Taura (Ecuador) (AFP) – An isolated Ecuadoran air base has quietly become a key hub in Washington's expanding war on drug trafficking, according to flight records, satellite imagery, witnesses and military documents uncovered by AFP.

Hidden among shrimp farms and teak plantations about an hour from Guayaquil -- the Pacific port that has become the biggest gateway for Latin American cocaine bound for the United States -- the Taura complex plays an increasingly prominent role in President Daniel Noboa's security alliance with Washington.

AFP observed significant works at the decades-old facility, identified around 20 US military flights between June and mid-October, and obtained documents referring to the presence of US troops at the base.

The buildup comes less than a year after Ecuadorans voted against allowing foreign military bases, and has prompted questions from even within the highest ranks of Ecuador's armed forces.

In a letter obtained by AFP dated September 8, then Air Force commander Mauricio Salazar warned the top brass at Joint Armed Forces Command that hosting US troops at Taura, supporting the US Air Force and receiving ongoing flights by US personnel might be illegal or unconstitutional.

His letter states that the US Air Force would "use and modify infrastructure at the base" and operate "temporary support flights" from there.

Two days later, he was removed from his post.

Flight records reviewed by AFP show repeated arrivals at Taura by US military aircraft, including C-130 Hercules and C-17 Globemaster transport planes, V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft and Black Hawk helicopters.

Several of the flights connected Taura with facilities in the United States, including the Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station in North Carolina and Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, with stopovers in Puerto Rico and Panama.

Satellite imagery also shows the base undergoing significant construction work in recent months.

Several hectares of vegetation have been cleared, new operational areas have appeared around the airfield and dozens of structures consistent with rapidly deployable military tents have been installed inside the complex.

A larger structure measuring roughly 40 metres by 20 metres resembles a retractable aircraft maintenance hangar.

Outside the facility, guarded by camouflaged soldiers, AFP observed three construction trucks entering and leaving the base within 10 minutes.

Taura is the only Ecuadoran air base reserved exclusively for military use and boasts a runway of more than 3,000 metres, longer than that of Guayaquil's international airport.

President Noboa announced in September that he was working with the United States so that "any type of cooperation" between countries could be carried out there.

"I think it is much more appropriate to move everything to Taura," he said.

The Ecuadoran Air Force did not respond to a request for comment.

The Pentagon said to contact US Southern Command, which did not immediately answer questions from AFP.

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