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Incirlik Air Base (Turkish: İncirlik Hava Üssü, English: Incirlik Air Base, abbreviated Incirlik AB, IATA code: UAB, ICAO code: LTAG) is a military base near İncirlik, close to Adana in southern Turkey. It is owned by the Turkish Air Force. However, since its construction, the largest user has been the United States Air Force, which established its main hub for supplying US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan here after September 11, 2001. Between January 2016 and September 2017, the base was also used by the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) as part of Operation Inherent Resolve. The air base has one runway, oriented 05/23, with a length of 3,048 meters. | Incirlik Air Base (Turkish: İncirlik Hava Üssü, English: Incirlik Air Base, abbreviated Incirlik AB, IATA code: UAB, ICAO code: LTAG) is a military base near İncirlik, close to Adana in southern Turkey. It is owned by the Turkish Air Force. However, since its construction, the largest user has been the United States Air Force, which established its main hub for supplying US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan here after September 11, 2001. Between January 2016 and September 2017, the base was also used by the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) as part of Operation Inherent Resolve. The air base has one runway, oriented 05/23, with a length of 3,048 meters. | ||
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Construction was decided upon at the Second Cairo Conference in December 1943 and involved land that the Ottoman Empire had acquired through expropriation from the Armenian population following the massacres during the Armenian Genocide beginning in 1915. In the spring of 1951, Turkish and US soldiers began construction work on the new base, which was originally intended as a training area. A 10,000-foot (3,048-meter) runway was completed in November 1954. On December 6, 1954, the Turkish and US armed forces agreed to joint use of the base, which was named Adana Air Base on February 21, 1955, and from that point onward, it was part of the United States Air Forces in Europe. The first American unit stationed at the airbase was the 7216th Air Base Squadron. | Construction was decided upon at the Second Cairo Conference in December 1943 and involved land that the Ottoman Empire had acquired through expropriation from the Armenian population following the massacres during the Armenian Genocide beginning in 1915. In the spring of 1951, Turkish and US soldiers began construction work on the new base, which was originally intended as a training area. A 10,000-foot (3,048-meter) runway was completed in November 1954. On December 6, 1954, the Turkish and US armed forces agreed to joint use of the base, which was named Adana Air Base on February 21, 1955, and from that point onward, it was part of the United States Air Forces in Europe. The first American unit stationed at the airbase was the 7216th Air Base Squadron. | ||
Adana Air Base In the 1950s, the purpose of the airbase changed from the initial decision in 1943: it was now to serve as an alternate base for long-range bomber operations and to support all US Air Force activities in southern Turkey. In October 1955, a fuel pipeline from the Mediterranean port of Yumurtalık, located about 50 kilometers to the southeast, was put into operation. The USAF changed the name of the military airfield to Incirlik Air Base on February 28, 1958. During the Lebanon Crisis in the summer of 1958, up to 150 USAF aircraft were stationed at Incirlik, including B-57s, RB-66/WB-66s, F-86Ds, F-100s, and RF-101s. After the crisis, the F-100s were the most frequent visitors to the base; they were later replaced by F-4s, F-15s, and F-16s. | Adana Air Base In the 1950s, the purpose of the airbase changed from the initial decision in 1943: it was now to serve as an alternate base for long-range bomber operations and to support all US Air Force activities in southern Turkey. In October 1955, a fuel pipeline from the Mediterranean port of Yumurtalık, located about 50 kilometers to the southeast, was put into operation. The USAF changed the name of the military airfield to Incirlik Air Base on February 28, 1958. During the Lebanon Crisis in the summer of 1958, up to 150 USAF aircraft were stationed at Incirlik, including B-57s, RB-66/WB-66s, F-86Ds, F-100s, and RF-101s. After the crisis, the F-100s were the most frequent visitors to the base; they were later replaced by F-4s, F-15s, and F-16s. | ||
Revision as of 12:42, 22 March 2026
Incirlik Air Base (Turkish: İncirlik Hava Üssü, English: Incirlik Air Base, abbreviated Incirlik AB, IATA code: UAB, ICAO code: LTAG) is a military base near İncirlik, close to Adana in southern Turkey. It is owned by the Turkish Air Force. However, since its construction, the largest user has been the United States Air Force, which established its main hub for supplying US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan here after September 11, 2001. Between January 2016 and September 2017, the base was also used by the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) as part of Operation Inherent Resolve. The air base has one runway, oriented 05/23, with a length of 3,048 meters.
History
Construction was decided upon at the Second Cairo Conference in December 1943 and involved land that the Ottoman Empire had acquired through expropriation from the Armenian population following the massacres during the Armenian Genocide beginning in 1915. In the spring of 1951, Turkish and US soldiers began construction work on the new base, which was originally intended as a training area. A 10,000-foot (3,048-meter) runway was completed in November 1954. On December 6, 1954, the Turkish and US armed forces agreed to joint use of the base, which was named Adana Air Base on February 21, 1955, and from that point onward, it was part of the United States Air Forces in Europe. The first American unit stationed at the airbase was the 7216th Air Base Squadron.
Adana Air Base In the 1950s, the purpose of the airbase changed from the initial decision in 1943: it was now to serve as an alternate base for long-range bomber operations and to support all US Air Force activities in southern Turkey. In October 1955, a fuel pipeline from the Mediterranean port of Yumurtalık, located about 50 kilometers to the southeast, was put into operation. The USAF changed the name of the military airfield to Incirlik Air Base on February 28, 1958. During the Lebanon Crisis in the summer of 1958, up to 150 USAF aircraft were stationed at Incirlik, including B-57s, RB-66/WB-66s, F-86Ds, F-100s, and RF-101s. After the crisis, the F-100s were the most frequent visitors to the base; they were later replaced by F-4s, F-15s, and F-16s.