DELTAFORCEINAFGHANISTAN

MICHAELMOORE

MichaelMoorehasassertedhisrightsundertheCopyright,DesignandPatentsAct,

1988,tobeidentifiedastheauthorofthiswork.PublishedbyDigitalDreamsPublishing

2016.

Contents

Foreword

Since its first ill-fated Desert Claw mission in 1979. Delta have displayed a range of

skillsandlevelsofpersonalcouragethathavenotonlymadethemtheenvyoftheworld.

But, they have also delivered spectacular results some known and some unknown. In

recentyears,Deltahasbeenattheheartofavast,ifhidden,globalwaronterrorwagedby

America’s special operation forces. In the midst of a run of almost endless operational

achievements. The full story when it eventually comes to light, may be regarded as

unparalleledinmodernmilitaryhistory.Forthepastdecade,DeltaForce’sactivitieshave

mostlybeendetailedthroughmoreoftenthannotvagueorpartialstoriesfromavarietyof

sources.However,asimperfectasopensourceinformationmaybe.Oncepiecedtogether

it gives a good overview of the operations of unprecedented scope and scale. Delta

squadronswereoriginallydeployedtoAfghanistanunder‘OperationEnduringFreedom’

in2001tooverthrowtheTaliban,aspartoftheglobalwaronterrororGWOT.Theyalso

playedalargepartinthesecondIraqwarandthehuntingdownofkeyfiguresfromthe

IraqiregimeincludingSaddamHussein.

TheresurgenceoftheTalibanmayleadtofurtherforcesneedingtoberedeployedinthe

longer term. They are part of dismantling, in what U.S. General David Petraeus, the

former NATO commander, has described as “an industrial-strength insurgency”. This

bookisbasedonrealoperationsundertakenbyDelta,andsomejointoperationswiththe

BritishSASandU.S.NavySEALs.

PostToraBoraalargecontingentofal-QaedafightersregroupedintheShahi-KotValley

inearly2002whichwouldleadtoOperationAnacondaajointmissionwithconventional

forces, airpower and with SEAL Team Six. Delta would play a pivotal role in this

operation alongside conventional and Special Forces from multiple nations. Delta’s role

was as an AFO (Advanced Forward Operations) led by Col Pete Blaber a Delta officer.

TheAFOteamsundertookspecialreconnaissanceaheadofthemainassaultandcalledin

air strikes as the battle raged against around 1000 fighters. Delta gained valuable

experience stealthily ascending the frozen mountain ridge lines in thigh deep snow

undetected, high about the Shai-Kot Valley. Delta had two AFO teams operating in the

Shai-KotValleyJulietandIndia.AlongwithSealTeamSixMako30,theseteamswereto

take up observation posts on the North and South of the Valley. Mako 31, a SEAL

reconnaissance element from SEAL Teams 2 and 3, was tasked to set up an observation

postonthe‘Finger’,allowingreconnaissanceoftheRakkasanlandingzones.Twoteams

consisting of Juliet (Delta) and Mako 31 (Seal Team Six), went in on foot braving the

harshcoldmountainousenvironmenttocompletetheirmission.

ChapterOne–Takedown

Afghanistan2009

Anothernightandanothertypicaltakedown-wehadgotourselvesupat1530hoursto

getourselvespreparedforthenight’soperation.Theplanandthetargetchangedatleast

three times before we were due to go. Much to the annoyance of us and the supporting

aircrew tasked with getting us in and out. We set off in the early evening darkness in a

Pave Hawk with two Apaches providing top cover. It was about 80-mile journey to the

target area some 40 miles from Laskar Gah in Helmand province. It was a very hot

locationintermsofenemyactivity.Weallknewwouldallneedtobeonourtoesandout

thesideofthePaveHawk.AswegotincloseandIlookedoutofthewindow,Icouldsee

tracer fire coming up from the Taliban fighters below. Our target tonight was another

intelligence officer, which was part of a much larger CIA effort targeting terrorism

working alongside the British Mi6. There are strong links between Al-Qaeda and the

Taliban. Fighters from across the world have joined the Taliban as part of their Jihad

(religious duty) to help drive the allied forces out of Afghanistan. Delta, along with the

restoftheSF(SpecialForces)inAfghanistanareprimetargetsfortheTalibantokill;their

hatredofuswasmuchhigherthantheaveragesoldierandasourceofpropagandatokill

oneofus.

Themissionwasallabouttryingtofindoutfurtherinformationregardingthepipelineof

foreign fighters into Afghanistan. Many fighters came across the Pakistan border to the

frontlineinAfghanistan.BSquadronwhohadbeeninAfghanistanpriortousandfound

someoftheseraidsverydifficult,onmanyoccasionsastheyapproachedthetargetlocals

hadspottedthem,usinganythingtheycouldfindtomakeanoisetoalerttheTalibanof

theirpresence.Thisledtoahardassault,withtheTalibannowalertedandfiringassault

riflesatBSquadronfromonlyafewfeet,inwhatbecameveryshort-rangefirefight.

Quickthinkingwasessential-youhadtothinkandfireprettymuchatthesametimeor

beshot.Wehavetriedtoblendinoftenbydisguisingourselvesaslocals.Byblendingin

andchoosingthecorrecttimeanddaytoperformanassaulthelpedusbecomemuchmore

covert. On a couple of occasions, we did not even get to fire a single round - getting in

makingahardarrest,beforegettingoutwithoutanyoneknowing.

Tonightwassimilarfair,althoughRangersandaSEALteamwereonhandtosupportus.

Resistancewasexpectedtobehighonthisassault.TheTalibanherehadamixtureoflight

andheavyweaponsalongwithRPGs.ThisparticulartargethadbeentrackedbytheCIA

for some months know including various moves around the globe to Pakistan and other

Arabcountries.

Intotal,therewaseightDeltaoperatorsinvolvedinthisassaultalongwithaSEALteam

andAmericanfiresupportintheformofseveralBradleytanksandanAC-130Spookyon

station to both observe and offer fire support if required. There was a mutual respect

between the SF forces, if a little rivalry when it came down to individual missions. The

American planners do hold Delta Force in high esteem, we have proven time and time

againtogetthejobdoneandareeverybitasgoodasSEALTeamSix.Theyknowweare

a highly skilled and capable force. Although, politics do enter into who gets what

missions, with SEAL Team Six and not Delta getting to capture Osman bin Laden in

Pakistan.

The assault tonight was made slightly more complex due to a minefield in some open

groundjusttotheleftofthecompound.Thismeantthattheassaultoptionswerenarrowed

andwouldneedtoalmostzigzaguptotheobjective.

ThePaveHawkcamedownsteeplybeforesettlingonthedeckbeforeweallrandown

therampintothehelicoptersdownwash.Thefirstprioritywastofindsomecoverbefore

the Pave Hawk took off again and silence descended on our LZ. Via the net the SEAL

team was already in their FUP (Forming Up Point) and the C-130 Spooky on station

gatheringintelligenceandactingasan‘overwatch’forallthegroundforces.

WemadeourwaytoourownFUP,fromwherewewouldlaunchtheattack.TheSEAL

teamwasactingasspottersandwouldalsocaptureanyonetryingtofleethecompound.

Aswegottoabout200metresfromtheobjective,weheldfirmforashortperiodoftime-

to get eyes on the target and formulate a final plan. We would then break up into two

patrolsoffourandmoveonthecompoundfromtwodifferentangles.

ThepatrolIwaswith,wouldgofromtherightandtheotherteamcircledroundtothe

left,circumventingtheminefieldbeforemovingontothecompound.Itwasadarkstarless

night, which helped with us being covert, at the same time, made it harder for us to see

evenwiththehelpofnightvisiongoggles.Nightvisiongogglesaregreat,buttheydorob

someofyourperipheralvision.

As we moved in an explosion and hysterical screams suddenly interrupted the silence.

OneDeltaOperatorinanotherpatrolhadwalkedintoasmallgroupoftreesandstepped

on an IED. It had blown one of his lower limb clean off and alerted the Taliban to our

presence. We now had a man down - lying critically injured with the potential for other

IEDsplantedassecondarydevicestofurthermaimorkillrescuers.

The SEAL team sprang into action and made their way to where the injured Delta

operative was. We started to return fire at the Taliban firing from the roof, the AC-130

Spooky then opened up its GAU-12/U Equalizer which is a is a five-barrel 25 mm

Gatling-type rotary cannon. These cannons can also be found mounted on fighter jets,

suchastheAV-8BHarrierIIandotherland-basedfightingvehicles.

ItmadelightworkoftheTalibanontheroofandsuppressedthefireenoughforustoget

closer.Regardlessofhaving,amandownwehadamissionandanobjectivetocomplete.

Chris could still be heard groaning, but to get to him out the area would need to be

searchedforanymoreminesorIEDs-beforeanyrescuecouldbeundertaken.

Now only a few metres from the compound, the Spooky above was still giving bursts

from its GAU-12, causing small dust clouds as the bullets hit the compound roof and

walls.Weorderedittostanddowntoensuretherewasnoblueonblue.Whichmeantit

wouldnowbedowntous,todoaroom-by-roomclearance.

Initially there was no resistance and no one to be found - we cleared each room and

foundnothing.Roombyroomclearanceisahighlyspecialistskillsandeachspecialforce

hasitsownmethod.Ourmethodwastobreachthedoor,firstmanthrowsinaflashbang,

turnsleftandfollowsthewallshootingtargets,nextmanentersandshootsatthetargets

turnsleftfollowingthefirstman,thenthethirdmanentersanddoesthesame.Theideais

that as the first man enters and moves the hostage takers will have eyes on them, and

possiblythesecondpersonintotheroom.Thethirdandfourthmanwillenterunnoticed

witharcsoffirethatcoverallareas,wewillthendominatetheroom.Eachshotisashoot

tokillheadshot.Everyoneshouldthenendupinthefarcorneroftheroomwithallbad

guysneutralizedAllofthishadtobeahighlyco-ordinatedandrapidfiringmanoeuvre,all

overinafewseconds.Thisiswheretheabilitytoshootquicklyandaccuratelycameinto

play. All the rooms were empty any resistance had been neutralized on the roof by the

Spooky. Finally, we made it to the compound roof. It was littered with several blood

stained bodies. Large calibre rounds had blown holes in torsos and ripped heads apart.

Onefighterhadtherearhalfofhisheadandmostofhisskullmissingandisfacelooked

likeahighqualitylatexmaskcoveredinblood.Ourintendedtargetmusthavefledprior

to our arrival. All that had been left was a small group of dead fighters with no real

intelligence value. Any intelligence they may of had had been taken with them to the

grave.

We found a few IEDs and some RPGs, but nothing of any great intelligence use. With

the compound secure, a rescue could start for Chris - getting him out of his current

locationbeforehebledtodeath.Thestrangepartaboutblownofflimbsisthattheydonot

always bleed as expected, and they tended to just ooze blood more often than not. The

oozingisenoughifnotgivenmedicalattentiontoleadtoshockandpossiblydeath.Shock

isthebiggestkillerafteranymajortrauma;thisiswhythe‘goldenhour’issoimportant.

