Most international flights are to the UAE, Iran, India, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. The Canadian Forces maintain their military command headquarters at Kandahar, heading the Regional Command South of the NATO led International Security Assistance Force in Kandahar Province. Soon after the Quetta Shura of the Taliban claimed responsibility. By 1776, his eldest son Timur Shah had transferred Afghanistan's main capital, due to several conflicts with various Pashtun tribes, from Kandahar to Kabul, where the Durrani legacy continued.[11].

[46] On 6 June 2012, at least 21 civilians were killed and 50 others injured when two Taliban suicide bombers on motorcycles blew themselves up in a market area near Kandahar International Airport. [68] The Pashtuns make up the overwhelming majority population of the city and province but exact figures are not available. Kandahar was entrusted to the Arghuns in the late 15th century, who eventually achieved independence from the Timurids. [39] In June 2008, it was reported that over 1,000 inmates had escaped from Sarposa prison. However, Kandahar was of much more strategic importance, to the extent that Minhaj-i-Siraj attributes the downfall of the Ghaznavids to the loss of Kandahar. [39], Media related to Kandahar International Airport at Wikimedia Commons, Kandahar International Airport (Kandahar), Blackhawks- a new era in Afghan air force modernization- VOA, Afghan Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, United States Agency for International Development, C130 K and J model Hercules transport aircraft, U.S. Central Command Materiel Recovery Element, Airport record for Kandahar International Airport, "Aerodrome Edition 83 – Effective date 12 Oct 17", "Kandahar airport named after Ahmad Shah Abdali", "Kandahar Airport Renamed to Ahmad Shah Baba Airport", https://afghanistan.asia-news.com/en_GB/articles/cnmi_st/features/2020/01/21/feature-03, "OAKN/Kandahar International General Airport Information", "Kandahar International Airport in Kandahar, Afghanistan", "Kandahar airport gaining international trust", "Ahmad Shah Baba Airport - Kandahar Afghanistan", "About Airport - Ahmad Shah Baba Airport", "2.2.3 Afghanistan Kandahar International Airport - Logistics Capacity Assessment - Digital Logistics Capacity Assessments", "Kandahar International Airport lacks elemental facilities", "Kandahar International Airport - SKYbrary Aviation Safety", "Defence 2009: A Year in Pictures – Picture 10", "RAF Lyneham farewell parade for departure of squadrons", Near Afghanistan’s front lines, a daily fight for life, Royal Air Force Air Rank Appointments List 2/07, Royal Air Force Air Rank Appointments List 04/08, Royal Air Force Air Rank Appointments List 3/09, Royal Air Force Air Rank Appointments List 1-10, "News by date: UK hands over command of Kandahar airfield", Brig Gen Michael Fantini Official Air Force Biography, "Logistics command will be first in Afghanistan", "Afghanistan - Canadian Armed Forces - Memorials - Remembrance - Veterans Affairs Canada", "Kandahar war memorial heading to Canada - Toronto Star", "Gunmen kill five female Afghan airport staff in Kandahar", "The plane that crashed today in Afghanistan", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kandahar_International_Airport&oldid=981301607, Installations of the United States Air Force in Afghanistan, Military bases of the United Kingdom in Afghanistan, Military bases of Australia in Afghanistan, Military installations of the Soviet Union in other countries, Articles with dead external links from February 2020, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, September 2008 – Acting Air Commodore A D Fryer, November 2011 – Brigadier General Scott Dennis, November 2012 – Brigadier General John Dolan, November 2013 – Brigadier General Michael Fantini, In December 1999, one person was killed and 17 wounded during the hijacking of, On 8 December 2015, at least 61 people were killed and at least 35 wounded during the.

Australian and Canadian special forces were amongst the first coalition troops to relocate to Kandahar Airport, and by Christmas Day the US-led coalition had established a footprint of at least 1,000 troops. Kandahar was regarded as important to the Mughal Empire because it was one of the gateways to India, and Mughal control over Kandahar helped to prevent foreign intrusions.[23]. Stylistically the finds from Deh Morasi and Said Qala tie in with those of pre-Indus Valley sites and with those of comparable age on the Iranian Plateau and in Central Asia, indicating cultural contacts during this very early age. [25] British Forces use Kandahar as their main staging post for the south and fly direct into the Helmand province. In 1709, Mirwais Hotak made the region an independent kingdom and turned Kandahar into the capital of the Hotak dynasty. [9] Its runway can support all types of aircraft, including a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III or an Antonov An-225 Mriya. This page was last edited on 1 October 2020, at 13:53. [32] It was under siege again in April 1986. [9] An alternative etymology derives the name of the city from Gandhara,[8] the name of an ancient Hindu-Buddhist kingdom located along the Kabul and Swat rivers of northern Afghanistan and Pakistan,[10] although Kandahar is not in the former territory of Gandhara.

