Incirlik has power again, but Turkey mission faces uncertain future

The power is back on at Incirlik Air Base,Turkey, after almost a week in the dark, but what the future holds for airmen and aircraft at the base remains unclear as Turkey convulses following a failed coup.

U.S. European Command on Friday reassured that with close cooperation with the Turkish military, Incirlik will remain fully prepared “to take on a myriad of missions as we work together to defeat terrorism,” the command said in a statement. "Should the power be interrupted again," the base still has access to "backup generator power," the statement said.

Hours after the coup attempt erupted last week, officials assured partners and allies in the fight against the Islamic State group that operations would not cease but instead aircraft would fly from other parts of the region.

“There was a slight decrease in sorties flown July 16-19 at Incirlik for counter-Daesh missions,” Air Force Lt. Col. Chris Karns told Military Times in an email on July 21, using an alternative Arabic name for the Islamic State group. “However, use of other assets occurred in theater to meet mission need. Other aircraft, at other locations, were able to ensure strikes against Daesh continued and ensure the necessary support in places required."

Flight hours for the A-10 close-air support attack aircraft, normally stationed at Incirlik, were down the last few days, which is to be expected “given the circumstances,” Karns said. “The F-16, F-15E, and B-52 each had an uptick in flying hours during the period of July 10-20." He said that these aircraft helped offset the temporary decrease in A-10 flying hours.

Shutting part of the facility down in no doubt has had impact “on our operations,” said retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Ralph Jodice. The former commander of NATO Allied Air Command in Izmir, Turkey, is now a NATO senior military adviser teaching young officers how to plan for NATO combat and humanitarian relief operations.

"And not just for airstrikes, but also as a key hub for airlift operations," he added. “Geostrategically and geopolitically, it’s an extremely important base and location, and not just now — that goes all the way back into the Cold War ... and being a long-term NATO ally."

Priority missions

When air operations resumed last Sunday, the KC-135 refueling tanker and the MQ-1 Predator were the first aircraft to take off from Incirlik.

“The Defense Department needs to continue to have dialogue with Turkey, the Turkish military, and at the political level, because this has been a political decision to shut down places like Incirlik,” Jodice told Military Times on July 21. “They are an ally, and as military forces [we] have maintained a strong relationship.” Jodice stressed that Incirlik is not only important to U.S. service members but also the Turks given that they operate part of the base as well.
As of July 21, only about 100 dependents remain at Incirlik Air Base, an Air Force official told Military Times. However, the dependents are mission-critical spouses who also happen to work at Incirlik as civilians, the official said. “They wouldn't be there if they were not needed,” the official said.

The Air Force announced in January 2014 that roughly 60 open assignments would “be 24-month tours, regardless of accompanied status.” The purpose of the tour extension was for “priority level one” missions — those that have the highest security requirements, Maj. Gerardo Gonzalez, a spokesman at U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa, said in an email at the time. The new assignment adjustment came only a few months before the U.S. began its air campaign against ISIS, where Incirlik would soon come to play a key role in the air war.

In 2015, security concerns caused top brass to restrict troops from traveling beyond a small area outside the base, and spouses were given the chance to voluntarily leave the base. But this year — following a February car bomb in Turkey’s capital and growing threats against Incirlik itself — the voluntary exodus of family and dependents became mandatory. All dependents not in a mission-critical role had left Incirlik in March, the official said.

It is unclear whether those who rotate to Incirlik in the future will be allowed to take their families with them because the situation remains so fluid. It is likely, the official said, the Defense Department will spearhead a new policy in the next few weeks given the circumstances.

Jodice also said the turmoil likely will affect the International Military Education and Training, or IMET, program the U.S. maintains with Turkey — the second largest IMET program the U.S has with a foreign nation after Jordan, according to the State Department.

“From an Air Force perspective,” Jodice said, “take a look at our air pilot training program. They train pilots at almost two classes a year at Çiğli Air Base, right on the outskirts of Izmir. That pilot training program is almost a mirror image of our pilot training program."