Željava Air Base: The Yugoslavian underground airbase

One of the most expensive military project in post-war Europe, it took 20 years to build. The base could house 3 full squadron of MiG-21 and was surrounded on the surface by 5 runways. Up to 1000 people could operate and shelter inside the base for up to 30 days in a row if needed. Zeljava was designed to withstand a direct impact from a 40 kiloton nuclear warhead.

Nowadays, the base straddles the border between Croatia and Bosnia. Visiting is extremely dangerous as thousand of anti-personal mines are still present throughout the site on the surface.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *