The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has paved the way in complex construction environments for almost a century. Shortly before World War II, Congress and the War Department approved the transfer of military construction responsibilities from an overtaxed Quartermaster Corps to the Corps of Engineers. The Transatlantic Division evolved from that original mission emerging as the Army Corps of Engineers’ tip of the spear when it comes to supporting the warfighter and promoting safety and stability throughout the Middle East and Central Asia. The history of how we evolved is as complex and rich with innovation as the support we provide.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division serves as USACE’s tip of the spear in one of the most dynamic construction environments in the world, STRENGTHENING PARTNERSHIPS, BUILDING CAPACITY, and ENHANCING SECURITY for our nation, allies, and partners. 

We SAFELY deliver agile, responsive, and innovative, design, construction, engineering and contingency solutions in support of U.S. Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command and other global partners to advance national security interests.

Our Evolution

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 Our History in the Region

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a rich history of support to the nation and its military forces in vital overseas regions. Corps of Engineers organizations have functioned in the Middle East and Africa since the early 1950s with one constant mission – to provide engineering design and construction management services to support U.S. policy and defense objectives overseas.

 1952-1976: Mediterranean Division

The Corps of Engineers was tapped to manage military construction projects in Turkey on behalf of the U.S. Air Force in 1952. The program expanded to include air base work in Libya, Saudi Arabia, and Morocco. As the U.S. government programmed aid to strengthen the military forces of select allies, the Corps of Engineers constructed military facilities in Pakistan and Iran. U.S. programs also provided economic assistance, resulting in non-military projects such as civilian air terminals in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Iran; a road system in Afghanistan; and port facilities in Somalia.

The mid-1960s brought projects in northeastern Africa and the NATO countries of Southern Europe. Projects were accomplished for the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, and the U.S. Agency for International Development, with work completed in Greece, Turkey, Italy, Ethiopia, Somalia, Libya, and Saudi Arabia.

The division became increasingly involved in Saudi Arabia, with design and construction of a countrywide black-and-white television system and a radio station complex. The Engineer Assistance Agreement, signed in 1965 between the U.S. and Saudi Arabian governments, allowed for the Corps of Engineers to assist the Kingdom with its military infrastructure development. This emerging work necessitated a major organizational change in the Corps of Engineers: military construction in the NATO countries of southern Europe was assigned to the Europe Division (formed in 1974), and a new division would replace the Mediterranean Division for the Saudi Arabian program.

 1976-1986: Middle East Division

The Middle East Division was activated on April 20, 1976. The division was organized to meet the demands of the growing Saudi Arabian-funded engineering and construction program. Its headquarters, with full division staff, was located in Riyadh, with these subordinate organizations:

• Three districts – Riyadh, Jeddah, and Al Batin – to supervise construction programs throughout the Kingdom.

• An Engineer Logistics Command, responsible for directing and coordinating all logistics activities.

• An Ordnance Program Division that worked with the Saudi Arabian Army Ordnance Corps in operating and maintaining its logistics systems for wheeled and tracked vehicles.

• And a rear echelon near Winchester, Virginia, to manage the large volume of design work and award contracts on behalf of the division headquarters and its districts.

The Army Corps of Engineers assisted the Saudi Arabian government with a $14 billion design and construction program that included military cantonments, headquarters complexes, housing, air bases, navy bases, port facilities, hospitals, military training centers and schools, and all associated utilities and roads. This construction formed a portion of the major infrastructure that supported U.S. military operations in Saudi Arabia during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in 1990-1991.

 1986-1991: Middle East/Africa Projects Office

As the program in Saudi Arabia drew to its expected closure, the Corps of Engineers reorganized to meet the changing workload. The rear echelon in Winchester evolved into a headquarters, serving customers throughout the Middle East and Africa. On September 30, 1986, the Middle East/Africa Projects Office (MEAPO) was formed as a district-level element of the South Atlantic Division.

MEAPO had a large geographic expanse. In Oman, it managed the design and construction of $300 million in facilities at four locations for use by the U.S. Air Force, with permission of the Sultanate.

Under the Defense Department’s foreign military sales program, the organization supervised projects that supported the defense forces of Egypt, Bahrain, and Kuwait, with smaller projects in Sudan and Liberia. Under a U.S. security assistance program, the Corps of Engineers supported the Africa Civic Action Program with technical and procurement services provided to host nation military forces engaging in beneficial projects for both military and civilian sectors of their populations.

Additionally, MEAPO served the Voice of America with its modernization program to upgrade broadcast stations overseas and the Department of Defense Dependents Schools with its worldwide asbestos abatement program. MEAPO was also instrumental in assisting Third U.S. Army with the development of the earliest LOGCAP (Logistics Civil Augmentation Program) service contracts and awarded the first package, for a petroleum distribution project in the Middle East.

Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm: Within days of Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990, MEAPO began its deployment to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, to provide design, construction, and real estate services to support U.S. forces.

Ultimately, the Corps of Engineers designed and constructed facilities totaling approximately $300 million and executed leases with private Saudi Arabian land owners and businesses totaling $135 million in annual rental fees.

 1991-1995: Transatlantic Division

Events in Europe and the Middle East prompted the Corps of Engineers to realign the overseas elements serving these regions. In February 1991, the Transatlantic Division was formed with its headquarters in Winchester, Virginia, multiple area and resident offices in the Middle East, and a single district – Europe – in Germany.

In addition to the engineering missions that had been managed by its predecessor, the first half of the decade brought several new programs to the Transatlantic Division:

• Assisting Kuwait’s government with its recovery operations after it was liberated from Iraq. Civil repairs totaling $330 million were made to electricity, water, and sanitary systems; public and state buildings, including the Parliament; and roads and transportation systems. Repairs were made to Kuwait’s two air bases, with that work valued at $131 million.

• Assisting with Operation Provide Comfort, providing engineering assistance for relief efforts to Kurdish refugees in Turkey and northern Iraq.

• Expanding its engineering support to U.S. Central Command, a major unified command, for its operations in the Middle East.

• Working in the former Soviet Union for programs ranging from embassy renovation to assisting with projects to reduce the threat of chemical and nuclear weapons.

• And developing, awarding, and administering the Army’s first worldwide Logistics Civil Augmentation Program contract from 1992-1997, used to provide logistics and engineering services to U.S. forces deployed to Somalia, Rwanda and Zaire, Haiti, the Middle East, Italy, and the Balkans.

In 1995, the Transatlantic Division was renamed the Transatlantic Programs Center as a result of division restructuring in the Corps of Engineers. An organizational change in 1998 reassigned Europe District to the North Atlantic Division.

 1995-2009: Transatlantic Programs Center

The Transatlantic Programs Center continued the operations of its predecessor. In the late 1990s, the Center assisted the U.S. Agency for International Development with construction projects in Kenya and Tanzania, and assisted the Defense Threat Reduction Agency and the Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy with designing and building a nuclear storage facility in the Ural Mountains.

As a result of the global war on terror, the Transatlantic Programs Center expanded its operations to meet the engineering requirements resulting from the troop buildup for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. In fall 2002, the Center initiated a program to build barracks and related facilities for graduating battalions of the Afghanistan National Army and concurrent established the Afghanistan Area Office, which later evolved into an independent district reporting to the Corps of Engineers headquarters. As the missions in Iraq and Afghanistan increased, the Center provided project management, technical, contracting, and business support services to the Gulf Region Division and its three districts in Iraq and to the Afghanistan Engineer District. It also established the USACE Deployment Center to prepare civilians for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Throughout this period, the Transatlantic Programs Center continued to provide engineering and construction services to U.S. Central Command and its component services; to other Defense Department customers; and to foreign defense forces and other U.S. government agencies. In early 2009 it completed construction of the King Abdullah II Special Operations Training Center, a state-of-the-art counterterrorism training facility designed to make the world a safer place.

 2009: Transatlantic Division HQ

The Transatlantic Division was established September 29, 2009, in Winchester, Virginia, to provide unity of command for all the USACE organizations working in the U.S. Central Command area of operations.

Before the division was established, three major USACE organizations operated in that theater: the Gulf Region Division in Baghdad, Iraq; the Afghanistan Engineer District in Kabul; and the Transatlantic Programs Center in Winchester.

When the Transatlantic Division was activated, the Gulf Region Division was disestablished (concurrently with a declining construction mission in Iraq) and its remaining districts assigned to the new Division: the Gulf Region District in Baghdad and the Gulf Region South District in Tallil. The Division inherited the Afghanistan Engineer District-North in Kabul; the newly created Afghanistan Engineer District-South in Kandahar; and the Middle East District (renamed from the Transatlantic Programs Center).

Since then, the Transatlantic Division’s structure has continued to evolve to meet its operational requirements. The Division now has two districts; the newly formed Transatlantic Expeditionary District and the enduring Transatlantic Middle East District.

 

 2009-2021: Afghanistan District

The Transatlantic Afghanistan District’s history began in October 2001, when the United States and its coalition partners sent military forces into Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). The operation’s objective was to displace the al-Qaeda terrorist organization, oust the Taliban government, and establish a new Afghan central government. 

Following the ouster of the Taliban government, the Office of Military Cooperation-Afghanistan requested the assistance of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to repair and construct Afghan National Army and National Police facilities. As a result, the USACE headquarters established the Afghanistan area office in Kabul in September 2002. 

USACE saw a significant increase in its military construction project workload, especially at Bagram Airfield (BAF) and Kandahar Airfield (KAF). This led to the establishment of the Afghanistan Engineer District (AED) on March 1, 2004, which reported directly to USACE headquarters. 

Increasing mission requirements let to the establishment of a second district, AED-South, in Kandahar, on August 3, 2009. The first district, headquartered in Kabul, was re-designated as AED-North. Both districts reported to the newly formed Transatlantic Division (TAD), located in Winchester, Virginia.

On July 9, 2013, AED-North and AED-South were merged to form the Transatlantic Afghanistan District (TAA), headquartered at Bagram Airfield, where TAA continued to execute USACE’s vital mission in Afghanistan.

Seven years later, on December 16, 2020, TAA’s command colors were cased at Bagram and transported to its new headquarters at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, where they were uncased on March 18, 2021, signifying the establishment of its new headquarters. On December 2018 the Secretary of the Army awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation Award to the Afghanistan District in recognition for their exceptional service in support of the Afghanistan nation during the period covering February 2015 to September 2017.

The Afghanistan District ultimately delivered hundreds of projects as part of a multi-billion dollar portfolio.

 2016-2019: Mosul Damn Task Force

After nearly three years in Iraq, the Mosul Dam Task Force (MDTF) declared “mission complete” on July 4, 2019. MDTF deployed to Mosul Dam in September 2016 at the request of the government of Iraq.

The dam was built on a foundation with a geology that continues to dissolve and after decades of conflict and deferred maintenance, the dam’s collapse loomed as a humanitarian crisis that threatened regional stability. The MDTF’s job was to serve as “the engineer,” providing engineering and technical expertise for a contract between the Iraqi government and Italian contractor to repair and stabilize the dam.

The accomplishments of the Mosul Dam Task Force changed Mosul Dam from being known as the “world’s most-dangerous dam” to a dam that saw its sixth-highest pool of record this past spring and showed no signs of distress. MDTF’s dedicated team of Soldiers, Department of Army civilians, and contractors, working side by side with private industry and Iraq’s Ministry of Water Resources, delivered the world’s largest dam safety drilling and grouting project. More importantly, the Mosul Dam Task Force ensured that almost 250 workers, technicians, and engineers completed an intense training program to develop their skills to properly maintain Mosul Dam in the future.

 2017-2020: Task Force Essayons

On 20 May 2017, the Transatlantic Division and its headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, published an order establishing Task Force Essayons (TFE) in response to ARCENT’s demand for projects in the CENTCOM joint area of operations.  The task force was placed under the operational control of ARCENT and under the tactical control of the Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR).  The CJTF-OIR was established in October 2014 to formalize ongoing military actions against the rising threat posed by ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

TFE’s mission was to directly support the warfighter, serving as “One door to the Corps” for all USACE activities supporting the CJTF-OIR.  To quickly respond to urgent project requirements, TFE developed innovative and agile methods of performance along five lines of effort: base Camp master planning, project management, engineering, construction, and environmental management. 

The Task Force was initially headquartered at Camp Taji, Iraq. However, as a result of Iranian missile attacks in March 2020, the Task Force was moved to Camp Arifjan, Kuwait where TFE had already established a footprint in order to better coordinate with the CJTF-OIR staff. Once the threat had sufficiently decreased, the task force returned to Iraq, relocating to Erbil Air Base due to the planned transfer of Camp Taji to the Iraqi government.  That summer, TFE’s headquarters was moved to Camp Arifjan, and project delivery platforms were established at Erbil and Al-Asad air bases.

At its peak, Task Force Essayons provided support to over 30 bases in Iraq and Syria.  It ultimately delivered over 300 projects with a total value OF more than $211 million.

 2021: Expeditionary District

Located in Kuwait, the Expeditionary District supports Operation Spartan Shield, Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve; and provided facilities in support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel. Prior to August 2021, the Expeditionary District also supported the NATO Resolute Support mission to train, advise, and assist Afghan National Defense and Security Forces.

