) , location = Habbaniya , country = Iraq , image = Habbaniya airfield, circa 1941.jpg , alt = A black and white image of some hangars, tentage and hard standings in a desert , caption = Habbaniya airfield, circa 1941 , image2 = RAF Habbaniya Unit Badge.jpg , alt2 = The heraldic badge of RAF Habbaniya , caption2 = Station badge (''Infestos ferimus''
la, We strike the troublesome) , type = Flying station , coordinates = , pushpin_map = Iraq , ownership =

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...

, operator =

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) an ...

, controlledby =

RAF Iraq Command Iraq Command was the Royal Air Force (RAF) commanded inter-service command in charge of British forces in Iraq in the 1920s and early 1930s, during the period of the British Mandate of Mesopotamia. It continued as British Forces in Iraq until 1 ...

, built = , used = 1936– , past_commanders = , r1-number = , r1-length = , r1-surface = Royal Air Force Habbaniya, more commonly known as RAF Habbaniya ( ar, قاعدة الحبانية الجوية), (originally RAF Dhibban), was a

station at

Habbaniyah Al Habbaniyah or Habbaniya ( ar, ٱلْحَبَّانِيَّة, ''al-Ḥabbānīyah'') is a city 85 km (53 mi) west of Baghdad in Al-Anbar Province, in central Iraq. A military airfield, RAF Habbaniya, was the site of a battle in 1941, during Wo ...

, about west of

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesipho ...

in modern-day

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, on the banks of the Euphrates near Lake Habbaniyah. It was developed from 1934, and was operational from October 1936 until 31 May 1959 when the RAF finally withdrew after the July 1958 Revolution made the British military presence no longer welcome. It was the scene of fierce fighting in May 1941 when it was besieged by the Iraqi Military following the

1941 Iraqi coup d'état The 1941 Iraqi coup d'état ( ar, ثورة رشيد عالي الكيلاني, ''Thawrah Rašīd ʿAlī al-Kaylānī''), also called the Rashid Ali Al-Gaylani coup or the Golden Square coup, was a nationalist coup d'état in Iraq on 1 April 1941 ...

. It is currently a major Iraqi military airbase.

History

Originally called RAF Dhibban, the station was built on the west bank of the Euphrates at a cost of £1,750,000 (), and opened on 19 October 1936. It was the British

(RAF) base built "West of the Euphrates" in accordance with Article 5 of the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930. It was on the West bank of the Euphrates between Ramadi and

Fallujah Fallujah ( ar, ٱلْفَلُّوجَة, al-Fallūjah, Iraqi pronunciation: ) is a city in the Iraqi province of Al Anbar, located roughly west of Baghdad on the Euphrates. Fallujah dates from Babylonian times and was host to important J ...

, and was a major military and air base for the entire

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...

. The squadrons, units and headquarters and the hospital gradually moved in from RAF Hinaidi, Baghdad, which was then finally vacated by the British on 21 December 1937 and renamed "Rashid Airfield" by the Iraqis. RAF Dhibban was originally named after the nearby village of Sin el Dhibban, in Arabic "Teeth of the Fly", but was renamed, more appropriately, RAF Habbaniya on 1 May 1938. Not long after its renaming, an aircraft went missing on a flight from Habbaniya. The aircraft, a bomber of No. 30 Squadron, left on 10 December 1938, and was found 11 days later some north of Habbaniya. All six occupants were dead. RAF Habbaniya was extensive and, as well as the airfield, included the Air Headquarters of

, communication facilities, maintenance units, an aircraft depot, an RAF hospital, RAF

Iraq Levies The Assyrian Levies (also known as the Iraq Levies) were the first Iraqi military force established by the British in British controlled Iraq. The Iraq Levies originated in a local Arab armed scout force raised during the First World War. After I ...

barracks, the RAF Armoured Car Company depot as well as fuel and bomb stores. There were numerous billets, messes and a wide range of leisure facilities including swimming pools, cinemas and theatres, sports pitches, tennis courts and riding stables. It was self-contained with its own power station, water purification plant and sewage farm. Water taken from the Euphrates for the irrigation systems enabled green lawns, flower beds and even ornamental Botanical Gardens. After World War II the families of British personnel started living at Habbaniya and a school was started. Within the camp perimeter was the Civil Cantonment which provided the accommodation for the families of the RAF

and the civilian workers and their families. The cantonment population of about 10,000 had their own schools, hospital, mosques, churches, temples, cinema and bazaars. The base had extended to some , which required a taxi service to get people around. Just outside the perimeter was the village of Humphreya in which more locally employed civilians and their families lived. It was the original construction camp for the company which built the base, Messrs Humphreys of

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Toponymy Knightsbridge is an ancient ...

