Qayyarah Airfield West

Saddam Era Formerly known as Saddam Airbase, the facility is located west of the Tigris River, south of Mosul and about north of Baghdad. Reportedly, in 2002, the 9th Squadron, and the 79th and 89th Squadrons, respectively flying MiG-21s and Mirage F1s were operating from the base. The secondary "Sector-Operations Center" (SOC) of the Northern Command IrAF was based here until March 2003. There were two Weapon Storage Areas (WSA) located 10 and 12 kilometers to the north that were probably associated with Qayyarah West. WSA 1 had 30 munition storage igloos and is 1640 acres in size. WSA 2 had 42 munition storage igloos and is 800 acres in size. It is not known whether these storage areas were built after the Gulf War or whether they were struck during the bombing of Iraq in 1998. Initial United States military use During Operation Iraqi Freedom in March 2003, the base was heavily attacked by Coalition airpower and seized by Coalition ground forces. When US troops arrived on May 23, the main runway and the control tower, set about two miles away from the headquarters compound, had suffered damage. More than thirty craters were the result of precision bombing by American planes during both Gulf Wars: about 13 craters were gouged out of the long main strip, and another 30 impact craters destroyed surrounding runways and lesser airstrips; some of the craters reached 30 feet in depth, and 120 feet in diameter. ==Post-ISIL period==

On 9 July 2016, the Iraqi army recaptured Qayyarah Airfield West from ISIL during the Mosul offensive, reportedly "without any resistance". The airfield was considered a "strategic launch-pad" for the ongoing offensive. Photos showed obviously unusable Iraqi MiG-23/MiG-27 fighter/attack aircraft. Q-West then served as the international headquarters for the Battle of Mosul, beginning on 16 October 2016. About 560 U.S. troops from the 101st Airborne Division were deployed here for the battle. Deployments included command and control elements, a security detachment, an airfield operations team, and logistics and communications specialists. Also a life support area for the Iraqi forces was set up by the U.S. troops. On 22 October, the repaired airfield and its runway were reopened, with the first of many fixed-wing cargo airplanes arriving at the airfield. On 30 October, an Iraqi Air Force C-130J Super Hercules landed at Qayyarah West Airfield, the first time a fixed-wing aircraft from the Iraqi security forces landed there since the airfield was recaptured from ISIL. The United States Army left the site on May 13, 2020. Units • Company A, 39th Brigade Engineer Battalion, Task Force Strike. • Company G, 526th Brigade Support Battalion, Task Force Strike. • Company B, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, Task Force Strike. • Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 39th Brigade Engineer Battalion, Task Force Strike. • Expeditionary Medical Unit 10-Golf, USN B Battery 3-321st Field Artillery Regiment(HIMARS) • C Troop, 5th Squadron 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1-25 SBCT A-co, 1-24 infantry regiment, 1-25 SBCT • 31st Air Defense Artillery Brigade, Charlie Battery, 5-5 ADA, C-RAM ==References==