Mitiga International Airport
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2011) |
Mitiga International Airport مطار معيتيقة الدولي | |||||||||||||||
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AMSL 36 ft / 11 m | | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 32°54′N 13°17′E / 32.900°N 13.283°E | ||||||||||||||
| Website | https://www.mitiga-airport.ly, https://www.facebook.com/MCIA.Mitiga?mibextid=ZbWKwL | ||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||
  MJI Location within Libya | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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Mitiga International Airport (IATA: MJI, ICAO: HLLM) (مطار معيتيقة الدولي) is an airport that serves Tripoli, Libya, located about 8 kilometres (5 miles) east of Tripoli's city centre. Since 2018 it has been the sole international airport serving Tripoli following the closure of Tripoli International Airport after it was severely damaged in the second Libyan civil war.
The airport has a diverse international history and has been known by a variety of names. It was originally built in 1923 as an Italian air force base called aeroporto militare di Mellaha. It became a German air base during World War II. The airbase was captured by the British
Operation El Dorado Canyon
. In 1995, the air base was converted to a second civilian airport for Tripoli, and was given its current name.
History
The airport was originally built in 1923 by the
Mellaha Air Base (الملاّحة). A motor racing circuit was subsequently built around the airport and Mellaha Lake began hosting the popular Tripoli Grand Prix in 1933.[1]
Mellaha was used by the German
Fieseler Fi 156 Storch liaison aircraft, and a Junkers Ju 52
for transport of men and materiel.
The airbase was captured by the
Tunis Airport, Tunisia on the North African Cairo-Dakar transport route for cargo, transiting aircraft and personnel.[3]
On 15 April 1945 Mellaha AAF was taken over by
1969 Libyan coup d'état
.
[4]
Libyan/Soviet use
After the US Air Force left in 1970, the base was renamed Okba Ben Nafi Air Base (seemingly after the legendary hero
Soviet Air Force took up residence at the base.[citation needed
]
LPAF Soviet-made MiG-17/19/25 fighters and Tu-22 bombers were based at Okba Ben Nafi Air Base. Of the combat aircraft, the US State Department estimated in 1983 that fifty percent remained in storage, including most of the MiG fighters and Tu-22 bombers.
U.S. bombing raid in 1986
The base was a primary target of the
48th Tactical Fighter Wing
, flying from the United Kingdom, to Libya.
The raid included eighteen F-111 fighter-bombers, five
A-6E Intruders. The EF-111s formed up with the attack force to provide electronic defense during the attack. One 48 TFW F-111F was lost to (presumably) a surface-to-air missile or AAA hit. The 48 TFW that bombed the base had practiced for years with F-100s at this very same air base when it was Wheelus Air Base and later at Zaragoza AB Spain with F-4D Phantoms
and F-111s for similar missions.
Post–Cold War
Okba Ben Nafi AB was converted for civilian use and became Mitiga Airport in 1995.[6] The airport also housed the headquarters of Buraq Air.[7]
2011 Libyan civil war
During the
multispectral imagery from GeoEye taken on 28 August 2011 which showed the airfield as well as the highly capable MiG-25 aircraft with no visible damage. This imagery helped corroborate reporting which suggested that the airfield had been taken over early on by opposition protesters; moreover, NATO and US air forces would have wanted to avoid collateral damage to the opposition movement.[12]
2014 Libyan civil war
During the
2019–20 Western Libya campaign, the airport, held by military units loyal to the Government of National Accord, was repeatedly targeted with airstrikes from the opposing Libyan National Army[13] in order to enforce a no-fly zone declared by the LNA several days prior.[14] On 8 April 2019, an airport spokesman announced that the airport was forced to close due to airstrikes.[15][16]
TunisAir was the first foreign carrier to resume flights to the airport, in May 2021.[17]
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Tunis
Hajj & Umrah: Jeddah | |
| Air Libya | Benghazi |
| Berniq Airways | Benghazi, Cairo, Istanbul Hajj & Umrah: Jeddah, Medina |
| Buraq Air | Benghazi |
| Egyptair | Cairo[21] |
| Fly Crown | Benghazi, Istanbul |
| Tunis
| |
| Global Air | Beida, Benghazi, Ghat, Ubari |
| Tunis[23]
| |
| Rome–Fiumicino, Sabha
| |
| Royal Jordanian | Amman–Queen Alia[24] |
| Tunis
| |
| Djerba
| |
| Turkish Airlines | Istanbul[26] |
Accidents and incidents
- On 22 December 1992 Boeing 727-2L5 with 10 crew and 147 passengers on board that collided with a LARAF Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23UBon 22 December 1992. All 157 people on board flight 1103 were killed, while the crew of the MiG-23 ejected and survived. It is the deadliest aviation disaster to occur in Libyan history.
