Recently PM Narendra Modi laid down the foundation stone of a new airbase for the Indian Airforce at Deesa in the Banaskantha district of Gujarat. This strategic airbase is described as an effective security measure for the industries which are located at Vadodara, Ahmedabad, and Bhavnagar. Deesa airbase is situated merely 130 kilometers from the Indo-Pak border and will be very efficient to give a response to any threat coming from Pakistan.
It will aid in closing the 355 km long strategic gap between Uttarlai and the Airforce base in Bhuj. After laying the cornerstone, Prime Minister Modi predicted that the Deesa air base would become a key hub for national security. The site was purchased for the Indian Airforce in 1983, according to IAF authorities. The prime minister added that his government resolved to establish an operational facility in Deesa after becoming office, and “this expectation of our military is being fulfilled today”.
Significance of Deesa Airbase
In the worst-case scenario, Gujarat’s more than a trillion dollar industrial complex in and around Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, and Vadodara will be the target to hit India economically. The Deesa airbase will be used as a firewall between enemy aircraft taking off from Mirpur Khas, Hyderabad, and Shahbaz F-16 airbase in Jacobabad in Pakistan.
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Additionally, by connecting the forward air bases at Naliya, Bhuj, and Phalodi in Rajasthan, the new airstrip will close a critical tactical gap. Deesa will also expose the vulnerability of the Pakistani cities of Hyderabad, Karachi, and Sukkur with its deep penetration strike aircraft.
The IAF has no plans to station its front-line Rafale or Sukhoi-30 MKI jets at Deesa because it is a forward airbase. Instead, it will station air defense aircraft like the MiG-29 and the Tejas to intercept enemy aircraft and prevent them from hitting Gujarat’s industrial complex.
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In addition to supporting any future land offensives, the airfield has the capability of retaliating against Pakistan in the event of a significant terrorist attack in Gujarat or the surrounding area.
The Pakistan air force is expected to increase its assets in the sector once the Deesa airbase becomes operational in 2024, as Indian fighters can cross the international boundary in under two minutes at Mach 2.0 speed if something goes wrong.
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