The Golden hour is a reference to the time period lasting from a few minutes to several

hoursfollowingtraumaticinjurybeingsustainedbyacasualty,duringwhichthereisthe

highest likelihood that prompt medical treatment will prevent death. The sooner we can

getthembacktoamedicalfacilitythebetterhischancesofsurvival.

Tocheckforminesitwasacaseofusingametaldetector.Itwasaslowprocessandwith

eachsectioncleared.Minetapewasplacedeithersideofthetracktoindicateasafearea

towalk.IttooknearlyanhourtogettoChris,whobynowwassemi-conscious.Thenext

issuewasgettingChrisoutandbackdownthenarrowtrackbetweentheminetape.

Chris was a well built and heavy lad, dragging him out was not really an option, he

needed to be carried out on a makeshift stretcher that the SEAL team had cobbled

together.TheSEALteamevenofferedtogoandgethim,whilstwegotreadytomoveout

toanewextractionpointthatwouldtakeusandChrisout.IttookthreeoftheSEALteam

nearly 20 minutes to stabilise and get Chris away from the minefield. With Chris out

myselfandfourotherstookupstretcherdutyandmadeoutwaytotheextractionpoint.

Minusaleg,Chrismadeafullrecoveryinhospital.Hewasoneofthoseguysthatcould

bounce back from anything. Even losing a limb did not stop him running, and even

enteringacoupleofmarathons12monthsafterhewasinjured.Anexampletousallofa

trueAmericanheroandthehumanspirittoovercomeadversity.

ChapterTwo–ToraBora

Afghanistan2001

Overpreparationisagiftinanidealworld,althoughoperationallythatisnotalwaysthe

case.Intelligencecanchangebytheminute;afirefightcanchangeinseconds.Allthese

arethingsthatDeltaoperatorstrainandpreparefor,evenifimprovisationisallthatyou

haveleftinatacticalsituation.SomethingDeltahasquicklybecomeadeptatsinceits

inception.Post9/11JSOCs(JointSpecialOperationsCommand)budget,capabilitiesand

thecollectionofunitshasrisenexponentially.Delta,alongwithotherSpecialForceshave

foundthemselvesinalmostconstantdemandsince9/11.Despitemanydifferentmission

proposalsandworkuptraining,priorto9/11.NeitherDeltaorSEALTeamSixweresent

intohuntdownterroristsasthenumberofattacksonAmericabegantomount.Thiswas

downtoanoutdatedmilitarymind-setandrisk-aversion.Theirviewssawterroristas

criminalsandthemilitarywasfocusedmoreonfightingamuchmorehi-techenemy

harkingbacktothecoldwar.Following9/11Deltawasnevergiventheordertofindand

capture/killbinLadenandhiskeypersonnel.

AstheCIAputtogetherOperationJawbreaker–thefirstadvancedteamofofficerssent

intoAfghanistanjustweeksafter9/11.TheCIArequestedDeltaForceoperators

accompanythem.However,thiswasdenieddespiteDelta’seagernesstobedeployed.A

generalconfusionovertheexactassignmentsforthevariousSOCOM(UnitedStates

SpecialOperationsCommand)unitswastheissuealongwiththelackofCSAR(Combat

SearchandRescue)intheintendedareaofoperations.Allthisresultedinthe‘mission’

beingdeemedas“toodangerous”bymilitaryleaders.

Itwouldbemorethantwomonthsafter9/11thatDeltaForceBSquadrongottasked

withraiding-whatwasbelievedtobeanabandonedresidenceofMullahMohammed

OmartheTaliban’sspiritualleader.Itwasplannedasanoperationthatcouldbefilmedto

aidinfuturepsychologicaloperations,ratherthantocatchOmar.

Although,itmaywellhaveendeduphavingthereverseeffect.Deltawalkedintoan

ambushasopposedtoan‘emptyhole.’Twelveoperatorswereinjured,threeofthosequite

seriouslyastheoperatorscameundereffectiveRPGfireastheytriedtogather

intelligencefromtheobjective.Although,theactualambushhasbeendisputedbyother

sources.Thisapparentambushwouldthenfeedamore“gunshy”attitudetowardsthe

GlobalWaronTerrorismbycommanders.ThismeantthatatToraBoratwomonthsafter

theraidonOmar,aheavyresponsibilitywasputunfairlyontheshouldersofAfghan

Allies.

TheWarinAfghanistan,alsoknownastheAfghanwar,beganonOctober7,2001.It

startedwhentheNorthernAllianceformedfromthearmedforcesoftheUnitedKingdom,

UnitedStatesofAmerica,Australia,andtheAfghanUnitedFront.Togethertheylaunched

OperationEnduringFreedom.TheattacksonSeptember11th,2001werethereal

precursor,theyshowedtheneedtoremovetheal-Qaedaterroristorganizationandendits

useofAfghanistanasabase.LocatingOsamabinLaden,whowasreportedtobein

Afghanistan,wasanotherreasonforthewarinAfghanistan.Thehuntforal-Qaedawas

continuinginearnestinAfghanistanduringtheopeningstagesoftheAfghanWarin2001.

IntheopeningmonthsoftheAfghanistanwar,twoDeltasquadronsrotatedintothe

countrybeforeanyofthenowfamousSEALTeamSixsquadronhadbeensentin.Even

thenDeltaoperatorsweresomewhatdumbfoundedthatthey’dbeenforcedtosharetheir

newstagewithSEALTeamSix.ThiswasevenbeforeallthreeofDelta’ssquadronshad

takenaturnandlatertheadditionofafourthsquadron.AswiththeBritishSAS,thereisa

hugedegreeofmutualrespectsharedbetweentheoperatorsofDeltaForceandtheir

NavalcounterpartsatSEALTeamSix.However,theirrivalryisevenmorepronounced,as

theyareindirectcompetitionnotonlyforbraggingrightsbutveryrealthingssuchas

resources,budgets,andassignments.SomeassignmentssuchastheoneforbinLadenor

SaddamHusseinareprizedmorethanothersastheybringtruenotorietyforthose

involvedinsuchmissions.Notforgettingpromotionsfortheplannersifsuccessful.

ToraBorawasreportedtobealargebase;intelligencehaditasanenormousfortress.

Themediamadeitouttobeanimpregnablecavefortresshousing2000mencomplete

withahospital,ahydroelectricpowerplant,offices,ahotel,armsandammunitionstores,

roadslargeenoughtodriveatankinto,andelaboratetunnelandventilationsystems.The

actualitywasverydifferent-theBattleofToraBoraranfrom12December2001to17

December2001.ItwasbelievedthatOsamabinLadenwashidingoutinToraBoraand

therewasalsoalargearmscachethere,whichincludeddeadlystingermissilesthathad

theAmericanshadsuppliedduringthewaragainsttheRussians.Stingermissilesare

highlyaccurategroundtoairmissilesandwouldposearealthreatagainstalliedaircraft.

AlthoughtobeabletousetheseStingersabatterybackisrequiredwithmanyduetotheir

relativelyshortshelflifewouldnolongerbeoperational.AnattackonToraBorawas

givenhighpriorityduringtheearlystagesoftheAfghanWar.

ToraBoraitselfisacavecomplexsituatedintheWhiteMountainsofeastern

Afghanistan,neartheKhyberPass.ThePashtomeaningofToraBorais“blackdust”or

“blackwidow”.Duringtheearly1980’sCIAagentshadactuallyassistedthemujahedinin

shoringupandextendingthecaves.ThiswasfortheMujahedeentohideoutinduringthe

Sovietoccupation.Theywereidealhideoutsandstagingpoststousetomountattacks

fromandstoreweaponsandsuppliesin.Manyofthecaveshavebeenusedforcenturies,

asdefensivepositionsduringvariouswarsandbattlesinAfghanistan.ABritishjournalist

AbdelhadmetOsamabinLadenatToraBorain1996andhiswordswerethatbin-Laden

waslivingina“humblecavewithbasicheatingequipment.”

On3December2001agroupofCIAandSpecialForceswiththeCodename

‘Jawbreaker’wasdroppedintoJalalabad,Afghanistanbyhelicoptertobeginanoperation

againstAl-QaedaintheToraBoraregion.TheNorthernAlliancemanagedtogaincontrol

ofthelowgroundbelowthemountainsweretheal-Qaedafighterswereholedup.The

Jawbreakerteamcalledinairstrikesandtheseairstrikespushedal-Qaedafurtherupthe

mountainsintomoredefensiveandfortifiedpositions.Aweeklater70Deltaoperatives

turnedup,theseweresupplementedwithSASandU.S.NavySEALs.TheSASwould

seesomefiercehandtohandcombattothedeathinsomeoftheToraBoracaves.Delta

wouldparticipateinsomeofthemostferociousfirefightstheywouldfoundthemselvesin

duringtheAfghanWar.

SpecialForceswereusedtomarkouttargetsfortheairstrikeswhichbecamedeadly

accurate.Manyofthebombshittingexactlythesamespottwice-forcingal-Qaeda

fightersfurtherintothecavestoseekshelter.Theareahadthelargestconcentrationofal-

Qaedafightersofthewar,andtheyenduredrelentlesspoundingbyAmericanaircraft,as

manyas100airstrikesaday.One15,000-poundbombknownasthe‘DaisyCutter’or

‘BLU-82’wasdroppedfromtherearofaC130.TheBLU-82wasusedupuntil2008

whenitwasreplacedwiththeGBU-43/BMOAB(MassiveOrdnanceAirBlastbomb).

ItwasfourdaysbeforethefallofKabulinNovember2001,binLadenwasstillin

Afghanistan.Theal-Qaedaleader’smovementsbeforeandafterSeptember11hadbeen

difficulttotrackprecisely.JustpriortotheattacksbinLadenhadappearedinKandahar

andurgedhisfollowerstoevacuatetosaferlocationsalltooawareAmericawaslooking

forretributionandcaptureofbinLaden.

KabulfellintocoalitionhandsonNovember12-binLaden,alongwithotheral-Qaeda

leaders,fledtoJalalabad,asmallcityineasternAfghanistan.BinLadenwasbeingclosely

trackedbyCIAofficerGaryBerntsen.ByNovember14,Berntsenwasreceivingastream

ofintelligencereportsfromtheNorthernAlliancethatthebin-LadenwasinJalalabad,

givingpeptalkstoanever-growingcaravanoffighters.BerntsenthendispatchedaCIA

teamtoJalalabad.TheCIAhadthreeteenagedfighterstoescorttheteamintoJalalabad,

whichwasnowcrawlingwithfleeingTalibanandal-Qaedafighters.binLadendidnot

stayinJalalabadforlongthough.AssoonasKabulfell,Jalalabaddescendedintochaos.

OnNovember17,binLadenandhistopdeputy,EgyptiansurgeonAymanAlZawahiri,

leftJalalabadandheadedabout30milessouth.TheirdestinationwasToraBoracaves.

