Incirlik constructs its own seven wonders

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. S.J. Brown
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Two of the Seven Wonders of the World were located within what were once Turkey’s borders – The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus and the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus in Bodrum. Those structures made a name for the areas where they were located – often making them a hot spot for tourists – as they were documented by countless historians and travelers.

Members of the 39th Civil Engineer Squadron here are planning on making Incirlik a better place by constructing (or at least beginning construction) their own wonders on base within the next year. 

Incirlik’s version of those seven wonders will enhance the wing’s mission with more than $7.5 million in new construction and renovation projects to include a cargo storage yard, Alpha Ramp upgrade and a Consolidated Communications Center, said Capt. Michael Freeman, 39th CES quality assurance flight commander.

The $730,000 cargo storage yard will create one consolidated cargo pallet yard for the storage of 500 pallets to support Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom cargo hub operation. This will increase the cargo hub capacity and allow for a consolidated yard that allows the 728th AMS to better manage the cargo. It will also allow us to use Hangars 4 and 5 for other function besides storing pallets, said Capt. Aaron Scheer, 728th Air Mobility Squadron’s aerial port flight.

The $1.2 million Alpha Ramp Upgrade will replace asphalt circles with concrete thereby eliminating parking and taxiing safety hazards for C-17 Globemaster IIIs and other wide-body aircraft. This upgrade alleviates a safety hazard and will make it easier for the airfield operations folks to park wide body planes on the Apron, said Captain Freeman.

Construction of a $5.7 million Consolidated Communications Center will begin in fiscal year 2006 and will encompass 36,844 square feet of space for base communications consolidating technical and network control centers, the central telephone office and maintenance/administrative functions. Located west of the 10th Tanker Command Headquarters and northwest of Building 833, groundbreaking on the massive new building will begin in the fall.

Mission-essential buildings and projects are not the only construction happenings on base this year as all four housing areas will receive face-lifts to improve Team Incirlik member’s quality of life.

The Eagle Housing construction will cost approximately $20.7 million and will see the demolition of 150 substandard homes only to construct 100 four-bedroom homes, playgrounds, tennis courts and recreation areas in their place. This will increase the number of four-bedroom homes on base.

Phantom Housing will receive a $20.1 million renovation that will upgrade 235 units to modernize kitchens and bathrooms as well as convert some two-bedroom homes into three-bedroom homes and three-bedroom homes into four-bedroom homes.

In total, out of these 235 homes, the base will gain 43 four-bedroom homes and 21 three-bedroom homes, said Captain Freeman.

“So after both of these projects are complete sometime early in 2008 the base will gain 143 four-bedroom homes and 21 three-bedroom homes,” said Captain Freeman. “This is a huge quality of life issue because right now we do not have enough three- and four-bedroom homes here to support the demand. These two projects will end about the time we are scheduled to begin the next project in fiscal year 2008, which is the $40 million Phantom and Falcon renovation upgrading 425 Phantom and Falcon Housing units so that at the completion of all these projects all 850 Incirlik housing units will have been newly constructed or renovated.”

Herky Housing will also receive a face-lift as the 39th CES spends more than $3.7 million dollars during three phases of construction converting 50 family dwelling units into 100 unaccompanied officer quarters.

“We basically took the two-story units and made them into apartment-style living with one apartment on the first floor and one apartment on the second floor,” said Captain Freeman. “Phase one which turned the first 16 homes into 32 UOQs is finishing up this month and phase two is already funded and ready to start construction on the next 16 Herky units. These projects are eliminating the need to put unaccompanied officers into two-bedroom homes in Falcon.”