Kandahar Airfield (or Kandahar International Airport) (IATA: KDH, ICAO: OAKN) is located 16 kilometers (10 miles) south-east of Kandahar, Afghanistan. Kandahar Airport was built in 1960s with US financial and technical assistance under the United States Agency for International Development Program. The airport was severely damaged during the Russian attacks on the city during 1979-89 and again during the US raids in 2001. An IATA airport code, also known an IATA location identifier or simply a location identifier [1], is a three-letter alphabetic code designating many airports around the world. ... The ICAO airport code (IPA pronunciation: ) is a four-letter alphanumeric code designating each airport around the world. ... For the 2001 movie by Mohsen Makhmalbaf, see Kandahar (film). ... The term above mean sea level (AMSL) refers to the elevation (on the ground) or altitude (in the air) of any object, relative to the average sea level. ... A foot (plural: feet) is any of several old units of distance or length, measuring around a quarter to a third of a meter. ... The metre, or meter (US), is a measure of length. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... Runway 13R/31L of El Dorado International Airport, Bogotá, D.C. Aerial picture of a runway of Chennai International Airport, Tamil Nadu A runway is a strip of land on an airport, on which aircraft can take off and land. ... A foot (plural: feet) is any of several old units of distance or length, measuring around a quarter to a third of a meter. ... The metre, or meter (US), is a measure of length. ... An IATA airport code, also known an IATA location identifier or simply a location identifier [1], is a three-letter alphabetic code designating many airports around the world. ... The ICAO airport code (IPA pronunciation: ) is a four-letter alphanumeric code designating each airport around the world. ... For the hamlet in Saskatchewan, Canada; see Kandahar, Saskatchewan. ... USAID logo The United States Agency for International Development (or USAID) is the U.S. government organization responsible for most non-military foreign aid. ...

The Airfield is sometimes difficult to locate from the air due to a lack of contrast with ground and usual dust and haze in area.

Operation Enduring Freedom

As part of the US-led Operation Enduring Freedom, the Royal Air Force has based a squadron of Harrier GR7A aircraft at Kandahar Airfield to provide close air support to coalition ground forces. [1] The airfield itself was actually built in 1962 by American consultants. It bears resemblance to typical U.S. architecture of the time. While US AID has been slow to rebuild the facility, the vast majority of the facility has been reclaimed from years of neglect and damage by Russian, Taliban, and American soldiers. The interior gardens, pools, kitchen galley, restroom facility, and ticketing areas have been restored. With the transistion of the U.S. passenger area terminal to the Afghans in 2005, the airport is PHYSICALLY ready for civilian transfers. It was used for the 2006 Hajj by Muslim pilgrims.     It has been suggested that United States war in Afghanistan be merged into this article or section. ... The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ... RAF Harrier GR7 The Harrier GR5, GR7, GR7A, GR9 and GR9A are all Royal Air Force variants of the BAE Systems/Boeing Harrier II. The Aircraft was solely designed and built by British Aerospace, though the US eventually purchased them, as well (In US service, they go by the designation... Close air support (often abbreviated CAS) is the use of military aircraft in a ground attack role against targets in close proximity to friendly troops, in support of ground combat operations. ...

External links

• Kandahar Airfield Information
• Kandahar Airfield Specifications
• Kandahar Airfield Photos