, London (and from which the name Humphreya arose). There was a perimeter fence round the base but this did not enclose the airfield which was outside. In 1952 a second airfield was built on the plateau to cope with the long range and jet aircraft using the base (this subsequently became the Iraqi Air Force

Al Taqaddum Al Taqaddum Airbase ( ar, قاعدة التقدم الجوية), or Al Taqaddum AB , (Called TQ in military shorthand slang), is an air base An air base (sometimes referred to as a military air base, military airfield, military airport, air ...

airbase). In the late 1930s

Imperial Airways Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long-range airline, operating from 1924 to 1939 and principally serving the British Empire routes to Union of South Africa, South Africa, British India, India, Australia and the Far East, inclu ...

established a staging post on Lake Habbaniya for the flying boat service from the UK to

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

using Short Empires. The lake provided the necessary landing area for these aircraft in the middle of the

Mesopotamian Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

desert.

The station was a large flying training school in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, as well as a transport staging airfield. In the Rashid Ali rebellion in 1941, the airfield was besieged by units from the Royal Iraqi Army encamped on the overlooking plateau. On 2 May 1941, British forces from the airfield launched pre-emptive

airstrikes An airstrike, air strike or air raid is an offensive operation carried out by aircraft. Air strikes are delivered from aircraft such as blimps, balloons, fighters, heavy bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters and drones. The offi ...

on Iraqi forces throughout Iraq and the

Anglo-Iraqi War The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allies of World War II, Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq under Rashid Ali, Rashid Gaylani, who had seized power in the 1941 Iraqi coup d'état, with assista ...

began. The siege was lifted by the units based at Habbaniya, including pilots from the training school, a battalion of the King's Own Royal Regiment flown in at the last moment, Number 1 Armoured Car Company RAF and the RAF's Iraq Levies. The subsequent arrival of a relief column ('' Kingcol''), part of ''

Habforce Habforce was a British Army military unit created in 1941 during the Anglo-Iraqi War and still active during the Syria-Lebanon campaign during the fighting in the Middle East in the Second World War. Creation and composition Habforce, short ...

'' sent from Palestine, then a British mandate, combined with the Habbaniya units to force the rebel forces to retreat to Baghdad. Later in the Second World War, Habbaniya became an important stage on the southern air route between the UK and the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

British Overseas Airways Corporation British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the United Kingdom, British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. ...

(BOAC) ran a regular passenger service via

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...

and the

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

using Consolidated Liberator transports. 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 ...

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...

used Habbaniya as a stopover point between the large

Lend-Lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...

aircraft assembly facility at Abadan Airport,

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...

, and Payne Field,

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 met ...

. Also ATC operated a transport route from Habbaniya to Mehrabad Airport,

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the Capital city, capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is th ...

. After the Second World War,

BOAC British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the United Kingdom, British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. ...

discontinued the flying boat service and the hotel buildings at the lake were acquired by the RAF and used as a Rest and Recreation Centre. In 1949, Habbaniya was assessed as having six hangars and two metal runways, the longest being in length. No. 6 Squadron RAF, No. 8 Squadron RAF and No. 73 Squadron RAF were the last flying squadrons to depart the base in the mid-1950s. Although the British presence continued until 1959, on 2 May 1955, command of the base was handed over to the Iraqi government. During the Cold War, from 1 August 1946,

GCHQ Government Communications Headquarters, commonly known as GCHQ, is an intelligence and security organisation responsible for providing signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information assurance (IA) to the government and armed forces of the Uni ...

ran a large

signals intelligence Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of '' signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ...

