Eilat Naval Base

Eilat Naval Base is the Israeli Navy's only base on the Red Sea coast. It stands in the city of Eilat at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba, a confined body of water bordered by Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Its primary task is the maritime security of Eilat and its approaches, an area carrying dense civilian recreational and commercial traffic.

The base is home to the 915th Patrol Squadron, which operates Dvora-class fast patrol boats and Super Dvora Mk III-class patrol boats. The squadron has two components. The vessel fighters form the bulk of the force and conduct continuous patrols, identify watercraft entering Israeli waters, interdict maritime smuggling, protect national assets such as drilling rigs, and carry out operations alone or with other units inside and outside the navy. The fin fighters are responsible for the security of the base itself.

The Eilat Naval Shipyard falls under the base's security responsibility and carries out hull repair on naval vessels.

The base was established in 1949, after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, as a naval installation at the junction with three hostile states. In 1996 the Ministry of Defense and Navy Headquarters decided to close the shipyard, but the decision was reversed in May 1997. A 2003 agreement between the Israel Defense Forces, the Ports Authority and the Eilat Municipality to move the base into Eilat Port was not implemented because of a dispute over financing, and the base remains on its original site.