Historical Missions

 Mosul Dam Task Force (2016-2019)

Mosul Dam – once called Saddam’s Dam – is the largest dam in the country of Iraq, with the capacity to hold 3 trillion gallons of water. Mosul Dam is built atop multiple layers of karstic limestone and gypsum that dissolves when exposed to water. This dissolution of the geologic formations under Mosul Dam has the potential to decrease the stability of the dam. Therefore, the dam’s designers included a 2.2 km gallery at the base of the dam to continuously inject grout (a mixture of cement, water and other materials) to fill voids created by the dissolution of gypsum. This grouting gallery is very unique feature in Mosul Dam’s design. 

Over the past 30 years as part of the dam’s operations the Government of Iraq’s Ministry of Water Resources has been conducting grouting operations from this gallery to maintain Mosul Dam’s stability. Without effective, continuous grouting, there is an extremely high risk of failure. A large, uncontrolled release of the reservoir down the Tigris River Valley could lead to catastrophic loss of life, economic impact, and infrastructure damage.

For several weeks in July and August 2014, during the Battle of Mosul, Islamic State of Iraq (ISIS) terrorists held Mosul Dam and maintenance on the dam was deferred due to security concerns. Erosion and destabilization of the dam’s foundation caused by the stoppage of the grouting operations led the Government of Iraq (GoI) to sign a contract in March 2016 with Italian Company Trevi S.p.A. to provide maintenance grouting and rehabilitation of the bottom outlet of the Mosul Dam. The Italian government sent in troops from the Italian army’s Task Force Praesidium to provide security at the dam site.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was hired by the GoI to act as “The Engineer” for the Mosul Dam project. Men and women of the USACE Mosul Dam Task Force began arriving at Mosul Dam in September 2016 to provide construction management, quality assurance, engineering and technical oversight and project management services in connection with the contract between Iraq and Trevi

USACE’s efforts were completely financed by the U.S. Government (USG) with a combination of Department of State (DoS) and Department of Defense (DoD) funds. USACE has had personnel on site to perform its Engineering function, augmented by a team of geotechnical engineers and geologists via a contract with AECOM and a team of engineers and construction quality assurance representatives via a contract with Versar, a local Iraqi engineering firm. In addition to the onsite presence USACE established a cadre of professionals to support the project from multiple USACE districts.  

The stabilization and repair operation for the Mosul Dam has truly been a collaboration; a multinational partnership among the USG, GoI, and Italy. The overall partnership between the U.S. Government, the Italian Government, and the Government of Iraq was the backbone for the overall success. Without all three diplomatic teams working together to outline the scope of the project, secure the appropriate agreements for the timelines, and lay out the funding, this project would have taken much longer and not been nearly as successful. 

The work performed on the dam stretched across three lines of effort: 

  • Improving the stability of Mosul Dam’s geologic foundation.    
  • Improving [or providing] the infrastructure needed to operate and maintain the dam– grout mixing plants, IT networks, modern drilling and pressurized grouting equipment, and warehouses stocked with repair parts and grout mix.
  • Developing capacity by providing a trained and able workforce integrated across the spectrum of requirements, from dam safety, to technology, to maintenance.

Over 40,000 cubic meters of grout have been pumped into the geology under the dam during the past three years. In the previous 30+ years the MoWR has placed 63,000 cubic meters of grout. Additionally, more than 500 instruments have been installed/replaced on the dam. These instruments are automated so near real time measurements of the dam can be monitored for changes.

Operating and maintaining Mosul Dam has and continues to be the responsibility of the MoWR. The MoWR has a strong team of dedicated and capable professionals who have maintained the dam for more than 30 years with the equipment, technology and resources they had available. Through the MoWR-Trevi contract and USACE’s Engineering oversight, the MoWR has modern equipment and methods that allow its trained staff to identify and mitigate problems faster and more efficiently than in the past.

Through its partnership with the U.S. Government and Trevi, the Ministry of Water Resources has received an instrumentation-informed, well-equipped and highly trained MoWR team, capable of maintaining a more stable Mosul Dam for the people of Iraq.

