Close Air Support 11 Squadron was originally formed in 1984 as
11 (Close Air Support) Squadron at
Doha International Air Base, Doha, operating six
Dassault Alpha Jet Es. In 2017, the
Qatar Emiri Air Force placed an order for six
BAE Systems Hawk Advanced Jet Trainers, followed by an extra three in 2018, as a replacement for the Alpha Jet.
Training ZB131 at
RIAT, 2022. In October 2020, British
Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace and Qatari Minister for Defence Affairs
Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah agreed to establish Qatar's new Hawk squadron at an RAF station as a joint Qatari-British unit. This Joint Hawk Squadron was to be based upon similar lines as
No. 12 Squadron of the
Royal Air Force, which reformed as a joint RAF-QEAF squadron to train Qatari pilots on the
Eurofighter Typhoon in 2018. On 1 April 2021, it was announced the Joint Hawk Squadron would be based at
RAF Leeming, North Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom. On 1 September 2021, the first two Hawk Mk.167s (
ZB131 and
ZB133) for the Joint Hawk Squadron were delivered to RAF Leeming. The first four QEAF pilots began training in October 2021, with RAF student pilots planned to start their training with the unit in 2022. On 24 November 2021, the Joint Hawk Squadron was formally given the numberplate of
11 Squadron (Qatar) when it reformed at RAF Leeming. 11 Squadron received its full complement of nine Hawk Mk.167s when the last two (
ZB138 and
ZB139) were delivered to Leeming on 29 September 2022. The first batch of Qatari students graduated in November 2022. ==References==