BinLadenknewToraBorawell,hecrossedbackandforthbetweenPakistanand

AfghanistanduringtheSovietJihad.BinLadenusedbulldozersfromhisfamily’s

constructioncompanytobuildaroadthroughthemountains.Theroadwasconstructedto

allowforthemovementoffightersfrombinLaden’sbaseatJaji,nearthePakistani

border,toJalalabad,thenoccupiedbytheSoviets.BinLadenspentmorethansixmonths

buildingtheroad.

In1987binLadenengagedSovietforcesinabattleatJaji.binLadenjoinedabout50

otherArabfightersinmanagingtoholdoffamuchlargergroupofSovietsoldiers.Jaji

receivedconsiderableattentionintheArabworld,and,forthefirsttime,binLadenwas

widelyseennotasamerefinancierofjihadbutalsoasasuccessfulmilitarycommander.

Afteraweek,binLadenwasforcedtoretreatfromJaji.Butthebattlewasarguablya

resoundingvictoryforbinLaden.

DuringtheyearsleadinguptoSeptember11,binLadenmaintainedamountainretreatin

asettlementnearToraBoracalledMilawa.Thiswasathree-hourdriveupanarrowmud-

and-stoneroadfromJalalabad.Thebuildingsthatmadeupthesettlementwerestrung

acrossridgesthat,inwinter,laywayabovethesnowline,whichgaveamazingviews.The

complexhadaseriesofscatteredlookoutposts,abakery,andbinLaden’stwo-bedroom

house,allbuiltfromthetypicalmudandstoneconstructionthataboundsinAfghanistan.

binLadenevenhadabasicswimmingnexttohishouse.Thenearestvillagewas

thousandsoffeetbelow.

ToraBorawastoseeamassivebattlewithCoalitionforces,predominantlyAmerican

Forces.binLadenwasconvincedanattackwasimminentandspentfiveyearsmanning

positionsincasetheAmericansattacked.TheCIAatthesametimeremainedonbin

Laden’stailmovingtothefoothillsofToraBorawheretheyweretoldbyvarioussources

thatbinLadenwasinthearea.

TowardtheendofNovember2001,theCIAteamsplitintwo.Onehalfwouldhead

fartherintothemountainswithtenAfghanfightersasguides.Theteamalsonowincluded

anAirForcecombatcontrollerforcallinginairstrikes.TheyalsotookanLTD(laser

TargetDesignator)tomarktargetsforaircrafttolaydownlaserguidedbombs.Sadlydue

toanRPGbeingpoorlypackedonamule,theRPGignitedkillingthemuleandtwo

Afghanfighters,delayingthestartoftheexpedition.

Onceinposition,forthefollowing56hoursanAirForcecontrollercalledinairstrikes

fromvirtuallyeveryavailableairassetthatcouldcarrybombs.TheCIAonthegroundhad

goneaheadwiththeattackonToraBorawithoutpermission.However,thiswasapplauded

bytheirbossontoldtocarryon.HankCrumpton,headofcounterterrorismspecial

operationsattheCIA,calledCIAofficerBernstonandasked,“Areyouconductinga

battleinToraBora?”Unsureofwhathisboss’sreactionwouldbe,Berntsensimplysaid,

“Yes.”Crumptonreplied,“Congratulations!Goodjob!”

Asthefightinggotunderway,binLadeninitiallysoughttoensurehismenhadthe

confidencethattheywouldwineasilyagainstAmericanforces.But,despiteal-Qaeda’s

arsenalofrockets,tanks,machineguns,andartillery,itspositionwasbecomingperilous.

Ataltitudesofupto14,000feetabovesealevel,ToraBora’sthinairmeantitwasaharsh

livingandworkingenvironmentatanytimeofyear.Addedtothesub-zeronighttime

temperaturesmadeitevenharsher.Snowalsobegantofall.Thisaddedtothefactitwas

Ramadanandultra-religiousmembersofal-Qaedawerelikelyobservingthefastfrom

dawntodusk.Thiswouldinnodoubthaveafurtherimpactontheirphysicalabilitiesand

wellbeing.Americanairassetsweredroppingbombsalmostconstantlyonthenowsnow

coveredpeaks,makingitdifficulttosleepandhavinganimpactonmoral.Between

December4and7,Americanaircraftdropped700,000poundsofordnanceonthe

mountains.Laserguidedbombswerealsobeingusedtopenetratethecavecomplex.

OnDecember9,aU.S.planedroppedanimmenseBLU-82bomb“DaisyCutter”onal-

Qaeda’spositions.This15,000-poundbombwasalsousedintheGulfwartoclear

minefields.al-Qaedawaslosingmenfastunderthecontinuedbombardment.

Evenaftersuchaheavybombardmentfromtheair,binLadenwasnotdead.Everything

pointedtotheAmericansbeingonthevergeofsuccess

However,disputewasragingamongofficialsabouthowtoconductthebattle.

CIAHeadCrumptonwasfearfulthatbinLadenmighttrytoescapeToraBora.He

explainedthistoBushandCheneypersonallyattheWhiteHouseandpresentedsatellite

imageryshowingthatthePakistanimilitarydidnothaveitssideofthebordercovered.

ThismeantmoreU.Stroopswereneededtoactasacutoff.Berntsenwhowasnowback

intheUSwasthinkingalongthesamelines.OntheeveningofDecember3,onemember

ofhisteam,aformerDeltaForceoperatorwhohadpenetrateddeepintoToraBora,came

totheAfghancapitaltobriefBerntsenaboutthelayoftheland.HetoldBerntsenthat

takingoutal-Qaeda’shardcorewouldrequire800Rangers.Thatnight,Berntsensenta

lengthymessagetoCIAheadquartersaskingfor800Rangerstoassaultthecomplexof

caveswherebinLadenandhislieutenantswerebelievedtobehiding,andtoblocktheir

escaperoutes.

Yet,whenCrumptoncalledGeneralTommyFrankstoaskformoretroops,Franks

pushedback.Thegeneral,whohadoverallcontroloftheToraBoraoperation,pointedout

thelight-footprintapproach.HestatedthatAmericanrelianceonlocalproxies—had

alreadysucceededinoverthrowingtheTaliban.Healsothoughtitwouldtakelongertoget

moreAmericansoldiersintothearea.

ThismeantthesizeoftheAmericanforcewouldremaintinythroughoutthebattle.On

December7,on-the-groundresponsibilityforToraBorapassedfromBerntsentoa37-

year-oldmajorinDeltaForce.Duringthebattletherewas40Deltaoperators,14Green

Berets,sixCIAoperatives,afewAirForcespecialists,includingsignalsoperators,anda

dozenBritishSBS.ThesemenwerejoinedbythreemainAfghancommanders:Hajji

ZamanGamsharik,whohadbeenlivinginexileinthecomfortableenvironsofDijon,

France,beforehereturnedtoAfghanistanastheTalibanfell;HajjiZahir,the27-year-old

sonofaJalalabadwarlord;andAli,thecommanderwhohadbeenhelpingBerntsen.The

Afghancommandersdislikedeachothermorethantheydidal-Qaeda.

OnDecember10,Americansignals-intelligenceoperatorspickedupanimportant

interceptfromToraBora:“FatherbinLadenistryingtobreakthroughthesiegeline.”

ThiswasthencommunicatedtotheDeltaoperatorsontheground.Around1600hourson

thesameday,AfghansoldierssaidtheyhadbinLadenintheirsights.Laterthatevening,

FuryreceivedanewpieceofsignalsintelligenceonbinLaden’swhereabouts.binLaden

wasclosebybutAmericanforceswerepinneddowninaferociousfirefightwithsomeal-

Qaedafootsoldiers.Americanforcecommandersweretoldexplicitlynottotakethelead

intheensuingbattleandonlyactinasupportingroleforthehundredAfghans.

December12and13wereeventfuldays.December12waswhenFranksbriefed

RumsfeldontherevisedwarplansforIraq.December13wasthedaythatPakistani

militantsattackedtheIndianparliament,raisingthepossibilityofwarbetweentwo

nuclear-armedstates.Indiamovedhundredsofthousandsofsoldierstoitsborderwith

Pakistan.IndoingsoIndiahadinadvertentlytakenPakistan’sattentionawayfromsealing

itsnorthwesternborderagainstanal-Qaedaescape.

December12and13wasalsoadefiningmomentinthebattleofToraBoraasal-Qaeda

offeredtosurrenderbutdecidednottomeetuntil0800hoursonthe13December.

Thiswasofconcerntothegroupof20Deltaoperatorswho,byDecember12,hadmade

theirwaydeeperintoToraBora,toanareanearbinLaden’snow-destroyedtwo-room

house.AceasefirewasofconcerntotheCIAwhowantedtocontinuewiththe

bombardment.Intheendtheceasefirelastedtwohours.

December13arrivedwithoutanyofthemilitantsinsideToraBorasurrendering.

However,binLadengavehisfighterspermissiontosurrenderiftheywantedto.bin

Laden’saidesinstructedthehundredsofmostlyArabfighterswhoremainedaliveinthe

mountainouscomplextoheadtoPakistanandturnthemselvesintotheirembassies.

ByDecember17,thebattleofToraBorawasover.Anestimated220deadmilitantsand

52capturedfighters.MostlyArabs,aswellasadozenAfghans,andasprinklingof

ChechensandPakistanis.Around20ofthecapturedprisonerswereparadedforthe

camerasoftheinternationalpress.Theywereabedraggled,scrawnylotwhodidnotlook

muchlikethefearsomewarriorseveryoneassumedthemtobe.binLadenhadusedthe

surrendertoaidhisownescapebackintoPakistan.

AlltheSpecialForceshadfoughthardinaverydangerousandfiercebattle,however,

errorsinpolicyanddecisionsinessenceledtobinLadenbeingabletoescape.Dalton

Fury’saccountoftheBattleofToraBora,inhisbookKillBinLaden,hedescribesDelta’s

CQBskills:

“WatchingDeltaoperatorsconduct“freeflow”CQBontargetswithunknownfloor

plansisoneofthemostawesomesightsofcontrolledchaosonecanimagine.The

sequenceisanythingbutchoreographed,buttheoperatorseffortlesslysweepthrougha

structurelikeredantsgoingthroughfamiliar,twistingcorridors.Delta’smethodandskill

inCQBisunmatchedbyanyotherforceinexistence.”Withjust100SpecialForces

soldiersinvolvedandnocutofftoprevental-QaedafightersincludingbinLadentoescape

intoPakistanvastlyreducedthechanceofsuccess.ToraBorawastheclosestthe

AmericanshadcometocapturingbinLaden.But,Americawouldhavetowaitafurther

10yearsforOperationNeptuneSpearwithSealTeamSixflyingintoAbbottabad,

PakistanbeforefinallykillingbinLadeninhiscurrentresidence.

