Airbase

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A location designated for the deployment and maintenance of military aircraft, enabling takeoff and landing operations while providing logistical support
2. A facility specifically designed for the operation, repair, and deployment of military aircraft, facilitating both takeoff and landing as well as supporting logistical operations
3. A military site equipped to support the landing, takeoff, and upkeep of combat aircraft

Etymology: "Airbase" is a compound of two plain English words, "air" and "base," and its history is essentially the history of those parts put together. "Air" comes from Old French "air" and Latin "aer," originally meaning the atmosphere or the sky. "Base" comes from Latin "basis," a foundation or support, and it reached English through French. Joined together, the pair names a place where aircraft are stationed, maintained and launched, with the sky as its working element and the base as the ground it rests on. The spelling has shifted over time. "Air base" has been written as two words for most of its use, and the closed form "airbase" is a later alternative. Both forms refer to the same military installation.

Synonyms: airfield, air station