- On 27 July 1989, McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30dropped below the glide path, then at 7:05 (according to other data - 7:30), it crashed into two buildings, broke into three sections, and burst into flames. The crash site was in an orchard 1.5 miles (2.4 km; 1.3 nmi) short of runway 27. 75 people (72 passengers and 3 crew members) died in the crash, in addition to four people on the ground.
- On 12 May 2010, 5A-ONGwith approximately 1,600 hours total flying time and about 420 take-off and landing cycles.
- On 23 December 2016,
See also
References
- ^ Liesemeijer, Herman (25 April 2019). "Tripoli - Circuits of the past". www.circuitsofthepast.nl.
- ^ "Italian company to build control tower at Libya's Mitiga airport". 15 December 2020.
- ^ File:Atcroutes-1sep1945.jpg
- ^ "Wheelus Air Base". Atlas Obscura.
- ^ Flashback: The Berlin disco bombing. BBC on 13 November 2001.
- ^ "Here Mittiga base where Gaddafi celebrates 40 years of resistance". Il Foglio. 17 June 2011.
- ^ "Company Profile." Buraq Air. Retrieved 14 May 2010. "The company headquarters are located at Mittiga International Airport in Tripoli – Libya."
- ^ "Fresh reports of Tripoli fighting - air base may have fallen to rebels". Times of Malta. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
- ^ "Libya in turmoil - Friday 25 February". The Guardian. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
- ^ "BREAKING: Body of Al Jazeera Cameraman Ali Al Jabir arrives in Doha | Libya February 17th – Archive site". archive.libyafeb17.com. Archived from the original on 2013-07-20. Retrieved 2018-08-21.
- ^ Heavens, Andrew, ed. (20 August 2011). "Libyan rebels in fight for Tripoli airbase-activist". Reuters. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
- ^ "After Action Report: Umm Aitiqah Airfield, Libya". OSGEOINT. 28 October 2011.
- ^ عربية-الآن, سكاي نيوز (2019-04-08). "طائرات الجيش الوطني الليبي تشن 3 غارات على مطار معيتيقة وسط طرابلس". @SkyNewsArabia_B (in Arabic). Retrieved 2019-04-08.
- ^ "Haftar forces announce no-fly zone after being targeted by air strike". english.alarabiya.net. 6 April 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
- ^ "Libyan authorities close only functioning Tripoli airport after air strike - official". Ynetnews. 8 April 2019. Retrieved Apr 10, 2019.
- ^ "Tripoli's sole functioning airport bombed by fighter jets". The National. 9 April 2019. Retrieved Apr 10, 2019.
- ^ "TunisAir first foreign carrier to resume Libya flights".
- ^ "Afriqiyah Airways". www.hahnair.com.
- ^ "Afriqiyah Airways resumes Cairo routes". aaco.org. 28 September 2021.
- ^ "Afriqiyah Airways resumes flights from Tripoli to Sudan Airports | the Libya Observer". 15 April 2024.
- ^ "EgyptAir launches Cairo-Tripoli Mitiga service". aaco.org. 10 August 2022.
- ^ "Libyan Airlines resumes flights to Cairo". aaco.org. 21 September 2021.
- ^ a b libyanwings.ly retrieved 27 January 2021
- ^ "Royal Jordanian NS24 North Africa network addition". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
- ^ "Tunisair Express makes return flight to Tripoli's Mitiga airport". 7 June 2021.
- ^ "TURKISH AIRLINES RESUMES LIBYA SERVICE FROM LATE-MARCH 2024". 2024-03-27.
- ^ "5A-ONB Hijacking description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
External links
Media related to Mitiga International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
- Accident history for MJI at Aviation Safety Network
- 20th FDW/TFW F-100 photos
- Lady Be Good Official Website
- "Lady Be Good" – National Museum of the United States Air Force
