Ben Guerir Air Base

IATA: none
ICAO: none

Summary

Airport type

Military

Operator

Royal Moroccan Air Force

Location

Ben Guerir, Morocco

Elevation AMSL

1,400 ft / 430 m

Coordinates

32°7′50″N 7°54′39″W / 32.13056°N 7.91083°WCoordinates: 32°7′50″N 7°54′39″W / 32.13056°N 7.91083°W

Map

Ben Guerir Air Base

Runways

Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	ft	m	Surface
18/36	13,720	4,182	Asphalt

Ben Guerir Air Base is a Royal Moroccan Air Force base in the Marraksh-Safi region. It is located about 36 miles (58 km) north of Marrakech, near the town of Ben Guerir. It previously served as a United States Air Force base and Transatlantic Abort Landing (TAL) site for the Space Shuttle.

Ben Guerir was established in 1951 by the Strategic Air Command (SAC) as one of five bases constructed in what was then French North Africa for SAC during a "crash program" which began in 1950. The base was located to allow for the rapid deployment of nuclear-armed B-47 Stratojets, without requiring aerial refueling. KC-97 Stratofreighters were also deployed from the base. In 1956 the entire RB-47E force operated by the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing's 322nd, 323rd and 324th SR Squadrons spent 90 days at Ben Guerir on temporary duty assignment. SAC occupied the base until 1963; the base operating unit was the 3926th Air Base (Later "Combat Support") Group, assigned to the 5th Air Division and later to the 4310th Air Division.

The base was designated as a TAL site for the Space Shuttle in July 1988, replacing the former TAL site at Casablanca. The site was chosen largely for its location near the nominal ground track of the shuttle orbiter for a mid-range inclination launch, meaning a diversion to the TAL site would allow for efficient use of fuel. Ben Guerir last served as a TAL site in June 2002, for STS-111, which landed at Edwards Air Force Base at the conclusion of its flight. The base was deactivated in 2005, after supporting 83 shuttle missions.

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Wikipedia