SOURCE: IDRW.ORG TEAM
The latest satellite images reveal that India’s overseas military base on Agalega Island in Mauritius has reached completion. This strategically significant facility features a deep-sea port capable of accommodating destroyers and frigates, along with an airbase equipped with a 3-kilometer long runway and facilities suitable for operating fighter jets and naval surveillance aircraft like the P-8I.
Agalega Island, comprising North and South Agaléga, is situated in the southwestern part of the Indian Ocean. This region has been a blind spot for the Indian Navy, and the construction of this military facility aims to expand India’s maritime domain awareness.
The most critical infrastructure on the atoll is the 3,000-meter runway, supported by a substantial apron for aircraft. The ongoing construction also includes significant jetty facilities in deeper waters and buildings that appear to be barracks and fields, potentially for military personnel.
The Agaléga outpost will be instrumental in supporting India’s fleet of Boeing P-8I maritime surveillance aircraft. These cutting-edge aircraft, based on the Boeing 737 passenger aircraft, play a crucial role in various missions, including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance tasks.
In peacetime, these aircraft serve as vital platforms for conducting routine surveillance missions in the vast Indian Ocean. To facilitate these operations, staging points with airfields and refueling facilities are essential, making facilities like those on North Agaléga island highly valuable.
Agaléga Island is not the only location in the Indian Ocean modified to support P-8 operations. India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the northeastern Indian Ocean have also been enhanced to better support maritime patrol aircraft missions, further strengthening India’s maritime presence and surveillance capabilities in this critical region.
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