Prince Sultan Air Base

History

There was a large United States presence there during Operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom, and Iraqi Freedom. The U.S. presence was predominantly that of multiple United States Air Force (USAF) flying units, augmented by a United States Navy (USN) or United States Marine Corps (USMC) Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler squadron, a Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter squadron with Panavia Tornado F.3s and a French Air Force fighter squadron with Dassault Mirage 2000s, Mirage F1 CR plus a Boeing C-135RF Stratotanker air refueling aircraft. Following the attack on USAF facilities at Khobar Towers in Dharan in 1996, all USAF activities at that location were relocated to PSAB.

Before the September 11 attacks, per agreement with the Saudi Arabian government, all U.S. and Allied aircraft stationed at PSAB were to be of a "defensive" versus "offensive" nature. This was due to Arab sensitivities that non-Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) aircraft in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia should be perceived as there for the Kingdom's defense.

During Operation Southern Watch, aircraft carrying offensive strike ordnance for use against ground targets in Iraq were stationed in Kuwait or aboard aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf. United States Air Force, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, Royal Air Force, and French Air Force aircraft that were based at PSAB primarily consisted of airborne early warning, reconnaissance, air refueling, electronic warfare, suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD), and air-to-air fighter aircraft, along with transient airlift aircraft. U.S. squadrons came under the operational control of the formerly 4404th Wing (Provisional), 363rd Air Expeditionary Wing (363 AEW) at PSAB, with associated squadrons or detachments before 11 Sep 2001 rotated in and out from their home bases in Europe, the United States, or the Pacific on a 90-day to 6-month basis. During Operation Southern Watch, in addition to Active Component aircraft, the USAF made extensive use of Air National Guard (ANG) and Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, and Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft and associated personnel on rotational assignments to PSAB. The United States Navy, Navy Reserve, and United States Marine Corps also employed EA-6B aircraft from PSAB as well.

In August and early September 1998, Joint Task Force Southwest Asia (JTF-SWA) and its associated Coalition Air Operations Center (CAOC) were in the process of relocating from the Eskan Village complex in Riyadh to PSAB, concurrent with construction of a more modern and expanded CAOC at PSAB. The 1996 Khobar Towers bombing accelerated this movement, so that subsequent command and control of all Coalition air operations for Operations Enduring Freedom and the 2003 invasion of Iraq were executed from PSAB, before 11 September 2001.

During the War in Afghanistan, the Saudi government refused to allow the United States to use its air bases in Saudi Arabia to launch offensive air operations against the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and al-Qaeda, but did allow them to use Prince Sultan Air Base to coordinate offensive air operations of air combat operations launched from other countries. In mid-2003, all U.S. operations at PSAB began migrating to Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, Qatar. [[File:Secretary Pompeo Visits Prince Sultan Air Base and Meets with U.S. Service Members (49563638153).jpg|left|thumb|[[MIM-104 Patriot|Patriot missile batteries]] located at Prince Sultan Air Base in 2020.]] Between 2003 and 2005, Vickers VC10s from No. 101 Squadron RAF were based here in support of Operation Telic before moving to RAF Al Udeid (a section of the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar).

In October 2019, 2,000 U.S. troops joined approximately 700 service members already stationed at the air base, along with deploying B-1B bombers, F-22 Raptor stealth fighters, and Patriot missile batteries. The new troop buildup followed several attacks on oil tankers by Iran in the Gulf of Oman.

The 378th Air Expeditionary Wing was activated at Prince Sultan on 17 December 2019, with the Air Force stating that the wing's mission is to 'provide strategic depth and increased defensive support while sustaining regional presence to promote peace through deterrence'.

Current use

• RSAF Wing 6:
  • No. 17 OCU Squadron RSAF
  • No. 18 Squadron RSAF with the Boeing E-3A Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) surveillance aircraft.
  • No. 19 Squadron RSAF with the Beech Model 350i Super King Air and the Boeing RE-3A/B signals intelligence aircraft
• RSAF Wing 4:
  • No. 23 Squadron RSAF with the Boeing KE-3A airborne refueller
  • No. 24 Squadron RSAF with the Airbus A330-203/243 MRTT
  • No. 32 Squadron RSAF with the Lockheed KC-130H Hercules & KC-130J
• RSAF Wing 14:
  • No. 41 Squadron RSAF with the Beech Model 350i Super King Air
  • No. 50 Squadron RSAF with the Beech Model 350i Super King Air
  • No. 60 Squadron RSAF with the Saab 2000 AEW&C

Facilities

The air base resides at an elevation of 1651 ft above mean sea level. It has two runways designated 17L/R/35L/R, with an asphalt surface measuring 4000 x.

The base currently uses hundreds of tents for temporary housing, though there are plans to replace them with trailers and more permanent structures.

The US Air Force 378th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadronis responsible for pest management on the base.

References

References

1. {{usurped
2. {{GCM. AKH
3. "Airline and Airport Code Search (AKH: Prince Sultan AB, Al Kharj)". [[International Air Transport Association]] (IATA).
4. "The Short, Strange Life of PSAB".
5. Blanchette, Nicholas. (2021-12-16). "Operation Enduring Freedom: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Air Power over Afghanistan". Cambridge University Press.
6. (December 2010). "19 Years Over Iraq". [[Key Publishing]].
7. (11 October 2019). "Pentagon to Deploy Around 2,000 Additional Troops to Saudi Arabia".
8. (25 October 2019). "Air Force Sends B-1B Bombers To Saudi Arabia Amid U.S. Military Buildup In The Kingdom".
9. (22 October 2019). "Esper Tours Saudi Military Site as U.S. Readies Troop Buildup".
10. Sims, Senior Airman Giovanni. (17 December 2019). "378th AEW officially activates at PSAB". US Air Force.
11. "Royal Saudi Air Force - Al Kharj/Prince Sultan Air Base (OEPS)". Scramble.nl.
12. Baldor, Lolita C.. (January 29, 2020). "US expands troop, fighter jet presence at Saudi base". [[Military Times]].
13. "Keeping the peace from the shadows".