The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF; ) is the

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

branch of the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces. The Royal Saudi Air Force currently has wings, squadrons, and a special forces unit dedicated to

combat search and rescue Combat search and rescue (CSAR) are search and rescue operations that are carried out during war that are within or near combat zones. A CSAR mission may be carried out by a task force of helicopters, ground-attack aircraft, aerial refueling ta ...

. The RSAF has developed from a largely defensive military force into one with an advanced offensive capability, and maintains the second largest fleet of F-15 Eagles after the

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

. The backbone of the RSAF is currently the F-15 Eagle, with the

Panavia Tornado The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multi-role combat aircraft, jointly developed and manufactured by Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany. There are three primary #Variants, Tornado variants: the Tornado IDS ...

also forming a major component. The Tornado and many other aircraft were delivered under the Al Yamamah contracts with

British Aerospace British Aerospace plc (BAe) was a British aircraft manufacturer, aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer that was formed in 1977. Its head office was at Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. ...

(now

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...

). The RSAF ordered various weapons in the 1990s, including

Sea Eagle A sea eagle or fish eagle (also called erne or ern, mostly in reference to the white-tailed eagle) is any of the birds of prey in the subfamily Haliaeetinae of the bird of prey family Accipitridae. Ten extant species exist, currently described w ...

anti-ship missile An anti-ship missile (AShM or ASM) is a guided missile that is designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming variety, and many use a combination of inertial guidance and active radar homing. ...

laser-guided bomb A laser-guided bomb (LGB) is a guided bomb that uses semi-active laser guidance to strike a designated target with greater accuracy than an unguided bomb. First developed by the United States during the Vietnam War, laser-guided bombs quickly pro ...

s and

gravity bomb An unguided bomb, also known as a free-fall bomb, gravity bomb, dumb bomb, or iron bomb, is an aircraft-dropped bomb (conventional or nuclear) that does not contain a guidance system and hence simply follows a ballistic trajectory. It includes ...

s. Al-Salam, a successor to the Al Yamamah agreement will see 48

Eurofighter Typhoon The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, supersonic, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Syste ...

s delivered by BAE.

History

The Royal Saudi Air Force was formed in the mid-1920s with British assistance from the remains of the

Hejaz Air Force The Hejaz Air Force () or Hejaz Flying Corps () was the aerial component of the armed forces of the short-lived Kingdom of Hejaz and its successor the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd. Claiming to be the oldest Air Force on the Arabian Peninsula, the s ...

. It was initially equipped with Westland Wapiti IIA general purpose aircraft flown by pilots who had served

Ali of Hejaz Ali bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi (; 1879 – 13 February 1935), was King of Hejaz and Grand Sharif of Mecca from October 1924 until he was deposed by Ibn Saud in December 1925. He was the eldest son of King Hussein bin Ali and a scion of th ...

but had been pardoned by the Saudi king. Following a contract with the British government, which was concluded in 1937, a military airstrip at Jeddah was established in 1939. The military airstrip was where the Air Force was stationed. In 1949, a group of aviation students were sent to study in England, after completing training at Al-Houba. By 1950, a second group of students were sent. The Air Force was re-organized in 1950 and began to receive American assistance from 1952 including the use of Dhahran Airfield by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

. In 1951, the group of aviation students returned to form the Royal Saudi Air Force. On November 5, 1952, the Air Force’s flag was raised at a military hangar in Jeddah Airport, which was attended by His Royal Highness Prince Mishaal bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Defense and Aviation at the time. Shortly afterwards, Air Force schools begun opening around the kingdom. Early aircraft used by the RSAF included the Caproni Ca.100,

Albatros D.III The Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service () during World War I. A modified licensed version was built by Oeffag for the Austro-Hungarian Air Service (''Luftfahrtruppen''). The D.III was flown ...

Armstrong Whitworth F.K.8 The Armstrong Whitworth F.K.8 was a British two-seat general-purpose biplane built by Armstrong Whitworth during the First World War. The type served alongside the better known R.E.8 until the end of the war, at which point 694 F.K.8s remained ...