(SIGINT) monitoring station at Habbaniya staffed by 276 Signals Unit until 31 July 1958. It also operated SIGINT aircraft over Iran and the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad s ...

to monitor the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. On 14 July 1958, the July 1958 Revolution took place. At that time, Habbaniya had 900 personnel and the uprising in Baghdad had caused the loss of one British life and the burning of the embassy. By the start of 1959, the base was host to 600 RAF staff with 60 dependants. The dependants were flown back to the United Kingdom in early April 1959. The base closed on 31 May 1959 when the RAF finally withdrew after the July 1958 Revolution made the presence of British military no longer welcome. On abandonment of the base, a question was asked in the UK

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

concerning the cost of the base over the 23 years of its operational life. It was estimated that it had the amount was £3.5 million (). In June 1961 there were two

Iraqi Air Force The Iraqi Air Force (IQAF or IrAF) ( ar, القوات الجوية العراقية, Al Quwwat al Jawwiyah al Iraqiyyah}) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It is responsible for the defense of Iraqi airspace as well ...

squadrons at the base: * No.1 Squadron, Venom FB.Mk.1, based at Habbaniyah AB, CO Capt. A.-Mun’em Ismaeel * No.6 Squadron, Hunter, based at Habbaniyah AB, CO Capt. Hamid Shaban The airbase was bombed in Operation Kaman 99 on the second day of the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations Security Counci ...

, just after the Iraqi invasion of Iran. Tom Cooper's book ''Arab MiG-19 and MiG-21 Units in Combat'' describes Habbaniya as a base for Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21s by 1990.

RAF Hospital Habbaniya

As part of the treaty of 1930, the RAF were required to withdraw from Hinaidi and Mosul, so the hospital at Hinaidi was also relocated to Habbaniya in 1937 with 500 beds. Sometimes referred to as ''No. 6 RAF Hospital'', it operated as a general hospital until 1956, being downgraded to a station hospital until 1958. In 1942, the commanding officer of the hospital, Group Captain Gerard Hanly, was killed in an aircraft crash.

Current use

According to the

Federation of American Scientists The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) is an American nonprofit global policy think tank with the stated intent of using science and scientific analysis to attempt to make the world more secure. FAS was founded in 1946 by scientists who ...

the site was used to produce

Mustard gas Mustard gas or sulfur mustard is a chemical compound belonging to a family of cytotoxic and blister agents known as mustard agents. The name ''mustard gas'' is technically incorrect: the substance, when dispersed, is often not actually a gas, b ...

(a chemical weapon). The site was built in 1983–84. The factory produced the gas for use against Iran in the

. The factory produced 60–80 tonnes per year. RAF Habbaniyah Olympic Pool

After 2003, the former British airfield was used by both the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...

and the

New Iraqi Army The Iraqi Ground Forces (Arabic: القوات البرية العراقية), or the Iraqi Army (Arabic: الجيش العراقي), is the ground force component of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It was known as the Royal Iraqi Army up until the coup ...

as a

forward operating base A forward operating base (FOB) is any secured forward operational level military position, commonly a military base, that is used to support strategic goals and tactical objectives. A FOB may or may not contain an airfield, hospital, machine sho ...

, and is now known as Camp Habbaniyah. From this outpost, combat operations are run from the outskirts of

to the outskirts of Ramadi. Since 2006 Camp Habbaniyah has grown into a Regional Training and Regional Support Center as well as the headquarters for the

Iraqi Army The Iraqi Ground Forces ( Arabic: القوات البرية العراقية), or the Iraqi Army ( Arabic: الجيش العراقي), is the ground force component of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It was known as the Royal Iraqi Army up until the co ...

1st Division. On going Coalition and Iraqi construction projects have revitalised much of the base. In December 2008, the U.S. Army and all civilian contractors, less twelve contractors from MPRI, departed Camp Habbaniyah. U.S. Marines had stayed behind to provide the Iraqi Army with additional perimeter security until a time TBD. On 16 April 2009, a suicide-bomber dressed as an Iraqi 1st Lieutenant detonated a bomb among a group of Iraqi soldiers at a canteen. In 2015, Habbaniya was a base for Shia militias, the Iraqi army and its American trainers, in their ongoing campaign against

ISIS Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic language, Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician language, Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major ancient Egyptian deities, goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughou ...

289 British and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...

personnel, along with women, children and babies, remain buried in the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mi ...

(CWGC) cemetery in Habbaniya. The register of those buried is held by the RAF Habbaniya Association. In 2019, the site was renovated and 289 replacement Portland stone grave markers were installed.

