The 11th Engineering Specialties Regiment returns to Iraq

A contingent made up of 14 members of the 11th Engineering Regiment (11th REI by its Spanish acronym), with headquarters at the “General Arroquia” base in Salamanca, is travelling to the Spanish base “Gran Capitán” in Besmayah (Iraq). It is charged with improving the facilities used by the Spanish army units deployed in that country.

The first part of the contingent, which has already reached its destination, consists of a team specialised in water treatment. The rest of the unit, made up of a team of electricians and two members of the Engineers Command, will oversee the technical part of the works.

The main tasks of the engineers, who are led by Captain Rubén de la Cruz, will be water purification and replacing the temporary electrical installations with permanent structures. Both are important for the wellbeing of the Spanish soldiers deployed, currently members of the 6th Light Infantry Parachute Brigade “Almogávares”.

The 11th REI engineers will complete the task started by their colleagues of the Deployment Support Unit (UAD). The latter worked from February until July to erect a “small town” in this arid region. They built the base perimeter, points of access, observation towers, deposits to store hazardous material, living quarters and services (cafeteria, gym, telephone boxes…), as well as logistics and command and control areas.