26th Missile Group (IRGCN)

Rouhani in Bandar Abbas, February 2014; 16th Missile Group
Although much has been written about Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp Navy (IRGCN) and its role in the Persian Gulf, little is known about its actual organization. Part of this curtain was pulled back in late-February 2014 when President Rouhani paid a visit to the naval headquarters at Bandar Abbas. Here, he was photographed next to a placard identifying the IRGCN's 16th 'Aasef' Missile Group.

Although this group's garrison - located in the Hormozgan county of Minab - could not be located, this placard provided enough enough information to start searching for other missile groups.

One garrison that could be located belongs to the 26th 'Salman' Missile Group, which is based in Borazjan, the capital of the Dashtestan county in the Bushehr province. [1] This puts it in the IRGCN's 2nd Naval Zone, which is commanded by Brig. Gen. 2nd-Class Ali Razmjou. [2]



Located 40 km inshore, the garrison is butted up against the Zagros mountain range, just east of Borazjan itself. Google Earth offers imagery of the base from 09/2003, 06/2006, 06/2011, and 01/2012. Under construction in both the 2003 and 2006 imagery, the base is completed by 2011.



The most prominent feature is the presence of an underground facility (UGF) characteristic of IRGC missile bases those in Kermanshah, Khorromabad, and elsewhere.

Also present are a number of hardened shelters used for munition storage and large warehouses used in place of the traditional motor-pools.

The garrison itself is small - as one would expect - with only a handful of buildings.



Works Cited/Footnotes:
[1] Presence of the SL's Province Representative at a Gathering at the Salman Missile Group in Dashtestan. May 8, 2013 / Ordib. 18, 1392. Dashtestan Gov't Page.
[2] ‘IRGC Navy completely dominates PG waters’. Jan 22, 2014. IRIB.

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