Notable personnel

* Michael Beetham, later Marshal of the Royal Air Force, served at Habbaniya in 1951 on detachment *

Hugh Hamilton Brookes Air vice-marshal Hugh Hamilton Brookes (14 October 1904 – 16 March 1988) was a senior Royal Air Force officer. Biography Born on 14 October 1904, Hugh Hamilton Brookes was educated at Bedford School and at the Royal Air Force College Cranwell ...

, commanding officer, 1954–1956 *

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has b ...

was stationed there in 1940, as described in his book, '' Going Solo'', but his opinion rather was unfavourable compared with that of most personnel who served there. * Hughie Edwards, commanding officer, 1956–1958 *

Jeremy Swan Harold James Charles “Jeremy” Swan (1 June 1922 – 7 February 2005) was an Irish cardiologist who co-invented the Swan-Ganz catheter with William Ganz at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in 1970. Early life and education Swan was born on ...

, was a medical officer at Habbaniya in the 1940s *

George Unwin George Cecil Unwin, (18 January 1913 – 28 June 2006) was a Royal Air Force officer and flying ace of the Second World War. Early life Unwin was born in the town of Bolton upon Dearne, near Barnsley, Yorkshire, on 18 January 1913. He enliste ...

, officer commanding No. 84 Squadron in 1949

Flying Units and Aircraft

* No. 6 Squadron RAF (1950–1954) de Havilland Vampire FB5 & FB9 * No. 8 Squadron RAF (1956) de Havilland Vampire FB4 *

No. 11 Squadron RAF No. 11 or XI Squadron (sometimes featuring an 'F' to represent its historic fighter role (No. 11(F) or XI(F) Squadron)), is "the world's oldest, dedicated fighter unit" and continues the traditions established by the similarly numbered Royal Fly ...

(1941)

Bristol Blenheim IV The Bristol Blenheim is a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company (Bristol) which was used extensively in the first two years of the Second World War, with examples still being used as trainers until t ...

* No. 14 Squadron RAF (1941) Bristol Blenheim IV *

No. 30 Squadron RAF Number 30 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Airbus A400M Atlas transport aircraft and is based at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire. The squadron was first formed as a unit of the Royal Flying Corps in 1915, serving through the rest of t ...

(1938) Hawker Hardy, later Bristol Blenheim I * No. 45 Squadron RAF (1941) Bristol Blenheim IV * No. 52 Squadron RAF (1941–1942)

Hawker Audax The Hawker Hart is a British two-seater biplane light bomber aircraft that saw service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was designed during the 1920s by Sydney Camm and manufactured by Hawker Aircraft. The Hart was a prominent British aircra ...

* No. 55 Squadron RAF (1937–1939) Vickers Vincent Bristol Blenheim I *

No. 70 Squadron RAF No.70 or LXX Squadron RAF provides strategic transport. History First World War The squadron was formed on 22 April 1916 at Farnborough, and was equipped with the Sopwith 1½ Strutter. The squadron was posted to France, and in 1917 re-equi ...

(1937–1939) Vickers Valentia * No. 73 Squadron RAF (1953–1955) de Havilland Vampire FB9 & FB1 * No. 74 Squadron RAF (1943) Hawker Hurricane I * No. 82 Squadron RAF detachment (1951–1952) Avro Lancaster PR1 * No. 84 Squadron RAF (1941) Bristol Blenheim IV * No. 94 Squadron RAF detachment (1941)

Gloster Gladiator The Gloster Gladiator is a British biplane fighter. It was used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) (as the Sea Gladiator variant) and was exported to a number of other air forces during the late 1930s. Developed priva ...

No. 123 Squadron RAF No. 123 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was a British aircraft squadron in the First and Second World Wars.Jefford 2001, p. 58Orbis 1985, p. 3898 It was disbanded for the last time on 20 June 1945. History First World War The squadron was f ...

