Ramat David Airbase. Ramat David Airbase (,  Basis Kheil HaAvir Ramat David, English: David Heights) is an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base located 20 km southeast of Haifa in the Northern District of Israel, close to kibbutz Ramat David in the Jezreel Valley. It is the northernmost IAF base in Israel with fighter jets, UAVs and helicopters based on it (see Units). There is an ongoing debate about whether Ramat David should be converted into an international airport (see here).

History

RAF Ramat David 
Roald Dahl, in his World War II autobiography 'Going Solo', mentions landing his RAF Hawker Hurricane Mk.I at Ramat David in June 1941. At that time it was a ribbon of dry earth that had been rolled out in the middle of a large field of sweet-corn built by the Brits and residents of the nearby kibbutz, as Roald Dahl also reports near the end of his book. This secret airstrip behind Mount Carmel was installed as an alternative runway in case the Haifa Aerodrome (RAF Haifa) 20 km northwest of it was attacked and damaged by the Germans or Italians.

In 1942, the RAF Ramat David military airfield was finally established by the Royal Air Force (RAF) under the British Mandate for Palestine. From this point on, several British aircraft squadrons with fighter aircraft, bombers and transport aircraft were stationed there in turn (see list of former RAF units below).

During the Second World War Jewish paratroopers trained at Ramat David to serve in RAF special operation commandos and to drop behind enemy lines in German or German-occupied territory. They were supposed to help bring downed Allied airmen safely back and help Jews hide from the Nazis. Several of them died (see memorial stone in the gallery below).

Former RAF units 
Former Royal Air Force operational units at RAF Ramat David:
No. 6 Squadron RAF between 28 September 1945 and 2 June 1946 with the Hawker Hurricane IV & Supermarine Spitfire LF.9
No. 32 Squadron RAF initially between 25 February and 27 September 145 with the Spitfire IX, then between 6 June and 3 October 1946 still with the Spitfire and finally until March 1949 with the Spitfire IX and FR.18 as a detachment
Detachment from No. 37 Squadron RAF between September 1947 and March 1948 with the Avro Lancaster MR.3
Detachment from No. 46 Squadron RAF between May 1942 and January 1943 with the Bristol Beaufighter IF
No. 74 Squadron RAF between 8 July and 4 September 1942 with the Spitfire VB
No. 127 Squadron RAF between 26 January and 13 March 1943 with the Spitfire VC
Detachment from No. 154 Squadron RAF between December 1943 and March 1944 with the Spitfire IX
No. 208 Squadron RAF initially between 5 July and 13 August 1945 with the Spitfire IX, then between March and November 1948 as a detachment with the Spitfire FR.18
No. 213 Squadron RAF between 13 September 1945 and 25 September 1946 with the North American Mustang III/IV
Detachment from No. 216 Squadron RAF from November 1942 and April 1943 with the Lockheed Hudson VI
Detachment from No. 232 Squadron RAF between December 1943 and March 1944 with the Spitfire IX
Detachment from No. 242 Squadron RAF between February and March 1944 with the Spitfire IX
Detachment from No. 243 Squadron RAF between December 1943 and March 1944 with the Spitfire IX
No. 249 Squadron RAF between 13 April And 17 May 1948 with the Hawker Tempest F.6
Detachment from No. 294 Squadron RAF between March 1944 and June 1945 with the Vickers Wellington
Detachment from No. 459 Squadron RAAF from December 1943, the full squadron until May 1944 with the Hudson VI
No. 1909 Flight of No. 651 Squadron RAF between July 1946 and August 1948 with the Auster AOP.6
 No. 4 Middle East Training School between 20 March 1943 and 30 April 1944, when the unit was disbanded.

Gallery 

After the Israeli Declaration of Independence on 14 May 1948 and the start of the First Arab–Israeli War the next day, the base was temporarily maintained by the RAF to cover the withdrawal of British forces from Palestine. On 22 May 1948, the Royal Egyptian Air Force attacked the base, mistakenly believing it was now an Israeli controlled airbase. In a series of three attacks, several aircraft were destroyed or damaged, a hangar was destroyed, and four British airmen were killed. In the further course of the fighting, five Egyptian fighter planes (all British made) were shot down. The British were furious with their allies. A short time later the base was taken over by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Ramat David IAF Base 
Over time, the Airbase was expanded to the main base of IAF operations north of Israel in Syria and Lebanon.

