🇮🇱Palmachim Airbase
Palmachim, Central District, Israel, Israel
Country
🇮🇱 Israel
Region
Middle East
Established
1988
Launches / Year
1-2
Coordinates
31.8847° N, 34.6827° E
About
Palmachim Airbase on Israel's Mediterranean coast serves as the launch site for the Shavit orbital launch vehicle. Due to Israel's geopolitical situation, rockets must be launched westward over the Mediterranean Sea (retrograde), which requires extra energy but avoids overflying hostile neighbors. Israel is one of the smallest nations with indigenous orbital launch capability.
Key Features
Israel's only orbital launch site — located on the Mediterranean coast
Unique westward (retrograde) launch trajectory over the Mediterranean Sea
Supports the Shavit solid-fuel orbital launch vehicle
Also used for ballistic missile defense tests (Arrow system)
One of only a few nations launching satellites retrograde due to geography
Rockets That Launch Here
Companies Operating Here
Orbit Types
Notable Launches
Ofeq-1 (1988) — Israel's first satellite, launched on Shavit
Ofeq-3 (1995) — First operational Israeli reconnaissance satellite
Ofeq-16 (2020) — Latest Ofeq reconnaissance satellite deployment
Arrow-3 missile defense interceptor tests
Multiple Shavit launches for Ofeq reconnaissance series