Basra International Airport

Basrah International Airport Basrah Airport
IATA: BSR – ICAO: ORMM
Summary
Airport type	Military/Public
Operator	Iraqi Government
Serves	Basra, Iraq
Hub for	Iraqi Airways
Elevation AMSL	0 ft / 0 m
Coordinates	30°32′56.0″N 47°39′44.9″E / 30.548889°N 47.662472°E / 30.548889; 47.662472Coordinates: 30°32′56.0″N 47°39′44.9″E / 30.548889°N 47.662472°E / 30.548889; 47.662472
Website	www.basrainternationalairport.com
Map
BSR Location of airport in Iraq
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 14/32 13,124 4,000 Concrete

Basrah International Airport (IATA: BSR, ICAO: ORMM) is the second largest international airport in Iraq, and is located in the southern city of Basra.

History

Construction

The airport was built in the 1980s and then developed in the 1980s by the Iraqi Government department State Organisation for Roads and Bridges (SORB) as a gateway to the only port in Iraq. This second phase of development was completed by a joint venture comprising Strabag Bau AG of Cologne, Billfinger & Berger of Manheim both in Germany and Universale of Austria in Spring 1988. It is claimed that the airport was built only as a facility for VIPs and was only used rarely.

Renovation and military use

Renovation of the airport was supposed to proceed with the construction of a new terminal under German contract but the project prematurely ceased with the outbreak of the 1991 Gulf War. Actual development proceeded in the airport only after the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Some facilities were refurbished under a contract by United States Agency for International Development. The project is broad as it includes building air traffic control towers and other navigational facilities, as well as the construction of transportation and communications facilities.

The airport was eventually reopened in June 2004. The event was marked by the traditional sheep sacrifice as an Iraqi Airways Boeing 727 jet landed from Baghdad. It was the beginning of a new domestic service in Iraq between Baghdad and Basrah. However, many of the passengers complained about the lack of basic facilities. Problems included air conditioning and toilets.

Reconstruction of the airport is still under way to improve the facilities. Iraqi Airways has already operated routes from this airport, and was its second hub.

The airport is also currently in the process of civilianisation as part of the rebuilding of the country as part of Operation Telic (British Armed Forces) of the Multi-National Force – Iraq.

Between 2003 and 2009 there was a significant Royal Air Force presence at the airport as No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing was deployed here with a varierty of fixed-wing and rotary such as:

Fixed-wing

• Hawker Siddeley Nimrod MR.2s
• Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules C.4 & C.5s
• British Aerospace 125s

Rotary

• Boeing Chinook HC.2s
• Westland Sea King HC.4s
• Westland Lynx AH.7/AH.9s
• Westland Gazelle AH.1s
• Westland Puma HC.1s
• Westland Merlin HC.3s

The unit was re-deployed to Camp Bastion, Afghanistan during mid 2009.^[1]

The United States army has also deployed a number of aircraft to Basra irregularly:

• Boeing AH-64 Apaches

The Danish Air Force also deployed some aircraft:

• Eurocopter Squirrels

Airlines and destinations

Ground operations

Following the American control and since 2002, SkyLink Arabia has been providing ground operations and fuel supply at the airport.^[5]

See also

• List of United Kingdom Military installations used during Operation Telic

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

http://www.ia.gov.iq/index.php?name=PortalNews&file=article&sid=473

External links

• Airport information for ORMM at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.