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|[[Mi-24|Mil Mi-24]] || {{RUS}} ||Attack-Gunship helicopter || 6 || TBD || Replacing a previous MiG-29 offer.<ref name='mig29mi24'>{{cite news|url=http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/getstory?openform&DDBAE9C2DA970B4CC22576D60068156B|title=Russia Agrees to Provide Lebanon with Mi-24 Helicopters Instead of MiG Fighters|date=February 26, 2010|publisher=Naharnet|accessdate=27 February 2010}}</ref> To be delivered before the end of the year after the end of the lebanese pilots training in the Russian Federation
|[[Mi-24|Mil Mi-24]] || {{RUS}} ||Attack-Gunship helicopter || 6 || TBD || Replacing a previous MiG-29 offer.<ref name='mig29mi24'>{{cite news|url=http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/getstory?openform&DDBAE9C2DA970B4CC22576D60068156B|title=Russia Agrees to Provide Lebanon with Mi-24 Helicopters Instead of MiG Fighters|date=February 26, 2010|publisher=Naharnet|accessdate=27 February 2010}}</ref> To be delivered before the end of the year after the end of the lebanese pilots training in the Russian Federation
|-----
|-----
|[[Robinson R44]] || {{USA}} ||Trainer/Light utility helicopter || 4 || Active || on November the 20th 2010 during the training for the preparation of the independence day air show a LAF R44 made an emergency landing on "jal el dib" Highway with no injuries
|[[Robinson R44]] || {{USA}} ||Trainer/Light utility helicopter || 4 || Active ||
|-----
|-----
|[[Sikorsky S-61|Sikorsky S-61N MkII]] || {{USA}} || Firefighting/Rescue || 3 || Active || On behalf of the [[Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (Lebanon)|Ministry of Interior]].
|[[Sikorsky S-61|Sikorsky S-61N MkII]] || {{USA}} || Firefighting/Rescue || 3 || Active || On behalf of the [[Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (Lebanon)|Ministry of Interior]].
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A controversial US promise to supply Lebanon with [[AH-1]] Cobra attack helicopter came into discussions during 2008; however, that promise did not see the light yet, nor was it clearly confirmed.
A controversial US promise to supply Lebanon with [[AH-1]] Cobra attack helicopter came into discussions during 2008; however, that promise did not see the light yet, nor was it clearly confirmed.
Alhayat newspaper sources published that UK gave a green light for LAF to acquire a squadron of training Bae Hawks
Alhayat newspaper sources published that UK gave a green light for LAF to acquire a squadron of training Bae Hawks

==Crashes and accidents==
*On November 20, 2010, a Raven R44 helicopter (L-1502) made an emergency landing on Jal el-Dib highway when its engine stopped working during a drill for the Independence Day parade. Both pilots and helicopter were unharmed.
*On May 12, 2006, a UH-1H helicopter crashed into Neiha mountains. Four air force personnel including the 2 pilots were killed.


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 21:26, 20 November 2010

Lebanese Air Force
File:Lebaneseairforcelogo.jpg
Seal of the Lebanese Air Force
ActiveJune 1, 1949 - Present
CountryLebanon
BranchAir Force
Part ofLebanese Army Command
HeadquartersBeirut Air Base
Motto(s)Here I am Lebanon's Sky
Commanders
CommanderBrigadier General Samir Maalouli
Notable
commanders		Brigadier General Emile Boustani
Insignia
EmblemAn editor has nominated the above file for discussion of its purpose and/or potential deletion. You are welcome to participate in the discussion and help reach a consensus.
Roundel

The Lebanese Air Force (LAF) (Template:Lang-ar Al Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Lubnania) is the aerial warfare branch of the Lebanese Armed Forces. The seal of the air force is constituted of a Roundel with two wings and a Lebanese Cedar tree, surrounded by two laurel leaves on a blue background.

