Yemen air force falls into grip of Houthis
The Houthi takeover of the Yemeni air force led to the Saudi military intervention in Yemen, while al-Qaeda is using the absence of local forces to advance in strategic regions in the country.
Two military aircraft took off on March 25 from Sanaa’s al-Daylami air base, which is under Houthi control, to launch an attack on the Yemeni president’s residence in the al-Maasheeq district of Aden. Hours after the operation, the Saudi-led military intervention began with multiple attacks that announced the start of Operation Decisive Storm. Though the operation officially came to an end 25 days later, airstrikes are continuing.
The Yemeni air force, established in 1934, is the oldest military unit in Yemen. This is the first time, however, that the air force has been involved in a direct political conflict, and it is also the first time a party other than the Yemeni state has called on it. Former President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his opponents relied on different forces in conflict situations in the past.
The involvement of the Yemeni air force was not the only thing that provoked direct military intervention by Saudi Arabia. The fall of the most organized and efficient Yemeni military force into Houthi hands put millions of dollars of US military aid for the air force at their direct disposal. How did this happen, and what are the consequences of the fall of the Yemeni air force into the hands of militias?
Al-Monitor learned that in the days after President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi’s escape from the Houthis in Sanaa to Aden, the Houthis ordered the leader of the Yemeni air force, Maj. Gen. Rashid al-Jund, and his chief of staff Abdul Malik al-Zuhairi to prepare to launch different attacks on Marib governorate and on Hadi’s residence in Aden.
