Ali Al Salem Air Base
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| Also known as | "The Rock"; Al Salam Air Base (variant in some U.S. Navy captions); OKAS (ICAO); قاعدة علي السالم الجوية |
|---|---|
| Location | Jahra Governorate, Kuwait, about 37 km from the Iraqi border and 15 km west of Al Jahra |
| Type | Kuwait Air Force base hosting U.S. and coalition air expeditionary units |
| Category | Theater staging and support |
| Opened | Pre-1990 Kuwaiti air base; hosted U.S. and RAF units from the late 1990s (RAF from early 1998) |
| Closed or transferred | Not closed; Kuwaiti-owned base, with the USAF 386th Air Expeditionary Wing still present |
| Coordinates | 29.34667, 47.52056 (29°20′48.0″N 47°31′14.0″E) |
Overview
Ali Al Salem Air Base is a Kuwait Air Force base about 37 km (23 mi) from the Iraqi border and about 15 km west of Al Jahra. The Kuwaiti government owns it. It has two runways of roughly 2,989 meters, and it is home to the Kuwait Air Force flight training school and helicopter squadrons. Known to U.S. personnel as "The Rock," it sits on a rise above the surrounding desert plain.
The base was the last Kuwaiti air base overrun in the 1990 Iraqi invasion. During Operation Southern Watch it hosted the U.S. Air Force's 9th Air Expeditionary Group and later the 386th Air Expeditionary Group, along with Patriot air-defense units and a rotating Royal Air Force Tornado squadron that had operated there since early 1998.
On August 12, 2002, a few months before the invasion of Iraq, the 386th Air Expeditionary Group was redesignated the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing. Its missions included combat search and rescue, theater airlift, aeromedical evacuation, air surveillance and control, and theater ballistic missile defense. In early 2003 the base was rapidly expanded to take the British Joint Helicopter Command's assets. During the invasion the RAF combined five Tornado GR4 squadrons at the base into the Ali Al Salem Combat Air Wing.
The base hosted RAF, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Marine Corps personnel and aircraft during Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. Navy P-3C Orion patrol aircraft flew from there in 2003. By 2004 the RAF had moved most of its operation to Al Udeid in Qatar, though some elements stayed until 2008.
Through the rest of the war, Ali Al Salem served as an airlift hub and gateway for troops moving into and out of Iraq. Navy customs battalions inspected the baggage of thousands of redeploying service members there, and units such as Naval Mobile Construction Battalions passed through before flying north on Air Force transports.
Timeline
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Aug 1990 | Ali Al Salem was the last Kuwaiti air base overrun during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. |
| 1998 | Royal Air Force Tornado detachments began operating from the base before Operation Desert Fox. |
| 12 Aug 2002 | The 386th Air Expeditionary Group was redesignated the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing. |
| Early 2003 | The base was rapidly expanded to accommodate the UK Joint Helicopter Command before Operation Telic/Iraqi Freedom. |
| Mar-Apr 2003 | The RAF's Ali Al Salem Combat Air Wing (five Tornado GR4 squadrons) and U.S. Navy VP-46 P-3C Orions flew combat support missions from the base. |
| 2004 | Most RAF elements moved to Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, although some stayed until 2008. |
| 2005-06 | Navy Customs Battalion Papa processed redeploying troops at the base; in January 2006 it handled 5,000 service members on 14 flights in 32 hours. |
| Oct 2008 | An advance party of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 7 boarded an Air Force C-17 at Ali Al Salem bound for Iraq. |
Units stationed at Ali Al Salem Air Base
Units documented in public sources as based at or operating from Ali Al Salem Air Base. This list is not complete; units rotated frequently and many smaller elements were never reported. Veterans can add their unit on the message board below.
| # | Unit | When | Role at the base | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 386th Air Expeditionary Wing (USAF) | 12 August 2002 onward | Main U.S. Air Force tenant: theater airlift, combat search and rescue, aeromedical evacuation, air surveillance and missile defense. | link |
| 2 | 386th Air Expeditionary Group (USAF) | Operation Southern Watch era – August 2002 | Predecessor of the 386th AEW; monitored air traffic in southern Iraq. | link |
| 3 | 9th Air Expeditionary Group (USAF) | Operation Southern Watch era | Deployed air expeditionary group at "The Rock," with about 1,500 people at the base. | link |
| 4 | Patriot Task Force battery (U.S. Army) | not specified in source | Air and missile defense battery listed among the base's units. | link |
| 5 | Ali Al Salem Combat Air Wing (RAF; five Tornado GR4 squadrons, commanded by the OC of No. 31 Squadron) | 2003 | British strike wing during Operation Telic. | link |
| 6 | Joint Helicopter Command (UK) | Early 2003 | British helicopter forces for which the base was rapidly expanded. | link |
| 7 | Patrol Squadron 46 (VP-46) 'Gray Knights', U.S. Navy | March – April 2003 | P-3C Orion squadron flying missions in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. | link |
| 8 | Fleet Maritime Patrol Mobile Operations Command Center (MOCC), West Pacific Command | March 2003 | Tracked aircraft for maritime patrol operations in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. | link |
| 9 | Navy Customs Battalion Papa | 2005 – 2006 | Ran customs inspections for the U.S. Army throughout Kuwait and Iraq from Ali Al Salem. | link |
| 10 | Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 22 | November 2005 | Seabee reservists at the base's Life Support Area. | link |
| 11 | Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 7 (advance party) | October 2008 | Passed through Ali Al Salem for training before flying to deployment sites in Iraq. | link |
Notable events and facts
- In 1990 the base commander and a small Kuwaiti force held out at Ali Al Salem after every other Kuwaiti air base had been occupied.
- Bomb-damaged hardened aircraft shelters from the 1991 Gulf War were still visible on the base decades later.
- The RAF's Ali Al Salem Combat Air Wing commander received the Distinguished Service Order for his leadership in 2003.
- Navy Customs Battalion Papa processed 5,000 service members and 16,000 pieces of luggage for 14 flights in 32 hours in January 2006.
- The base was used by RAF, USAF and USMC aircraft during both Operation Southern Watch and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Photographs
Roll call: who served at Ali Al Salem Air Base
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Message board: Ali Al Salem Air Base
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Sources
- Ali Al Salem Air Base - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Al_Salem_Air_Base
- 386th Air Expeditionary Wing fact sheet - U.S. Air Forces Central. https://www.afcent.af.mil/Units/386th-Air-Expeditionary-Wing/Fact-Sheet/Display/Article/42
- Ali Al Salem Air Base - GlobalSecurity.org. https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/ali-al-salem.htm
- Wikimedia Commons: VP-46 P-3C at Ali Al Salem, 2003. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_030325-N-8921O-005_A_U.S._Navy_P-3C_Orion_
- Wikimedia Commons: MOCC West Pacific at Ali Al Salem, 2003. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_030325-N-8921O-024_Fleet_Maritime_Patrol_M
- Wikimedia Commons: Navy Reserve Thanksgiving at Ali Al-Salem, 2005. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_051124-N-8055R-031_Commander_Navy_Reserve_
- Wikimedia Commons: Navy Customs baggage tent, 2006. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_060119-N-8055R-001_Soldiers_repack_their_b
- Wikimedia Commons: Seabees board an Air Force C-17, 2008. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_080930-N-1120L-012_Seabees_board_an_Air_Fo