Tel al Zaatar Airfield

The airfield was a temporary, makeshift military airstrip established during the Lebanese Civil War. Its purpose was directly linked to the Siege of the Tel al-Zaatar Palestinian refugee camp. Following the conclusion of the siege in August 1976 and the complete destruction of the camp, the airstrip lost its strategic purpose. The area was subsequently cleared and absorbed into the rapid, dense urbanization of the Dekwaneh industrial zone, making the airfield obsolete and physically erased.

The site of the former airfield is completely unrecognizable today. The area at the given coordinates is a dense industrial and commercial district within the municipality of Dekwaneh, a suburb of Beirut. It is covered with factories, warehouses, workshops, and commercial buildings. There are no physical remnants or traces of a runway or any aviation facilities.

Tel al Zaatar Airfield was never a public or commercial airport. Its historical significance is entirely military and tied to the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990). It was a clandestine airstrip, likely established and used by the Christian Phalangist militias and their allies in the Lebanese Front. Its primary role was to support military operations in East Beirut, most notably providing logistical support, troop/VIP transport, and reconnaissance via light aircraft and helicopters during the brutal, months-long Siege of Tel al-Zaatar in 1976. The existence of such an airfield highlights the sophisticated and ad-hoc military infrastructure developed by the warring factions during the conflict.

There are zero plans or prospects for reopening. The land has been fully and densely redeveloped for industrial and commercial use for decades. Re-establishing an airfield at this location is physically and economically impossible, as it would require the demolition of a significant and active part of Beirut's urban and industrial fabric.