RAF Khormaksar (Aden International Airport)

Royal Air Force Khormaksar is a former military airbase located in Aden, Yemen, which later transitioned into Aden International Airport. Established in 1917, the facility underwent expansion in 1945.

No. 8 Squadron RAF operated from the base between 1927 and 1945. The unit's aircraft inventory included the Fairey IIIF, Vickers Vincent, Hawker Demon, Martin Maryland, Fairey Swordfish, Lockheed Hudson, and Bristol Blenheim, before transitioning to Vickers Wellington XIIIs in December 1943.

During the East African Campaign of the Second World War, Khormaksar launched combat sorties against Italian forces. On 13 June 1940, No. 8 Squadron Blenheims and Vincents bombed an airfield at Assab in Eritrea. The squadron later flew missions against Italian troop columns in British Somaliland. Beginning in December 1941, the station functioned as a stopover and refueling point for the USAAF Air Transport Command. In September 1944, No. 1566 Meteorological Flight relocated to Khormaksar, operating Hawker Hurricane Mark IIBs and later Supermarine Spitfires until 1946.

A communication unit, initially designated HQ British Forces Aden Communication Squadron, operated at the base from 1943 until its disbandment in 1956. During the 1958 state of emergency in Aden, RAF squadrons at Khormaksar supported the British Army against Yemeni forces at Jebel Jehaf. In the 1960s, the facility supported operations around Rhadfan and served as a staging post between the United Kingdom and Singapore, hosting nine squadrons. Rebel ground attacks occurred at the base during this period of high operational density.

Following the 1966 announcement of a British military withdrawal, the garrison was drawn down. By mid-1967, the remaining RAF element comprised a squadron of Hawker Hunters and a Westland Wessex flight, alongside Army elements including the Tactical Headquarters Aden Brigade, a commando, a battalion, and artillery and engineer troops. After participating in the evacuation of British personnel in the summer of 1967, the station closed on 29 November 1967.