Troodos Station

Troodos Station, formerly Royal Air Force Troodos, is a retained British Strategic Command site in the Republic of Cyprus.

Troodos Station
Part of Strategic Command
Troodos Mountains in Cyprus
Site information
Type	Signals intelligence gathering and radar station
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	Strategic Command
Controlled by	British Forces Cyprus
Location
Troodos Station Shown within Cyprus
Coordinates	34°54′46″N 032°53′02″E
Area	50 hectares
Site history
Built	1878 (1878)
In use	1878–present
Garrison information
Occupants	Golf Section, Joint Service Signal Unit (Cyprus)

Troodos Station is a remote Signals Station operated by personnel from Golf Section, Joint Service Signal Unit (Cyprus). The station parents the Mount Olympus radar site, operated by a small contingent of RAF personnel.^[1]

The station is based deep within the Troodos Mountains, approximately 14 miles (23 km) north of Episkopi.

History

Troodos Station is the oldest remaining British military base in Cyprus, dating from 1878. Initially it was used as a cool summer field hospital for troops from the Egyptian Campaign. British Army and Government officials also used it as a summer retreat.^[2]

Current use

Declassified documents show that RAF Troodos intercepted satellite communications for the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), and documents released by Edward Snowden suggest this has continued in recent years funded by the U.S. National Security Agency.^[3] Information from Snowden also indicates the site acts as a listening post for radio signals from the near Middle East.^[4][5]

The British National Space Centre Starbrook wide-field telescope has been here since 2006. It can detect orbiting objects from 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) in size.^[6]

See also

• Ayios Nikolaos Station
• List of Royal Air Force stations