The United States military has withdrawn its personnel from the Baledogle Military Airfield in Somalia after using it since 2012 because of a deteriorating runway.
Army Lt. Gen. John Brennan, deputy commander of US Africa Command (AFRICOM), confirmed that American forces left the airfield because fixing the runway would have cost tens of millions of dollars.
“The relocation from Baledogle was 100% an economic decision,” Brennan said during a briefing with reporters.
The base, built in the 1970s with Soviet assistance, had undergone various repairs. In 2018, the U.S. Navy awarded a contract of more than $12 million for emergency runway repairs, including patching and resurfacing.
Most personnel previously based at the site, located about 60 to 100 kilometers northwest of Mogadishu, have relocated to the capital. The airfield has served since 2012 as a major hub for counterterrorism operations, intelligence gathering, and training elite Somali forces, including the Danab special commando brigade.
U.S. military officials maintain that the move does not mean a reduction in support for Somali security forces. In May 2025, the U.S. military announced the construction of a new medical facility along with housing and security upgrades, describing the project as part of an effort to develop Baledogle into an “enduring location.”
Al-Shabaab captured the facility in 2009 and used it as a training ground for three years before African Union forces pushed them out. In September 2019, the base was the site of one of the largest al-Shabaab assaults on U.S. forces since the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, involving a truck bomb and an hour-long firefight.
Sources indicate the airfield is now under the control of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and the Somali National Army (SNA) troops.
The U.S. presence in Somalia has fluctuated over the years. President Donald Trump ordered the withdrawal of about 700 American troops from the country at the end of his first term in 2020. President Joe Biden authorized a small US force to return to Somalia in May 2022 to strengthen coordination with local security forces and improve intelligence sharing.
AFRICOM spokesmen said that while they do not discuss details of ongoing operations for security reasons, the command “repositions its forces to optimize for ongoing counterterror operations.”
Counter-terrorism operations continue, with recent airstrikes reported in October near Bulo Bashir. AFRICOM said that a return to Baledogle remains possible if conditions change, although no firm plans have been announced.