Farman MF.11 The Maurice Farman MF.11 ''Shorthorn'' is a French aircraft developed before World War I by the Farman Aviation Works. It was used as a reconnaissance and light bomber during the early part of World War I, later being relegated to training duties ...

Airco DH.9, dH 82 Tiger Moth,

Westland Wapiti The Westland Wapiti was a British two-seat general-purpose military single-engined biplane of the 1920s. It was designed and built by Westland Aircraft Works to replace the Airco DH.9A in Royal Air Force service. First flying in 1927, the Wa ...

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engine, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), R ...

Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for troo ...

, and the

Douglas B-26 Invader The Douglas A-26 Invader (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) is an American twin-engined light bomber and attack aircraft, ground attack aircraft. Built by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II, the Invader also saw service during ...

. In 1957, the Royal Saudi Air Force begun major developments, including the establishments of 5 Squadrons, all based at Jeddah Airport. The transportation squadron was equipped with Douglas C-54 Skymasters and Fokker S-13s. The No.2 Squadron was equipped with Douglas B-26 Invaders and the No.5 Squadron was equipped with 20

De Havilland Vampire The de Havilland DH100 Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland, de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force, RAF, after the Gloster Meteo ...

s. As part of the ''Magic Carpet'' arms deal between the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, four single-seat

Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a transonic British jet propulsion, jet-powered fighter aircraft that was developed by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was designed to take advantage of the newly dev ...

F.6s and two Hunter T.7s were ordered from Hawker in 1966. The aircraft were delivered to No. 6 Squadron at Khamis Mushayt Airbase in May 1966. Although the Hunters were operational, following attacks on Saudi Arabia by the Egyptian Air Force they were not a success as interceptors as they lacked any ground control but were used for ground attack. One single-seat aircraft was lost in 1967 and the remaining aircraft were presented to Jordan in 1968. The Saudi forces are equipped with mainly western equipment. Main suppliers to the RSAF are companies based in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and the United States. Both the UK and the US are involved in training programs conducted in Saudi Arabia. During the 1980s and 1990s, the armed forces of Saudi Arabia were relatively small by Middle Eastern standards. Its strength however was derived from advanced technology. The backbone of the strike / ground attack force is formed by ca 70

Tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

s (a second batch of 48 Tornado IDS were ordered in 1993 under the al-Yamamah II program), and 72 F-15S aircraft delivered from the mid-1990s that operate beside the remnants of more than 120 F-15C/D aircraft delivered starting in 1981. Pilot training is executed on the

Pilatus PC-21 The Pilatus PC-21 is a turboprop-powered advanced Trainer (aircraft), trainer with a stepped tandem cockpit. It is manufactured by Pilatus Aircraft of Switzerland. Development In November 1997 Pilatus flew a modified Pilatus PC-7, PC-7 Mk.II in ...

and

BAE Hawk The BAE Systems Hawk is a British single-engine, subsonic, jet-powered advanced trainer aircraft. Its aluminum alloy fuselage is of conventional string-frame construction. It was first known as the Hawker Siddeley Hawk, and subsequently produc ...

. The C-130 Hercules is the mainstay of the transport fleet and is assisted by

CN-235 The CASA/IPTN CN-235 is a medium-range twin-engined transport aircraft that was jointly developed by CASA of Spain and Indonesian manufacturer IPTN. It is operated as both a regional airliner and military transport; its primary military roles ...

s and

Raytheon King Air 350 The Beechcraft Super King Air family is part of a line of twin-turboprop aircraft produced by Beechcraft. The Model 200 and Model 300 series were originally marketed as the "Super King Air" family; the "Super" designation was dropped in 1996.< ...

light transports. Reconnaissance is performed by Tornadoes and F-15s equipped with the DJRP electro-optical reconnaissance pod. The Boeing E-3A is the Airborne Early Warning platform operated by No. 18 Squadron RSAF. The VIP support fleet consists of a wide variety of civil registered aircraft such as the

Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...

