Lebanese Air Force
Encyclopedia
The Lebanese Air Force ( Al Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Lubnaniyya) 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.
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 Prentice
s and 2 World War II
period Percival Proctor
s while Italy donated 4 Savoia-Marchetti
SM.79 bombers which were mainly used for transportation. In 1953, jet fighters were introduced when a number of de Havilland Vampire
jets were received. The first Hawker Hunter
s 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
.
The air force, in the absence of advanced fixed wing aircraft, currently relies on a helicopter force and Hawker Hunter
jets that have been put back in service late 2008. The Lebanese Air Force consists of six squadrons distributed on three air bases.
jets since 1958. A Lebanese Hawker Hunter shot down an Israeli jet over Kfirmishki in early sixties, its pilot was captured by the LAF
. 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. 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. 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.
The helicopters of this squadron are on loan from the squadrons at Beirut Air Base
.
The helicopters of this squadron are on loan from the squadrons at Beirut Air Base
.
The squadron is part of the Aviation School
, which is also based at Rayak.
|+ Helicopters
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Origin
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Type
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Total
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Status
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Notes
|-
|AB-205/UH-1H || || 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
|| ||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.
|-
|AgustaWestland AW139
Executive(VIP) || || VIP transport || 1 || Active || "Cedar 1" Presidential helicopter.
|-
|IAR 330
SM / Aérospatiale SA-330 Puma
|| / ||Utility and transport helicopter || 10/7 || Active/Stored || Three ex-UAE IAR-330SM Pumas remaining to be delivered.
|-
|Mil Mi-24 || ||Attack-Gunship helicopter || 6 ||TBD|| Replacing a previous MiG-29 offer. To be delivered before the end of the year after the end of the Lebanese pilots training in the Russian Federation
|-
|Robinson R44
|| ||Trainer/Light utility helicopter || 4 || Active ||
|-
|Sikorsky S-61N MkII
|| || Firefighting/Rescue || 3 || Active || On behalf of the Ministry of Interior
.
|}
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.
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.
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.
On February 27, 2010, Lebanon decided to replaced previously offered MiG-29 jets with Mi-24 attack helicopters.
Aerial warfare
Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare, including military airlift of cargo to further the national interests as was demonstrated in the Berlin Airlift...
branch of the Lebanese Armed Forces
Lebanese Armed Forces
The Lebanese Armed Forces or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the Lebanese Army according to its official Website The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) (Arabic: القوات المسلحة اللبنانية | Al-Quwwāt al-Musallaḥa al-Lubnāniyya) or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the...
. The seal of the air force is constituted of a Roundel
Roundel
A roundel in heraldry is a disc; the term is also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of different colours.-Heraldry:...
with two wings and a Lebanese Cedar
Lebanon Cedar
Cedrus libani is a species of cedar native to the mountains of the Mediterranean region.There are two distinct types that are considered to be different subspecies or varieties. Lebanon cedar or Cedar of Lebanon Cedrus libani is a species of cedar native to the mountains of the Mediterranean...
tree, surrounded by two laurel
Bay Laurel
The bay laurel , also known as sweet bay, bay tree, true laurel, Grecian laurel, laurel tree, or simply laurel, is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, glossy leaves, native to the Mediterranean region. It is the source of the bay leaf used in cooking...
leaves on a blue background.
History
The Lebanese Air Force was established in 1949 under the command of then Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Emile Boustany who later became commander of the army. Soon after its establishment a number of planes were donated by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
governments, while an additional number of planes were donated by Britain and Italy the same year. Britain donated 4 Percival Prentice
Percival Prentice
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Ellison, Norman H. Percivals Aircraft . Chalford, Stroud, UK: Chalford Publishing Company, 1997. ISBN 0-7524-0774-0....
s and 2 World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
period Percival Proctor
Percival Proctor
The Percival Proctor was a British radio trainer and communications aircraft of the Second World War. The Proctor was a single-engine, low-wing monoplane with seating for three or four, depending on the model.-Design and development:...
s while Italy donated 4 Savoia-Marchetti
Savoia-Marchetti
-History:The original company was founded in 1915 as SIAI . After World War I gained the name Savoia, when it acquired the Società Anonima Costruzioni Aeronautiche Savoia, an Italian aircraft company founded by Umberto Savoia in 1915.The name Marchetti was added when chief designer Alessandro...
SM.79 bombers which were mainly used for transportation. In 1953, jet fighters were introduced when a number of de Havilland Vampire
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served...
jets were received. The first Hawker Hunter
Hawker Hunter
The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
s 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
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
.
The air force, in the absence of advanced fixed wing aircraft, currently relies on a helicopter force and Hawker Hunter
Hawker Hunter
The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
jets that have been put back in service late 2008. The Lebanese Air Force consists of six squadrons distributed on three air bases.