ChapterThree–Afghanistan

It was Ahmad Shah Durrani, who unified the Pashtun tribes and in 1747 founded

Afghanistan.AfghanistanhasservedasabufferbetweentheBritishandRussianEmpires

untilitfinallywonindependencefromnotionalBritishcontrolin1919.Abriefexperiment

indemocracyendedwithacoupin1973andthenin1978aCommunistcounter-coup.In

1979, the Soviet Union invaded to support the Afghan Communist regime that was

struggling to remain in power. This started off a long and protracted war. Then in 1989,

USSRwithdrewunderrelentlesspressurebyaninternationallysupportedanti-Communist

mujahedinrebelforce.AseriesofsubsequentcivilwarsfinallysawKabulfallin1996to

the Taliban. The Taliban is a hard line Pakistani-sponsored movement that emerged in

1994toendthecountry’scivilwarandanarchybetweenvariousfactionsandbringina

strictIslamiclaw.Followingtheterroristattackson11September2001,aUS,Allied,and

anti-Taliban Northern Alliance came together to topple the Taliban for the sheltering of

OsamaBinLadenwhowassubsequentlykilledbySEALTeamSixonMay22011.Atthe

2001 UN-sponsored Bonn Conference, held to establish a process for political

reconstructioninAfghanistanthatincludedtheadoptionofanewconstitutionandin2004

apresidentialelectionfollowedin2005bytheNationalAssemblyelections.InDecember

2004,HamidKarzaibecamethefirstdemocraticallyelectedpresidentofAfghanistan.The

NationalAssemblywastheninauguratedthefollowingDecember.InAugust2009,Karzai

was re-elected for a second term. Despite the gains towards building a stable central

government,aresurgentTalibanalongwithcontinuingprovincialinstability-particularly

in the south and the east - remain a large challenge for the Afghan Government. Allied

troopsareduetoleavein2014andhand,fullcontroltotheAfghangovernment.

With a population of around 30,419,928 and religiously made up about 80% Sunni

Muslim,19%ShiaMuslim19%,1%others.ThelanguagesspokenareAfghanPersianor

Dari 50%, Pashto 35%, Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, and 30

minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%. There is a large amount of

bilingualism,howeverDarifunctionsasthelinguaFranca.

The culture of Afghanistan has been influenced by the surrounding countries and even

slightlybytheoccupyingcountriesovertheyears.Inthesouthernandeasternregion,as

well as western Pakistan. Western Pakistan was historically part of Afghanistan. The

Pashtun people live by the Pashtun culture and they follow Pashtunwali (way of the

Pashtuns). The western, northern, and central regions of Afghanistan are influenced by

neighbouringCentralAsianandPersiancultures.Afghanslivinginthecities,inparticular

Kabul, are further influenced to some degree by the Indian culture through Bollywood

films and music. Some of the non-Pashtuns who live in close proximity with Pashtuns

have adopted Pashtunwali in a process called Pashtunization (or Afghanization) while

somePashtunsandothersbecamePersianized.

Afghanistan is a mountainous country completely surrounded by land and shares its

borders with Pakistan, Tajikistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and China. The Hindu

KushMountains,whichrunnortheasttosouthwestacrossthecountry,divideitintothree

majorregions.TheCentralHighlands,whichformpartoftheHimalayasandaccountfor

roughly two thirds of the country’s area. The Southwestern Plateau, accounts for about

25%oftheland.ThesmallerNorthernPlainsareahasAfghanistan’smostfertileareaof

soil.

British Special Forces operations in southern Afghanistan were centred on persuading

mid-ranking Taliban leaders that they were better off working with the Afghan

government. This involved a mixture of “hard arrests” — snatch operations to grab key

Talibanleaderstogatherintelligence—and“offensiveaction”inwhichTalibanleaders

were killed. These operations were happening every day with a mixture of larger scale

operations, hard arrests and offensive actions – all of which is having an impact on the

Talibanleadership.DeltacontinuestoundertakesmallerscaleoperationsandaidAfghan

SpecialForces.Theirsupportwillcontinuefortheforeseeablefuture.

Along with Delta, there was the SAS, Australian SAS, British SBS and the US Navy

SEAL’samongstotherSpecialForcesoperatinginAfghanistan.Theytoohaveundertaken

someamazingoperations.OneworthyofmentionistheAustralianSASbattleatEastern

ShahWaliKotcoveredlateroninthebook.ThereisalsotherescueofHelenJohnstonin

2012bytheSASandDeltaForceasacombinedoperation.

Delta Force has fought a hard war - along with the rest of the armed forces out in

Afghanistan. Afghanistan is a hostile environment fraught with danger – extreme

temperaturesalongwithabattlehardenedenemy-withtheabilitytofighthardanddeal

somedevastatingblowstoalliedforces.ThesheerscaleofAfghanistanhasmeantithas

beenhardtoridthecountryofTalibanforces.Moreoftenthannottheymovetheirbases

of operations around Afghanistan, even just into the border of Pakistan, using fringe

villagesalongtheboardersassafehavenstotrainandprepareforbattle.Theyobserveus

as much as we observe them, trying to understand our tactics and doctrine. They are an

enemy not to be underestimated, nor is the hatred that many have for anything western.

Even their own countrymen who have more tolerant views on Islam, become targets if

theywillnotfollowtheTalibanwayoflifeandbeliefs.

ChapterFour–ExplosiveSituation

Farah,Afghanistan2009

Lyingdowninthepronepositionandfeelingthewarmthofthehotgroundbeneathme-

Heckler & Koch HK417 at the ready. My senses heightened and in a state of alert - I

reflectedonbeinginthe‘Unit’,theglowofprideswelledfromwithin.Likemany,Ihad

gainedmyinitialsoldieringskillsintheRangersafteroriginallyjoiningtheinfantry.

Ranger School is one of the toughest training courses a Soldiers. Army Rangers are

experts in leading Soldiers on difficult missions - and to do this, they need rigorous

training.Rangersspendtwomonthstrainingtoexhaustionpushingtheirmindandbodies

to the limit. Rangers are Army volunteers with existing combat skills. The Rangers’

primarymissionistoengageinclosecombatanddirect-firebattles.

TheRangerCoursewasconceivedduringtheKoreanWarandwasknownastheRanger

Training Command. The Ranger Training Command was inactivated and became the

Ranger Department, a branch of the Infantry School at Fort Benning, Ga., October 10,

1951.Itrequiresbothofficesandenlistedmentoperformeffectivelyassmall-unitleaders

inarealistic,tacticalenvironment,andundermentalandphysicalstress;approachesthat

are found in actual combat. From 1954 to the early 1970’s, the Army’s goal, though

seldomachieved,wastohaveoneRangerqualifiednon-commissionedofficerperinfantry

platoonandoneofficerpercompany.Inanefforttobetterachievethisgoal,in1954,the

ArmyrequiredallcombatarmsofficerstobecomeRanger/Airbornequalified.

HavingpassedDeltaselectionandtraining,Iwasnowanelitesoldierinoneofthebest

Unitsintheworld.Now,hereIwasoutintheheatofAfghanistanonmysecondtourof

duty.IhavefoundAfghanistanbothbeautifulanddeadly.Thesceneryissimplystunning

buttheclimatecantaketheunwarybysurprise.Itcanrangefromrangingheattobitter

colddependingonwhereinAfghanistanyouare.

Ihadbeenlayingonthesunbakedanddustysoilforthepastthreehours,waitingforthe

ordertogo.AllIhadtolookatfromthevegetationIwashidingin,wasafewtreesand

thornybushessurroundingafreshlyploughedfield.Therewasnothingtobeheard,butthe

oddrustlefromthesurroundingtrees,astheslightwarmbreezewaftedover.Lyinginwait

hadgivenmeplentyofthinkingtime,maybetoomuch.DuringmytimeintheUnit,over

thinkingisnearlyasbadasnotthinkingatall.Wehadbeenon‘hardroutine’forthepast

threedaysandcouldnotwaittogetbackforapropershit,showerandshave,followedby

a cooked meal. There was only so many ‘MRE army speak for Meal Ready to Eat you

couldendure.

TheoperationtodaywastoseizeaTalibanleaderfromhiscompoundinFarah;normally

thiswouldhavebeencarriedoutatnight.However,intelligencehadplacedhimstayingat

thecompoundandlikelytoleavebeforedusk.Intelligencehaditonlylightlydefended–

butwedistrustedintelligencenearlyasmuchastheactualTaliban.Itwassupposedtobe

only lightly defended and the opportunity to ‘get him’ was considered too good to miss.

FarahislocatedintheWesternpartofAfghanistanneartoIran.Itisoneofthethirty-four

provinces of Afghanistan. One of a series of citadels built by Alexander the Great is

locatedinFarah.OurobjectivewasrightonthefringeofFarah,inoneofthehundredsof

villages in the area. One thing you are not truly aware about Afghanistan until you are

actuallyinAfghanistan,isthesheersizeofthecountry.Farahforinstance,ishalfthesize

ofSouthKorea.InpartsofFarah,theareaissemi-aridwithalmostdesertlikeconditions

asyouheadtowardsthemountainsintheNorthEast.Therestoftheareaisapatchwork

ofcropfieldsanddustytracks,withonlytheoddmainroadthatleadinandoutofFarah

itself.

Itwasanisolatedcompoundjustoutsideavillagethatwewouldassault.Acompoundis

just a low mud building, which is usually built in a square with a central open area and

rooms around the perimeter. The walls are quite thick and is a heavy duty structure that

cantakesomepoundingfromsmallarmsfire.Asingle500lbbombdroppedfromabove

wouldobliteratemostcompoundsinonego.

Eight of us in total were to carry out a daytime assault and grab the target before any

reinforcements could be sent. The target was a high-ranking Taliban intelligence officer.

TheTalibanintheareadidhaveacoupleof5

generationToyotaHilux’sthathadRPGs

and high calibre machine guns mounted on them. The high calibre machine gun alone

couldtearustoshreds.TheseHilux’swerereallyajobforanApachetodealwith-our

HK417s had little chance against them, less a lucky shot or a large amount of lead. We

were all only carrying 240 rounds each, this meant we did not have the ammunition to

wasteeither.AlongwiththeHK417,IwasalsocarryingSigSauerP226handgunasmy

sidearmorsecondaryweapon.TheP226isaGermanmanufactured9mmpistolcapableof

carryingupto209mmrounds.ThecompanyisofSwissorigin,butduetoSwissexport

lawsonfirearms.TheP226hadtobemanufacturedandexportedoutsideofSwitzerland.

The US Navy SEALs have used the P226 since the mid-1980s. They have their own

version with a stainless steel slide engraved with an anchor to designate them as Navy

SpecialOpspistols.ThewordistheP226willsoonbereplacedbytheGlock17Gen4,

introducedin2010,apolymer-framed,shortrecoiloperatedpistol.

