COB Q-West
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| Also known as | Qayyarah Airfield West; Q-West; Key West; FOB Endurance; Saddam Airbase |
|---|---|
| Location | About 20 km west of Qayyarah and 60 km south of Mosul, Nineveh Governorate |
| Type | Contingency operating base / airfield |
| Category | U.S. installation in Iraq |
| Opened | May 2003 (U.S. Army use; Iraqi base built in the 1970s) |
| Closed or transferred | 2011 per Wikipedia's operator dates (no exact date in sources read); U.S. forces returned in 2016 and transferred the base to Iraqi forces in March 2020 |
| Coordinates | 35.76583, 43.12167 (35°45′57.0″N 43°07′18.0″E) |
Overview
Qayyarah Airfield West, known to U.S. forces as Q-West, is a former Iraqi Air Force base about 16 kilometers west of the Tigris, 20 kilometers west of Qayyarah and 60 kilometers south of Mosul. Formerly called Saddam Airbase, it was rebuilt under the 1970s 'Super-Base' program and became the main hub for Iraqi Mirage F1EQ operations during the Iran-Iraq War. Its 3,500-meter main runway is one of the longest in northern Iraq.
Coalition aircraft bombed the base heavily in March 2003. When U.S. troops arrived in May, the main runway and control tower were damaged, with about 13 craters in the main strip, some 30 feet deep. By July 2003 the airfield was home to the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, and soldiers of the 37th Engineer Battalion spent 69 days repairing the runway so it could take the largest U.S. transports, including the C-5 Galaxy.
The base, also called FOB Endurance, sat in open desert far from any settlement. In late 2004 it had slow internet, limited phone service and a small soldier-run PX in a bombed-out palace building. Corps support groups ran base operations, and the 116th Rear Area Operations Center moved in from Mosul after Thanksgiving 2004.
Tiger Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment was the major U.S. combat unit at Q-West from October 2007 to February 2009. In 2009 the Mississippi Army National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 198th Combined Arms ran the base, with its commander serving as Q-West mayor during a severe water shortage. U.S. Army use of the site ended in 2011. The airfield was later occupied by ISIL, recaptured by the Iraqi Army in July 2016, and used as a coalition hub for the Battle of Mosul before its handover to Iraq in 2020.
Timeline
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1970s | Saddam Airbase built and later rebuilt under the 'Super-Base' program. |
| Mar 2003 | Coalition airpower heavily attacked the base; ground forces seized it. |
| May 2003 | U.S. troops arrived to find the main runway and control tower damaged. |
| Jul 2003 | 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division was based at Q-West; the 37th Engineer Battalion repaired the runway over 69 days. |
| Nov-Dec 2004 | The 116th Rear Area Operations Center moved in; the 917th Corps Support Group took over from the 167th Corps Support Group on 17 December. |
| 2007-09 | Tiger Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment was the major U.S. combat unit on the base. |
| 2009 | 2nd Battalion, 198th Combined Arms (Mississippi Army National Guard) ran base operations during a water shortage. |
| 2011 | A U.S. Air Force weather team installed a weather system for the Iraqi military in March; U.S. Army use of the base ended that year. |
Units stationed at COB Q-West
Units documented in public sources as based at or operating from COB Q-West. This list is not complete; units rotated frequently and many smaller elements were never reported. Veterans can add their unit on the message board below.
| # | Unit | When | Role at the base | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division ('Bastogne Bulldogs') | 2003 | Brigade based at Q-West; most soldiers spread across the region on outreach, patrols and site security | link |
| 2 | 37th Engineer Battalion | 2003 | Repaired runway craters over 69 days so large transports could land | link |
| 3 | 167th Corps Support Group | 2004 | Base support at FOB Endurance until December 2004 | link |
| 4 | 917th Corps Support Group | From 17 December 2004 | Took over base support duties from the 167th CSG | link |
| 5 | 2nd Battalion, 8th Field Artillery Regiment | From about November 2004 | Field artillery battalion stationed at the base | link |
| 6 | 163rd Ordnance Detachment | From about November 2004 | Ordnance detachment stationed at the base | link |
| 7 | 116th Rear Area Operations Center | From late November 2004 | Moved to FOB Endurance from Mosul Airbase | link |
| 8 | Tiger Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment | October 2007 - February 2009 | Major U.S. combat unit on the base, overseeing operations from multiple subunit locations | link |
| 9 | 2nd Battalion, 198th Combined Arms (Mississippi Army National Guard) | 2009 | Base operations; battalion officer served as Q-West mayor; Company A secured the Al-Qayyarah pump house with the Iraqi Army | link |
| 10 | 1st Company, 2nd Battalion, 26th Brigade, Iraqi Army | 2009 | Took over security of the Al-Qayyarah pump house supplying Q-West | link |
| 11 | 22nd Expeditionary Weather Squadron (U.S. Air Force) | March 2011 | Installed a weather observation system for the Iraqi military | link |
Notable events and facts
- Before 2003 Q-West was the main hub for Iraqi Mirage F1EQ operations and the first base for Iraqi MiG-23MLs.
- Some bomb craters on the main runway in 2003 reached 30 feet deep and 120 feet across.
- Vegetation planted to hide the base from ground observers made it stand out in overhead imagery.
- A soldier-run mini-PX opened on 20 November 2004 in a room of a bombed-out palace on the base.
- In 2009 a drought forced Q-West to close its swimming pool and limit residents to three-minute showers.
Photographs
Roll call: who served at COB Q-West
No names have been added yet. This roll call is built from the people who served here, one post at a time.
Message board: COB Q-West
Served here? Share a memory, name your unit, or send a correction. Posts are reviewed before they appear. The full community board is on the Message Board page.
Sources
- Qayyarah Airfield West - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qayyarah_Airfield_West
- Wikimedia Commons: Teamwork helps bring water to Q-West (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Teamwork_helps_bring_water_to_Q-West_DVIDS207851.j
- Wikimedia Commons: Mississippians, Iraqi Army partner to protect Q-West water supply (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mississippians,_Iraqi_Army_partner_to_protect_Q-We
- Wikimedia Commons: USAF delivers weather gear to IqAF. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USAF_delivers_weather_gear_to_IqAF_110302-F-WA896-