Combat history
The Lebanese Air Force has a long history operating Hawker HunterHawker Hunter
The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
jets since 1958. A Lebanese Hawker Hunter shot down an Israeli jet over Kfirmishki in early sixties, its pilot was captured by the LAF
Lebanese Armed Forces
The Lebanese Armed Forces or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the Lebanese Army according to its official Website The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) (Arabic: القوات المسلحة اللبنانية | Al-Quwwāt al-Musallaḥa al-Lubnāniyya) or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the...
. One Lebanese Hawker Hunter was shot down on the first day of the Six-Day War
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
by the Israeli Air Force
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
. 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
Byblos
Byblos is the Greek name of the Phoenician city Gebal . It is a Mediterranean city in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of present-day Lebanon under the current Arabic name of Jubayl and was also referred to as Gibelet during the Crusades...
. 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. The last loss took place in 1989 near Batroun
Batroun
The coastal city of Batroun located in northern Lebanon is one of the oldest cities of the world. Batroun is home to a Lebanese Red Cross First Aid Center.- Etymology :...
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
Suleiman Frangieh
Suleiman Kabalan Frangieh, last name also spelled Frangié, Franjieh, or Franjiyeh , was President of Lebanon from 1970 to 1976...
, who in turn handed him over to the Lebanese Army at the al-Madfoun crossing.
During Operation Nahr el-Bared camp
2007 Lebanon conflict
The 2007 Lebanon conflict began when fighting broke out between Fatah al-Islam, an Islamist militant organization, and the Lebanese Armed Forces on May 20, 2007 in Nahr al-Bared, an UNRWA Palestinian refugee camp near Tripoli. It was the most severe internal fighting since Lebanon's 1975–90 civil...
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
Mark 82 bomb
The Mark 82 is an unguided, low-drag general-purpose bomb, part of the U.S. Mark 80 series. The explosive filling is tritonal.-Development and deployment:...
and 1000 pound Mark 83 bomb
Mark 83 bomb
The Mark 83 is part of the Mark 80 series of low-drag general-purpose bombs in United States service.-Development & deployment:The nominal weight of the bomb is 1,000 lb , although its actual weight varies between 985 lb and 1,030 lb , depending on fuze options, and fin configuration...
loads (all unguided iron bombs, also known as dumb bombs
Gravity bomb
An unguided bomb, also known as a free-fall bomb, gravity bomb, dumb bomb, or iron bomb, is a conventional aircraft-delivered bomb that does not contain a guidance system and hence, simply follows a ballistic trajectory....
) as well as Matra SNEB
SNEB
The SNEB rocket is an unguided air-to-ground rocket projectile manufactured by the French company TDA Armements, designed for launch by combat aircraft and helicopters. Two other rockets were developed in the and caliber...
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. 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
Aérospatiale Gazelle
The Aérospatiale Gazelle is a five-seat light helicopter, powered by a single turbine engine. It was designed and manufactured in France by Sud Aviation . It was also manufactured under licence by Westland Aircraft in the United Kingdom , by SOKO in Yugoslavia and ABHCO in Egypt...
helicopters equipped with Euromissile HOT
Euromissile HOT
The HOT is a second-generation long-range anti-tank missile system developed originally as an effort to meet a joint German-French Army requirement, by the then German firm Bolkow and the French firm Nord, to replace the older SS.11 wire guided...
missiles and machine guns pods during the conflict.
Air Bases
The Lebanese Air Force has three bases- Beirut Air BaseBeirut Air BaseBeirut Air Base is a military base owned by the Lebanese Armed Forces and operated by the Lebanese Air Force. It is located 9 km from the city center in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon....
, Beirut International AirportBeirut Rafic Hariri International AirportBeirut Rafic Hariri International Airport is located 9 km from the city centre in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon and is the only operational commercial airport in the country. It is the hub for Lebanon's national carrier, Middle East Airlines...
(OLBA)- Eighth Squadron
- Tenth Squadron
- Eleventh Squadron
- Sixteenth Squadron
- Rayak Air BaseRayak Air BaseRayak Air Base is Lebanon's first air base and the place where the Lebanese Air Force was born on June 1, 1949. Located in the middle of the Bekaa Valley to the east, between the towns of Zahlé and Anjar, it symbolizes the Lebanese Air Force best and home for most of the aircraft types that have...
(OLRA)- Second Squadron
- Twelfth Squadron
- Fifteenth Squadron Squadron
- Kleyate Air Base, Rene Mouawad AirportRene Mouawad Air BaseRene Mouawad Air Base , formerly and still sometimes known as Kleyate Airport , used to be a military-civil joint airport in northern Lebanon, located near the town of Kleyate and 6 km from the Lebanese-Syrian border.-History:In the early 1960's, the air base was a small airport owned by an...
