NoneIL 🇮🇱 Closed Airport
IL-0014
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- ft
IL-M
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Loading...GPS Code: Not available
Local Code: Not available
Location: 32.087673° N, 34.914894° E
Continent: AS
Type: Closed Airport
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2003
The primary reason for the airport's closure was urban encroachment. The city of Petah Tikva expanded significantly, and the valuable land occupied by the airbase was needed for residential and commercial development. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) transferred the land to the Israel Land Administration to facilitate the construction of a new neighborhood.
The site of the former airport has been completely redeveloped. It is now a large, modern residential neighborhood within Petah Tikva, commonly referred to as the 'Sirkin Compound' or 'Neve Oz'. The area consists of numerous apartment buildings, public parks, schools, and commercial infrastructure. All runways, hangars, and military structures have been demolished to make way for the new urban development.
Originally established as RAF Petah Tikva by the British Royal Air Force during the British Mandate for Palestine in the early 1940s, it served as a strategic airfield during World War II. After the British withdrawal in 1948, it was taken over by the nascent Israeli Air Force (IAF) and renamed Sirkin Airbase (Baha 14). Its most crucial role was serving as the home of the IAF's main Flight School from the early 1950s until its relocation to Hatzerim Airbase in 1966. During this period, generations of Israeli pilots were trained at Sirkin. The base also hosted transport squadrons and other light aircraft units, playing a logistical role in Israel's military operations.
There are no plans or prospects for reopening the airport. The land has been permanently and irreversibly repurposed for dense urban development, making any future aviation use impossible.
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