Syrian Air Force

القوات الجوية العربية السورية / Syrian Air Force
Lineup	1948
Country	Syria
Armed forces	Armed Forces of Syria
Type	Armed forces ( air forces )
insignia
Aircraft cockade
National emblem ( vertical stabilizer )

Cockade used until 1963

The Syrian Air Force ( Arabic القوات الجوية العربية السورية, DMG al-quwwāt al-ǧawwiyya al-ʿarabiyya as-sūriyya  'The Arab-Syrian air forces') are a branch of the Syrian armed forces and was founded in 1948. In 1948, 1967, 1973 and 1982 they fought several wars against the Israeli air force, partly together with air forces from other Arab states . Since summer 2012 she has been fighting as part of the armed forces under the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian Civil War .

organization

Before the Syrian civil war, the staff consisted of around 60,000 members who were organized into seven attack squadrons and 20 intercept squadrons as well as four transport squadrons and one training squadron. The helicopters were grouped into a dozen or so attack squadrons.

equipment

The aircraft arsenal includes over 600 machines, but not all of them are likely to be operational. The air fleet consists mainly of MiG-21, MiG-23 and Su-22. The number of modern combat aircraft is much smaller and consists of Su-24, MiG-25 and MiG-29. The helicopter fleet includes almost 90 mil attack helicopters.

In July 2016 there was talk of new Su-24 combat aircraft, upgrades to the SU-24M2 standard.

plane	origin	use	version	Bought	image
Fighter planes
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21	Soviet Union	Interceptor	MiG-21bis / MF	179
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23	Soviet Union	Interceptor	MiG-23MF / MS / ML / MLD	146
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25	Soviet Union	Interceptor	MiG-25PD	16
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29	Soviet Union	Multipurpose fighter	MiG-29A / M2 / SMT	40
Fighter bomber
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23	Soviet Union	Fighter bomber	MiG-23BN	?
Sukhoi Su-24	Soviet Union	Fighter bomber	Su-24MK	20th
Sukhoi Su-22	Soviet Union	Fighter bomber	Su-22M-2K / -4K	50
spotter
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21	Soviet Union	spotter	MiG-21R	?
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25	Soviet Union	spotter	MiG-25RB	8th
Trainer
SIAT 223 flamingo	Germany	Trainer	MBB 223A-1	40
Aero L-39ZO / ZA "Albatros"	Czechoslovakia	Jet trainer	L-39ZO / ZA	70 (2012)
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21	Soviet Union	Trainer	MiG-21U	?
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23	Soviet Union	Trainer	MiG-23UB	?
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25	Soviet Union	Trainer	MiG-25U	2
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29	Soviet Union	Trainer	MiG-29UB	?
Sukhoi Su-22	Soviet Union	Trainer	Su-22UM-2K / -3K	?
Combat and attack helicopters
Aérospatiale SA 342 "Gazelle"	France	Attack helicopter	SA.342L / M "Gazelle"	38
Mil Wed-8	Soviet Union	Attack helicopter	Wed-8TWK / Wed-17	55
Mil Wed-24	Soviet Union	Attack helicopter	Mi-24D	approx. 50

Bases

In addition to the six civil airports, which were also used by the military, the air force had another 17 military airfields until the civil war , almost all of which were concentrated in the western part of the country. Most of the bases are under the control of the Syrian air force, but some have also been captured by the al-Nusra Front , the Islamic State, the Free Syrian Army and the YPG . Are known:

• the asch-Schaʿirat military airfield
• the Hamdan military airfield near Abu Kamal
• the Menagh military airfield in Aleppo Province
• the Taftanaz military airfield
• the Kuweyres military airfield
• the as-Sin military airfield
• the al-Mazza military airfield
• the Hama military airfield
• the Hmeimim military airfield
• the ath-thalla military airfield
• the military airfield ad-Dabʿa
• the military airfield at-Tiyas

Role in the Syrian civil war

The Syrian air forces attack positions of various opposition and rebel groups in the Syrian civil war and have been using barrel bombs since it began in August 2012 , which the Syrian government denies. Again and again, the air forces were accused of serious human rights violations and of at least accepting civilian victims.

Since the beginning of the war, the air forces have repeatedly launched attacks against places occupied by the terrorist organization Islamic State. In 2015 they attacked the then IS stronghold ar-Raqqa and killed many civilians. Dozens of civilians were killed in air strikes in northern Syria in 2015.

Since Russia intervened militarily on the side of the Syrian government in the conflict, the Russian air force has been supporting the Syrian air force through its own operations.

On April 3, 2017, the area around the city of Chan Shayhun in the Syrian province of Idlib was attacked with chemical weapons (see poison gas incident in April 2017 in Syria ). Over 80 people died. The US administration assumed that the attack involved poison gas ammunition dropped by the Syrian Air Force. In retaliation, the United States attacked the asch- Schaʿirat military airfield on April 6, 2017 with 60 Tomahawk cruise missiles (see air strike on the asch- Schaʿirat military airfield ).

insignia

• 

  (1948-1958)

• 

  (1958–1961)

• 

  (1961–1963)

• 

  (1963–1972)

• 

  (1972–1980)

• 

  (1980–)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Syria received the new Russian Su-24M2 all-weather attack aircraft. Defense blog, July 26, 2016
2. ↑ World Air Forces 2011/2012. (Pdf, 3.27 MB) Flightglobal Insight, 2012, p. 25 , accessed on July 25, 2018 . 
3. ↑ milaviapress.com Syrian Air Force (accessed September 5, 2013)
4. ↑ csis.org (PDF; 1.1 MB) INSTABILITY IN SYRIA (accessed on September 5, 2013)
5. ↑ Syrian army allegedly uses barrel bombs. In: DiePresse.com . December 22, 2013, accessed February 3, 2014 . 
6. ↑ n-tv news television: More than 20 dead in Aleppo: Assad army uses barrel bombs. In: n-tv.de. Retrieved April 28, 2016 . 
7. ↑ https://www.amnesty.org/en/articles/news/2015/05/syrias-circle-of-hell-barrel-bombs-in-aleppo/
8. ↑ Syria conflict: BBC exclusive interview with President Bashar al-Assad. In: BBC News . February 10, 2015, accessed February 10, 2015 . 
9. ↑ Syrian Air Force attacks IS stronghold . In: Berner Zeitung, Berner Zeitung . November 26, 2014, ISSN  1424-1021 ( bernerzeitung.ch [accessed April 7, 2017]).
10. ↑ Syrian Air Force attacks IS stronghold . In: Berner Zeitung, Berner Zeitung . November 26, 2014, ISSN  1424-1021 ( bernerzeitung.ch [accessed April 7, 2017]).
11. ↑ Syria: According to the media, the Russian military bombed western positions . In: The time . July 22, 2016, ISSN  0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed April 7, 2017]).
12. ^ Victims in Chan Sheikhun: Autopsy of corpses from Syria confirms poison gas attack . In: Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger . ( ksta.de [accessed April 7, 2017]).