Withfinalprepcompleted,HK417madeready,safetycatchsettosingleshotanditsbutt

inmyshoulder.Wemovedoff,thebestwayinwasviaawadithenmakinguseofsome

dead ground, before running the final short distance to the compound. If we came into

contactitwouldbeacaseofpushingforwardunlessitwastoointense,thenitwouldbe

aboutputtingthemaximumamountoffiredownandgettingthehelloutofthereasperop

orders.Higgsandtherestofthepatrolhadthementality,fucktheoporders,wenevergo

backonlyforwards.Thehotsunbeatdownonus-ifIwasnotwearingglovesmyrifle

would have been too hot to hold. Sweat trickled down the side of my face and onto my

neck.Thewadiofferedadecentlevelofprotectionevenifweallkickedupsmallclouds

ofdustwitheverystepaswedodgedroundlargerrocksandboulders.Whenyoubeginan

assault,itisamazinghowyoursituationalawarenessclicksin,almostasifyouhavethe

sightandhearingabilityofanOwl.Eventheslightestnoiseormovementmakesyouflick

yourheadleftorright,movingyourweapontofollowyoureyes.Therestoftheladswere

allalertandprofessionallikeaswitchhadbeenflickedon.Onlyafewhoursearlierthey

hadfilledanofficer’sbootwithshavingfoamandfilledthecupsofsugarwithsaltnextto

the coffee machine in the ops room. This school boy type behaviour was all part of the

copingmechanism–dealingwithdeathonadailybasisinahostilecountrytakesitstoll,

evenonhighlytrainedandresilientDeltaoperators.

Withinminutes,wewereonlyafewhundredmetresawayfromourobjectiveandslowed

ourpaceandmovementrightdown–makingbestuseofanyavailablecoveraswedarted

across any open ground. It must have worked as we made it to the compound without

beingspotted.Fourofusinonepatrolhuddledupbythefrontentrancetothecompound

as the other patrol went round to the rear. The idea was for the four of us to burst in

through the front and then the patrol at the rear catch any fleeing Taliban – which was

likely to contain our target as well. It was a tactic we had used several times before to

goodeffect.

Icouldfeelmyheartalmostthumpinginmythroatandtothisday,Istillgetaboutof

diarrhoeabeforeeveryoperation.Maybemynervesgetthebetterofme.Thestrangepart

isthatwhenintheheatofbattleIstayassteadyasarockandjustgetonwiththejobat

hand,evenwithbulletsimpactingthegroundinchesawayfromme.Mytrainingkicksin

and I go about my job as if in automatic pilot, instinctively carrying out my skills and

drills.Thatistherealkeytogoodsoldiering-doingsomethingenoughtimesintraining

thatitbecomesinstinctive.Sointheheatofbattleyoudon’thavetothinkaboutclearinga

stoppageorchangingamagazine,allyourfocusisonfindingatargetandputtingitdown.

We gave the other patrol, exactly two minutes to get into position before we were to

begintheassault.Thetwominutespassed,wemadeourwayintothecompound–literally

burstingthroughthedoorandalmostknockingthedooroffthehinges.AfterHiggsgave

the door an almighty kick with his size 13 boots. Some shouts in Pashto could be heard

within seconds of us bursting through the door, followed by some ineffective rifle fire.

Theroundsbouncedoffthewalltothefarleftofus.Higgstomyleftspottedwherethe

fire was coming from – he let off two rounds in quick succession and they found their

target. The Taliban fighter slumped to the floor, dropping his AK-47 with a loud clang

ontothehardstonefloorofthecompound.Makenodoubt,theAK-47isapowerfulrifle,

its rounds can go through a brick wall like a knife through butter at close to medium

range. Even hiding behind a wall gives you no guarantee a bullet will not make its way

through,afterafewroundshavebeenfiredonthesamearea.

We pushed forward and I scanned the sparse room for any more surprises, by now the

otherTalibanoccupyingthecompoundhadfledtowardstherear.AstheygottotherearI

couldhearmoreshoutinginbothPashtoandEnglish,astheotherpatrolteamgrabbedthe

fleeingTalibanastheytriedtoescape.Icouldheartheladsshoutingandgruntingtrying

tocontroltheTalibanfighters-whohadnointentionofcomingquietly.Astheotherteam

goteachoneundercontrolandcuffedthem,theythrewthemupagainstthewall,before

removing their weapons and carrying out a full body search. The trouble with a hard

arrest,evenwithspeedandforce,youhavenoideaiftheyhavesomeformofsuicidevest

strappedtothem.Speedandsurprisewithquicklycuffingtotherearwithcabletiesbefore

a thorough search. Most of us would much rather slot them through the head than give

themachancetotakeusalloutwithasuicidevest.

ThespeedatwhichtheTalibanfightershaddecidedtofleeoutthebackgotmeandthe

rest of the patrol a little concerned. The Taliban - masters of booby traps and IEDs

(Improvised Explosive Device) through years of practice under the Russian occupation.

Evennow,theyweregettingmoreandmoresophisticatedbytheday.Wedecidedtostand

firm and wait until it had been confirmed that the intended target had been captured.

Kneelingdownandconstantlyscanningforanysurprises.

The minutes passed and Schwartz grew restless – he decided to make a move. I let

Schwartzgetabout5metresinfrontbeforefollowinghim.Ithenmadeitanothercouple

of metres before I felt an intense heat on my face followed by a pressure wave. That

pressurewavesentmebackfurtherthanIhadcomeforward,beforeIfinallyhitthehard

stoneflooralmosthorizontal.Iwasunabletobreathforafewsecondsandhadanintense

buzzinginmyears.AsIsatup,Irealisedwhathadhappened,Schwartzhadsetoffsome

formofIED.WhatwasleftofSchwartzwassplattedalloverthewalloftherearroomin

thecompound-withalargechunkoftorsolyinginalargepoolofblood.Thesickening

smell of flesh and explosive cordite smell, filled the compound after the initial smoke

from the explosion had cleared. The best comparison I can give is the smell of a burnt

steakmixedwiththesmelloffirecrackers.

AnIEDisbasicallyahomemadebombconstructedandthendeployedinmoreguerrilla

type tactics, they are also known as roadside bombs. They can be constructed of

conventional military explosives, such as an artillery round which is then attached to a

detonatingmechanism.Theexplosivescanevenbehomemadeandtheyaregettingmore

andmoresophisticatedallthetime,althoughtheyareoftenunstableandpronetoexplode

without warning. Sometimes the instability is from the explosives used or just the poor

constructionofthedetonator.

InthesecondIraqWar,IEDswereusedextensivelyagainstUS-ledCoalitionforcesand

by the end of 2007 they had become responsible for approximately 63% of Coalition

deaths in Iraq. In Afghanistan they have been used to good effect and have caused over

66%oftheCoalitioncasualtiesintheAfghanistanWar.

The patrol members at the back of the compound had their hands full trying to control

theprisoners,eventhoughtheyhadbeencuffedwithplasticties.Timewasoftheessence

andweneededtogetoutquickly.IpulledabodybagoutandwithKnight,webeganthe

grimtaskofscoopingupasmuchaswecouldofSchwartz’sbody.Therewasnotimeto

pick up all the individual pieces just the larger chunks of flesh and what was left of

Schwartz’scavedinhead-whichwasnowabloodyandtangledmassofhair,teethand

flesh.ItwasprobablythehardestandmostgruesomethingIhaveeverhadtodo–stillin

shock and feeling dazed from the explosion. The sight of Schwartz’s remains splatted

aroundakitchenisetchedintomymemoryandnightmarestothisveryday.

Schwartzwasa6foot4manmountainandapersonyouwouldnotwanttomesswith,

just by looking at him, his size made him almost unusable for ‘blending in’ type

operations.Looksweredeceivingastheminuteheopenedhismouth,hecouldhaveyou

in stitches. Schwartz was originally from Denver and one of a small number who had

comeviaaunitotherthantheRanger’s.HehadservedforfiveyearswiththeInfantryand

risentoSgt,beforepassingDeltaselectiononhissecondattempt.Helivedtofightandhe

wastrulyinlovewithhisweapon,sleepingwithiteverynight.Hisjokeswerenearlyas

bad as the toxic gas that he could release from his arse, and after three days in close

quarterswithhim,youcriedoutforfreshair.HislifewastheArmy,withnoplansforlife

afterthe‘Unit.’Iguess,ishewouldhavegoneontobesomeformofmercenaryfighting

someoneelse’swarjustforthethrillofthefight.Anadrenalinejunkiewithgunsisagood

waytosumSchwartzup.PatriotictotheendandlovedAmerica,patriotictothelast.

ItwasnottoofarfromtheCompoundtoourextractionpointacrossacoupleoffields,

although using as much cover as possible from clumps of trees and dead ground. A

Chinookwasdueinabout30minutes–wewouldneedtomovequicklyinordertomake

it. It was a silent fast-paced walk back to the extraction point, other than the Taliban

chirping up in Pashto. Our thoughts were all on Schwartz – why had he decided to take

suchariskonanopthathadransosmoothly?Wehadalreadygotthetargetwithoutas

muchasascratchonanyoneofus.Ourpatrolleadersummeditup,“Schwartzyou’rea

rightstupidfucker.”Wewouldallmisshimalongwithhisbadjokesandbanter.Thisis

warandinwarpeopledie,andifyoudwelltoomuchyouwouldneverbeabletocarryon

with your job. Yu have to deal with the grief and then get on with your job. We are

soldiers and although I would rather prevent killing than kill, ultimately we are there to

killorbekilled.

OntheflightbacktobasewithwhatwasleftofSchwartzinabagatmyfeet,Ijuststared

at the half-empty body bag for the whole of the flight back to Bagram. I never saw

anything of the tracer fire or the RPG that had missed us by inches as we flew back to

base.AllIknewwasthatIhadlostagoodfriendandcolleague-hewasnotthefirstand

wouldcertainlynotbethelast…

ChapterFive–Bigcitytakedown

We left Kandahar airport from our accommodation and joined the early morning rush.

BeforeweweavedourHumveesthroughthetraffic,inthehustleandbustleofanormal

busyweekdayinKandahar.Youcouldhavealmostbeeninanybusycityinthewestern

world.Withtheusualshoutingandhornspeepingaspeoplemadetheirwaytoworkinthe

slowmovingtraffic.

Kandahar or Qandahar (Pashto/Persian, known in older literature as Candahar, is the

second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200. Kandahar is the

capital of the Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 3,297 ft

abovesealevel.TheArghandabRiverrunsalongthewestofthecity.

Kandahar is one of the most culturally significant cities of the Pashtuns and has been

their traditional seat of power for more than 200 years. It is a major trading centre for

sheep,wool,cotton,silk,felt,foodgrains,freshanddriedfruit,andtobacco.Theregion

produces fine fruits, especially pomegranates and grapes, and the city has plants for

canning, drying, and packing fruit. Kandahar has extensive road links with Lashkar Gah

andHerattothewest,GhazniandKabultothenortheast,Tarinkottothenorth,andQuetta

inneighbouringBalochistantothesouth.

