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King Abdulaziz Air Base Flag of the Royal Saudi Air Force
قاعدة الملك عبد العزيز الجوية

Dhahran International Airport
Dhahran, Eastern Province in Saudi Arabia
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King Abdulaziz Air Base
Shown within Saudi Arabia
Coordinates 26°15′55″N 50°09′07″E / 26.26528°N 50.15194°E / 26.26528; 50.15194Coordinates: 26°15′55″N 50°09′07″E / 26.26528°N 50.15194°E / 26.26528; 50.15194
Type Airfield
Site information
Owner Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia
Operator Royal Saudi Air Force
Site history
Built 1961 (1961)
In use 1961-1999
1991-present
Garrison information
Garrison RSAF Wings 3 & 11
Airfield information
Identifiers IATA: DHA, ICAO: OEDR
Elevation 26 metres (85 ft) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
16R/34L 3,600 metres (11,811 ft) Asphalt
16L/34R 3,600 metres (11,811 ft) Asphalt

King Abdulaziz Air Base (IATA: DHA, ICAO: OEDR) is a Royal Saudi Air Force Air Base located near to Dhahran in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

History[]

Civilian[]

The airport terminal building is one of the architectural works of Minoru Yamasaki, and was completed in 1961. The architecture is a blending of traditional Islamic forms with modern technology. For example the flight control tower has the appearance of a minaret. Images of the terminal have been used on Saudi banknotes and is viewed as having influenced the design of a number of important buildings throughout the Middle East.[citation needed]

In 1999, after the opening of the King Fahd International Airport, all scheduled flights were shifted out of Dhahran International Airport.

Military[]

Between 1963 and 1999 the base was called Dhahran Air Base.

Between 17 September 1963 and 20 November 1963 the United States Air Force's 524th Tactical Fighter Squadron was deployed here with North American F-100 Super Sabre's.

The Gulf War[]

During Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm in 1991, the U.S. 101st Airborne Division had their base setup at the airport.[citation needed]

A detachment of Royal Air Force Panavia Tornado GR1's from No. 31 Squadron RAF were based here during January 1991.[1]

1990s[]

During October 1994 the 23d Wing's (Flying Tigers) 75th Fighter Squadron (Tigersharks) and its full complement of Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt IIs initially deployed from Pope AFB, North Carolina to Dhahran Air Base, Saudi Arabia, followed by the first forward deployment to Ahmed Al Jaber Air Base, Kuwait.

During 1999 the base was renamed to King Abdulaziz Air Base.

Current use[]

Dhahran International Airport has been transformed into a military airbase. It has been renamed King Abdulaziz Air Base and serves the purposes of the Royal Saudi Air Force. There are also a couple of VIP airlines that operate out of DHA. Aviation link company operates one A319 and B777-200. There is also nexus flight operations that operates one A319.

References[]

  1. "19 Years Over Iraq". Stamford: Key Publishing. December 2010. pp. p. 12. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Royal Saudi Air Force - Dhahran (King Abdullah Aziz Air Base) (OEDR)". Scramble.nl. http://www.scramble.nl/orbats/saudi-arabia/airforce. Retrieved 8 July 2014. 

External links[]

All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at King Abdulaziz Air Base and the edit history here.
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