway is a path for aircraft at an airport connecting runways with aprons, hangars, terminals and other facilities. They mostly have a hard surface such as asphalt or concrete, although smaller general aviation airports sometimes use gravel ...

. The remaining runway is 9,836 feet (2,998 meters). The airport has facilities for up to 1,000 passengers, making it one of the largest

airports in Afghanistan This is a list of airports in Afghanistan, grouped by type and sorted by location. Description Afghanistan has four international airports which are expected to increase in the future. The Kabul International Airport serves the population of Kabu ...

. Originally built in the 1960s in part by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, the airport serves the northern Afghan population. In 2013, a 60 million euro terminal was added to the airport while the older terminal is now used for domestic flights. The airport was also home to the

Afghan Air Force The Air Force of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Air Force and the Afghan Air Force, is the air force branch of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The Royal Afghan Air Force was e ...

4th (304th) Wing. In August 2021, the air base fell to the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

after a surrender by government forces. The Taliban does not yet have an air force which can be deployed from the airfield, although it has captured weaponry and vehicles from the

Afghan National Army Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia *Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity ** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...

and

History

Early years

Mazar-i-Sharif Airport was built in the 1960s by the United States during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

, when the Soviets and the Americans were engaged in spreading their influences in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

and

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...

. Between the 1960s and late 1970s, for the first time large number of tourists began arriving to see historical places in the city. The airport was heavily used in the 1980s by the Soviet forces from which they launched daily flight missions to hit targets in the

Mujahideen ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term t ...

controlled territories of Afghanistan. It also served as one of the main hubs for deploying troops from the neighboring former Soviet Union.

21st century

C-5 Galaxy at Mazar-e-Sharif Airport in northern Afghanistan

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

took command of the

International Security Assistance Force The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386, Resolution 1386 pursua ...

(ISAF)'s Regional Area North at the end of March 2006. The airfield functioned as a main hub for the exchange of personnel as well as air cargo for the international stabilisation and peace support forces in northern Afghanistan. From September 2007 a TACAN installation for an instrument landing system was available for bad weather operation.

Camp Marmal Camp Marmal was an installation of the Afghan Armed Forces. It was adjacent to Maulana Jalaluddin Balkhi International Airport in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, at the foot of the Hindu Kush mountains. The camp was opened in September 2005. The ca ...

was built next to the airport in 2005, which gradually expanded to one of the largest military bases in Afghanistan. It served all ISAF personnel, including U.S. and

Afghan Armed Forces ("The land belongs to Allah, the rule belongs to Allah") , founded = 1997 , current_form = , branches = * Afghan Army * Afghan Air Force , headquarters = Kabul , website = , commander-in-chie ...

. On 30 June 2014 the

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

detachment of

General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a success ...

's ended. Work on a new international terminal began in 2010 and was completed in 2013. A special inauguration ceremony was held in June 2013, which was attended by German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, Afghanistan's Transport and Aviation Minister Daoud Ali Najafi, Balkh's Governor Atta Muhammad Nur and some parliamentarians. After the inauguration, the airport was named Maulana Jalaluddin Balkhi International Airport. The expansion of the airport was a joint venture of Germany and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...

(UAE), cost 60 million euros and took about three years to complete. The project was overseen by a Turkish company. The airport's new international terminal takes its name from Maulana Jalaluddin Balkhi, also known as

Rumi Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī ( fa, جلال‌الدین محمد رومی), also known as Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Balkhī (), Mevlânâ/Mawlānā ( fa, مولانا, lit= our master) and Mevlevî/Mawlawī ( fa, مولوی, lit= my ma ...

Airlines and destinations

the following airlines serve Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport:

References

External links

* , January 5, 2018,

Resolute Support Mission Resolute Support Mission (RSM) or Operation Resolute Support was a NATO-led multinational mission in Afghanistan. It began on 1 January 2015 as the successor to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), which was completed on 28 Decem ...