The region around Kandahar is one of the oldest known human settlements. Alexander

theGreathadlaid-outthefoundationofwhatisnowOldKandaharinthe4thcenturyBC,

and gave it the Ancient Greek name Alexandria of Arachosia. Many empires have long

foughtoverthecityduetoitsstrategiclocationalongthetraderoutesofsouthern,central

andwesternAsia.In1709,MirwaisHotakmadetheregionanindependentkingdomand

turned Kandahar into the capital of the Hotaki dynasty. In 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani,

founderofthelastAfghanempire,madeitthecapitalofmodernAfghanistan.

Our convoy did its best to cut through the heavy traffic, as we made our way to the

objective on the fringe of the city. Our mission was to launch a raid on yet another

compound in the North. As we made our way, the usual steady banter kept everyone’s

nervesincheck.Althoughwestillneededtobealertasattacksonconvoyswerestillquite

common,somesectionsofthecitybeingworsethanothers.

We met up with our SAS counterparts at a laying up point just over a mile from the

objective.SAShadarrivedintheirWMIK.TheWMIKwasusedasreconnaissanceand

closefiresupportvehicles.TheWMIKmanufacturedjointlybyLandRoverandRicardo

VehicleEngineering,featuredastrengthenedchassisandarestrippeddownbeforebeing

fittedwithrollcagesandweaponmounts.Typicallythevehiclescancarryone12.7mm

Heavy Machine Gun, 7.62 mm General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) or, on occasion

theMILANATGM,ontherearring-mount,withanadditionalpintlemountedGPMGon

the front passenger side. In 2007, they were fitted with a new belt-fed Automatic

LightweightGrenadeLaunchers(ALGL)madebyHecklerandKoch.Whichcouldfireup

to360grenadesperminutewithaneffectiverangeof1.5kmandamaximumrangeofup

to2.2km.TheALGLhasproventobeatastyandeffectivebitofkit.

Today’soperationsweretobeajointoperationandourtargethadbeenhomedinonand

trackedviathesatellitephonethatheused.Thestreetfacedontosomedustyopenground

beforesomedensevegetationandmorehouses.Itwasacrossthisdustyopengroundwe

wouldbeginourassault.Itwasadangerousoperationandresistancecouldwellbefierce.

Thewholeareawasthoughttobesignificantlydangerousenoughforacoupleofwarrior

tankstobeonhandtosupportourattackifneeded.

Itwasnowdarkandnotallofushadnightvisiongogglesduetothesmallnumberthat

we had available at the time. The Warriors had night vision capability, as did the SAS

trooperswhowereinan‘overwatch’positiontomakeuseofmorepowerfulnight-vision

equipmentandgivelongrangefiresupport.

Wehadtwocompoundstohitwitheachbeingattackedsimultaneouslybytwoseparate

patrols. The compounds were labelled Jericho One and Jericho Two. I was allocated to

Jericho One. Jericho one was a typical Afghan Compound with tall outer walls and an

innertwofloorsquarebuilding.

CaptainCharleswouldbeleadingtheassaultonJerichoOne.Hehadonlybeenwithus

for a few months after completing training. Charles had been in the Army six years, he

wasthestereotypicalWestPointOfficer,butthishadnotmadehimarrogantinanyway.

Tothecontrary,hewasverydowntoearthandcouldswearlikethebestofus.Sofarhad

proven to be a half-decent officer and gained our respect. He was aggressive and

resourcefulinbattle-hewouldnotsendhismenanywherehewouldnotgohimself.

Wewentproneandwaitedfortheordertocommencetheassault.Assaultingbuildingsis

something we practice time after time back at the ‘Killing House’ at Fort Bragg. We

practicedittothepointoftotalboredom,butthatmeant,wewereallveryslickwhenthe

time came to do it for real. Instinct is much quicker than having to think - even a few

millisecondscanbethedifferencebetweenlifeanddeath.

Weranacrossthesandwithourbootsstrugglingtogetapropergripastheysankintothe

softdustysoil,beforearrivingatthefrontofthecompoundandpreparedtogoin.

Asweburstintothecompound-wewerehitwithahailofbullets,followedbyanRPG

beingfireddirectlyatus.Withinminutes,halfofushadbeenhittakingbulletsinourlegs,

armsandbottom.Ididmybesttocarryoutbattlefieldfirstaidononeofthecasualties.

Several other Delta operators moved up onto a building roof across the street from the

compoundsotheycouldgivedirectfiresupport.Theamountoffirebeingpouredonus

meant the assault ground to a halt and we needed to retreat. We managed to ex-filtrate

withoutanymoreinjuries,beforerealisingthatSergeantJoneswasstilljustinsidelaying

inthecourtyardwithbloodpumpingoutofabulletwoundinhisthigh.Withamandown

and inside, there was no way the Warriors and the SAS guys could obliterate the

compound. It was now a case of who would finish off Jones first - his wounds or the

Taliban?WithoutathoughtformyownsafetyIranbackinwithanothertroopertodrag

Jones out. Our boss shouted at us to stop, fearing it was far too dangerous to go back

insideanddidnotwantanymorecasualties.Weignoredhispleaanddidourbesttododge

thebulletsfromanAK-47beingfiredfrominsidethecompoundanddraggedJonesoutby

hisbloodcoveredarms.

TheKalashnikovassaultriflemorecommonlyknownastheAK-47orjustAK(Avtomat

Kalashnikova – 47, translates to the Kalashnikov automatic rifle, model 1947), and its

derivatives.Ithadbeenandstilliswithminormodifications,manufacturedindozensof

countries,andhasbeenusedinhundredsofcountriesandconflictssinceitsintroduction.

The total number of the AK-type rifles made worldwide during the last 60 years is

estimatedat90+million.TheAK-47isknownforitssimplicityofoperation,ruggedness

andmaintenance,andunsurpassedreliabilityeveninthemostinhospitableofconditions.

TheAKstorybeganlatein1942,whenSoviettroopscapturedseveralofthethennew

German MKb.42 machine carbine, along with some 7.92 ammunition. By mid-1943

Soviet experts had evaluated the MKb.42 along with US-supplied M1carbine and it was

decidedatahighlevelthatsimilarweapons,firingsimilarammunition,mustbedeveloped

fortheSovietarmyassoonaspossible.

Afterthewarin1946,theAK-47waspresentedforofficialmilitarytrials.In1947,the

fixed-stockversionwasintroducedintoservicewiththeoddSovietArmyunit.Oneearly

development of the design was the AKS (S meaning Skladnoy or “folding”), which was

equippedwithan underfoldingmetalshoulder stock.TheAK-47 wasofficiallyaccepted

bytheSovietArmedForcesin1949andusedbythemajorityofthememberstatesofthe

WarsawPact.

ThroughouttheWorld-theAKanditsvariantsareamongthemostcommonlysmuggled

smallarmssoldtogovernments,rebels,criminals,andciviliansalike.Insomecountries,

prices for AKs are very low; in Somalia, Rwanda, Mozambique, Congo and Tanzania

prices are between $30 and $125 per weapon, and prices have fallen in the last few

decadesduetomasscounterfeiting.

With Jones and everyone now clear of the compound, it was left to our Colonel to

consider our options. There was still fire coming from Jericho Two and now another

buildinghadopenedup.HediscussedvariousoptionswiththeAmericans.Itwasdecided

that we would assault the new building that had opened up, whilst the SAS cleared our

original objective. The warriors opened up with a 30mm RARDEN cannon and

pummelled the target. Before the SAS went in to finish off any remaining resistance. A

coupleofM1Abrahamstankshadbeenputonstandbyjustincase.

Our assault on the building further down the street went as planned and we cleared it

room by room. We met only light resistance and captured two and killed one Taliban

insurgent.

DeltaForcehadnowfinallyclearedJerichoTwo,whichwasprettymuchapileofrubble

and bodies. The first flicker of light as dawn approached revealed a scene of complete

chaosandcarnage.Indaylight,thiswouldbecomeanevenmoredangerousplaceasthe

localsawoketofindustherewouldpassitontotheTaliban.Weknewweneededtoget

outoftheareaquickly.Thankfully,SergeantFirstClassJonessurvived,hisbloodlosshad

beengreatandevenwithplasmabeingpumpedintohiminthebackoftheChinookithad

beentouchandgo.Thebullethadexitedveryclosethefemoralartery,ifthebullethadit

thatIamsureitwouldhavebeen‘gameover’forhim..

TheSAStookalltheprisonersoffourhandsandwemountedourHumveesforthetrip

backtoour‘motel’.WelearntsomehardlessonsfromtheattackandthattheTalibanin

the area were better equipped and offered more resistance than we thought. Experience

andexpertiseisstillnomatchforrawfirepowerandanumberadvantage.TheTalibanhad

both the raw firepower and number advantage during the initial assault. Fire support is

greatprovidingyoucangetitdownwithoutinjuringorkillingyourownsoldiersifthey

areintheblastradius.

Thetermdangercloseisinrelationcloseairsupport,artillery,mortar,andnavalgunfire

support fires, it is the term included in the method of engagement segment of a call for

fire,whichindicatesthatfriendlyforcesarewithincloseproximityofthetarget.Theclose

proximitydistanceisdeterminedbytheweaponandmunitionsfired.

Forinstance,the60mmmortarhasablastradiusofabout20-25meters.The81/82MM

hasablastradiusof35-40metersandthe120mm/122mmmortarhasablastradiusof

about 60 meters. An operation like this shows how well the allied forces work together,

notwithstandingthebanterandcompetitivenatureofthearmedforcesespeciallySpecial

Forces.

Chaptersix–HitandRun

Afghanistan2009

A Pave Hawk had been dispatched from Bagram Airbase - these robust helicopters are

stillcapableof224mphandarangeof373milesor508withexternaltanks.Although,a

slow enough target for the Taliban to fire a few RPGs off. This meant, they always

requiredtopcoverfromanAH-64Apache.ThethreatofRPGsandtheoddZSU-23AA

batterydottedabout,meantthreatstotheaircraftweretakenseriously.AwellplacedRPG

couldknockaPaveHawkoutofthesky.AUH-60BlackHawkwasfamouslyshotdown

inMogadishu,SomilabyanRPGin1993.DuringthecoalitionwarinAfghanistanupto

2015,therewas159aircraftlosses,121rotarywingand38fixedwing.Oftheseonly34

have been due to hostile fire though and seven where aircraft destroyed on the ground.

TheCH-47Chinookhavingthehighestlosstohostilefireat13followedbytheUH-60

Blackhawk at five. Both of these helicopters found themselves picking up and dropping

offtroopsaswellascasualtieswhilstunderheavyfirefromtheTalibanthough.

OnestoryofanIRTmissionhasanApache’scamerarecordinganRPGpassing10feet

underaChinook,andonepassing10feetabovetheChinookasitcameintolandattheLZ

(Landing Zone). The approaches to Bagram and other airbases tended to be where the

Talibanwouldtrytogetrandompotshotsoffnomatterwhatapproachanaircraftchoseto

comeinon.

