Hatzor Airbase

Hatzor Israeli Air Force Base (Hebrew: בָּסִיס חֵיל-הַאֲוִויר חָצוֹר) (ICAO: LLHS), also titled Kanaf 4 (lit. Wing 4) is an Israeli Air Force military air base, located in central Israel near kibbutz Hatzor after which it is named. However, there have been no fighter jets stationed there since 2021, only patrol aircraft, UAVs and defense missiles.

Hatzor Israeli Air Force Base
Wing 4
בָּסִיס חֵיל-הַאֲוִויר חָצוֹר
Hatzor, Southern District in Israel
Hatzor AB is located in Israel
Hatzor AB
Hatzor AB
Shown within Israel
Coordinates31°45′45.00″N 34°43′38.00″E
TypeAirbase
Site information
OwnerIsrael Defense Forces
OperatorIsraeli Air Force
Site history
Built1942 RAF / 1948 IAF
In use1942 - present
Airfield information
IdentifiersICAO: LLHS
Elevation45 metres (148 ft) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
05/23 2,409 metres (7,904 ft) Asphalt
11R/29L 2,451 metres (8,041 ft) Asphalt
11L/29R 2,440 metres (8,005 ft) Asphalt

History

RAF Qastina

The airbase was opened as RAF Qastina in 1942 by the Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom in the then British Protectorate of Palestine. It was named after the nearby Palestinian village of the same name.

On the night of 25 February 1946, Irgun militants attacked the airfield and destroyed several parked RAF Handley Page Halifax transports. Two additional RAF airfields, RAF Lydda (nowadays Ben Gurion International Airport) and RAF Kfar Sirkin, were attacked in what became known as the "Night of the Airplanes". Altogether, the attacks destroyed 20 RAF aircraft and damaged several others. Following these attacks, the RAF closed some of its Palestine bases to Egypt.[1]

RAF Units stationed at RAF Qastina:

On 15 March 1948, as the British Mandate for Palestine drew to a close, the RAF evacuated the airfield and it was taken over by Haganah forces.

Israeli Air Force Base Hatzor

The "First Fighter" squadron was founded in May 1948 as the first military aircraft squadron in Israel and moved to Hatzor in November – at that time still with Avia S-199 fighter aircraft imported from Czechoslovakia. It flew the F-16C/D from the 1980s and has been involved in numerous missions since its inception.[6]

The "Scorpion" squadron on Hatzor was founded in 1950 and initially flew the English Spitfire, later the US Mustang and the French Dassault Mystère IV. It was also involved in numerous missions. In the early 1990s it received the F-16C/D.[7] Both squadrons relocated from Hatzor to Ramat David Airbase in 2021.[8]

On January 19, 1964, an Egyptian Air Force Yak-11 trainer deserted to Hatzor with Captain Mahmoud Abbas Hilmi on board. The 26-year-old Egyptian flight instructor asked for political asylum after landing.

On the morning of 16 August 1966, an Iraqi Air Force MiG-21 landed at Hatzor, the culmination of Operation Diamond. Munir Redfa, an Iraqi Air Force pilot, had been persuaded by the Mossad to fly the flagship of the Soviet export aircraft industry to Israel. The MiG was the most advanced aircraft in Arab inventories at the time.[9]

Flooding

Since Hatzor Airbase is located in a valley between two streams – which are dry most of the year – flooding has occurred repeatedly since its founding, affecting military equipment. This happened in the 1950s, in the winter of 1991/92, in 2013 and most recently in 2020, when fighter aircraft and a battery of defense missiles were so damaged that repairs took five months.[10] This is also a reason why the last two squadrons of manned fighter aircraft on Hatzor were relocated to the Ramat David Airbase in northern Israel in 2021.[8]

  • Flooding of Hatzor Airbase in the 1950s
    Flooding of Hatzor Airbase in the 1950s
  • An F-16C in the water on Hatzor in January 2020
    An F-16C in the water on Hatzor in January 2020
  • Map of Hatzor Airbase with the two streams flowing around it
    Map of Hatzor Airbase with the two streams flowing around it

Current

Hatzor has a network of eight simulator pods which use satellite footage of countries including Lebanon and Syria to train pilots for deep strike missions.[11]

On April 2, 2017, the first two batteries of Israel's latest missile defense system – the David's Sling – went operational on the airbase.[12]

In March 2021, the base's two F-16 squadrons ("First Fighter" & "Scorpion") relocated to Ramat David Airbase to consolidate all remaining F-16C/D Barak jets under one roof.[8] This means there are no longer any manned fighter jets at Hatzor Airbase.

In July 2021, photos appeared showing the construction of a Combined Operations Center for the US military and Israel in the northern area of the base. However, no further information was released. Several new buildings had already been built there in recent years.[13]

In January 2023, the 200th Squadron "First UAV" moved here from Palmachim Airbase with Heron 1 Shoval and Eitan UAVs.[14]

In September 2023, as part of the Storm Clouds project, a squadron on Hatzor that reopened in August 2022 was equipped with new UAVs, the 144th Squadron "Phoenix" with missiles of the newly developed "Spark" Nitsot type, which are manufactured by Rafael Aeronautics.[15]

Units

See also

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hatzor IAF Base.
Citations
  1. 1946 Israeli Air Force
  2. Jefford 1988, p. 95.
  3. Jefford 1988, p. 101.
  4. Jefford 1988, p. 40.
  5. Jefford 1988, p. 102.
  6. "The First Fighter Squadron". IAF-Website. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  7. "The Scorpion Squadron". IAF-Website. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  8. "Israel Set To Move Two F-16 Units To Ramat David". key.aero. 2021-03-19. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  9. "The Blue Bird Legend". ynetnews.com. 2007-05-29. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  10. "Flooding at Israeli Airbase Caused $9 Million in Damage, Probe Finds". Haaretz. 2020-02-05. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  11. "IAF's newest squadron will never leave the ground". The Jerusalem Post. 2010-10-03. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  12. "With a storm on the horizon, Israel turns on its latest missile defense system". 2017-04-02. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  13. "US-Israeli combined operations center being built at IAF's Hatzor base". Israel Defense. 2021-07-18. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  14. "Here we live in fun: No. 200 Squadron passes base". IAF website. 2023-01-29. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
  15. "Israel Air Force Welcomes New UAV, Dubbed "Spark"". Israel Defense. 2023-09-12. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  16. "One on One with an Air Patroller". IAF-Website. 2020-05-31. Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  17. "A new platform in the IAF: the "Shining" UAV". IAF-Website. 2023-09-11. Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  18. "The First UAV Squadron". IAF-Website. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
Bibliography
  • Jefford, C. G. (1988). RAF Squadrons. A comprehensive record of the movement and equipment of all RAF squadrons and their antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
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