Iran Army unveils first underground air force base

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
7 Feb 2023 17:09
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The first publicized Oqab 44 (Eagle 44) underground base is capable of accepting and operating different types of fighter jets, bombers, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

A Fighter aircraft is seen at the first underground air force base, called "Eagle 44" at an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on February 7, 2023, Iranian Army/WANA (West Asia News Agency)

Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major, General Mohammad Baqeri, and Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, the chief commander of the Iranian Army, visited on Tuesday the first underground base which was unveiled by Iran Army, called Oqab 44 (Eagle 44).

The new base is capable of accepting and operating different types of fighter jets, bombers, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the Air Force.

Gen. Mousavi, head of Iranian Army: Oqab-44 underground airbase is going to be home for "new fighter jets".

Could he mean Sukhoi Su-35? pic.twitter.com/IScVX0y7jl
— 𝐄𝐡𝐬𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐣𝐚𝐝 | احسان 🇮🇷 (@Safarnejad_IR) February 7, 2023

Read: New Iranian air defense missile 'Sayyad 4B' unveiled

This has been the first base of its type to be publicized, and no further information has been provided about other underground bases of the Army.

Over the recent decades, the Iranian Armed Forces have built underground bases, and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has built the first ever underground base or city to protect its missile units.

It is worth noting that earlier in December, Major General Mousavi asserted that the country's armed forces are fully prepared to tackle any foreign threat that could be targeting Iran.

"The sailing vessels of the Iranian Navy are currently engaged in defending the Islamic Republic's interests in high seas," he said during a ceremony in Tehran.

"The Ground Forces' [military] units are stationed on the country's borders in complete readiness. Our Air Defense Force is also observing and surveilling the country's [air]space 24 hours, and our Air Force [too] is constantly patrolling Iran's skies," the commander added.

In the same context, The top general of Iran has praised the coordinated efforts of the armed forces, academic institutions, and knowledge-based businesses to increase the country's drone strength, claiming that the Islamic Republic is currently one of the top five nations in the world for unmanned aerial vehicles.

General Mohammad Baqeri told reporters at a later date in December that Iran’s drones can carry out various missions with great accuracy and flight endurance.

Baqeri said that the Islamic Republic will proceed with its plans to promote its drone capabilities and cooperate with other countries in the drone industry to meet the country’s needs.

This comes as Iran tries to foil enemy plots in a "hybrid war" against the Islamic Republic, and the US Department of Commerce adds seven Iranian entities to the US trade blacklist for the alleged production of drones that were sold to Russia and used in the war on Ukraine.

Under the same pretext, the US Treasury Department, earlier in January 2023, imposed sanctions on six executives and board members of Qods Aviation Industries (QAI).

While Tehran requested documents from Kiev documenting and proving Russia's usage of Iranian drones in Ukraine as part of the ongoing war, the White House declared that the US has no evidence of an Iran-Russia sale of UAV drones. It further noted that no signs of purchase have been observed even weeks after the US claimed that Russia is buying drones from the US.