Engineers help Camp Victory

AIRFIELD engineers have deployed operationally for the first time since East Timor – albeit for a short period task. Eleven airfield engineers, from RAAF Bases Townsville and Richmond, flew to Baghdad where they constructed over five days a supply and distribution centre for Australian force elements at Camp Victory in Iraq.

With assistance from local contractors and the hire of local plant equipment – including bulldozers, front-end loaders, backhoes and bobcats – the ground was prepared for the 36m-long shelter.

The slab, which was laid by the local contractors, had to be left to cure for a few days after pouring, but the engineers did not waste a second.

They used this time to improve the area’s defence systems, installing blast walls and filling and laying sandbags while the electricians worked at the Australian headquarters.

The material for the structure weighed around 15 tonne and was brought to Iraq in four containers.

The seven-metre high structure could be winched up to accommodate all kinds of material-handling equipment..

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