Al Sulayyil ballistic missile base
{{Short description|Ballistic missile base near Al-Sulayyil, Saudi Arabia}}
{{Infobox military installation
| name = Al Sulayyil ballistic missile base
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| partof = Saudi Arabian Armed Forces
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| map_type = Saudi Arabia
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| type = Ballistic missile base
| coordinates = {{coord|20|42|57|N|45|34|54|E|type:landmark|display=inline}}
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| built = {{Start date|1987}}
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| ownership = R.S. Missile Defense
| open_to_public =
| controlledby = {{flag|Saudi Arabia}}
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The Al Sulayyil ballistic missile base is a Saudi ballistic missile facility near the town of Al-Sulayyil, 450 km southwest of the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh.Ronen Bergman - GlobalSecurity Org. [http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/saudi/al-sulayyil.htm "Al Sulayyil Missile Base"] GlobalSecurity.org.{{Cite web |url=http://www.hasterya.com/?p=19289 |title=Hasterya.com |access-date=2013-09-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222132558/http://www.hasterya.com/?p=19289 |archive-date=2015-12-22 |url-status=dead }} Constructed in 1987-1988, it is the first missile base of the Kingdom.
Location and layout
Al-Sulayyil RSSMF base was built in low mountain terrain at coordinates: {{coord|20|43|07|N|45|35|01|E}}. The base houses two missile garrisons (a north and a south), with a third area providing housing, maintenance, and administrative functions. The garrisons themselves are located a short distance apart within a secured complex. The administrative and support complexes are outside the security perimeter to the south.GlobalSecurity Org. photos [http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/saudi/al-sulayyil-imagery.htm "Imagery of Al Sulayyil Missile Base Launch Complex Area"] GlobalSecurity.org. The missile garrisons have parking slots for mobile launchers and two large launch pads that are identical to ones that can be seen at Chinese DF-3 (CSS-2) Dongfeng missile bases.
The liquid-fueled DF-3A is an early Chinese nuclear intermediate-range ballistic missile bought by Saudi Arabia in 1987 and is believed to have a range of 4,000 - 5,000 km, with a 2,000 kg warhead.SinoDefence [http://www.sinodefence.com/strategic/missile/df3.asp "DongFeng 3 (CSS-2) Intermediate-Range Ballistic Missile"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130814034822/http://www.sinodefence.com/strategic/missile/df3.asp |date=2013-08-14 }}, sinodefence, 27 February 2009.