(1942) Gloster Gladiator * No. 162 Squadron RAF (1942) Bristol Blenheim IV * No. 185 Squadron RAF (1952) de Havilland Vampire FB5 *

No. 203 Squadron RAF No. 203 Squadron RAF was originally formed as No. 3 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service. It was renumbered No. 203 when the Royal Air Force was formed on 1 April 1918. History First World War The squadron can be traced to The Eastchurch Squadron, wh ...

detachment (1941) Bristol Blenheim IV * No. 208 Squadron RAF detachment (1941)

* No. 216 Squadron RAF detachment (1942) Lockheed Hudson IV *

No. 223 Squadron RAF No. 223 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. Originally formed as part of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), the Squadron flew in both World Wars. History What later became 223 Squadron was formed as B Flight (soon known as "B Sq ...

detachment (1942)

Martin Baltimore The Martin 187 Baltimore was a twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Glenn L. Martin Company in the United States as the A-30. The model was originally ordered by the French in May 1940 as a follow-up to the earlier Martin Maryland, then ...

* ' Squadron RAF Formed Habbaniya 1939 & re-designated No. 244 Squadron RAF on move to RAF Shaibah on 1 November 1940. * No. 249 Squadron RAF (1946) de Havilland Mosquito, de Havilland Mosquito FB26 Hawker Tempest, Hawker Tempest F6 * No. 261 Squadron RAF (1941)

Hawker Hurricane I * No. 651 Squadron RAF detachment (1948) Auster AOP6 * No. 680 Squadron RAF detachment (1945–1946) Fairchild Argus *

No. 683 Squadron RAF No. 683 Squadron RAF was a photo-reconnaissance squadron of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War and from August 1950 to November 1953. History Formation and World War II 683 squadron was formed out of 'B' Flight of No. 69 Squadron ...

(1952–1953) Vickers Valetta C1 * No. 1415 (Meteorological Flight) RAF (1942–1946)

Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness b ...

* No. 1434 (Photo Survey) Flight RAF (1942)

Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim is a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company (Bristol) which was used extensively in the first two years of the Second World War, with examples still being used as trainers until ...

* No. 4 Flying Training School RAF (1939–1941) * A Communications Flight (with various designations) was based at Habbaniya from 1936 until 1 April 1958.

Ground Units

* No. 104 Maintenance Unit RAF (1954–1956) * No. 134 Maintenance Unit RAF (1942 and 1943 to 1946) * No. 115 Maintenance Unit RAF (1945 to 1958) *

No. 123 Signals Unit RAF 123 Signals Unit was a Ground Controlled Interception Radar Unit of the Royal Air Force formed on 1 July 1954 at RAF Habbaniya, Iraq. History It was initially equipped as a Type 21 Radar Convoy with one Type 13 Radar, one Type 14 Radar, a VHF ...

(1 January 1956 to 31 October 1958) *

No. 276 Signals Unit RAF The numero sign or numero symbol, №, (also represented as Nº, No, No. or no.), is a typographic abbreviation of the word ''number''(''s'') indicating ordinal numeration, especially in names and titles. For example, using the numero sign, t ...

(1946–1958) * 19 Topographical Squadron R.E. * No. 1 Armoured Car Company RAF (1936–1946) * Number 2 Squadron RAF Regiment (1948–1955) * 1st Battalion King's Own Royal Regiment *

, HQ, 1st, 2d,3d, 4th, and 5th Assyrian Levies and 8th Levy. All companies of 125 men plus their dependents totaling 2,000 people. * RAF

Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a transonic British jet propulsion, 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 dev ...

Servicing Flight/(Royal Iraqi Air Force) (1957–1958) * RAF Hospital, Habbaniya (variously named; General Hospital, No.6 RAF Hospital, Station Hospital). Transferred from RAF Hinaidi December 1937.AIR 29/943, The National Archives, Kew

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Dudgeon, Air Vice-Marshal A.G., CBE,DFC (Retd). ''Hidden Victory: The Battle of Habbaniya, May 1941''. Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: Tempus Publishing Ltd., 2001. . * * * * * * * Sturtivant, Ray, ISO and John Hamlin. ''RAF Flying Training And Support Units since 1912''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 2007. .

External links

RAF Habbaniya Association
* – diary entries for May and June 1941 by an RAF pilot officer stationed at Habbaniya * – daily intelligence reports from May 1941 {{DEFAULTSORT:Habbaniyah Al Anbar Governorate Royal Air Force stations in the Middle East Royal Air Force stations of World War II in the Middle East Military history of Iraq World War II sites in Iraq World War II airfields in Iraq Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces Air Transport Command in the Middle East Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces Iraq–United Kingdom relations Airports established in 1936 1936 establishments in the British Empire