(OLKA)- Fourteenth Squadron
- Wujah Al Hajar Air Base Wujah Al Hajar Air BaseWujah Al Hajar Air Base was a Lebanese Air Force base in Hamat, Lebanon. Built in the mid 1970s and later renamed Pierre Gemayel International Airport by the Kataeb Regulatory Forces to honour the late Pierre Gemayel. The airport was never used as a civilian airport...
- Newly established still not fully operational. Includes Lebanese army special forces school.
Squadrons
Twelfth Squadron
Employs: UH-1HThe helicopters of this squadron are on loan from the squadrons at Beirut Air Base
Beirut Air Base
Beirut Air Base is a military base owned by the Lebanese Armed Forces and operated by the Lebanese Air Force. It is located 9 km from the city center in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon....
.
Fourteenth Squadron
Employs: UH-1HThe helicopters of this squadron are on loan from the squadrons at Beirut Air Base
Beirut Air Base
Beirut Air Base is a military base owned by the Lebanese Armed Forces and operated by the Lebanese Air Force. It is located 9 km from the city center in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon....
.
Fifteenth Squadron
Employs: Robinson Raven R44 IIThe squadron is part of the Aviation School
Lebanese Air Force Aviation School
The Lebanese Air Force Aviation School is a military school and part of the Lebanese Air Force, established in 1960 . The school aims to qualify air force pilots, and is located at Rayak Air Base; however it is controlled by the air force command in Beirut Air Base...
, which is also based at Rayak.
Aircraft inventory
| Aircraft | Origin | Type | Total | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AC-208B Combat Caravan Cessna 208 The Cessna 208 Caravan is a single turboprop engine, fixed-gear short-haul regional airliner and utility aircraft built in the United States by Cessna. The airplane typically seats nine passengers, with a single person crew, although with a FAR Part 23 waiver, it can seat up to fourteen passengers... |
Close air support/Border surveillance | 1 | Active/2 TBD | Equipped with MX-15D Camera and Hellfire missiles AGM-114 Hellfire The AGM-114 Hellfire is an air-to-surface missile developed primarily for anti-armor use. It has multi-mission, multi-target precision-strike capability, and can be launched from multiple air, sea, and ground platforms. The Hellfire missile is the primary 100 lb-class air-to-ground precision... . |
|
| Hawker Hunter Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary... |
Ground attack | 4 | Active |
|
|
| Scottish Aviation Bulldog Scottish Aviation Bulldog |-See also:-External links:... |
Trainer | 3 | Active |
Restored in 2010 |
|+ Helicopters
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Origin
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Type
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Total
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Status
! style="text-align:left; background:#acc;"|Notes
|-
|AB-205/UH-1H || || Utility/Bomber/Attack helicopter || 23 || Active || Some with local modifications to carry 250 kg and 400 kg bombs or SNEB
SNEB
The SNEB rocket is an unguided air-to-ground rocket projectile manufactured by the French company TDA Armements, designed for launch by combat aircraft and helicopters. Two other rockets were developed in the and caliber...
Matra 68mm rocket launchers
|-
|Aérospatiale SA-342L Gazelle
Aérospatiale Gazelle
The Aérospatiale Gazelle is a five-seat light helicopter, powered by a single turbine engine. It was designed and manufactured in France by Sud Aviation . It was also manufactured under licence by Westland Aircraft in the United Kingdom , by SOKO in Yugoslavia and ABHCO in Egypt...
|| ||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.
|-
|AgustaWestland AW139
AgustaWestland AW139
The AgustaWestland AW139 is a 15-seat medium sized twin-engined helicopter manufactured by AgustaWestland. Originally designed and developed jointly by Agusta and Bell Helicopters and marketed as the Agusta-Bell AB139, it was redesignated the AW139 when Bell withdrew from the project...
Executive(VIP) || || VIP transport || 1 || Active || "Cedar 1" Presidential helicopter.
|-
|IAR 330
IAR 330
|-See also:-External links:*...
