Hejaz Air Force

Hejaz Air Force
القوات الجوية الحجازية
Westland Wapiti IIA of the type operated by the Hejaz Air Force
Active	1921–1932
Disbanded	1925 ( Hejaz) 1932 ( Hejaz and Nejd)
Country	Kingdom of Hejaz (1921–1925) Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd (1926–1932)
Allegiance	Hussein Bin Ali (1921–1925) Ibn Saud (1926–1932)
Branch	Air Force
Role	Aerial Warfare
Size	2 operational aircraft, 6 pilots (1922)
Nickname(s)	Hejaz Flying Corps
Engagements	Battle of Mecca Battle of Jeddah
Aircraft flown
Airco DH.9/DH.9C, Caudron G.3, Westland Wapiti

The Hejaz Air Force (Arabic: القوات الجوية الحجازية) or Hejaz Flying Corps (Arabic: فيلق الطائر الحجازي) was the aerial component of the armed forces of the short-lived Kingdom of Hejaz and its successor the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd. Claiming to be the oldest Air Force on the Arabian Peninsula, the service was a very small entity, numbering at most nine aircraft at any time. It operated intermittently between 1921 and 1932, battling with staff shortages and aircraft availability; often only two aircraft were operational at any time. The personnel came from many nations, with pilots coming from Germany, Greece, Italy, Russia and the United Kingdom, as well as from the kingdom itself after the flight of the first Arab pilot, Abdul Salam Sarhan, in 1923. It provided aerial reconnaissance and bombardment to support the army against the much larger land forces of Ibn Saud during the Hejaz-Nejd War, including bombing attacks on Jeddah and Mecca. Its successor is the Royal Saudi Air Force.