Royal Saudi Air Force

Royal Saudi Air Force
Royal Saudi Air Force
القوات الجوية الملكية السعودية
	; ; Emblem and logo of the Royal Saudi Air Force
Founded	1916 — de facto; 1921 — official; 16 November 1952 — current form;
Country	Kingdom of Hejaz (1916–1925); Kingdom of Hejaz and Najd (1926–1932); Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (1932–present);
Type	Air force
Role	Aerial warfare
Size	30,000 personnel ; 1,088 total aircraft
Part of	Saudi Arabian Armed Forces
Nickname	Saudi Falcons
Mottos	الله أكبر; Allah Akbar (God is the greatest)
Engagements	Arab Revolt; Hejaz–Nejd War; Al-Wadiah War; 1984 Arabi Island incident; Gulf War; Syrian Civil War; Houthi–Saudi Arabian conflict; War against ISIS; Yemeni Civil War; 2025–2026 Southern Yemen campaign; ;
Website	Official website
Commanders
Commander-in-chief	King Salman
Chairman of the General Staff	Air Chief Marshal Fayyadh Al-Ruwaili
Minister of Defense	Khalid bin Salman
Commander of Royal Air Force	Lieutenant General Turki bin Bandar
Insignia
Flag
Roundel
Low Visibility roundel
Aircraft flown
Electronic; warfare	E-3 Sentry, Saab 2000 AEW&C
Fighter	Panavia Tornado, Eurofighter Typhoon, F-15C/D, F-15S/SA
Helicopter	Bell 412, AS532, UH-60
Reconnaissance	Panavia Tornado, King Air 350
Trainer	Pilatus PC-21A, PAC MFI-395, Cirrus SR22, BAE Hawk
Transport	C-130H, C-130J, Airbus A330 MRTT

The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF; Arabic: القوات الجوية الملكية السعودية, romanized: al-Qūwāt al-Jawwīyah al-Malakīyah al-Saʻūdīyah) is the air force of Saudi Arabia and one of the principal branches of the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces. Its origins date to 1916, when the Hejaz Air Force was established during World War I.

The Royal Saudi Air Force currently has wings, squadrons, and a special forces unit dedicated to combat search and rescue. It has developed from a largely defensive military force into one with an advanced offensive capability, beginning in the 1990s with the acquisition of laser-guided bombs and unguided bombs.

The backbone of the RSAF is the F-15 family, including the advanced F-15SA variant; it maintains the second largest fleet of F-15 Eagles after the U.S. Air Force. The RSAF also operates the Eurofighter Typhoon, acquired under the Al-Salam agreement with BAE Systems. Many earlier aircraft were delivered under the Al-Yamamah contracts with British Aerospace (now BAE Systems).