 NATO'S OPERATION RESOLUTE SUPPORT (2015-2021)

(Under construction)

 Task Force Essayons (2017-2021)

(Under construction)

Mosul Dam Task Force Historical Photos (2016-2019)

Brig. Gen. Susan Henderson, director of Logistics for the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, overlooks the Mosul Dam in Iraq. Henderson toured the dam and visited with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mosul Dam Task Force on Feb. 26, 2019.
Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, and members of the Government of Iraq celebrate the completion of the Mosul Dam Task Force mission in Iraq by holding up the MDTF Mission Flag on the banks of the Tigris River in front of the dam.
The Mosul Dam, with its the hydropower plant and four water storage towers, sits in a valley along the Tigris River approximately 30 miles outside Mosul City in Iraq. The dam is the largest in Iraq, and the fourth largest in the Middle East. It supplies water, hydropower, irrigation and flood control to the region.
Mosul Dam, with its the hydropower plant and four water storage towers, sits in a valley along the Tigris River 30 miles outside Mosul City in Iraq.. It is the largest dam in Iraq, and the fourth largest in the Middle East and supplies water, hydropower, irrigation and flood control to the region.
The gates on the Mosul Dam spillway that are used to release water from the reservoir, which holds billions of gallons of water. It is the largest dam in Iraq, and the fourth largest in the Middle East and supplies water, hydropower, irrigation and flood control to the region.
Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division's Task Force Mosul Dam, headquartered in Iraq, pose in front of their building.
Mosul Dam, with its the hydropower plant and four water storage towers, sits in a valley along the Tigris River 30 miles outside Mosul City in Iraq.. It is the largest dam in Iraq, and the fourth largest in the Middle East and supplies water, hydropower, irrigation and flood control to the region.
Iraq Computer Engineer Abdulrahman Alnuiami inside the grout tunnel at Mosul Dam. Alnuiami monitors the Automated Data System that permits remote 24/7 monitoring of the dam, using more than 800 devices that gage water elevations, water pressures, quality and flow rates, and surface displacement.
The Governments of Iraq, Italy, and the U.S. have combined their efforts to stabilize Mosul Dam, the largest earthen dam in Iraq and the fourth largest in the Middle East. The dam provides water supply, irrigation, flood control, and hydro-power for the people of Iraq along the Tigris River Valley.
Members of the Mosul Dam Task Force exit a Ministry of Water Resources building at the Mosul Dam. With its the hydropower plant and four water storage towers, Mosul Dam supplies water, hydropower, irrigation and flood control to the region.

The Transatlantic Division was established September 29, 2009, in Winchester, Virginia, to provide unity of command for all the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' organizations working in the U.S. Central Command area of operations.

Before the Transatlantic Division was established, three major Army Corps of Engineers' organizations operated in that theater: the Gulf Region Division in Baghdad, Iraq; the Afghanistan Engineer District in Kabul; and the Transatlantic Programs Center in Winchester.

When the Transatlantic Division was activated, the Gulf Region Division was disestablished and its remaining districts assigned to the new Division: the Gulf Region District in Baghdad and the Gulf Region South District in Tallil. The Division inherited the Afghanistan Engineer District-North in Kabul; the newly created Afghanistan Engineer District-South in Kandahar; and the Middle East District (renamed from the Transatlantic Programs Center).

The Transatlantic Division’s structure continues to evolve to meet its operational requirements. The Division currently has two districts; the newly formed Transatlantic Expeditionary District and the enduring Transatlantic Middle East District.

Related Historical Information

Today

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a very rich history of support to our nation with more than 240 years of engineering experience. The Transatlantic Division, located in Winchester, Virginia, is the Army Corps of Engineers’ ninth major subordinate command. The Transatlantic Division stood-up for a second time on September 29, 2009.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transatlantic Division provides construction, engineering and project management support of the U.S. Central Command, a Unified Combatant Command within the Department of Defense. USCENTCOM’s area of responsibility includes countries in the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia, including Afghanistan and Iraq.

Overseeing thousands of Army Corps of Engineers projects, the Transatlantic Division also supports the full spectrum of regional support including United States and Coalition Forces, all U.S. partners and allies, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Foreign Military Sales and traditional MILCON, FSRM and engineering services.

The Transatlantic Division's area of responsibility is now the second largest Global Combatant Command for the United States which is very strategic to National Security and global competition. It has one subordinate contingency district in Kuwait, the Expeditionary District, and one enduring district, the Middle East District, co-located with the Division headquarters in Winchester, Virginia.

Ever-evolving to meet the Department of Defense’s needs, the Transatlantic Division was originally comprised of the Division headquarters, the Transatlantic Middle East District, the Transatlantic Afghanistan District, which cased it’s colors after 18 years, and Task Force Essayons. In 2021, the Afghanistan District combined with Task Force Essayons to become the Transatlantic Expeditionary District. Today, the Division and its two districts continue to provide responsive, relevant expeditionary engineering capabilities as part of the Army Corps of Engineers' Team.