Al Taqaddum Air Base
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| Also known as | TQ; Camp Taqaddum; FOB Ridgway; Tammuz Airbase; Plateau Airfield (RAF); Greene Field; Camp Manion (part of base, from 2015) |
|---|---|
| Location | Habbaniyah plateau, Anbar Governorate, about 74 km west of Baghdad |
| Type | Air base / logistics hub |
| Category | U.S. installation in Iraq |
| Opened | 2003 (U.S. use; airfield built by the RAF in 1952) |
| Closed or transferred | Late 2009, turned back over to the Iraqi military; coalition forces later returned and handed the base to Iraqi security forces on 5 April 2020 |
| Coordinates | 33.33944, 43.59000 (33°20′22.0″N 43°35′24.0″E) |
Overview
Al Taqaddum Air Base, known to U.S. troops as TQ, sits on a plateau above the Euphrates River and Lake Habbaniyah, about 74 kilometers west of Baghdad. The Royal Air Force built it in 1952 as Plateau Airfield, a subsidiary of nearby RAF Habbaniya. Iraq later extended the runway, added a parallel runway and named it Tammuz Airbase, and several Iraqi Air Force fighter squadrons used it before 2003.
U.S. forces occupied the long-abandoned base in 2003. The Army first called it Forward Operating Base Ridgway, and the 142nd Corps Support Battalion was the first U.S. battalion there. Aviation elements of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment held the airfield from April 2003 until the 82nd Airborne Division replaced them in July 2003.
In 2004 the base was renamed Camp Taqaddum ('progress' in Arabic). It became a major Marine Corps logistics and aviation hub for coalition forces moving into Anbar Province. The base was divided into 'Main Side,' 'Lake Side' (air terminal and main supply depot) and 'Spring Lake' (other logistics units). U.S. troops found many Iraqi aircraft hidden, buried or wrecked on and around the base.
On 22 August 2004 Marines dedicated the airfield as Greene Field in honor of Lt. Col. David S. Greene, an HMLA-775 Cobra pilot killed in action on 28 July 2004. Marine helicopter, unmanned aircraft, wing support and logistics units rotated through TQ until the base was turned back over to the Iraqi military in late 2009.
Coalition forces returned during the campaign against the Islamic State, operating from a section known as Camp Manion from 2015, before handing the base to Iraqi security forces on 5 April 2020.
Timeline
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1952 | The RAF built Plateau Airfield as a subsidiary of RAF Habbaniya; Iraq later expanded it as Tammuz Airbase. |
| 1991 | U.S. Navy and Air Force aircraft struck the base on the opening night of the Gulf War. |
| 2003 | U.S. forces occupied the base as FOB Ridgway; the 142nd Corps Support Battalion arrived first, followed by 3rd ACR aviation and, in July, the 82nd Airborne Division. |
| 2004 | Renamed Camp Taqaddum and taken over as a Marine logistics hub; airfield dedicated as Greene Field on 22 August. |
| 2005 | Senators John Kerry, Ted Stevens and John Warner toured the Marine Armor Installation Site on 1 September. |
| 2006 | Seabees of NMCB-74 repaired a runway at the base. |
| 2008 | Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter visited Camp TQ on 27 November. |
| 2009 | Al Taqaddum was turned back over to the Iraqi military in late 2009. |
| 2015-2020 | Coalition Task Force Spartan operated from Camp Manion; the base was handed to Iraqi forces on 5 April 2020. |
Units stationed at Al Taqaddum Air Base
Units documented in public sources as based at or operating from Al Taqaddum Air Base. 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 | 142nd Corps Support Battalion | 2003 | First U.S. battalion on the base; logistics support and guard of an Iraqi ammunition storage area | link |
| 2 | 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment (aviation elements) | April - July 2003 | Occupied the airfield | link |
| 3 | 82nd Airborne Division | From July 2003 | Replaced 3rd ACR aviation elements at the airfield | link |
| 4 | 1st Force Service Support Group | 2004-2005 | Marine logistics | link |
| 5 | 2nd Transportation Support Battalion | 2004-2006 | Marine transportation support | link |
| 6 | Marine Corps Systems Command special unit | 2004 onward | Installed armor on Humvees | link |
