Río Hato Airport

Río Hato Airport (ICAO: MPRH) is an airport and former Panamanian Defense Base in Panama, Río Hato.

International Airport

In 2011 the Government of Panama gave the order to proceed for the project to rebuild the airport. The restoration work will include the rehabilitation of the runway, the airport terminal, and construction of a tunnel for the Carretera Panamericana that currently crosses the runway. The award of this project, which has a cost of $53.2 million dollars, was done through a public bidding process, this project will be supervised by the Ministry of Public Works (MOP) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and is expected to last 14 months. President Ricardo Martinelli said the new Scarlett Martínez Airport at Rio Hato will bring benefits and opportunities for area residents. The airport would free up Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport to accept more flights for business and connecting flights in an effort to secure Panama’s position as a hub for business and commercial activity in the region. It will serve to boost tourism along the Pacific beaches of Panama where several beach resorts and condo developments are located. President Martinelli confirmed that the use of this airport will be by charter companies from USA, Canada and Europe.

Operation Just Cause

During Operation Just Cause, The United States Army 2d and 3d Battalions, 75th Ranger Regiment (TF RED ROMEO) departed Lawson Army Airfield, Fort Benning, GA at 18:00 on 19 December 1989. Its mission was to seize Río Hato and neutralize the 6th and 7th PDF Infantry Cos. At 01:00 on 20 December, the battalion jumped from C-130s onto the airfield at Río Hato. Both PDF companies had been alerted, and fired on the C-130s with small arms. Despite PDF resistance, the battalion assembled, attacked the barracks and established an airhead. By morning, the Rangers accomplished all missions, captured 250 prisoners and cleared the airfield for future operations.

Río Hato was also the first combat target for the United States Air Force F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter during Operation Just Cause. On 19 December 1989, a flight of eight F-117s lifted off from Tonopah Test Range Airport, Nevada. Their target was a large, open field beside barracks housing two companies of troops belonging to Battalion 2000, an elite unit known to be fiercely loyal to Panamanian Dictator Manuel Noriega. The plan was for the aircraft to drop two large 2,000-pound Mark 84 bombs colloquially known as "the Hammer" (the bombs which have been described as "the world's largest stun grenades" have a lethal radius of 400 feet and capable of blowing out eardrums half a mile away) close enough to the buildings to stun the sleeping soldiers so that they could not respond to the nearby nighttime parachute landings by the 2nd Ranger Battalion and elements of the 3rd Battalion. The explosion of the 2,000 lb bombs at a designated point of impact just 50 yards from the barracks would do just that, and fused to detonate after they had penetrated a few feet of earth, they would not cause many casualties.

Unfortunately, the fog of war was in the air. It also appears that, although the Pentagon brass understood the F-117A's accuracy, they did not fully understand what situation exactly the F-117A was suited for. As the two F-117A's approached their target the wind changed direction. Moreover, a last-minute change in the attack plan and confused communications resulted in the first pilot dropping his bomb where the second was to strike. The other pilot, thinking the attack had reverted to the original plan, dropped his bomb 325 yards wide.

Río Hato Army Air Base

Established in 1931, during World War II Río Hato Army Air Base was used by the United States Army Air Forces Sixth Air Force as part of the defense of the Panama Canal. It was closed as an active Air Force facility in 1948, however it was used as an USAF axillary military landing field as late as 1990 as part of Howard Air Force Base.

Units assigned to the base were:

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

• Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
• Mauer, Mauer (1969), Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II, Air Force Historical Studies Office, Maxwell AFB, Alabama. ISBN 0-89201-097-5

External links