AL-UDEID AIR BASE, Qatar — American refueling planes rumble into the air from this desert air base around the clock to top off coalition aircraft bombing Islamic State militants, whether they’re Arab fighters flying out of regional bases or French warplanes catapulted off an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf.
The al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar is the regional nerve center for the air war against the militants who have taken over nearly a third of Iraq and Syria. That makes it the main hub for coordinating warplanes from the United States and 11 other nations in the coalition carrying out bombing raids.
While the United States is doing the heavy lifting in the airstrikes, American officials say the allies’ contributions are vital.
“This is dangerous stuff. This is not political theater,” said Lt. Col. David Haworth, chief of the current operations division for the Combined Air Operation Center.
“I don’t think what we are doing today would be even remotely possible without the coalition partners,” he told The Associated Press, making a rare media visit to the base. “To say that we want to or we are capable of going it alone I think would be a terrible mistake.”
The low-rise Combined Air Operation Center, packed with rows of computer terminals overseen by big-screen monitors, brings together officers from across the coalition to help share information and plan missions.
Intelligence gathered by coalition members helps give commanders a deeper understanding of how the Islamic State group operates on the ground, Haworth said. For example, at times its fighters mass together like a traditional army unit, while in other situations they behave more like guerrillas.
All information will be key in preparations for an eventual offensive by Iraqi troops and Kurdish fighters to retake the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, the biggest city under the extremists’ control.
“If they (the militants) want to try and reinforce, whether it’s Mosul or some other location, we want to make sure we’re ready,” Haworth said. “If they want to flee, we’ll want to make sure that we have that contingency covered as well.”
American planes in general hit more of what the military refers to as “dynamic” targets — ones that are not pre-planned — and a mobile insurgency like the Islamic State group makes for a lot of dynamic targets.
The Air Force estimates that half of all strikes in the battle stem from close air support for Iraqi ground forces. Another 30 percent involve hitting Islamic State militants traveling between Iraq and Syria.
Many coalition members, meanwhile, might drop multiple bombs on a single preset target, such as a militant-held compound or mobile oil refinery.
Since the bombing campaign began, American warplanes have handled 80 percent of the 2,780 airstrikes carried out as of Tuesday in Iraq and Syria, according to the most recent figures provided by the U.S. military.
Primarily Western allies including Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan and the Netherlands operate over Iraq, and have handled about three of every 10 airstrikes there.
The share of American strikes is even greater in Syria. There, Arab coalition members have conducted 93 airstrikes, compared with 1,137 by American aircraft. The countries operating alongside the U.S. over Syria include Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Part of the reason for the large American role in Syria comes down to the months-long battle for Kobani, where relentless pounding from the air helped Kurdish fighters fend off the Islamic State group’s offensive trying to take the town, on the border with Turkey.
Longer-range American aircraft like the swept-wing B-1 bombers that operate out of al-Udeid were particularly well-suited for that fight. They are able to spend hours over the battlefield loaded with up to 24 tons of bombs that can be used in multiple airstrikes.
Al-Udeid also hosts a forward headquarters for U.S. Central Command, which directs military operations throughout the region, including those ongoing in Afghanistan.
The base continues to grow: New ramp space to handle additional American aircraft opened just last month, and more dormitory buildings are being raised. A second runway is under construction.