Airbus A320 The Airbus A320 family is a series of narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus. The A320 was launched in March 1984, Maiden flight, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air France. The first membe ...

, 737 and

747 747 may refer to: * 747 (number), a composite number * AD 747, a year of the Julian calendar * 747 BC, a year in the 8th century BC * Boeing 747, a large commercial plane Arts and media * 747s (band), an indie band * ''747'' (album), by country m ...

, Lockheed Tri-Stars, MD11s and G1159A as well as Lockheed L-100-30. The HZ- prefix used in the civilian registrations of these aircraft derived from the former name of the territory (

Hejaz Hejaz is a Historical region, historical region of the Arabian Peninsula that includes the majority of the western region of Saudi Arabia, covering the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif and Al Bahah, Al-B ...

). From 1989 to 1991 three

Lockheed C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...

of the RSAF were destroyed in accidents. The September 1991 issue of ''

Air Forces Monthly ''Air Forces Monthly'' (AFM) is a military aviation magazine published by Key Publishing Ltd, based at Stamford in the English county of Lincolnshire in the United Kingdom. Established in 1988, the magazine provides news and analysis on mi ...

'' lists Nos 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (Tornado IDS), 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 29 Squadron (Dhahran with Tornado ADVs); 34, 37, 42, and 66 Squadrons.

Purchases during the 2000s

The Al Yamamah contract was controversial because of the alleged bribes associated with its award. Nonetheless, the RSAF announced its intention to purchase the

Typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...

from

in December 2005. On 18 August 2006, a memorandum of understanding was signed for 72 aircraft in a GB£6–10 billion deal. Following this order, the investigation of the Al Yamamah contract was suppressed by the British prime minister

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...

in December 2006, citing "strategic interests" of the UK. On 17 September 2007 Saudi Arabia announced it had signed a £4.4bn deal with BAE Systems for 72 Typhoons. On 29 December 2011, the United States signed a $29.4 billion deal to sell 84 F-15s in the SA (Saudi Advanced) configuration. The sale includes upgrades for the older F-15s up to the SA standard and related equipment and services. On 23 May 2012, the British defence firm BAE Systems agreed to sell 22

advanced jet trainer aircraft to the Royal Saudi Air Force for a total of £1.9 billion ($3 billion). The deal also included simulators, ground and training equipment and spares. In April 2013, BAE Systems delivered the first two new Typhoons of 24 to Saudi Arabia. In 2013, the USAF tendered an offer for security services to protect the Saudi air force from cyberwarfare attacks. In March 2021, RSAF started a joint military exercise, that will last until April 10, with the US and Pakistani Air Forces that will help in exchanging experiences and expertise.

Structure

The RSAF is divided into nine Wings that are dispersed across seven Air Bases: * RSAF Wing 1 at

King Abdulaziz Air Base King Abdulaziz Air Base () , also known as Dhahran Air Base and formerly Dhahran International Airport, Dhahran Airport and Dhahran Airfield, is a Royal Saudi Air Force base located in Dhahran in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Pro ...

Dhahran Dhahran (, ) is a city located in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. With a total population of 143,936 as of 2022, it is a major administrative center for the History of the oil industry in Saudi Arabia, Saudi ...

, Eastern Province: ** 1 Squadron (Royal Flight/BBJ&HS125) at King Salman Air Base ** 35 Squadron (Jetstream) ** 75 Squadron (Tornado IDS) ** 83 Squadron (Tornado IDS) ** Fighter Weapons School (F-15SA & Tornado IDS) * RSAF Wing 2 at

King Fahad Air Base King Fahad Air Base (Arabic: قاعدة الملك فهد الجوية) (ICAO: OETF) (KFAB) is a Royal Saudi Air Force military base located in Taif, Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia. Units * RSAF 2 Wing: ** No. 3 Squadron RSAF with the Eurofighter ...

Taif Taif (, ) is a city and governorate in Mecca Province in Saudi Arabia. Located at an elevation of in the slopes of the Hijaz Mountains, which themselves are part of the Sarat Mountains, the city has a population of 563,282 people in 2022, mak ...

