The Iranian Air Force Unveils An Underground Military Base Called Eagle 44
The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) unveiled an underground tactical military base called “Oqab 44” (Eagle 44) days after a drone attack on a military facility in Isfahan. According to Iran’s official news agency IRNA, Eagle 44, the country’s first underground air force base belonging to the army, was showcased to the public with the visit of high-ranking military officials, including Iran’s Chief of General Staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri and the Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army Major General Sayyed Abdolrahim Mousavi.
IRNA published photos and videos of the base, which is said to be hundreds of meters underground and home to aircraft armed with long-range cruise missiles. Footage showed the interior of the facility, including a US-made F-4E Phantom II aircraft taxiing at the underground airbase, a Shahed 149 Gaza drone, and a new long-range cruise missile called Asef fitted on a Sukhoi 24 aircraft. The Iranian media has not yet shared any information about the cruise missile, which was unveiled for the first time with the underground facility. For the time being, it is known that the Asef missile was designed by Iranian experts and was equipped with a destructive and explosive warhead.
According to Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, the Eagle 44 base has the capability of concealing and operationalizing all types of warplanes, bombers, and UAVs. According to the media outlet, the underground airbase is a tactical base with a warning system, command center, hangars, maintenance and repair units, navigation and flight equipment, fuel tankers, and other facilities. The new base “has the capacity to host and operationalize the new warplanes of the Iranian Air Force,” according to the statement’s continuation, but no further details were provided.
According to Iran’s Press TV, Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Chief of General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said during the ceremony, “Any attack on Iran from our enemies, including Israel, will be met with a response from our many Air Force bases, including Eagle 44.” Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Army, stated that such bases serve as reserves and support for the armed forces and that “whenever the situation calls for… these bases have the ability to do great things.”
The IRIAF has previously shown images of an underground base known as “Strategic UAV base 313,” which is located somewhere in the Zagros mountain range along the country’s Persian Gulf coast. At the underground base, a large number of unmanned aerial vehicles, missiles, and ammunition of various classes were deployed, including the Ababil-5, Kaman-22, HESA Fotros, Mohajer-6, Karrar, Omid, and Arash drones. Following an attack on a military research facility, Iran revealed its Strategic UAV base 313, similar to Eagle 44. Iran’s attitude can be interpreted as an effort to demonstrate its power in the region by sharing its capabilities with the public, despite losses and negative experiences both inside and outside the country.