| 7 | 8th Communication Battalion | February 2005 - February 2006 | Marine communications | link |
| 8 | 8th Engineer Support Battalion | 2005-2006 | Marine engineers | link |
| 9 | HMLA-775 | April - October 2004; April - October 2005 | Marine light attack helicopter squadron | link |
| 10 | HMM-263 | July 2004 - February 2005 | Marine medium helicopter squadron | link |
| 11 | HMM-364 | February - September 2005 | Marine medium helicopter squadron | link |
| 12 | HMM-268 | 2006 | Marine medium helicopter squadron | link |
| 13 | HMM-161 | February - September 2007; September 2008 - April 2009 | Marine medium helicopter squadron | link |
| 14 | HMM-262 | February - October 2007 | Marine medium helicopter squadron | link |
| 15 | HMLA-369 | 2005 - April 2006; April - November 2007; October 2008 - May 2009 | Marine light attack helicopter squadron | link |
| 16 | HMLA-169 | March - October 2006; November 2007 - October 2008 | Marine light attack helicopter squadron | link |
| 17 | HMLA-367 | October 2006 - May 2007 | Marine light attack helicopter squadron | link |
| 18 | VMU-1 | 2005-2009 | Marine unmanned aerial vehicle squadron | link |
| 19 | VMU-2 | 2007 | Marine unmanned aerial vehicle squadron | link |
| 20 | MWSS-371 | February - September 2005 | Marine wing support squadron | link |
| 21 | MWSS-372 | November 2005 | Marine wing support squadron | link |
| 22 | MWSS-373 | August 2004; September 2006 - March 2007; September 2008 - April 2009 | Marine wing support squadron | link |
| 23 | MWSS-272 and MWSS-274 | 2007-2008 | Marine wing support squadrons | link |
| 24 | MALS-16, Detachment A | From March 2006 | Aviation logistics | link |
| 25 | MALS-29, Detachment A | 2007 | Aviation supply and logistics | link |
| 26 | MACS-2, Detachment A | July 2006 - August 2007 | Marine air control | link |
| 27 | Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 74 (NMCB-74) | October 2006 | Runway repair | link |
| 28 | Personnel Retrieval and Processing Detachment, H&S Company, 1st Marine Logistics Group | 2008 | Recovered and processed the remains of U.S., Iraqi and coalition personnel | link |
| 29 | Camp Taqaddum Surgical, 1st Supply Battalion (Reinforced), 1st Marine Logistics Group | 2008 | Surgical care, including joint operations with Iraqi army medical staff | link |
| 30 | 1st Maintenance Battalion | 2008 | Marine maintenance battalion with surgical evacuation corpsmen | link |
Notable events and facts
- The airfield was originally built by the RAF in 1952 because the runway at RAF Habbaniya could not handle larger and jet aircraft.
- On 17 January 1991, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Scott Speicher was shot down during a strike package attacking the base, then called Tammuz Air Base.
- The Australian SAS found 51 Iraqi Air Force aircraft hidden under camouflage nets near al-Taqaddum in 2003.
- The airfield was dedicated as Greene Field on 22 August 2004 in honor of Lt. Col. David S. Greene of HMLA-775, killed in action on 28 July 2004.
- The Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy and the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps spoke to troops at Camp Taqaddum on 19 August 2004, on their first joint tour of the fleet.
- Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Mullen visited Camp Taqaddum on 2 January 2006.
Photographs
Roll call: who served at Al Taqaddum Air Base
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Message board: Al Taqaddum Air Base
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Sources
- Al-Taqaddum Air Base - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Taqaddum_Air_Base
- Wikimedia Commons: Sea Knight at Al Taqaddum. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sea_Knight.jpg
- Wikimedia Commons: NMCB-74 runway repair at Al Taqaddum. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_061026-N-1625W-009_Builder_3rd_Class_Rober
- Wikimedia Commons: 'Dirty Dozen' brings heroes home (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%22Dirty_Dozen%22_brings_heroes_home_DVIDS89597.jp
- Wikimedia Commons: Iraqi partnership extends to Operating Room (DVIDS). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iraqi_partnership_extends_to_Operating_Room_DVIDS1