Ar-Rutbah ( ar-Ruṭba, also Romanized Rutba, Rutbah) is an Iraqi town in western Al Anbar province, completely inhabited with Sunni Muslims. The population is approximately 28,400. It occupies a strategic location on the Amman–Baghdad road, and the Kirkuk–Haifa oil pipeline. Considered a "wet spot", it receives 114.3 mm (4.5 inches) of rain annually, and is located on a high plateau. It has been described as "the most isolated town of any size in Iraq." Ar-Rutbah began as a rest stop for Imperial Airways flights in the early 20th century, and also served as a water stop for the Nairn Transport Company. In December 1934, sixteen kilometers south of Ar-Rutbah, the famous Dutch plane Uiver crashed, with all onboard killed. During the Anglo-Iraqi War in 1941, Ar-Rutbah was the site of a clash between British forces, including the Arab Legion, and forces loyal to Rashid Ali al-Gaylani. History British administration During the British administration of Iraq, known as Mandatory Iraq, Rutbah Wells, as it was then known, was a rest stop for Imperial Airways flights from the UK to India and the Persian Gulf. Imperial Airways used an old fort at Rutbah Wells as a resthouse—however, "a common complaint in winter was the cold, for the builders at Rutbah Wells had, unaccountably, made no provision for fireplaces or chimneys." Aircraft were route from Cairo, to Gaza, to Rutbah Wells, to Baghdad. According to research conduct by Lucy Budd, of Loughborough University, the airstrip and rest house at Rutbah Wells were specifically built for Imperial Airways by the Iraqi government, and assigned a detachment of armed soldiers to defend against hostile tribes. One passenger wrote of the "unforgettable experience of arriving at the most desolate and extraordinary hostelry in the world", while another remarked on "the absurdity of coming down [in the morning] to an English ham and egg breakfast in the middle of the desert". Passengers were not expected to embark or disembark at Rutbah Wells. The town was also a water stop on the overland drive from Baghdad to Damascus by the Nairn Transport Company, known as the Nairn Way. Travellers who stopped in Rutbah stayed at the fort. Among those who stopped at Rutbah Wells when following the Nairn Way was Mary Bruins Allison. In 1927, the British built a fort at Rutbah. In 1929, when Francis Chichester completed his solo flight to New Zealand in a de Havilland