Departure
96%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
RAF Akrotiri is a large Royal Air Force airbase on the Western Sovereign Base Area of Cyprus, one of the RAF's most significant overseas stations and a forward mounting base for UK military operations across the Middle East. For the simulator pilot it offers a long, ILS-equipped runway and seven decades of front-line history, from Suez to recent operations over Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen.
RAF Akrotiri is a permanent joint operating base of the Royal Air Force, situated on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus within the Western Sovereign Base Area. It is operated by the RAF under British Forces Cyprus and functions as a strategic staging post linking the Middle East, Africa and Europe. The base is of interest to the simulator pilot both for its long, well-equipped single runway and for its role as home to front-line squadrons and a continuous stream of transport, tanker and fast-jet traffic supporting operations across the region.
The airfield lies within the Western Sovereign Base Area of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, a British Overseas Territory on the south coast of Cyprus, close to the town of Limassol. The Sovereign Base Areas are administered by British Forces Cyprus, with the station commander also acting as officer commanding the Akrotiri (Western) Sovereign Base Area. The field sits at coordinates 34.5904N, 32.9878E, close to Akrotiri village and the Akrotiri Salt Lake, and is the only RAF flying station remaining on the island, civil traffic having transferred to nearby airports on the Republic of Cyprus side.
RAF Akrotiri has a single physical runway, 10/28, 8990 feet long with a hard surface and runway lighting. Runway 28 is equipped with an ILS. Field elevation is 69 feet.
Air traffic services are provided under the callsign associated with LCRA on the following frequencies: Approach (APP) 122.1 MHz, Director (DIR) 122.1 MHz, Director Ground (GND) 26.1 MHz, Tower (TWR) 122.1 MHz, Operations (OPS) 23.405 MHz, and ATIS on 28.82 MHz. Runway 28 is served by an ILS for instrument approaches.
RAF Akrotiri was constructed in the mid-1950s to relieve pressure on the RAF's main Cyprus station at Nicosia. It first saw significant use during the 1956 Suez Crisis, when it hosted Gloster Meteor night fighters, English Electric Canberra photo-reconnaissance aircraft and de Havilland Venom ground-attack aircraft, reinforced by additional Canberras in case of Egyptian action against Israel. Through the 1960s the station supported operations against the EOKA revolt and, after Cyprus gained independence in 1960, became increasingly important as Nicosia was given over to civil traffic; by 1966 Akrotiri was the RAF's only flying station on the island. From 1957 to 1969 four Canberra squadrons based at Akrotiri provided a nuclear striking capability under the Baghdad Pact and later CENTO, and early nuclear weapons storage facilities were built on the station. In the 1970s the base hosted Avro Vulcan strategic bombers of No. 9 and No. 35 Squadrons assigned to CENTO, and from August 1970 U-2 reconnaissance aircraft of the CIA's Detachment G operated from the field to monitor the Egypt-Israel ceasefire along the Suez Canal, a role continued after the 1973 Yom Kippur War as Operation Olive Harvest. The Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974 saw the base used as a staging point for evacuations, including flights carrying Turkish Cypriot refugees from a tented camp at Happy Valley near Episkopi. The station later received American casualties following the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing and supported United States operations against Libya in 1986. It played a major role in evacuating personnel from Lebanon during the 2006 Lebanon War and served as a staging base for Operation Ellamy, Britain's contribution to the NATO-led intervention in Libya in 2011. From August 2014 Tornado GR4 aircraft flew reconnaissance and strike missions from Akrotiri against Islamic State targets in Iraq, and the base has since supported the 2018 missile strikes on Syria and, in 2024, Typhoon strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.
RAF Akrotiri continues to operate as a forward mounting base for the UK Ministry of Defence, providing a round-the-clock airfield supporting UK military and civil-contracted aircraft. It is home to units including No. 84 Squadron, No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing and the Cyprus Operations Support Unit, alongside resident support units such as the RAF Police Dog Section and a Medical and Dental Centre. There is no scheduled civil aviation at the field, and access is restricted to military and authorised personnel, with prior permission required for any flying activity.