US Approves Qatar Air Force Training Facility at Idaho Base

The United States has approved a plan allowing Qatar to establish an air force facility within the Mountain Home Air Base in Idaho, where Qatari pilots and F-15 fighter jets will train alongside U.S. forces.

The announcement was made Friday by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, during a Pentagon event attended by Qatari Defense Minister Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani.

“We’re signing a letter of acceptance to create a Qatari Emiri Air Force facility at Mountain Home,” Hegseth said. “The project will strengthen joint training, increase readiness, and deepen our interoperability.”

He emphasized that the move reflected the strong and ongoing defense partnership between Washington and Doha. “Your excellency, you can count on us,” he told the Qatari minister.

The Idaho base currently also hosts a Singaporean fighter squadron, according to official sources.

Hegseth expressed gratitude to Qatar for its mediation efforts that helped secure a recent truce and prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas, as well as for assisting in the release of an American national from Afghanistan.

Sheikh Al-Thani, in turn, highlighted the “enduring friendship” and “deep defense cooperation” between the two nations.

The Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar already serves as the largest U.S. military installation in the Middle East.

The Idaho project follows President Donald Trump’s recent executive order pledging to defend Qatar amid regional tensions after Israeli air strikes in Doha.

Although initial planning for the facility reportedly began under former President Joe Biden, the new agreement has sparked debate online. Some right-wing commentators criticized the move, accusing the administration of being too close to Qatar.

In response, Hegseth clarified that Qatar would not be given a standalone base on U.S. soil. “We control the existing base, as we do with all our partners,” he wrote on social media.