K-2 Air Base

K-2 Air Base is a former Iraqi Air Force base in the Salah al-Din Governorate of Iraq. It was captured by Coalition forces during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.

Overview
K-2 Airbase is located in Northern Iraq. The airfield is served by one runway 9,870 feet long. The airbase is named after the K-2 oil pipeline pumping station. Not much is known about the base, but it was established near the pumping station on the oil pipeline into Turkey sometime in the 1930s, and became known as a Mirage F.1EQ base in the 1980s. It was one of several Iraqi Air Force airfields which were rebuilt in the mid-1970s under project "Super-Base" in response to the experiences in Arab-Israeli wars in 1967 and 1973.

Originally, 13 airfields were re-built by British contractors, and on all of them a number of hardened aircraft shelters were also built. Subsequently companies from Yugoslavia - previously engaged in building bridges in Iraq - became involved. Due to their specific construction of these airfields - which included taxi-ways leading right out of Hardened Aircraft Shelters (HAS) and laid diagonally to the runways - they became known as "Trapezoids" or "Yugos".

The facilities were divided into two categories: "surface" and "underground". The "surface" facilities were actually the "softest", and included maintenance hangars of metal construction and HAS of concrete construction. In total, the Yugoslavs built no fewer than 200 HAS on different airfields in Iraq during the 1980s.

The protection of each HAS consisted of one-metre-thick concrete shells, reinforced by 30 cm thick steel plates. There was only one entrance and this was covered by sliding doors made of 50 cm thick steel armoured plate and concrete. The HASs were usually built in small groups - seldom more than five, with each group sharing the same water and power supply, besides having its own backup gasoline-powered electrical generator and a semi-automatic aircraft-refuelling system.

In addition, underground facilities that could shelter between four and ten aircraft on average were constructed. In order to build these, the Yugoslavs used equipment and construction techniques identical to those used in underground oil-storage depots, additionally concealing the extent and the true purpose of the whole project. The underground facilities were all hardened to withstand a direct hit by a tactical nuclear bomb, buried up to 50 metres below the ground, and consisted of the main aircraft "hangar" (in several cases with two floors connected by 40ts hydraulic lifts), connected with operations, maintenance, and logistical facilities via underground corridors.

United States Military Use
Among the targets struck during the 1991 Gulf War was the critical K2 pipeline junction near Bayji [Beiji] that connects northern oil fields, an export pipeline to Turkey and a reversible north-south pipeline inside Iraq.

In late April 2003 the United States Marine Corps 404th ASB (Aviation Support Battalion) located at K-2, the facility being designated Camp Lancer.

The big news at TF3-66AR at Camp Lancer in the first week of September 2003 was the graduation of the first class of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps. The infantry company, Bravo Company, 1-22 Infantry had been training the initial force for the past few weeks. The Lancers finished a weeklong mission in the town of Ash Sharqat, an hour's drive north of the base camp. Ash Sharqat is a town friendly towards the United States and US soldiers enjoy helping the locals to improve their living conditions. The civil affairs team was active helping to repair and restore schools and clinics both there and in Bayji. Progress continued on the containerised housing units, and TF3-66AR hoped to move in soon. Living conditions improved daily.

In November 2003, during Ivy Cyclone II, a series of strategic operations conducted across Task Force Ironhorse, and throughout other operations, many soldiers assumed traditional infantry roles. For the members of 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, conducting convoy security, raids and patrols are everyone's responsibility. Ever since 4th Infantry Division entered theatre as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, soldiers from every job field had been called on to perform frontline duties in places where there are no frontlines. Filling in as security on convoys and missions had just become another part of regular duties for the computer technicians.

By late 2003 a number of contractors had started moving in, including Washington Group, Bechtel and Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR), each bringing about 100 employees to work on different missions. Parsons has been in contact with KBR for sharing dining facilities, well water for showers and the Rec Center (gym, movie theater, game room, etc.). By the end of January 2004 it was almost a mini city.

Current aerial imagery shows most of the airfield to be abandoned; a small aircraft ramp area and a few structures remain in use with some helicopters parked in front of hangars.