Mecca Province Mecca Province (, ), officially Makkah Province, is one of the 13 provinces of Saudi Arabia. It is the third-largest province by area at and the most populous with a population of 8,557,766 as of 2017, of which 4,041,189 were foreign nationals ...

* RSAF Wing 3 at

, Eastern Province * RSAF Wing 4 at King Saud Air Base,

Hafar al-Batin Hafar al-Batin ( '), also frequently spelled ''Hafr al-Batin'', is a city in the Hafar al-Batin Governorate, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. It is located 430 km north of Riyadh, 94.2 km from the Kuwait b ...

, Eastern Province * RSAF Wing 5 at

King Khalid Air Base King Khalid Air Base (Arabic: قاعدة الملك خالد الجوية) (KKAB) is an airbase of Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) in the south-west of Saudi Arabia, near Khamis Mushait. History The airbase, with code KMX, has a paved runway withou ...

Khamis Mushait Khamis Mushayt or Khamis Mushait (, ' , locally: ) is a city in south-west Saudi Arabia, located east of Abha, the provincial seat of the Asir Province from the national capital of Riyadh. It is the capital of the Shahran tribe in the Asir regi ...

'Asir Province Asir, officially the Aseer Province, is a Provinces of Saudi Arabia, province of Saudi Arabia in South Arabia, southern Arabia. It has an area of , and an estimated population of 2,024,285 (in 2022). Asir is bounded by the Mecca Province to the ...

* RSAF Wing 6 at

Prince Sultan Air Base Prince Sultan Air Base (PSAB, , ) is a military air base located in the closed city of Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia. History There was a large United States presence there during Operations Southern Watch, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. The U ...

Al-Kharj Kharj () is a List of governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate in central Saudi Arabia. It is one of the important governorates in Saudi Arabia. Located southeast of the capital, Riyadh, it covers an area of 7640 mi2 (19,790 km2) and has a popu ...

Riyadh Province The Riyadh Province ( '), is a province of Saudi Arabia, located in the geographic center of the country and the center of the Arabian Peninsula. It has an area of and with a 2022 population of 8,591,748, it is the second-largest region by ar ...

* RSAF Wing 7 at

King Faisal Air Base King Faisal Air Base may refer to: * King Faisal Air Base (Jordan), a military installation of the Royal Jordanian Air Force near Al-Jafr, Jordan * King Faisal Air Base (Saudi Arabia), a military installation of the Royal Saudi Air Force in Tabuk ...

Tabuk Tabuk may refer to: *Tabuk, Kalinga, the capital city of Kalinga province of the Philippines *Tabuk Province, a province of Saudi Arabia **Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, capital city of the province ** Tabuk Regional Airport *Expedition of Tabuk, a military ...

Tabuk Province Tabuk Province, also known as Tabuk Region ( '), is a province in Saudi Arabia, located along the northwestern coast of the country, facing Egypt across the Red Sea. It also borders Jordan to the north. History The history of Tabuk province ...

* RSAF Wing 8 at

Prince Abdullah Air Base King Abdulaziz International Airport (IATA: JED, ICAO: OEJN, colloquially referred to as Jeddah Airport, Jeddah International Airport, or KAIA), is a major international airport serving the cities of Jeddah and Mecca in Saudi Arabia, located ...

Jeddah Jeddah ( ), alternatively transliterated as Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; , ), is a List of governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate and the largest city in Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia, and the country's second largest city after Riyadh, located ...

* RSAF Wing 11 at

, Eastern Province *

Fighter Weapons School RSAF Fighter Weapons School is a training unit of the Royal Saudi Air Force that operates the Panavia Tornado IDS and the McDonnell Douglas F-15SA Strike Eagle at King Abdulaziz Air Base, Dhahran Dhahran (, ) is a city located in the Eastern Prov ...

at King Abdullah Aziz Air Base *

King Salman Air Base King Salman Air Base (, ), is an Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) air base that is currently under construction. It is aimed at relocating RSAF operations from the old Riyadh Air Base to the new site, which was demolished between 2021 and 2022 for Saud ...