History

The Lebanese Air Force was established in 1949 under the command of then Lieutenant Colonel Emile Boustany who later became commander of the army. Soon after its establishment a number of planes were donated by the British, French, and Italian governments, while an additional number of planes were donated by Britain and Italy the same year. Britain donated 4 Percival Prentices and 2 World War II period Percival Proctors while Italy donated 4 Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 bombers which were mainly used for transportation.[1] In 1953, jet fighters were introduced when a number of de Havilland Vampire jets were received. The first Hawker Hunters arrived in 1959 and were followed by additional fighters through 1977. In 1968, 12 Mirage IIIELs were delivered from France but were grounded in the late 1970s due to lack of funds. In 2000, the grounded Mirages were sold to Pakistan.[2]

The air force, in the absence of advanced fixed wing aircraft, currently relies on a helicopter force and Hawker Hunter jets that were been put back in service late 2008. The Lebanese Air Force consists of six squadrons distributed on three air bases.

Combat history

Savoia Marchetti SM.79.

The Lebanese Air Force has a long history operating Hawker Hunter jets since 1958. A Lebanese Hawker Hunter shot down an Israeli jet over Kfirmishki in early sixties, its pilot was captured by the LAF.[3] One Lebanese Hawker Hunter was shot down on the first day of the Six-Day War by the Israeli Air Force. The Hawker Hunters have not flown any combat sorties since September 17, 1983. This was during the period where the French and Americans were rebuilding the Lebanese army, and three F.Mk.70s were made airworthy, and started combat operations on September 15. Because the main airfield, Rayak Air Base had been shelled by Syrian forces, the Hunters had to operate from an airfield in Byblos. The Hunters were finally grounded in 1994 after a minor accident with one of the T.66 trainers during landing and the remaining 8 were stored in the Rayaq Air Base.[4] The last loss took place in 1989 near Batroun during a routine training, when undercarriage wheels was not able to lower, later the jet crash. But not before the pilot was able to eject safely from the doomed jet and land in the sea, where he was promptly rescued by the Syrian army, which then handed him over to Suleiman Frangieh, who in turn handed him over to the Lebanese Army at the al-Madfoun crossing.

During Operation Nahr el-Bared camp in North Lebanon, due to the fact of possessing no airworthy fixed-wing strike aircraft, the Lebanese army modified some UH-1H helicopters to permit the carrying of 500 pound Mark 82 bomb and 1000 pound Mark 83 bomb loads (all unguided iron bombs, also known as dumb bombs) as well as Matra SNEB 68 mm rocket pods (taken from stored Hawker Hunters) to strike at militant positions. Special mounting pads engineered by the Lebanese army were attached to each UH-1 Hueys on the sides and belly to carry the bombs. The air force in collaboration with the engineering regiment locally developed and used two dump bombs variants, a 250 kg LAF-GS-ER2 and a 400 kg LAF-GS-ER3.[5] Usually, helicopters cannot bomb in this method as compared to ground attack aircraft, this became one of the rare moments in history during which helicopters were used in such a way. Also, the Lebanese army had made extensive use of the Aérospatiale Gazelle helicopters equipped with Euromissile HOT missiles and machine guns pods during the conflict.

Air Bases

The Lebanese Air Force has three bases

Squadrons

File:Puma Lebanon Delivery.jpg
Four Pumas being delivered.
File:Lebarmyhueybomber.jpg
UH-1H Carrying three bombs.
Two LAF-GS-ER2 on display.

Second Squadron

Employs: Hunter Mk66C, Hunter Mk70A, and AC-208B Combat Caravan

Eighth Squadron

Employs: Aerospastiale SA-342 Gazelle

Ninth Squadron

Employs: IAR-330 SM Puma

Tenth Squadron

Employs: UH-1H

Eleventh Squadron

Employs: UH-1H

Twelfth Squadron

Employs: UH-1H
The helicopters of this squadron are on loan from the squadrons at Beirut Air Base.[6]

Fourteenth Squadron

Employs: UH-1H
The helicopters of this squadron are on loan from the squadrons at Beirut Air Base.

