Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia

Navy Support Facility Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia in British Indian Ocean Territory
A US Air Force B-1B Lancer taking off from Diego Garcia as part of Operation Enduring Freedom during October 2001. Five other B-1Bs are visible parked in the foreground.
Site information
TypeNaval Support Facility
OwnerMinistry of Defence
OperatorUnited States Navy
Royal Navy
Controlled byCommander, Navy Installations Command
British Forces British Indian Ocean Territories
ConditionOperational
WebsiteNaval Support Facility Diego Garcia (Archive link)
Location
NSF Diego Garcia
Location in the Indian Ocean
Coordinates7°18′48″S 72°24′40″E / 7.31333°S 72.41111°E / -7.31333; 72.41111
Site history
Built1971 (1971) – 1976
In use1976 – present
Garrison information
Current
commander
Captain R. Wade Blizzard
Airfield information
IdentifiersICAO: FJDG, WMO: 619670
Elevation4.1 metres (13 ft) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
13/31 3,659 metres (12,005 ft) Concrete

Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia, abbreviated NSF Diego Garcia, is a British Ministry of Defence facility leased to the United States Navy, located on the atoll Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, for an initial period of 99 years after the expulsion of over 2,000 inhabitants of the island, descendants of plantation workers brought there by European colonial powers.

Camp Thunder Cove is part of the facility, and is operated by the United States Armed Forces and British Armed Forces. In 2016, the British renewed the lease until 2036, and stated that dispossessed islanders would not be permitted to return.