U.S. servicemembers withdraw from Iraqi cities, move to main installations

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. John Gordinier
  • 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (AFNS) --  Under the Security Agreement signed between Washington, D.C., and Baghdad, Iraq, officials in November 2008, U.S. servicemembers are to withdraw from Iraqi cities, villages and localities by June 30.

As a result of the agreement, some servicemembers are moving onto main installations such as Sather Air Base, Iraq, and Joint Base Balad.

With the start of the withdrawal from urban areas in progress, Joint Base Balad is capable and ready for the influx of servicemembers and equipment, said Col. Sal Nodjomian, the 332nd Expeditionary Mission Support Group commander.

"Joint Base Balad is perfectly situated for this withdrawal, both geographically as well as in capacity," he said. "We are centrally located in north-central Iraq, and we have outstanding facilities and infrastructure and are capable of taking on new mission sets."

The colonel, a northern Virginia native deployed from the Pentagon, said Joint Base Balad officials expected the drawdown and started planning for it months ago.

"We came up with our own forward-operating-base collapse plan where we started analyzing all of our systems: water, electrical, power generation, dining-facility capability and billeting; all of the important items required for base-life support, and we recognized ... we are in a position where we can take on a significant amount of new missions without having any degradation to our own mission," Colonel Nodjomian said.

Overall, Airmen here have been assisting with the drawdown throughout the region and performing missions to decrease the overall footprint of forces in Iraq.

For example, the 732nd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron Construction Team 6, based at Joint Base Balad, has assisted in closing down three FOBs so far in the Diyala and Salah ad Din provinces, said Capt. Matthew Albers, the 732nd ECES CT 6 chief of operations.

"We are supporting the Army by disconnecting their assets to be redistributed to other locations in Iraq or, in some cases, Afghanistan," Captain Albers said.

"Additionally, we are constructing Southwest Asia huts throughout the region, which are simple semi-permanent wooden buildings that can be used as billeting or work space to temporarily house Army units as they transition out of the cities in preparation for the drawdown and redeployment to other areas," said the Houston native deployed from Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.

"This mission has certainly been effective," he continued. "In our region, we have directly supported the withdrawal of several thousand Soldiers from local cities."

Logistically, the captain said the process can get chaotic at times when the team is trying to schedule closure of facilities and support construction of temporary replacement facilities at the same time.

"For example, you may close one (dining facility) down at breakfast and transport its generator to a different installation to power up the (dining facility) you finished building the night before so that the new (dining facility) can be open for lunch, ensuring no Soldier misses a meal," Captain Albers said. "There is always a lot of coordination and hard work involved, but our Airmen do an outstanding job of making the process as seamless as possible."

As for Joint Base Balad, installation officials are ready for the influx of servicemembers and assets associated with the June 30 withdrawal and ready to take on new challenges.

"By executing Joint Base Balad's (forward operating base) collapse plan, I think we are right where we need to be in terms of the Security Agreement," Colonel Nodjomian said. "We are getting out of the cities and getting back into a much smaller footprint while still maintaining our operational capability, but also honoring the agreement that was made between (the U.S. and Iraq)."

However, Joint Base Balad is not the only main installation affected. Sather AB in Baghdad is undergoing construction projects to create more housing and work space for the servicemembers moving out of inner cities, the international zone and forward operating bases. In particular, the 10th Combat Support Hospital is being relocated from the international zone to Sather AB in accordance with the Security Agreement.

"The IZ is being handed over to the Iraqis and the 10th CSH is moving out of there to come here (Sather)," said Army Chief Warrant Officer Mohammed Badal, the 10th CSH facilities manager.

The 10th CSH is a level-3 medical facility that has surgical care, which is a capability Sather does not have, said Chief Badal, who is a native of New York City deployed to Sather AB from Fort Carson, Colo. 

As a result, the 819th Expeditionary RED HORSE Squadron staff is building more facilities to house the influx of troops and medical equipment.

"With the reduction of battlefield injuries, the 10th CSH is reducing its manpower by 33 percent and the other 67 percent is being moved out of the IZ to Sather," Chief Badal said.

Ultimately, once the facilities are built by the 819th ERHS Airmen, the 10th CSH will be able to continue level-3 medical care to support Baghdad and its surrounding areas, he added.

"I see the drawdown as a positive outlook for servicemembers and the Iraqi people, because it is another step forward in turning the country over to them," Chief Badal said. "It's another step that shows us that we may be going home soon, and it shows the country of Iraq is becoming more stable."