Fifteenth Squadron

Employs: Robinson Raven R44 II
The squadron is part of the Aviation School, which is also based at Rayak.

Sixteenth Squadron

Employs: Sikorsky S-61N MkII

Aircraft inventory

Fixed wing Aircraft
Aircraft Origin Type Total Status Notes
AC-208B Combat Caravan  United States Close air support/Border surveillance 1 Active/2 TBD Equipped with MX-15D Camera and Hellfire missiles.[7]
Hawker Hunter  United Kingdom Fighter/Ground attack 4 [8] Active
Scottish Aviation Bulldog  United Kingdom Trainer 3 [8] Active

Restored in 2010

Template:Standard table |+ Helicopters ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Total [8][9] ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Status ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes |----- |AB-205/UH-1H ||  United States || Utility/Bomber/Attack helicopter || 23 || Active || Some with local modifications to carry 250 kg and 400 kg bombs or SNEB Matra 68mm rocket launchers |----- |Aérospatiale SA-342L Gazelle ||  France ||Naval patrol/Battlefield scout/Anti-tank|| 8 || Active || Lebanon signed a contract with Eurotech to revamp and upgrade 13 Gazelles of the original and ex-UAE deliveries.[10] |----- |AgustaWestland AW139 Executive(VIP) ||  Italy || VIP transport || 1 || Active || "Cedar 1" Presidential helicopter. |----- |IAR 330SM / Aérospatiale SA-330 Puma ||  Romania/ France ||Utility and transport helicopter || 7/3/7 || Active/TBD/Stored || Three ex-UAE IAR-330SM Pumas remaining to be delivered. |----- |Mil Mi-24 ||  Russia ||Attack-Gunship helicopter || 6 || TBD || Replacing a previous MiG-29 offer.[11] To be delivered before the end of the year after the end of the lebanese pilots training in the Russian Federation |----- |Robinson R44 ||  United States ||Trainer/Light utility helicopter || 4 || Active || |----- |Sikorsky S-61N MkII ||  United States || Firefighting/Rescue || 3 || Active || On behalf of the Ministry of Interior. |}

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Aircraft Origin Total Status Notes
RQ-11B Raven[12]  United States 12[13] Active
Out of Service/Stored Aircraft [14]
Aircraft Total Notes
Aérospatiale SA-319 Alouette II 3 Retired from military service Currently being used for crop spraying
Augusta-Bell AB 212 5 To be made operational
Dassault Mirage III E/D 12 Sold to Pakistan in 2000
Dassault Falcon 20 1
de Havilland Dove 1
de Havilland Vampire 16
Fouga Magister CM-170 10 Four of them will be refurbished and back to service for training purposes[15]
Havilland Chipmunk 6
Macchi M.B.308 1
North American T-6 Texan 16
Percival Prentice 3
Percival Proctor 3
Rockwell Shrike Turbo Commander 690 1 Destroyed by 1982
Savoia Marchetti SM.79 4 One was donated to the Italian Museo dell’Aeronautica Gianni Caproni
Sud Aviation SA-319 Alouette III 14

Future

The air force is currently making efforts to enhance its capabilities after over a decade of negligence, which has affected all branches of the Lebanese Armed Forces. Reported interests include additional number of attack and utility helicopters and a small number of (3 to 6) jet fighters or trainers. Many types have been rumored but still no official statement has been made by the army or the air force. Due to lack of funds, donations from friendly nations are believed to be a strong possibility.

On February 27, 2010, Lebanon decided to replaced previously offered MiG-29 jets with Mi-24 attack helicopters.[11]

During the meeting of the Lebanese-American Joint Military Committee in February, 2010 the US expressed its readiness to supply Lebanon with either the Hawker Beechcraf AT 6B or the Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano by 2013; the final choice would depend on which of them the Pentagon will choice for the US forces.[16]

On January 22, 2010, Lebanon signed a contract with Eurotech to revamp 13 Gazelle helicopters of the original and ex-UAE delivered in addition to equip the ex-UAE Puma helicopters.[10]

Some media reports mentioned during July 2009 that the United States has conveyed to the UAE its approval for the transfer of BAE Hawk jets to Lebanon.[17] The Lebanese Air Force has been approaching the UAE to acquire a squadron of Hawks jets for advanced training and light air support.