- currently under construction

Squadrons

A Royal Saudi Air Force F-15 flies over the training lanes

Other Squadrons:

Inventory

Retired

Previous aircraft operated included the

F-86F Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...

, dH 100 Vampire FB.52, BAC Strikemaster Mk 80, DHC-1 Chipmunk Mk 10, C-54A Skymaster,

C-123B Provider The Fairchild C-123 Provider is an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and built by Fairchild Aircraft for the U.S. Air Force. In addition to its USAF service, which included later service with the Air Force Reserve an ...

, T-6A Texan,

T-33A Shooting Star The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...

Cessna 310 The Cessna 310 is an American four-to-six-seat, low-wing, twin-engine monoplane produced by Cessna between 1954 and 1980. It was the second twin-engine aircraft that Cessna put into production; the first was the Cessna T-50. It was used by the ...

O-1 Bird Dog The Cessna O-1 Bird Dog is a Liaison aircraft, liaison and observation aircraft that first flew on December 14, 1949, and entered service in 1950 as the L-19 in the Korean War. It went to serve in many branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, was no ...

, T-35A Buckaroo, T-34A Mentor, OH-58A Kiowa,

T-28A Trojan The North American Aviation T-28 Trojan is a radial-engine military trainer aircraft manufactured by North American Aviation and used by the United States Air Force and United States Navy beginning in the 1950s. Besides its use as a trainer, ...

F-5 Tiger II The Northrop F-5 is a family of supersonic light fighter aircraft initially designed as a privately funded project in the late 1950s by Northrop Corporation. There are two main models: the original F-5A and F-5B Freedom Fighter variants, and th ...

Lockheed JetStar The Lockheed JetStar (company designations L-329 and L-1329; designated C-140 in US military service) is a business jet produced from the early 1960s to the 1970s. The JetStar was the first dedicated private jet to enter service, as well as the ...

, dH Comet 4C (VIP transport),

BAe 146 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Avro International Aerospace manu ...

Alouette III Alouette or alouettes may refer to: Music and literature * "Alouette" (song), a French-language children's song * Alouette, a character in ''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'' Aerospace * SNCASE Alouette, a utility helicopter developed in France i ...

, BAC Lightning

Drones

Saudi Arabia is one of the largest countries that owns unmanned aerial vehicles, including attack, surveillance, and reconnaissance. In 2012, Saudi Arabia purchased 50 Italian Selex Galileo Falco drones. In 2014, Saudi Arabia signed a contract with China to purchase Wing Loong drones, and Saudi Arabia has more to receive so far. In April 2013, Saudi Arabia announced its desire to buy 6 Turkish

TAI Anka The TAI Anka is a family of unmanned aerial vehicles developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries primarily for the Turkish Air Force. Envisioned in the early 2000s for aerial surveillance and reconnaissance missions, Anka has evolved into a modul ...

drones, however these efforts fell through. Saudi Arabia has pursued projects to manufacture national drones, the first of which was in 2012, when Saudi Arabia announced a program to manufacture drones in the

King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST; ) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is a governmental organization established in 1977 as the Saudi Arabian National Center for Science & Technology (SANCST; ); in 1985, it was renamed King Abdulaziz ...

. The project was called

Saqr Saqr ( 'hawk') or Sakr is an Arabic given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name Saqr *Saqr Geroushi, Libyan military officer *Saqr Ghobash, Emirati politician *Saqr bin Mohammad Al Qasimi (c. 1920–2010), Emîr, ruler ...

, and 3 new models of the drone have been introduced. Saudi Arabia also announced a new drone called Samoom, the Saudi crown prince showcased the new drone to the Egyptian President Abdul-Fattah As-Sisi during which he showed significant interest in it. Saudi Arabia also announced in 2021 that it will start producing a high capability drone called SkyGuard. It also established a laboratory for robotic vehicle research at the

Prince Sultan Advanced Technology Research Institute Prince Sultan Advanced Technology Research Institute (PSATRI, Arabic: معهد الأمير سلطان لأبحاث التقنيات المتقدمة, ''Ma'ahad Al-Amir Sultan le-abhas al-taqniat al-motaqaddemah'') is an independent scientific org ...

