Shaibah Air Base

Shaibah Airport
Shaibah Logistics Base
Shaibah Air Base
RAF Shaibah

Map of RAF Shaibah, 1947
IATA: noneICAO: none
Summary
Airport type Private
Ex-military
Owner Iraqi Government
Operator Unknown
Iraqi Army
MND(SE)
Iraqi Air Force
Royal Air Force
Serves Shaibah
Location Shaibah, Basra Province
Built 1920 (1920)
In use 1920-present
Elevation AMSL 276 ft / 84 m
Coordinates 30°25′34″N 047°38′34″E / 30.42611°N 47.64278°E / 30.42611; 47.64278Coordinates: 30°25′34″N 047°38′34″E / 30.42611°N 47.64278°E / 30.42611; 47.64278
Map
Shaibah Airport

Location in Iraq

Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
00/00 0 0 Asphalt
00/00 0 0 Asphalt
00/00 0 0 Asphalt

Shaibah Air Base is a former Iraqi Air Force base in the Basrah Governorate of Iraq.

History

Royal Air Force use

It was established by the Royal Air Force 1920 as RAF Shaibah, the resident squadron was No. 84 Squadron RAF until 1940 when No. 244 Squadron RAF took over. 244 Sqn was involved in the Rashid Ali rebellion on 1941. RAF Shaibah was a small and primitive base in the desert with a harsh hot and humid climate. It expanded during the Second World War. By July 1942 RAF Shaibah was under the control of the RAF's Air Headquarters Iraq (see AHQ Iraq and Persia). At this time several units were based at Shaibah. They included:[1]

Iraqi Air Force use

In 1956 it was handed over to the Iraqi Air Force, and it then became an Iraqi Air Force base.

It was abandoned after Operation Desert Storm in 1991.

War in Iraq of 2003

It was captured by Coalition forces during the Iraq War of 2003 and it became the site of a British Military Hospital and the Shaibah Logistics Base (SLB), but the original RAF buildings remain. While the SLB was in operation it was home to British, Dutch, Czech, Danish and Norwegian forces.

The following British units were posted here at some point under Operation Telic:

In 2007 the SLB was handed over to the Iraqi Army.

Current use

Today, refurbished and known as Shaibah Airport, used by light private planes.

See also

References

  1. http://web.archive.org/web/20140106031848/http://www.rafweb.org/Members%20Pages/ORBs/1942/1942_07_Middle_East.htm. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014. Retrieved July 13, 2013. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Operation Telic: British Forces Deployed". Britain's Small Wars. Retrieved 17 November 2013.

External links

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