The new United States constructed air base in Agadez, Niger, is now fully operational, and has carried out its first unmanned intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance flights this week, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).
The airbase is very instrumental in the countering security threats in West Africa and the larger Sahel region and it cost approximately $110 million and is dubbed the Air Base 201. The airfield is located in one of the harshest locations due to its placement in the remote desert.
Niger and its neighbors have been battling several militants in the region, including Islamic State affiliate dubbed as the Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP) and aspects of Boko Haram. The Agadez base is controlled by Nigerien forces, but the U.S. military has exclusive rights to about 20 percent of the compound’s roughly 15-km perimeter.
The U.S. military has flown drones from Niger’s capital, Niamey, but set up the new base in Agadez to extend the reach of its surveillance and reconnaissance missions in the volatile Lake Chad Basin area of Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria, according to a U.S. defense official.