The 69 Squadron "Hammers" with three decommissioned B-17 Flying Fortress bombers smuggled from the US to Israel in 1948 was initially stationed here. This was done by the help of Charles Winters, a Miami businessman who was imprisoned for this and was posthumously pardoned by President George W. Bush in 2008.

The 103 Squadron "Elephants" with three DC-3 Dakota and one Douglas DC-5 transport aircraft was initially stationed here also, but both squadrons were relocated to other Israeli bases in the following years.

The future Israeli president Ezer Weizman (1924–2005) was base commander at Ramat David in the 1950s before he finally took over command of the IAF. In 2011 the base' Wing 1 there was named after him.

Squadrons and their aircraft 
The 117 Squadron "First Jet" was inaugurated on 17 June 1953 as the IAF's first fighter jet squadron with British Gloster Meteor at Ramat David. In 1962 these were replaced by French Dassault Mirage IIICJ Shahak, which then took part in the Six-Day War and the Yom Kippur War. In 1980, together with the 110 Squadron, they received the first F-16A/B Netz fighter jets from the USA. In June 1981, four jets from 117 Squadron took part in Operation Opera, the destruction of the Iraqi nuclear reactor Osirak near Baghdad. From 1986/87 these were then replaced by the IAF's first F-16C/D Barak, which remained until the squadron was closed in 2020 .

The 109 Squadron "The Valley" was founded in 1951 under a different name at Tel Nof Airbase and moved to Ramat David in 1956, where it still exists today. It got its name “The Valley” after the Jezreel Valley where the base is located. At Ramat David it flew the Dassault Mystère IV, A-4 Skyhawk Ayit, IAI Kfir (Young Lion) and finally from 1991 to the present day the two-seat F-16D Barak.

The 110 Squadron "Knights Of The North" existed from 1953 to 2017 (from 1957 at Ramat David) and flew the De Havilland Mosquito, S.O. 4050 Vautour II, Gloster Meteor, A-4 Skyhawk Ayit, F-16A/B  Netz, F-16C/D Barak and also took part in the destruction of the Iraqi reactor in 1981.

Three squadrons flew the de Havilland Mosquito in the 1950s: 109 Squadron "The Valley", 110 Squadron "Knights Of The North" and 115 Squadron "Flying Dragon" for aerial photography and as a bomber. The two-seat T.7 jet trainer version of the Gloster Meteor was probably based on Sirkin or Tel Nof Airbase since the IAF Flight Academy was there in the 1950s, but the T.8 fighter version was stationed at Ramat David.

Formerly stationed aircraft 
Most of them now at the IAF Museum near Hatzerim Airbase:

Underground hangars 
The fighter jets are housed in large underground hangar systems and shelters into which they disappear after each landing and which have several entrances and exits. This protects them from missiles and at the same time hides them from view and precise localization. Syria and Lebanon are only 50 to 60 km away, from where rockets are repeatedly fired at northern Israel. During the Yom Kippur War in 1973, this airbase was the only one where rockets hit and not only destroyed facilities but also caused casualties.

Hezbollah attacks 
On 22 August and 22 September 2024, the terrorist group Hezbollah launched many rockets from Lebanon in an attempt to hit the base, but no serious hit has been reported. An Iron Dome defense system (see photo above) stationed there had probably intercepted most of the incoming missiles. Hezbollah had previously published a video showing the base from above by a UAV flying over for several minutes and named various buildings and installations on it. The video also showed that some Apache attack helicopters from the Ramon Airbase are temporarily stationed there to take part in military operations in Lebanon against Hezbollah.

Today

F-16 fighter jets 
At the beginning of October 2020, as part of an IAF efficiency program, the 117 Squadron "First Jet" with F-16 fighter jets on Ramat David was disbanded and most of the jets and pilots were assigned to other units. It was involved in all of the country's wars since 1953 and, among other things, also involved in Operation Opera, the destruction of an unfinished Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981. In July 2021, the squadron reopened at Nevatim Airbase with new F-35I Adir jets.

