Arriving BIAP

17 Oct Sunday – Checking into luxury accommodations in Iraq

I have not written in my blog since I arrived at Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) on 17 Oct. I flew from Ali Al Salem Air Force Base in Kuwait. We flew on a C130 Airplane.

The flights are not scheduled for the same time each day so no one knows exactly when they will take off or land at destination. I waited at the passenger terminal until they called my flight. I waited from about 4pm until 4am when we took off. A couple of flights before the one I was one were canceled. I arrived at Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) about 6 am on Sunday Oct 17. One of the guys from my office picked me up and drove me to my CHU where I will make my home for the next 12 months.

A CHU is a Containerized Housing Unit which is a shipping container with a hole cut for a door and another hole in the wall for the Air Conditioning Unit. The inside is lined with paneling for the walls and ceiling and square tiles for the floor.

I work in a data/tech center that is only a few blocks from where I live so I can go back and forth easily as needed.

I will have more to write about living on the base in the next few days.

All my best,

James

I could not take pictures of the airplane that I flew in so the pictures below are from the Internet. Soldiers and civilians flew on the same flight. The picture below of the inside seating arrangement is representative of how we sat when we flew.

C130 Aircraft

Below is a picture of the outside of the Chu where I am living.

Below is a picture of my bed inside the Chu where I live. Note the 50spf sun block, herbal tincture, David Baldacci book, ITouch, and phone.

Below is an inside picture of my room from the other end showing the desk and closet. Note the Yoga Mat and bag. There are two bedrooms inside the Chu. I have one bedroom and my Chu mate has the other bedroom.

All the building, living quarters, dining hall, gym, and offices are surrounded by T-Walls. T-Walls are large concrete walls that protect the building and people for explosives and shrapnel of incoming rockets and mortars. Also the windows of the buildings are covered with sand bags for the same reason. Below is a photo of T-Walls.