RAF Fayid (LG-211) is a former military airfield in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

, approximately south of Ismailia (Al Isma`iliyah) and northeast of

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

. It was formerly a major

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

airfield built before World War II, and later used by the

Egyptian Air Force The Egyptian Air Force (EAF) ( ar, القوات الجوية المصرية, El Qūwāt El Gawīyä El Maṣrīya), is the aviation branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces that is responsible for all airborne defence missions and operates all milit ...

History

During World War II, it was used as a military airfield by the

and the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

during the North African Campaign against Axis forces. Fayid was also the site of Camp Fayed, a significant

internment camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...

Italian Egyptians Italians in Egypt, also referred to as Italian Egyptians, are a community with a history that goes back to Roman Empire, Roman times. History The last Queen of ancient Egypt (the Greek Cleopatra) married the Roman Mark Antony bringing her cou ...

managed by the British authorities. USAAF

Ninth Air Force The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint De ...

units which used the airfield were: * 98th Bombardment Group, 11 November 1942 – 9 February 1943

B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

* 316th Troop Carrier Group, January–May 1943.

C-47 Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...

After the immediate postwar rundown of RAF units in the Mediterranean, RAF Fayid became the home of

No. 13 Squadron RAF Number 13 Squadron, also written as XIII Squadron, is a squadron of the Royal Air Force which operate the General Atomics MQ-9A Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle from RAF Waddington since reforming on 26 October 2012. The unit first formed as par ...

flying

Mosquitos Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning "gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "litt ...

. Later it was joined by

No. 39 Squadron RAF Number 39 Squadron is an inactive squadron of the Royal Air Force. It last operated the General Atomics MQ-9A Reaper from Creech AFB, Nevada, between January 2007 and August 2022. It had previously operated the English Electric Canberra PR.7 ...

, with night fighter Mosquitos, and

No. 208 Squadron RAF No 208 (Reserve) Squadron was a reserve unit of the Royal Air Force, most recently based at RAF Valley, Anglesey, Wales. It operated the BAe Hawk aircraft, as a part of No. 4 Flying Training School. Due to obsolescence of its Hawk T.1 aircraft ...

with fighter-reconnaissance Spitfire XVIIIs. By 1952 it was the main transport staging post in the Canal Zone and also had five Valetta (MRT) Squadrons inc. 70, 78, 114 and 216. Along with the other RAF stations in Egypt, it was evacuated by April 1956. Fayid was then used by the

until the 1980s and the EAF units and personnel moved to the new USAF built Fayid Air Base, located about 3 km south to accommodate the most recent sale of F-16 aircraft to Egypt by the U.S. Transatlantic Programs Center (TAC). The new Fayid Air Base now accommodates the 86th and 88th Tactical Fighter Squadrons of the 282nd Tactical Fighter Wing, flying F-16C/D Block 40s.Dutch Aviation Society
Egyptian Air Force
, accessed August 2009 It was closed when the EAF moved out. Today, the airfield is abandoned with sand reclaiming the facility back to the desert.

Notes

References

* Maurer, Maurer. ''Air Force Combat Units of World War II''. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. . *
Royal Air Force Airfield Creation for the Western Desert Campaign
Royal Air Force stations in Egypt Royal Air Force stations of World War II in Egypt Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Egypt Egyptian Air Force bases Defunct airports in Egypt {{RAF-stub

History

See also

Notes

References