Sheik Isa Air Base
Encyclopedia
Isa Air Base, formerly Shaikh Isa Air Base , is located on the 665 km² island nation of Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...

 which is situated off Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

’s eastern coast. Isa Air Base is located on the shore of the Persian Gulf in southern Bahrain.

It hosts the Royal Bahraini Air Force
Royal Bahraini Air Force
The Royal Bahraini Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the Bahrain Defense Force. The air force had 650 personnel in 1992 and 1,500 in 2009.- History :...

 (RBAF) Fighter Wing and the two squadrons that comprise it.

During the first Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

, some of the Coalition forces, having trouble with the Arab pronunciation, knew the base under the name "Shakey's Pizza
Shakey's Pizza
Shakey's Pizza is a pizza restaurant chain based in the United States. The chain currently has about 500 stores globally, and about 60 in the United States.-History:...

".

Fighter aircraft are stored in 10 buildings located at either end of the runway.

In March 2009, the United States Air Force established a camp on Isa Air Base to support aerial port operations. The unit was designated a detachment of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing of Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. This detachment's purpose was to accelerate the delivery of mine-resistant, ambush-protected all-terrain vehicles to U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

Elements

The base is home to the RBAF's 1st Fighter Wing:
  • 1st Fighter Squadron
  • 2nd Fighter Squadron
  • 4th Squadron - Training
  • 5th Squadron - Training
  • 6th Fighter Squadron
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