page_title: Bagram Airfield
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Bagram Airfield / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Afghan Air Force Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 fighters and Ilyushin Il-28 bombers at Kabul, Afghanistan, during the visit of the U.S. president Dwight D. Eisenhower, 9-14 December 1959. فارسی: جنگنده‌های میکویان-گورویچ میگ-۱۵ و بمب‌افکن‌های ایلیوشین آی‌ال-۲۸ نیروی هوایی افغانستان در کابل به هنگام دیدار دوایت آیزنهاور رئیس‌جمهور ایالات متحدهٔ آمریکا، ۱۴-۹ دسامبر ۱۹۵۹
context_page_description: Bagram Airfield-BAF also known as Bagram Air Base is the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan. It is located next to the ancient city of Bagram, 11 kilometres southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It has a dual runway capable of handling large military aircraft, including the Lockheed Martin C-5 Galaxy and Antonov An-225. Bagram Air Base is occupied by the Afghan Armed Forces and the US-led Resolute Support Mission.
  Bagram Airfield is staffed by the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing of the U.S. Air Force, along with rotating units of the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Coast Guard. In addition, the U.S. government regional platform for the east is at the base, staffed by civilians.
  The ICAO ID is OAIX and it is specifically at 34.944N, 69.259E at 1,492 metres above sea level. One of Bagram's runways is 3,003 metres long and the other is 3,500 metres long, which was built and completed by the United States in late 2006. There are a number of large hangars, a control tower, numerous support buildings, and various housing areas. There are also more than 32 acres of ramp space and five aircraft dispersal areas, with over 110 revetments.
context_section_description: The airport at Bagram was originally built in the 1950s, during the Cold War, at a time when the United States and the neighboring Soviet Union were busy spreading influence in Afghanistan. While the United States was focusing on Afghanistan, the Soviets were busy with the Island of Cuba and Fidel Castro. In 1959, a year after Afghan Prime Minister Daud Khan toured the United States, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower landed at Bagram Airfield where he was greeted by King Zahir Shah and Daoud Khan among other Afghan officials.
  The present runway, 10,000 foot long, was built in 1976. The airport at Bagram was maintained by the Afghan Air Force (AAF) with some support from the United States. During the 1980s Soviet–Afghan War, it played a key role, serving as a base of operations for troops and supplies. Bagram was also the initial staging point for the invading Soviet forces at the beginning of the conflict, with elements of two Soviet Airborne Troops' divisions being deployed there. Aircraft based at Bagram, including the 368th Assault Aviation Regiment flying Su-25s, provided close air support for Soviet and Afghan troops in the field. The 368th Assault Aviation Regiment was stationed at Bagram from October 1986 to November 1987.
  Some of the Soviet land forces based at Bagram included the 108th Motor Rifle Division and the 345th Independent Guards Airborne Regiment of the 105th Guards Airborne Division. Following the withdrawal of the Soviet forces and the rise of the Western-funded and Pakistani-trained mujahideen rebels, Afghanistan plunged into civil war.
  Control of the base was contested from 1999 onward between the Northern Alliance and Taliban, often with each controlling territory on opposing ends of the base. Taliban forces were consistently within artillery and mortar range of the field, denying full possession of the strategic facility to the Northern Alliance. Press reports indicated that at times a Northern Alliance general was using the bombed-out control tower as an observation post and as a location to brief journalists, with his headquarters nearby.
  Reports also indicated that Northern Alliance rocket attacks on Kabul had been staged from Bagram, possibly with Russian-made FROG-7 Rockets. In 2000, the Taliban took over control and forced the Northern Alliance to retreat further to the north.
caption: This image shows aircraft of the Afghan Air Force during U.S. President Eisenhower's visit in 1959. It is important to note that Eisenhower did not visit the nearby Kabul International Airport, which was being built by the Soviet Union.
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