SM / Aérospatiale SA-330 Puma
Aérospatiale Puma
The Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma is a four-bladed, twin-engined medium transport/utility helicopter. The Puma was originally manufactured by Sud Aviation of France.-Development:...
|| / ||Utility and transport helicopter || 10/7 || Active/Stored || Three ex-UAE IAR-330SM Pumas remaining to be delivered.
|-
|Mil Mi-24 || ||Attack-Gunship helicopter || 6 ||TBD|| Replacing a previous MiG-29 offer. To be delivered before the end of the year after the end of the Lebanese pilots training in the Russian Federation
|-
|Robinson R44
Robinson R44
|-See also:-External links:* * * * * *...
|| ||Trainer/Light utility helicopter || 4 || Active ||
|-
|Sikorsky S-61N MkII
Sikorsky S-61
The Sikorsky S-61L and S-61N are civil variants of the successful SH-3 Sea King helicopter. They are two of the most widely used airliner and oil rig support helicopters built.-Design and development:...
|| || Firefighting/Rescue || 3 || Active || On behalf of the Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (Lebanon)
The Ministry of Interior and Municipalities in Lebanon is responsible for governorate, caza, municipalities, federation of municipalities and village matters, in addition to political parties and organizations....
.
|}
| Aircraft | Origin | Total | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RQ-11B Raven | 12 | Active |
| 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 Dassault Mirage III The Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade... |
12 | Sold to Pakistan in 2000 |
| Dassault Falcon 20 Dassault Falcon 20 The Dassault Falcon 20 is a French business jet and was the first of a family of business jets built by Dassault Aviation.-Design and development:... |
1 | |
| de Havilland Dove De Havilland Dove The de Havilland DH.104 Dove was a British monoplane short-haul airliner from de Havilland, the successor to the biplane de Havilland Dragon Rapide and was one of Britain's most successful post-war civil designs... |
1 | |
| de Havilland Vampire De Havilland Vampire The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served... |
16 | |
| Fouga Magister CM-170 Fouga Magister The Fouga Magister is a 1950s French two-seat jet trainer. The related CM.175 Zéphyr was a carrier-capable version for the French Navy.... |
10 | Four of them will be refurbished and back to service for training purposes |
| de Havilland Chipmunk De Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk The de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk is a tandem, two-seat, single-engined primary trainer aircraft which was the standard primary trainer for the Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Air Force and several other air forces through much of the post-Second World War years... |
6 | |
| Macchi M.B.308 | 1 | |
| North American T-6 Texan North American T-6 Texan The North American Aviation T-6 Texan was a single-engine advanced trainer aircraft used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces, United States Navy, Royal Air Force and other air forces of the British Commonwealth during World War II and into the 1950s... |
16 | |
| Percival Prentice Percival Prentice |-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Ellison, Norman H. Percivals Aircraft . Chalford, Stroud, UK: Chalford Publishing Company, 1997. ISBN 0-7524-0774-0.... |
3 | |
| Percival Proctor Percival Proctor The Percival Proctor was a British radio trainer and communications aircraft of the Second World War. The Proctor was a single-engine, low-wing monoplane with seating for three or four, depending on the model.-Design and development:... |
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 Aérospatiale Alouette III The Aérospatiale Alouette III is a single-engine, light utility helicopter developed by Sud Aviation. It was manufactured by Aérospatiale of France, and under licence by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited in India as Hal Chetak and Industria Aeronautică Română in Romania.The Alouette III is the... |
14 |
Future
On February 10, 2009, UAE officially announced approval to provide Lebanon with 10 Aérospatiale Puma transport helicopters that can be delivered immediately. UAE already delivered four helicopters on April 21, 2010; remaining six to follow.Some media reports mentioned during July 2009 that the United States has conveyed to the UAE its approval for the transfer of BAE Hawk
BAE Hawk
The BAE Systems Hawk is a British single-engine, advanced jet trainer aircraft. It first flew in 1974 as the Hawker Siddeley Hawk. The Hawk is used by the Royal Air Force, and other air forces, as either a trainer or a low-cost combat aircraft...
jets to Lebanon.
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.
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
T-6 Texan II
The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engined turboprop aircraft built by the Raytheon Aircraft Company . Based on the Pilatus PC-9, the T-6 is used by the United States Air Force for basic pilot training and by the United States Navy for Primary and Intermediate Joint Naval Flight Officer and...
or the Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano
Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano
The Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano, also named ALX or A-29 is a turboprop aircraft designed for light attack, counter insurgency and pilot training missions, incorporating modern avionics and weapons systems. It is currently in service with the air forces of Brazil, Dominican Republic and Colombia,...
by 2013; the final choice would depend on which of them the Pentagon will choice for the US forces.
On February 27, 2010, Lebanon decided to replaced previously offered MiG-29 jets with Mi-24 attack helicopters.
Crashes and accidents
- On May 12, 2006, a UH-1H helicopter crashed in the Neiha mountains. Four air force personnel, including the 2 pilots, were killed.
- 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 Lebanon Independence Day parade. Both pilots and helicopter were unharmed.
- On December 3, 2010, a Gazelle helicopter made a crash landing in Afqa. The two pilot were unharmed, although the helicopter sustained some damage.