King Saud University King Saud University (KSU, ) is a public university in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Established in 1957 by King Saud bin Abdulalziz to address the country's skilled worker shortage, it is the first university in Saudi Arabia. It was known as Riyadh U ...

. The laboratory aims to build and transfer technology in the field of smart vehicles of all kinds, such as unmanned aircraft, autonomous land vehicles, and others. The laboratory has manufactured many unmanned aircraft, and the aircraft are still undergoing research and development. Saudi Arabia has started technology transfer projects and joint ventures with countries to manufacture drones. The General organization for Military Industries obtained a license to manufacture the German drone project

Luna Luna commonly refers to: * Earth's Moon, named "Luna" in Latin, Spanish and other languages * Luna (goddess) In Sabine and ancient Roman religion and myth, Luna is the divine embodiment of the Moon (Latin ''Lūna'' ). She is often presented as t ...

, manufacturing hundreds of them for the Saudi armed forces. Saudi Arabia also entered a joint venture with South Africa to manufacture the Seeker 400

UCAV An unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), also known as a combat drone, fighter drone or battlefield UAV, is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that is used for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance and carries aircr ...

. In 2023, Saudi Arabia and Baykar has signed a contract for AKINCI UCAV export. The amount was not declared but hinted that it is the biggest export at once. SSB President Görgün, who made a statement about the contract in question, said, “The largest Turkish defence industry export, made at once, is over three billion dollars.”

Commanders

The following officers have been commanders of the RSAF: #

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Abdullah al-Mandili #

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

Rashid al-Saleh #

Gen. Ibrahim al-Tassan (1950–1966) #

Gen. Hashim bin Said Hashim (1966–1972) # Lt. Gen. Asaad al-Zuhair (1972–1980) # Lt. Gen. Mohammed Sabri Suleiman (1980–1984) # Lt. Gen. Abdullah bin AbdulAziz al-Hamdan (1984–1987) # Lt. Gen. Ahmed Ibrahim Behery (1987 – March 1996) # Lt. Gen. Abdul Aziz bin Mohammad Al-Henadi (March 1996 – 4 April 2004) # Lt. Gen. Prince Abdulrahman Al-Faisal (4 April 2004 – 16 June 2010) # Lt. Gen. Mohammed Al-Ayesh (16 June 2010 – 10 May 2013) # Lt. Gen. Fayyadh Al Ruwaili (10 May 2013 – 14 May 2014)Mystery surrounds death of Saudi chief of staff
. Arabian Aerospace. Published 25 June 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2017. Saudi Lt-General Fayyadh Al-Ruwaili, new RSAF Commander
. Tactical Report. Published 13 May 2013. Retrieved 14 May 2017. # Lt. Gen. Muhammad Al Shaalan (14 May 2014 – 10 June 2015) #

Gen. Mohammed al-Otaibi (10 June 2015 – 26 February 2018)O'Connor, Tom (26 February 2018)
Saudi Arabia Changes Government Up, Switching Top Military Leader Amid Yemen War Struggle
. ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

''. Retrieved 27 February 2018. Saudi Major-General Al-Ghamdi, Acting RSAF Commander
. Published 24 June 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2017. # Lt. Gen.

Turki bin Bandar Chagatai (, ), also known as Turki, Eastern Turkic, or Chagatai Turkic (), is an extinct Turkic language that was once widely spoken across Central Asia. It remained the shared literary language in the region until the early 20th century. It was ...

(26 February 2018 – present)

References

External links

*
Order of Battle
at ''Scramble'' magazine
"The Royal Saudi Air Force – A Paper Tiger, Minus the Tiger"
{{Authority control

Air force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

20th century in Saudi Arabia 1920s establishments in Saudi Arabia Military units and formations established in 1916 1916 establishments in Asia 20th-century establishments in the Arabian Peninsula Kingdom of Hejaz Air forces by country