COB Speicher
← Back to the bases map · Roll call · Message board
| Also known as | Camp Speicher; Forward Operating Base Speicher; Forward Logistics Base Sycamore; Al Sahra Airfield; Tikrit Air Academy; Majid al Tamimi Airbase |
|---|---|
| Location | Near Tikrit, Salah ad Din Governorate |
| Type | Contingency operating base / airfield |
| Category | U.S. installation in Iraq |
| Opened | 2003 (U.S. use; Iraqi airfield built 1973) |
| Closed or transferred | 20 October 2011, handed over to the Government of Iraq |
| Coordinates | 34.67750, 43.55056 (34°40′39.0″N 43°33′02.0″E) |
Overview
Contingency Operating Base Speicher occupied the former Al Sahra Airfield near Tikrit, about 170 kilometers north of Baghdad and 11 kilometers west of the Tigris River. Before 2003 the airfield was the main base of the Iraqi Air Force Air Academy, and it was one of several Iraqi airfields rebuilt in the mid-1970s under the 'Super-Base' program.
Marines of Task Force Tripoli captured the airfield during the 2003 invasion and turned it over to the U.S. Army. The main runway and taxiways had been cut by bombing, and the large main hangar was destroyed; a second large hangar burned in July 2003. Elements of the 4th Infantry Division, including its 704th Division Support Battalion and 4th Aviation Brigade, took control of the base in the early weeks.
U.S. forces first named the site Forward Logistics Base Sycamore, then Forward Operating Base Speicher, and later Contingency Operating Base Speicher. The name honored Navy Capt. Michael Scott Speicher, a pilot shot down over Iraq on the first night of the 1991 Gulf War.
Speicher served as the headquarters of Multi-National Division-North, later United States Division-North, and hosted a long series of division headquarters, aviation brigades, sustainment units and National Guard and Reserve companies. The base included a large Post Exchange and several fast-food outlets.
The Army left COB Speicher and handed it over to the Government of Iraq on 20 October 2011 during the general U.S. withdrawal. In June 2014, after Islamic State fighters overran Tikrit, about 1,700 Iraqi Air Force cadets and other personnel who had left the base were captured and killed in what became known as the Camp Speicher massacre.
Timeline
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1973 | Airfield built; later rebuilt under the Iraqi 'Super-Base' program and used by the Iraqi Air Force Air Academy. |
| 2003 | Task Force Tripoli Marines captured the airfield and handed it to the U.S. Army; the 4th Infantry Division took control and the site was named FLB Sycamore, then FOB Speicher. |
| 2004 | The 1st Infantry Division used Speicher as a logistics hub supporting units in Kirkuk, Mosul and subordinate bases. |
| 2005 | The 42nd Infantry Division's support command and the 555th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade operated from the base; Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker visited on 25 December. |
| 2006 | Task Force ODIN, an Army aviation battalion created to counter roadside-bomb emplacers, began operating from the airfield. |
| 2007-08 | The 111th Engineer Brigade (West Virginia Army National Guard) was headquartered at Speicher under Multi-National Division-North. |
| 2009-10 | The 3rd Infantry Division and 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, were stationed at the base. |
| 2010 | Iraqi Air Force T-6A Texan II training aircraft were based at COB Speicher for Iraqi pilot instruction. |
| 2011 | The U.S. Army handed COB Speicher to the Government of Iraq on 20 October. |
| 2014 | Islamic State fighters killed about 1,700 captured cadets and personnel from the base near Tikrit in June. |
Units stationed at COB Speicher
Units documented in public sources as based at or operating from COB Speicher. 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 | Task Force Tripoli (U.S. Marine Corps) | 2003 | Captured the airfield during the invasion and turned it over to the Army | link |
| 2 | 4th Infantry Division (Mechanized) | 2003-2004 | Took control of the base after the invasion | link |
| 3 | 704th Division Support Battalion, 4th Infantry Division | April 2003 - April 2004 | Quick Reaction Force platoon received the hand-off from the Marines; headquarters company quartered in the control tower | link |
| 4 | 4th Aviation Brigade, 4th Infantry Division | 2003 | Took over the base in the second week of the war | link |
| 5 | 64th Corps Support Group | April 2003 - April 2004 | Logistics support under the 4th Infantry Division | link |
| 6 | 553rd Corps Support Battalion | April 2003 - April 2004 | Logistics support under the 4th Infantry Division | link |
| 7 | 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) | 2003 | Listed among units based at Speicher in 2003 | link |