The casualty we had on the ground had lost his arm, as an RPG had gone through the

driver’s side of the Humvee, taking Davis’s arm clean off before exiting and exploding

nearby. We had Davis on a drip and stabilised him with some pain relief. All three had

been lucky it had not exploded in the vehicle. Seconds after the RPG had exploded, we

wereinanintensefirefightwiththeTaliban,whilsttryingtogetthewoundedoperatorout

oftheHumveetogivehimimmediatefirstaid.AtypicalTalibanambush,althoughawell-

placed IED was more of a signature Taliban ambush, then letting off an RPG. What the

Talibandidnotknow,wasthatwehadgoneintopokeastickandseewhatwouldhappen.

Astherifleandlightmachinegunfirebecameeffective-wewerealltooawareitwould

notbelongbeforemortarfirewouldstartrainingdownonus.Ourcommunicationsguy

gotonthenettorequestfiresupportandamedicalevacuation.AvolleyoffirefromAK-

47sandPKswasthrowingsmallstonesupintheairastheroundsimpactedaroundus.As

alwaysitwasscary,butthisiswhatwetrainforandfearhelpstokeepyoufocusedand

levelheaded.Fearcangiveyoutheedge.Inafierceandverydynamicfirefightyouhave

tomaketacticaldecisionsinaninstant.Thefirstisusuallytotrytolocatetheenemyand

returnfire,gettingyourselfaslowaspossibleorfindingcover.Gettingalowaspossible

makes it much harder for the enemy to hit as you offer a much smaller target and the

ground further adds its own cover with any rocks and undulations. When you fire a

weaponlikeanAK-47itwantstofireupwardsnotdownwards.Withmultipletargetsyou

need to work as a coherent team and make best use of the high standard of training we

have received, especially in regards to marksmanship. We need to get accurate fire as

quickly as possible onto the target and either neutralize it, or get the enemy to get their

heads down and withdraw. We were up against a tenacious and battle hardened enemy

withoutadoubt.

Our message was quickly received by command, and a Pave Hawk along with two

ApacheswasimmediatelydispatchedtoourlocationnotfarfromChora.Ourteammedic

neededtogetDavisstabilisedandreadytogoontothebackofthePaveHawkassoonas

itlanded.TheseTalibanguyscanbeinsane-oftenhighasakiteonopium,makingthem

lethalandoftentakingquiteafew5.56roundsbeforetheydrop.Henceusmovingto7.62

roundswiththeHeckler&KochHK417.

The Humvee though is no match for IEDs or RPGs. The Humvee is almost an icon of

Americanforces.Itcameaboutwhenin1979,theU.S.Armydraftedfinalspecifications

foraHighMobilityMultipurposeWheeledVehicle,orHMMWV,whichwastoreplaceall

thetacticalvehiclesinthequartertooneandaquartertonrange.NamelytheM151and

M561 Gamma Goat, as a light tactical vehicle to perform the role of several existing

trucks. The specification called for excellent on and off-road performance, the ability to

carry a large payload, and improved survivability against indirect fire. Compared to the

jeep,itwaslargerandhadamuchwidertrack,witha16ingroundclearance,doublethat

of most sport-utility vehicles. The new truck was to climb a 60 percent incline and

traversea40percentslope.

AfteraseriesoftrialsthreedesignsfromdifferentmanufacturersthepotentialHumvee,

AMGeneralwasawardedaninitialcontractin1983for2,334vehicles,thefirstbatchofa

five-yearcontractthatwouldsee55,000vehiclesdeliveredtotheU.S.military,including

39,000fortheArmy;72,000vehicleshadbeendeliveredtoU.S.andforeigncustomersby

the1991GulfWar.TheHumveehasbeenupdatedandbeendesignedtobeabletosurvive

betteronthebattlefield.

OurHumvee’shavetheFRAG5armourkit.TheFRAG5armourkitupgradeincludesa

muchheavier600-pounddoorandadditionalarmourplatingatkeypointsonthevehicle.

AlthoughtheuseofHumvee’s,hasrecentlybecomemorerestrictedduetolowresistance

toIEDattacks.

ThePaveHawkcouldonlyhave30-60secondsonthedeckbeforeitwouldmostlikely

be mortared or RPGs fired at it. The Pave Hawks were a real lifesaver and the crew on

them,includingthemedicalteamwereheroes.InthebackoftheHH-60GPaveHawk,the

medicalteamwouldactuallystarttooperateontheroutebacktoKandahar.Enduringthe

vibrationandsuddenmovementsthePaveHawkmade–inordertoavoidincomingfire.

They are so focused the casualty they fail to notice the tracer rounds flashing past the

Chinook’swindows.

WiththePaveHawkonitsway,thetwoApachesstartedtocleartheLZpriortothePave

Hawklanding.AssoonasthePaveHawkwasaway,theywouldthengiveusfiresupport.

Within15minutesthePaveHawkwasinthezone,thetworeardoorgunnersopenedup

andtookouttwoRPGsbeforetheyhadachancetofire–impressivestuff.Alongwiththe

PaveHawk,IcouldhearthedistinctivesoundofanRH-64Apachebeforeitletoffafull

salvo of rockets at the main Taliban position. These two actions halved the fire raining

downonus.TheApacheisafearsomehelicopterwithits20mmchaingunthatcantear

throughvehicles.ItisoneassetwealllovetoseeonthebattlefieldandtheTalibanfearit.

To the point that along with killing Special Forces operators, killing an Apache pilot is

highontheirlist.

InsecondsthePaveHawkwasonthedeck,Harriswashurriedlyloadedintotheback-

beforeitquicklytookoffandspedoffintothenight.TheApachesstayedonstationand

clearedfurtherpocketsofresistance,whilstwemadecoulduseoftheirdistractionandgot

outofthearea-backintoanareacontrolledbyalliedforces.Harriswassavedandlived

tofightanotherday,althoughwiththelossofanarmhisDeltaoperationaldayswereover.

However,hecarriedoninthetrainingwingwithiswealthofknowledgeandexperience.

These hit and run type patrols were very reminiscent of the ones carried out by the

original SAS under David Stirling in North Africa during World War Two. Stirling

thoughtandagreedthatapproachingbylandunderthecoverofnightwouldbesaferand

more effective than parachuting - after their disastrous first mission parachuting into the

LibyanDesert.AsquicklyaspossibleStirlingorganisedraidsonairfieldsandportsusing

this simple method, sometimes bluffing his way through checkpoints at night using the

languageskillsofsomeofhissoldiers.

Underhisleadership,theLewesbombwasinventedbyJockLewes-thefirsthandheld

dual explosive and incendiary device. American jeeps, which were able to deal with the

harsh desert terrain better than other transport, were cut down, adapted and fitted with

obsolete RAF Vickers machine guns. Stirling also pioneered the use of small groups to

escape detection. Stirling often led from the front, his SAS units driving through enemy

airfieldstoshootupaircraftandcrew,replacingtheearlyoperationalstrategyofplanting

Lewesbombstoenemyaircraftonfoot.

In North Africa, during the fifteen months before Stirling’s capture, the SAS had

destroyedover250aircraftontheground,dozensofsupplydumps,wreckedrailwaysand

telecommunications,andhadputhundredsofenemyvehiclesoutofaction.Montgomery

ofAlameindescribedStirlingas‘mad,quitemad’butadmittedthatmenlikeStirlingwere

neededintimeofwar.

TheSASpioneeredtheuseoftheLandRoverasamobileweaponsplatform.InIraq,the

SASusedLandRoverstomoveacrossthedesertinordertofindScudmissilelaunchers

anddestroythem.DeltaalsousedHumveesandFRVstoaidinthesearchofScudsduring

the1991GulfWar.

The biggest problem with the British WMIK and Humvee in Afghanistan was its poor

survivability–especiallywhenitcametoIEDs.Theyofferedaboutasmuchprotectionas

a piece of tin foil. Much has been written in the press about the issues of the poor

protection WMIKs offered. Three members of 23 SAS and Corporal Sarah Bryant were

killedwhentheirSnatchLandRoverwasblownupbyanimprovisedexplosivedevicein

June2008neartoLashkarGah.CplBryantbecamethefirstfemaleBritishsoldiertobe

killedinAfghanistan.Humvee’shavealsobeencriticisedfortheirlackofprotectioneven

withtheFRAG5protectioninstalled.

The original Land Rover which the British WMIK is based on was conceived by the

Rover Company in 1947 during the aftermath of World War II. It was Maurice Wilks

Rover’s chief designer who came up with the plan to produce a light agricultural and

utilityvehicle.ItwasofasimilarconcepttothehighlysuccessfulAmericanWillysJeep

used in the war, but with an emphasis on agricultural use. The Land Rover entered

productionin1948withwhatwaslatertermedtheSeriesI.InMay1949theMinistryof

Warplacedafirstorderof1878vehiclesfromthenonithasprogressedthroughtheSeries

II,ForwardControlIIa/IIb,SeriesIII,DefenderandfinallytheSNATCHandWolfbased

ontheDefender110.

IfweusedourHumveesmainlyoffroad,thiswouldreducetheIEDthreat,asmostIEDs

areplacedonthemainroads,supplyroads,trackorbridges.Theycanbesetinpositions

totargeteithertroopsorvehicles.Withthelightlyarmouredvehiclesorthosenotdesigned

towithstandIEDsarehighlyeffective.

Even off-road we still needed to be vigilant though off-road and carry out various

operational checks. Off road, we had to be more concerned about running into an old

Russianminefieldthatwasnotonourmap.Wemadeitoutoftheareaunscathedandnot

one bullet hole in any vehicle or any other casualty. Another night, another successful

operationandwehadtakenthewardirectlytoaTalibanoccupiedareaandharassedthem

alittle.

However,Afghanistanisavastcountryandtheroleofthearmedforceshasbeenonan

unprecedentedscaleduetothevastsizeandnumberofTalibanfightingtoregainpower

and control of Afghanistan. Which the Taliban once ran under a regime of tyranny and

fear and would do so once again if given the chance. A regime that those of us in the

western world have not seen since the Second World War. Although, this has now been

overtakenbytheriseofISIS,whichisanevenmorehorrificregime.Sohorrificthatal-

Qaeda did not want to have any further links with ISIS and effectively threw them out.

MoneyandtheopiumtradearethebiggeststrangleholdtheTalibanstillhas.Farmersstill

getpaidsubstantialamountsbytheTalibantogrowpoppiesinsteadoffoodcrops,thisis

theoneareatheNorthernAlliancehasstruggledtocombatandhaveanygreatimpacton.

I just hope the people of Afghanistan in the long term can stay strong and can have the

democratic society free of fear that they truly deserve after years of fighting. They have

lostlovedonesorevenentirefamiliestothewarwithRussiaandthenthewaragainstthe

Taliban. Often being in the wrong place at the wrong time, getting caught up in the

crossfire. Innocent civilians have been killed by all sides during the various wars in

Afghanistan

ChapterSeven–OutofBusiness

InthebackofadarkC-130,withonlythesoftmoonlightgivinganyformoflightmy

eyes still adjusting to the dark, I shuffled towards the ramp along with the rest of the

assaultforceandpreparedtojump.Icouldfeelthecoldairseepingthroughmycombats

nowthattherampwasfullylowered.Withaparachuteonmyback,myHK417strapped

tomysideandallmyassaultequipmenttomyfront.Itwashardtokeepmybalanceasthe

C-130pitchedupanddownslightly.