Telecommunication services in the city are provided by Afghan Wireless, Roshan, Etisalat, MTN Group and Afghan Telecom. Government and Soviet troops surrounded the city and subjected it to heavy air bombardment in which many civilians lost lives. "[70], In another report, by BBC news Farsi, there are roughly 50,000-100,000 Tajik or Persian speakers in the city of Kandahar. On 17 December 2016, a shooting at the airport resulted in the deaths of at least six people.

The base is a co-base which means that it is shared operations between the United States and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries. Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, is believed to have visited the town (c. 1521 AD) during his important journey between Hindustan and Mecca in Arabia. This lasted until October 1929 when Nadir Khan and his Afghan army came to eliminate Kalakani, known as the Tajik bandit from the village of Kalakan in northern Kabul Province.

The accommodation area began to enlarge down along the airfield to where the current military base is located, and by April the coalition presence had expanded to several thousand personnel. In this Edict, Ashoka the great uses the word Eusebeia ("Piety") as the Greek translation for the ubiquitous "Dharma" of his other Edicts written in Prakrit. In the 7th century AD, Arab armies conquered the region with the new religion of Islam but were unable to succeed in fully converting the population.

The U.S. also completed several other major projects in Kandahar and in other parts of southern Afghanistan. The name "Candahar" or "Kandahar" in this form probably translates to candy area. Previously, Ahmad Shah served as a military commander of Nader Shah Afshar. According to OSGEOINT (Open Source Imagery & Geospacial Intelligence), imagery analysis shows 2 deployments of unmanned aerial vehicles on the northeast section of the airfield. [21] Following his death in 1407, the city was ruled by other Timurid governors.

It is said to be written in excellent Classical Greek, using sophisticated philosophical terms.

Armed forces from Dutch, British, French, Canadian, US are just some of the twenty or so nationalities that make up the living population of this ever growing town, situate…

The mission of TFA was to improve the security situation in the southern areas, and play a key role in the transition from the U.S.-led multinational coalition to NATO leadership. [21], The Royal Air Force also has a detachment of C130 K and J model Hercules transport aircraft from 24, 30, 47 and 70 Squadrons and its attached Engineering detachment from 24/30 and 47/70 Engineering Squadrons as part of No.

[5] Alexander the Great had laid-out the foundation of what is now Old Kandahar in the 4th century BC and gave it the Ancient Greek name Αλεξάνδρεια Aραχωσίας (Alexandria of Arachosia). Following their withdrawal the airport remained in control of Najibullah's government until he stepped down in 1992. The feasibility study was completed in 2006[53] but as of 2012[update] no construction work had begun. The current Governor of the province is Toryalai Wesa. The grave of Hazratji Baba, 7.0 metres (23 ft) long to signify his greatness, but otherwise covered solely by rock chips, is undecorated save for tall pennants at its head. Kandahar remained peaceful for the next 100 years, except during 1929 when loyalists of Habibullah Kalakani (Bache Saqqaw) placed the fortified city on lock-down and began torturing its population. While the Diadochi were warring amongst themselves, the Mauryas were developing in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent. However, with the advent of jet aircraft, such stops were no longer necessary, and the airport saw little use. These targets were the airport and buildings that were occupied by the Taliban, including Arab families who had arrived several years earlier and were residing in the area. Large dealerships are importing cars from Dubai, UAE. In a 2003 estimate by the National Geographic, Pashtuns were put at ca.

Pashtu is spoken by more than 98% of population and in more than 98% of villages. After the Soviet withdrawal and the collapse of Najibullah's government in 1992, Kandahar fell to local mujahideen commander, Gul Agha Sherzai. [20], Kandahar was besieged by a Mongol army in 1221, although Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu defeated them. The Afghan government has been slow in rebuilding the facility, the vast majority of it has been reclaimed from years of neglect and damage by Soviet and Taliban soldiers. Excavations of prehistoric sites by archaeologists such as Louis Dupree and others suggest that the region around Kandahar is one of the oldest human settlements known so far. XXIX[17]) to have sent "a Greek ("Yona") Buddhist head monk" named Mahadharmaraksita (literally translated as 'Great Teacher/Preserver of the Dharma') with 30,000 Buddhist monks from "the Greek city of Alasandra" (possibly Alexandria in Arachosia, as Kandhar was known under the Greeks) to Sri Lanka for the dedication of Great Stupa Buddhist temple in Anuradhapura.

In September 1826, Syed Ahmad Shaheed's followers arrived to Kandahar in search of volunteers to help them wage jihad against the Sikh invaders to what is now Pakistan.

904 Expeditionary Air Wing,[22] the squadron's home was RAF Lyneham, Wiltshire until the end of 2011 when the squadron's home station was changed to RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.[23]. The airfield itself was completed in 1962 by an American company known as Morrison–Knudsen, which was contracted by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). During Operation Enduring Freedom in late 2001, Kandahar Airport was one of the first coalition bases established in Afghanistan. [19], The airport was mostly used at this time for military and humanitarian purposes, hosting regular flights of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross to and from Kabul, Jalalabad, Herat, and Peshawar.