Al-Udeid Air Base | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
قاعدة العديد الجوية | |||||||||
| NearDoha,Al Rayyan in Qatar | |||||||||
 AQatar Emiri Air ForceAW139 and aUS Air ForceB-1B Lancer on the flight-line at Al Udeid Air Base during 2016. | |||||||||
 Emblem of theQatar Emiri Air Force | |||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||
| Type | Qatar Emiri Air Force base | ||||||||
| Owner | Qatar Armed Forces | ||||||||
| Operator | Qatar Emiri Air Force United States Air Force Royal Air Force | ||||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||||
| Location | |||||||||
  Al-Udeid AB Location in Qatar | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 25°07′07″N051°19′07″E / 25.11861°N 51.31861°E /25.11861; 51.31861 (Al-Udeid Air Base) | ||||||||
| Area | 12 square miles[1] | ||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||
| Built | 1996 (1996) | ||||||||
| In use | 1996 – present | ||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||
| Garrison |
| ||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: XJD,ICAO: OTBH | ||||||||
| Elevation | 40 metres (131 ft)AMSL | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Source: World Aero Data[2][3] and Google Maps[4] | |||||||||
Al Udeid Air Base (Arabic:قاعدة العديد الجوية) is one of two military bases southwest ofDoha, Qatar, also known asAbu Nakhlah Airport (مطار أبو نخلة).
It houses theQatar Emiri Air Force,United States Air Force (USAF), United KingdomRoyal Air Force (RAF), and other foreign forces. It is host to a forward headquarters ofU.S. Central Command, headquarters of theUSAF Central Command,No. 83 Expeditionary Air Group RAF, and the379th Air Expeditionary Wing of the USAF.
According to media reports in June 2017, the base hosted over 11,000 U.S. and Coalitionanti-ISIL coalition forces and over 100 operational aircraft.[5]
On 23 June 2025,[a]Iran launched missiles at the base, in retaliation for the 21 Junestrikes by the United States on Iranian nuclear facilities as part of theIran–Israel war.[6][7]
Following joint military operations duringOperation Desert Storm in 1991,Qatar and the United States concluded a Defense Cooperation Agreement that has been subsequently expanded. In 1996, Qatar built Al Udeid Air Base at a cost of more than $1 billion. The U.S. first used the then-secret base in late September 2001, when theU.S. Air Force (USAF) needed to get aircraft in position for its operations in Afghanistan. The U.S. has nearly 40,000 military personnel in theMiddle East. The U.S.Fifth Fleet is inBahrain and has 28,000 military personnel inKuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. Kingdoms, including Qatar, cover 60 percent of the costs, around $650 million.[8]
The official acknowledgement of the base came in March 2002, when U.S. Vice PresidentDick Cheney stopped there during a trip to the region with a group of reporters. In April 2003, shortly after the start of theU.S.-led invasion of Iraq, the U.S. CombatAir Operations Center for the Middle East moved fromPrince Sultan Air Base inSaudi Arabia to what was then a backup headquarters built a year prior in Qatar that was viewed as a more congenial location for basing U.S. troops.[9]
Al Udeid and other facilities in Qatar serve aslogistics,command, and basing hubs for theU.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of operations, and oversees U.S. air operations in countries, includingIraq,Afghanistan, andSyria.[10]
Between 2004 and 2009 the airbase was used by the BritishRoyal Air Force with transport and fast-jet aircraft to supportOperation Telic (Iraq War) andOperation Herrick (War in Afghanistan).[11]
These included 6 to 8Tornado GR4 aircraft drawn from different parts of the Royal Air Force as well as multipleVickers VC10 from theNo. 101 Squadron RAF. British Tornados were equipped with a range of stores, including the Vicon Recce Pod,LITENING targeting pod,1000 lb HE bombs,Paveway II andPaveway III laser-guided bombs, and theRAPTOR Recce Pod. They were chosen for their currency and up-to-date modification state.[12]
