Baloza Airport

Political and military treaty. The airfield was an Israeli Air Force (IAF) base that was handed over to Egypt as a condition of the 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty. After the transfer, the Egyptian military did not maintain it as an active airbase, and it was left to decay.

The site is completely abandoned and in a state of ruin. Current satellite imagery shows the distinct layout of two primary runways and a third smaller one, along with connecting taxiways. However, all paved surfaces are severely degraded, cracked, and overgrown with vegetation. The original support buildings and infrastructure are either gone or exist only as derelict foundations. The site is not used for any aviation, military, or civilian purpose and is returning to the desert landscape.

The airport, historically known as Baluza Airfield or Romani Airfield, was built by Israel after it captured the Sinai Peninsula in the 1967 Six-Day War. It served as a strategic forward operating base for the Israeli Air Force, positioned in the northern Sinai to provide rapid air support and defense near the Suez Canal. The base was a key asset during the War of Attrition (1967-1970) and the Yom Kippur War (1973), from which the IAF launched numerous sorties. Its existence was a direct result of the regional conflict and its closure was a direct result of the subsequent peace process.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the airport. The cost to rebuild the runways, taxiways, and all necessary infrastructure would be substantial. Furthermore, the Egyptian military operates other modern, strategically located airbases in the Sinai Peninsula. Given the high cost of reconstruction and the lack of a clear strategic or economic need, the prospects for its reactivation are considered non-existent.