Iran’s army on Tuesday opened its first ground base for fighter jets designed to withstand US bunker buster attacks, state media reported.
The base – named Oghab 44 (“Eagle” in Persian) – can accommodate “all types of fighter jets and bombers, in addition to drones”, the official IRNA news agency said, releasing images and videos from inside the base.
Air Force Day
The location of the base was not revealed, but state media said it was “hundreds of meters below the mountain”, and could withstand “bombs by US strategic bombers”.
In May last year, the Iranian army announced an air force base for drones under the Zagros mountains in the west of the country.
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The latest unveiling comes a day before Iran marks Air Force Day, as part of the build-up to the 44th anniversary of Saturday’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iranian fighter jets
State media on Tuesday showed Iran’s armed forces chief of staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri and Army Chief Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi at the new base.
Oghab 44 is “one of the tactical underground air bases for the army air force built in different parts of the country in recent years”, IRNA reported.
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It could prepare fighter jets to “counter possible attacks” such as those carried out by the US and Israel in recent military exercises, according to state media.
Iran mostly has Soviet-era Russian MiG and Sukhoi fighter jets, as well as some Chinese aircraft, including the F-7.
Several American F-4 and F-5 fighter jets from before the revolution also belong to the fleet.
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