The RAF aircraft were accompanied by aircraft engineers and personnel active in support and operation management roles. Between 20 March to 15 April 2003, the Al Udeid Wing of the RAF flew 268 sorties in operations against the Government ofSaddam Hussein in Iraq at the start of the Iraq War.[11]
As part ofAustralia's contribution to coalition forces in the2003 invasion of Iraq, 14F/A-18 Hornetfighters fromNo. 75 Squadron RAAF were based at Al Udeid, along with twoP-3 Orionmaritime patrol aircraft and threeC-130 Herculesmilitary transport aircraft. During the early phases of the war, the Hornets flew long missions escorting and protecting coalitionAWACSearly warning aircraft andtanker aircraft used forair-to-air refueling. Later, when the threat to coalition aircraft was reduced, the Hornets switched to ground attack and combat support roles and were used toattack Iraqiground forces withlaser-guided bombs. The Orions flew long endurance missions over thePersian Gulf tracking vessels, curbing smuggling, and guarding against the threat posed by suicide boats. The deployed Hercules flew supplies and equipment into Iraq, and later flew some of the firsthumanitarian aid into Baghdad. The 14Royal Australian Air Force Hornets flew over 670sorties during the war, including 350 combat sorties over Iraq.[13]
On 23 June 2025, as a response toOperation Midnight Hammer by theUSA, where nuclear facilities were targeted,Iran startedmissile strikes on the military base, shortly before 8 p.m.AST and after Qatar had closed its airspace.[14] This was followed by explosions inDoha.[15][16][17][18][19] Qatar however said that there were no casualties and that all but one missile was intercepted.[20] Iran said six missiles hit successfully.[21][22] Satellite images by Planet Labs revealed the destruction of the whiteradome that contained American secure communication equipment.[23]
Al Udeid Air Base is the main headquarters for theQatar Emiri Air Force, although some of its squadrons are based atDoha International Airport among others.[24]
Structure:[25]
After the withdrawal of British Tornados and VC10s in Summer 2009 to other locations, Royal Air Force activities at Al Udeid were reduced.[12]
Since 2014 it has been used as HQ for British involvement in airstrikes againstISIS in Iraq (Operation Shader).[26]
The Royal Air Force formally stationed anRC-135 Rivet Joint signals intelligence aircraft at the base to operate over Iraq and Syria, although this aircraft has been pictured operating fromChania International Airport inCrete.[27]
With its small territory and narrow population base, Qatar relies to a large degree on external cooperation and support for its security. Qatar invested overUS$1 billion to construct the Al Udeid airfield during the 1990s; it did not have a largeair force of its own at the time. TheUnited States Army Corps of Engineers also awarded over $100 million in Military Construction Air Force (MCAF) contracts for the construction of U.S. storage, housing, service, command, and communication facilities.[28]
In early June 2017, the Pentagon said that the diplomaticrupture and tensions between Qatar and some of its Arab neighbors would not affect U.S. operations at the Air Base.[29]
The base stationedF-22 Raptors for the first time in June 2019.[30] A month later, an expansion of the base was announced to be funded by Qatar,[31] which would cost $1.8 billion.[32]
TheNational Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (P.L. 110-181) authorized $81.7 million in FY2008 spending to build new Air Force andSpecial Operations facilities in Qatar.[35]
TheNational Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (P.L. 110-417) authorized $69.6 million in FY2009 spending to build new Air Force and Special Operations facilities.[36]
TheNational Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (P.L. 111-84) authorized $117 million in FY2010 spending to build new Air Force recreational, dormitory, and other facilities at Al Udeid.[37]
It is also headquarters to the UK's campaign against Isis, Operation Shader.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)An RAF Rivet Joint surveillance plane equipped with listening devices has also been flying missions from al-Udeid air base in Qatar to eavesdrop on Isis communications.
Media related toAl Udeid Air Base at Wikimedia Commons