| 8 | 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized) | 2004 | Transportation and logistics units at Speicher supported U.S. units in Kirkuk, Mosul and subordinate bases | link |
| 9 | 264th Engineer Group (Wisconsin Army National Guard) | 2004 | Coordinated 1st Infantry Division engineer construction and route-security operations | link |
| 10 | 1st Battalion, 140th Aviation (California Army National Guard) | 2004 | Companies A, B and C stationed at the base | link |
| 11 | 149th Infantry Brigade and 2113th Transportation Company (Kentucky National Guard) | 2004-2006 | Stationed at FOB Speicher | link |
| 12 | 42nd Infantry Division (Division Support Command) | 2005 | Division support headquarters | link |
| 13 | 555th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade | December 2005 | Brigade commanded by Col. William Rapp at FOB Speicher | link |
| 14 | 223rd Medical Detachment (Preventive Medicine) | September 2005 - September 2006 | Preventive medicine under the 61st Multifunctional Medical Battalion | link |
| 15 | Headquarters, 25th Infantry Division (Multi-National Division-North) | 13 September 2006 - 2007; November 2008 - 2009 | Assumed command of Multi-National Division-North from the 101st Airborne Division at COB Speicher in 2006 and returned for a second tour in 2008 | link |
| 16 | Combat Aviation Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (Task Force Wings) | 2006-2007; August 2009 - August 2010 | Split-based at Speicher and FOB Warrior in 2006-07; operated from COB Speicher in 2009-10, controlling six aviation battalion task forces | link |
| 17 | 25th Infantry Division | 2006-2007; 2009 | Division elements stationed at the base | link |
| 18 | Task Force ODIN (21st Cavalry Brigade, Fort Hood) | 2006-2011 | Reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition against roadside-bomb emplacers | link |
| 19 | 111th Engineer Brigade (West Virginia Army National Guard) | 2007-2008 | Engineer missions throughout Multi-National Division-North | link |
| 20 | Combat Aviation Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (2-10th Assault Helicopter Battalion; 277th Aviation Battalion) | October 2008 - October 2009 | Army aviation | link |
| 21 | 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division | 2009 | Brigade elements at COB Speicher, including partnered training with Iraqi police | link |
| 22 | 64th Medical Detachment (Veterinary), 111th Multifunction Medical Battalion | 2009 | Veterinary support; military working dog classes for Iraqi police | link |
| 23 | 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized) | 2009-2010 | Division headquarters elements | link |
| 24 | 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division | 2009-2010 | Brigade combat team | link |
| 25 | 3rd Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment (Tennessee National Guard) | February - July 2010 | Convoy security under the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) | link |
| 26 | 256th Combat Support Hospital (Army Reserve) | 2010 | Medical support | link |
| 27 | 275th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion (Army Reserve) | 2011 | Sustainment | link |
| 28 | 52nd Expeditionary Flying Training Squadron (U.S. Air Force) | September 2011 | Squadron commander flew from Camp Speicher; photographed during a preflight inspection on 4 September 2011 | link |
Notable events and facts
- The base was named for Navy Capt. Michael Scott Speicher, shot down over Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War.
- Speicher served as headquarters of Multi-National Division-North and later United States Division-North.
- Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker spent Christmas Day 2005 with soldiers at FOB Speicher.
- NFL players visited troops at FOB Speicher on 6 February 2006.
- By September 2010, Iraqi Air Force student pilots were training at COB Speicher on T-6A Texan II aircraft.
- In June 2014, about 1,700 Iraqi cadets and personnel who had left the base were killed by Islamic State fighters, an event known as the Camp Speicher massacre.
Photographs
Roll call: who served at COB Speicher
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 Speicher
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
- Camp Speicher - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Speicher
- Division History - 25th Infantry Division Association. https://www.25thida.org/division/
- Wikimedia Commons: Chief of staff of the Army visits FOB Speicher (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chief_of_staff_of_the_Army_visits_FOB_Speicher_DVI
- Wikimedia Commons: Iraqi Air Force Increases T-6A Inventory (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iraqi_Air_Force_Increases_T-6A_Inventory_DVIDS3217
- Wikimedia Commons: K-9 Training at Contingency Operating Base Speicher (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:K-9_Training_at_Contingency_Operating_Base_Speiche