Riyadh Air Base

Riyadh Air Base (ICAO: OERY, Arabic: قاعدة الرياض الجوية‎), formerly known as Riyadh International Airport from its opening in 1946 until 1982, is an airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It was originally used by Saudia as an airline hub before King Khalid International Airport opened in 1982.[1]

Riyadh Air Base
Summary
Airport typeMilitary
OwnerArmed Forces of Saudi Arabia
OperatorRoyal Saudi Air Force
LocationRiyadh, Saudi Arabia
Opened1946
Passenger services ceased1982
Elevation AMSL635 m / 2,083 ft
Coordinates24°42′35″N 46°43′31″E
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
01/19 4,050 13,287 Asphalt
15/33 3,045 9,990 Asphalt

History
The aftermath of the Fire that destroyed Saudia 163.

Originally used for commercial flights by Saudi Arabia Airlines, the airport witnessed the destruction of Saudia Flight 163 on the night of August 19, 1980. The Lockheed L-1011-200 was attempting to evacuate its passengers when smoke filled the cabin and later burst into flames on the tarmac.

In 1982, King Khalid International Airport was opened which lead to this airport becoming a Military base for the Royal Saudi Air Force.

Current Status

K. Faisal Academy is on the air base and uses Pilatus PC-9's for pilot training. OERY has two crossing runways. 19-01 is the alpha and 15-30 is the bravo. It is home to the Civil Defense fleet as well. During the late 2010s, the airport had a new runway built (RWY 15-33). Riyadh Airbase is used as a standby base for the United States.[2]

Accidents and incidents
  • On August 19, 1980, Saudia Flight 163, A Lockheed L-1011-200 operated by Saudia from Quaid-e-Azam International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan to Jeddah International Airport in Saudi Arabia via Riyadh, suffered a fire just after take off from Riyadh. After returning to the airport, the crew parked the Tristar on a taxiway at the end of the Runway. Due to poor pilot experience, the crew failed to switch off the engines in time. After 3 minutes, the aircraft's engines shut down. After 23 minutes the aircraft's doors were opened by fire-fighter until 3 minutes later it burst into flames killing all 301 on board. It was the most fatal incident to happen to the L-1011 and the deadliest aviation accident in Saudi Arabia as of 2020.
  • On February 24, 1985, another Lockheed built aircraft, A Royal Saudi Air Force KC-130H Hercules Tanker was too high when approaching the airport's Runway 01. The controller on station had requested that it make a 360 degree turn to decrease speed and altitude. Pilot instead decided to lose altitude by side-slipping. The fuel was moving around in the aircraft and allowed the aircraft to lose control. The aircraft crossed a busy road and crashed just short of the runway. All 8 crew members died.[3]

References
  1. Ranter, Harro. "Riyadh Air Base profile - Aviation Safety Network". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 2019-06-14.
  2. "Riyadh Air Force Base in Riyadh, SAUDI ARABIA". Military Bases. Retrieved 2019-06-14.
  3. Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Lockheed KC-130H Hercules 1620 Riyadh Air Base (XXN)". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 2019-06-14.


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