On February 10, 2009, UAE officially announced approval to provide Lebanon with 10 Aérospatiale Puma transport helicopters that can be delivered immediately.[18] UAE already delivered four helicopters on April 21, 2010; remaining six to follow.[19]

A controversial US promise to supply Lebanon with AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter came into discussions during 2008; however, that promise did not see the light yet, nor was it clearly confirmed. Alhayat newspaper sources published that UK gave a green light for LAF to acquire a squadron of training Bae Hawks

Crashes and accidents

  • On November 20, 2010, a Raven R44 helicopter (L-1502) made an emergency landing on Jal el-Dib highway when its engine stopped working during a drill for the Independence Day parade. Both pilots and helicopter were unharmed.
  • On May 12, 2006, a UH-1H helicopter crashed into Neiha mountains. Four air force personnel including the 2 pilots were killed.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Air force of Lebanon.
  1. ^ "Lebanese Air Force - History 1". Vatche Mitilian's Independent Guide To The Lebanese Air Force. Retrieved on December 5, 2008.
  2. ^ "Air Force". Lebanese Army.
  3. ^ "وقائع العرض العسكري الذي سيقام بمناسبة عيد الاستقلال" (in Arabic). Lebanese Army. November 21, 2008.
  4. ^ Mitilian, Vatche. "Hawker Hunter 50 Years". Vatche Mitilian's Independent Guide To The Lebanese Air Force. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
  5. ^ Njeim, Colonel Antoine (October, 2007). "القوات الجوية" (in Arabic). Lebanese Army. Retrieved 2009-04-04. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ "Lebanese Air Force - Order of Battle". Scramble. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  7. ^ "تسلم القوات الجوية طائرة نوع Cessna caravan 208 B" (in Arabic). Lebanese Armed Forces. April 16, 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  8. ^ a b c "Lebanese Air Force - Aircraft Inventory". Vatche Mitilian's Independent Guide To The Lebanese Air Force. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
  9. ^ "Order of Battle - Lebanon". MilAvia Press. April, 2008. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ a b "French Company to Revamp Lebanon's Gazelle Helicopters, Equip Pumas". Naharnet. January 22, 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  11. ^ a b "Russia Agrees to Provide Lebanon with Mi-24 Helicopters Instead of MiG Fighters". Naharnet. February 26, 2010. Retrieved 27 February 2010.
  12. ^ "Lebanon gets Raven mini UAV from U.S." United Press International. March 23, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-24. [dead link‍]
  13. ^ "Heavy U.S. Military Aid to Lebanon Arrives ahead of Elections". Naharnet Newsdesk. April 9, 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-09.
  14. ^ Mitilian, Vatche. "Aircraft Inventory". Vatche Mitilian's Independent Guide To The Lebanese Air Force. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  15. ^ "Le retour du père Fouga" (in French). Liban News Blog. June 22, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-27.
  16. ^ Maakroun, Joe (February 12, 2010). "واشنطن تعرض على بيروت طائرات ذات سلاح خفيف بحلول العام 2013" (in Arabic). Assafir. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
  17. ^ Khawaji, Riad (July 2009). "سياسة أميركية متقدمة نحو الجيش اللبناني" (in Arabic). Security & Defense International. Retrieved 2009-07-17. [dead link‍]
  18. ^ "الامارات تمنح لبنان عشر طائرات مروحية "بوما" جاهزة للتسليم فورا" (in Arabic). El-Nashra. February 10, 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  19. ^ "UAE Delivers First Batch of Puma Helicopters to Lebanese Army". Naharnet. April 21, 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
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