Al-Udeid Air Base by Tony Osborne

Built out of the flat desert sands and rock of Qatar, Al-Udeid airbase is an impressive sight. Despite being hundreds of miles from the front lines of Afghanistan and Iraq, the base is very much on a war footing. Sitting on its vast flightlines is a collection of Royal Air Force aircraft ready to support the thousands of coalition troops working on the ground in the Iraq, and Fence Check has been given a very special look behind the scenes. Although small, the RAFs detachments are able to pull a significant weight of their own.

A number of Tornado GR4s with crews from XIII Squadron at RAF Marham in Norfolk form TORNDET and call Al-Udeid home. The multi-role unit is equipped with both the strike version and the reconnaissance version of the GR4, providing an important capability to Coalition forces.

Flown daily, typical Tornado sorties can last eight to nine hours, with the planes deploying across the whole of Iraq and often having to refuel from VC-10 tankers up to four times to complete the mission.

All missions carry weaponry – during Fence Check’s visit the load usually consisted of a single 1,000lb Paveway II laser-guided bomb guided by a TIALD thermal imaging and laser designator, both attached to the underside.

Fortunately, bombs rarely have to be dropped, and often a show of force – a menacing low-level, high speed pass over an insurgent position – can have the desired effect on the opposition.

The risk to fast jets today is significantly less than the threat faced during the Iraq war of 2003 when Saddam had ground-to-air missiles, but there is still danger from small arms fire, shoulder-launched missiles, and unguided rockets.

Also aiding the guys on the ground are the aircrews of HERCDET, the Hercules Detachment, which operate several C-130J Hercules. Since the conflict started in 2003, the aircraft have been operating from Basra Air Station in the south of Iraq and proving their worth. Due to mortar attacks on the Basra base, it was recently decided to move the aircraft to Al-Udeid and reduce their exposure.

"We fly a variety of missions out of Al-Udeid," Sqn Ldr Rich Waller, in charge of 24 Sqn at Al-Udeid, says. "Much of our work sees us flying troops arriving in the region to where they are going to be based. Al-Udeid is central to where we need to be. It is a hub to both regions (Iraq and Afghanistan), and because there is no major threat in Qatar, we all feel much safer here. The threat in Iraq is as high as it has ever been, and as we evolve and overcome those threats, they will evolve too. It’s an ever-changing situation."

Once a week the Hercules drop supplies by air to the Maysan battlegroup, which is hunting insurgents near the Iranian border north of Basra. This method of resupply is much safer than flying the supplies in by helicopter or by driving them in from Basra.

Based nearby is the latest RAF unit at Al-Udeid, the NIMDET, which operate the Nimrod MR.2 in the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) role – a far cry from sub-hunting over the North Sea. The unit is understandably tight-lipped about its role, which sees the Nimrods flying long missions day and night over both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Sqn Ldr Ross McKenzie, the officer in command of NIMDET says, "The work we are doing over here is very different to our work back in Scotland. The crews are satisfied with what they are doing here because there are very tangible results as a result of the mission."

"It’s very different to our search and rescue work where we have to wait several hours to find out if a mission was successful. Over here we will find out in minutes. We are saving lives on the ground, and that is satisfying."

Brize Norton-based 101 Squadron, flying VC-10s, also has a small detachment, flying tanking missions in support of Coalition jets like Al-Udeid’s Tornadoes and US Navy EA-6B Prowlers.

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