From March 2021, the two F-16 Squadrons 101 "First Fighter" and 105 "Scorpion" were gradually relocated here from Hatzor Airbase to bring all remaining F-16C/D Barak jets under one roof. They were united with 109 Squadron "The Valley" of F-16D machines. A few other F-16C/D jets are based at Ovda in the Aggressor Training Squadron "Flying Dragon". Three squadrons with the newer F-16I Sufa, adapted to Israeli needs, are based at Ramon Airbase, as well as a fourth squadron of them at Hatzerim Airbase.

In December 2024, the first ultra-Orthodox technician unit of the IAF was established on Ramat David, after 26 so-called Haredim had completed their training. They will be responsible for the 105 Squadron "Scorpion" with F-16D fighter jets and maintain their weapons systems. The aim of this training is to better integrate ultra-Orthodox Jews into the army. The challenge is to enable soldiers to live a religious lifestyle within the army. This includes separate accommodation, strict kosher cuisine and the construction of a synagogue on the base. The IAF called the now completed training a "groundbreaking pilot project".

Helicopters 
The Eurocopter AS565 Panther Atalef of 193 Squadron "Defenders Of The West" at Ramat David serve as maritime reconnaissance, surveillance and SAR helicopters and are used in close cooperation with the Israeli Navy as on-board helicopters on ships of the Sa'ar 5-class corvette and Sa'ar 6-class corvette. These have their home port at the Haifa naval base, 25 km away.

In the future, the Panthers will be replaced by eight SH-60 Seahawk, which were already purchased by the IAF and Navy in 2015 from stocks of the US Navy. They will be extensively converted and equipped with Israeli systems and should be ready for use from 2024.

Secret UAVs 
There are two squadrons of still-secret UAVs at Ramat David: the 157 Squadron "In The Valley" and the  160 Squadron "Shadow Hunter" (see gallery below). It is assumed that the reason for the secrecy is their stealthiness. Since other countries have such stealth UAVs for a long time, it can also be assumed that Israel – a leading manufacturer of drones – also has such aircraft, but wants to keep their appearance secret for as long as possible. Large UAVs are also designed to fly for at least 24 hours at a time, which would make the whole of Iran accessible, for example.

International airport 
Since 2014, there have been considerations to convert Ramat David into a third major international airport alongside Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv and Ramon Airport near Eilat. The Nevatim Airbase in the south of Israel is now also being discussed, which could be used for both military and civilian purposes, as was previously the case with the Ovda Airbase for over 30 years. The IAF is strongly opposed to this latter proposal.

In the meantime, the civilian conversion of Ramat David seemed to be off the table, because the local resistance to it is too strong. In 2021, the government's policy was to build two medium-sized international airports at both Haifa in the north and Beersheba in the south. However, after the presentation of an extensive study and audit in 2023, Ramat David is again the top priority for a major airport.

Units 
 101 Squadron "First Fighter" – operating F-16C Barak
 105 Squadron "Scorpion" – operating F-16D Barak
 109 Squadron "The Valley" – operating F-16D Barak
 157 Squadron "In The Valley" – operating classified UAVs for Electronic Warfare (EW)
 160 Squadron "Shadow Hunter" – operating classified UAVs, reopened in 2020
 193 Squadron "Defenders of the West" – operating Eurocopter AS565 Panther Atalef

Note: IAF aircraft can usually be assigned to their squadron by the symbols on the tail

Accidents 

 On 16 September 1996, an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from the 193 Squadron "Defenders of the West" from Ramat David crashed about 12 miles off the coast of Nahariya, killing all three crew members.

 At the end of March 2000, an F-16D Barak of 109 Squadron "The Valley" from Ramat David crashed into the sea 20 kilometers off the coast of Atlit during a night exercise. The pilot – a grandson of former Prime Minister Menachem Begin – and his navigator were killed in the crash.

 In early January 2022, an AS 565 Panther Atalef of 193 Squadron "Defenders of the West" from Ramat David crashed off the coast of Haifa, killing two crew members and seriously injuring another.

See also 
 List of former Royal Air Force stations
 List of airports in Israel

References

Bibliography

External links 

Ramat David from globalsecurity.org
Aeroflight World Airforces

Airports in Israel
Israeli Air Force bases
World War II airfields in Mandatory Palestine