Photos of American military aircraft at the air base on the island of Diego
Garcia. The island is closed to unauthorized visitors. Some of the photos show
B-2 bombers in action. Diego Garcia was a major American air base in the 1991
and 2003 Persian Gulf wars. The island is a British colony, but has been used by
US forces since the 1970s. The island is shaped like a footprint and contains
6720 acres of land, none of which is more than 22 feet above sea level. There is
also a large anchorage. The US Navy began building facilities on the island in
the 1970s. By the 1980s, over half a billion dollars had been spent on an
airbase, anchorage and logistics facilities. There are less than a hundred
British military personnel on the island, plus nearly 2,000 American troops and
over a thousand civilian contractors. |