PAF Bholari: The Pakistan Air Force’s New Main Operating Base Plus

On April 20, a retired Indian Army officer – Col. Vinayak Bhat – provided a detailed insight of the Pakistan Air Force’s (PAF) new main operating base (MOB), PAF Bholari. Available on The Print, Bhat’s analysis of PAF Bholari surmises that the burgeoning MOB will ultimately house the PAF’s nuclear assets.[1]

Currently, the PAF’s deterrence assets center on the Dassault Mirage III/5-based Retrofit of Strike Element (ROSE) strike fighters configured to carry the Ra’ad I and II air-launched cruise missiles (ALCM). However, while Bhat’s perspectives on deterrence are important, Bholari’s value is much more significant.

Rather, PAF Bholari is a strategic asset for enabling significant air support coverage for Pakistani land and naval forces, especially through the long-term when the PAF is expected to procure longer range combat aircraft through Project Azm and/or an interim multi-role fighter platform.

Reinforcing Interior Sindh

In peacetime, the PAF stations each of its assets in MOBs, such as PAF Bholari (Thatta), PAF Peshawar, PAF Masroor (Karachi), PAF Minhas (Kamra) and others. In parallel, the PAF also has forward operating bases (FOB) for temporary deployment – be it in wartime, crisis or exercises – of its combat assets.

In its inauguration of PAF Bholari, the previous Chief of Air Staff (CAS) of the PAF – Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Sohail Aman – stated: “Indeed, PAF Base Bholari is…of strategic significance for capacity enhancement of Pakistan Air Force in operational domain both overland as well as at sea”.[2] Located northeast of Karachi, PAF Bholari is located 125-150 km away from the coastline and 200-250 km from the Thar Desert.