The last members of the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing departed JB Balad, Iraq, on Tuesday, as the United States relinquished control of its second largest base in Iraq, reports Reuters. The Iraqi government now controls the base, which once housed roughly 36,000 American troops and contractors, according to the news wire service. Known as al Bakr Air Base before the US invasion in March 2003, the installation grew into Balad Air Base, hosting a large Air Force presence, and Camp Anaconda, the Army’s major logistics hub in the country. The Air Force and Army combined the two into a joint base in June 2008 under the stewardship of USAF’s 332nd AEW. Aircraft such as F-16s, MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft, and MC-12 Liberty surveillance aircraft operated from there. Boasting an 11,000 foot runway, Balad at one time during the US military’s presence was “second only” to London’s Heathrow airport in terms of activity, according to Reuters, citing a US military historian.
The Air Force and Boeing agreed to a nearly $2.4 billion contract for a new lot of KC-46 aerial tankers on Nov. 21. The deal, announced by the Pentagon, is for 15 new aircraft in Lot 11 at a cost of $2.389 billion—some $159 million per tail.