I stepped off the ramp and into the night’s sky and after a short fall deployed my

parachuteforaHAHO(HighAltitudeHighOpening)jump.Thistypeofjumpmeantwe

wouldopenourchutesatahighaltitudeandthenuseourchutestoglideforquiteafew

milesawayfromthenoiseoftheHercules,andgetclosertoourintendedtargetunnoticed.

StrappedtothefrontofoneoftheladswasaGermanShepard.Dogsareknownasman’s

best friend and in a war zone have proved invaluable in keeping soldiers safe, lately in

both Iraq and Afghanistan. Spaniels have been used as bomb disposal dogs able to sniff

outexplosives.GermanShepard’shavebeenusednotonlyasguarddogs,butalsotrack

and capture insurgents. It’s estimated that the Germans used a total of nearly thirty

thousand dogs during World War I. They had six thousand on the front lines and four

thousand,inreserveatthebeginningofthewar.

DeltahasbeenparachutingtheminmorerecentlyintoenemystrongholdsinAfghanistan

withTaliban-seekingGermanshepherdsstrappedtotheirchests.GermanShepherdsarea

relatively new breed of dog, with their origin dating to 1899. As part of the Herding

Group,GermanShepherdsareworkingdogsdevelopedoriginallyforherdingsheep.Since

that time, however, because of their strength, intelligence, trainability and obedience,

GermanShepherdsaroundtheworldareoftenthepreferredbreedformanytypesofwork,

includingsearch-and-rescue,policeandmilitaryroles.Thebreedwasactuallycreatedby

the crossbreeding of working sheep dogs from rural Germany by an ex cavalry officer

called Max von Stephanitz whose aim was to create a working dog for herding which

couldtrotforlongperiods.

Onceontheground,thedogsareletoffasforwardscoutstogoandsearchbuildingsfor

anyTalibanfighters.Toaidinkeepingtrackofthedogandtogatherintelligencebefore

Deltamovein,thedogshavecamerasstrappedtotheirhead’s.Thesecamerasstreamlive

videobackthattheSpecialForcesoperatorcanviewandevenreplaythefeedtoaidinan

assault or in search of IEDs. It is dangerous work, and several dogs have been killed in

action.Bygivingtheirlives,theyhavesavedthelivesofsoldier’s.Thetrainingofthese

dogsisnottoodissimilartothewaypolicedogsaretrained.Thebigdifferencewiththe

SpecialForcesdogsarethattheyaretrainedforHighAltitudeHighOpeningjumps.Delta

Forcedogsaretrainedtojumptetheredtotheirhandlersfromheightsashighas25,000

feetandupto20milesaway–undertakinga30-minuteglidetotheirobjective.Thehigh

altitude and risk of hypoxia, means the dogs have to wear special oxygen masks. It was

DeltaForcewhooriginallytraineddogstomakeHAHOjumps.

Our target tonight was a major IED making facility a few miles from Jalalabad and

towards the Pakistani border. It was reported that one of the Taliban’s top bomb makers

werealsoduetobethere.Wesilentlycameinandlandedjustshortofthebombfactory,

packedourchutesupandmadeourwaytothefactory,hittingitshortlyafter3am.Itwasa

textbook raid, with the three four man patrols entering simultaneously, in a not too

dissimilarfashiontotheraidontheLibyanembassyinLondon,withmaybealittleless

pizazz.TheteamIwaswithenteredviatherearofthebuilding,avariationofthenormal

compound,althoughthiscompoundhadsmallercompoundswithinit,suchwasthesizeof

thecompound.Alargewallsurroundedit,withtwolargemetalentrancegates.

Ratherthantakethegatesoutandalertourpresencebeforeweneededto–wesimply

climbedthewallsandeachteammadeitswaytooneofthethreeinnercompounds.Once

insideourcompounditwasoffeerilyquiet.Wemovedinexpectingfireatanyminuteand

it was not long before all hell broke loose. Rifle fire seemed to be opening up from all

angles.Roundswerebouncingoffthewallbehinduswithbitsofflyingstonehittingthe

back of my neck. The wall behind me quickly became badly pockmarked. The German

ShepardwiththeotherteamcalledJake,hadalreadyscoutedaheadandfoundafewofthe

positionsbeforetheTalibanhadopeneduponhim.AmazinglyJakehadmadeitbackout

aliveandishandlerwasloathetosendhimbackin.Jakewasbarkinghisheadoffstilland

couldjustbeheardoverthedinofgunfire,almostasifhewasangrythathecouldnotget

backinamongsttheaction.

SgtWarwicktomyrightgotthefirstkillwithaperfectlyaimedshot-straightthrough

the head. With one down and several more to go, we continued to fire back and move

forward.Igotthenextconfirmedshotwithabulletthroughtheshoulderandasecondin

thechest–anotherAK-47silenced.Wemovedupthestairswithstillquitealargeamount

offireandCaptainCharlesdecidedtopopoffagrenadeandtookthreeTalibanoutinone

explosion-astheblastandshrapnelrippedthemapart.Theforceoftheblasthadripped

thearmandalltheclothesoffoneoftheTalibanfighters.Anotherhadhisgutshanging

out.

Onebyone,theTalibanfellwithoutasingleroundtouchinganyoneofusmuchtoour

amazement.Wecontinuedtopushforwardandhadthehouseclearedinwhatseemedlike

minutes,butturnedouttobenearlyhalfanhour.Withthebuildingcleared,wewentfirm,

whilstwaitingforupdatesfromtheothertwopatrolsclearingtheothertwocompounds.

We did not have to wait long for the other two teams to give the all clear. With the

compound clear, we began our search for intelligence – this included searching and

photographing each body for intelligence purposes. We spent a further 30 minutes

gatheringintelligencebeforeitwastimetomakegoodourescape.

SomeofusdidwonderifitwouldnothavebeenbetterjusttohavebroughtanF-16in

with a bomb and flattened the place in one go, but the compound was far too close to

civilianandtheriskofinjuringorevenkillingalocalwasfartoohigh.However,itwasa

successful mission, which would save the lives of a few more allied soldiers. We seized

much of the smaller bomb components and explosives for intelligence use. This latest

batchofIEDsbeingproducedhadtheusualsawbladeconductorsreplacedwithstripsof

graphite.TheselowmetalcontentIEDsastheywereknown,werevirtuallyimpossibleto

findwithametaldetector.

Wehada3milewalkbacktowhereourusualtaxi,intheformofaPaveHawkwould

take us back to Kandahar. The 3km trek was undertaken in total silence including radio

silence,asthelastthingwewantedwastoalerttheTalibantoourpresenceandendupina

fullonfightingretreatbacktotheextractionpoint.

Thefastpacedwalkbacktotheextractionpointhelpedkeepuswarm-beingFebruaryit

was not uncommon for temperatures to be in the minus figures especially at night. The

Afghanistanclimatecanbeveryharshwithextremeheatandextremecolddependingon

thetimeofyear.ThecoldestmonthonaverageisJanuaryandthehottestJulyandAugust.

Afghanistanreceivesanaverageof316mmofrainperyearthiscompareswiththeUK’s

averageof854mmandtheNorthAmericanaverageof767mm.

ChapterEight–PaveHawkDown

WehadamidnightbriefbeforeweclimbedaboardacoupleofPaveHawksreadyforthe

mission.TheMH-60GPaveHawkisaderivativeoftheUH-60BlackHawkand

incorporatestheU.S.AirForcePAVEelectronicsystemsprogram.ThePaveHawk

comparedtotheBlackHawkhasupgradedcommunicationsandnavigationsuitethat

includesanintegratedinertialnavigation/globalpositioning/Dopplernavigationsystems,

satellitecommunications,securevoice,andHaveQuickcommunications.ThetermPAVE

standsforPrecisionAvionicsVectoringEquipment.TheMH-60GPaveHawk’sprimary

missionistheinsertionandrecoveryofspecialoperationspersonnel.

Nearly twenty minutes later we were coming down onto our objective as we made the

finalapproachtotheLZ.TheLZthathadbeenidentifiedbytheleadBlackHawkspilot.

ThesecondPaveHawk,wasjustoveradiscbehindthefirstasthispoint.ThePaveHawk

droppeddownto300feetafterpassingsomepowerlinesandwebegantoland.Itwasat

thispointthehelicoptercrewrealisedwewereofftargetandabouttolandinthewrong

field.

Theyhadtomakeasnapdecision-theycouldhaveflownforward,circledaroundand

come in again. The lead Pave Hawk decided instead to fly backwards, in doing so, it

kickedupalargecloudofdusthidingitfromview.ThesecondPaveHawkthencarried

outthesamemanoeuvrewithoutbeingabletoproperlyseetheleadPaveHawk.

IwasontheleadPaveHawkandweweresoonontheground,jumpingoutoftheside

door. Just after I had jumped out the tail rotor on the other Pave Hawk touched and the

rotorbladeslicedoffthetailboomonthePaveHawkIhadjustbeenin.TheotherPave

Hawk was a few metres above the ground, and the contact with the other Black Hawk

causedittotipfromsidetosideviolentlyenough,fortwooftheDeltaOperatorstofall

outofthenowopensidedoorandcrashedtotheground.ThePaveHawkthencrashedto

thegroundbeforetippingoveronitsside.Ithadjustmissedthetwomenwhohadfallen

outasittippedover.

As the Pave Hawk tipped over and the rotor blades dug into the ground shattering -

sendingdebrisoutinalldirections,whichcausedafewinjuries.Theladsthathadfallen

out of the Pave Hawk were untouched, as was the pilot of the Pave Hawk that had just

crashed. A couple of the crew inside had suffered some minor cuts and bruises though.

Therestoftheinjurieswereeasyenoughtodealwith,buttheopwasnowoffaswenow

hadtwohelicoptercrewstokeepsafe.

The badly damaged Pave Hawks needed to be destroyed to ensure nothing fell into

enemyhands.Onthelessbadlydamagedofthetwowestucksomeexplosiveinthefuel

tankandthesecondonitsside,placedsomeexplosiveunderneath.Thehopewasthatthe

explosionandsubsequentfirefromtheaviationfuelwouldbeenoughtodestroyboth.The

explosionthatfollowedthedetonationoftheexplosivescausedquiteahighandbillowing

plumesoforangeflamefollowedbythickblacksmoke.

By now, the helicopter crew and the rest of the Delta Operators were already a mile

away.WerealisedthatblowingupthePaveHawkswouldfurtheralerttheTalibantoour

presence. We were now in an escape and evasion scenario, to get to a suitable LZ for a

Chinooktogetusallout.

ThiswasnotthefirsthelicopterincidenttheSpecialForceshavesufferedwelostDelta

meninIraq.TheSASinIraqduringtheSecondIraqWar-whenahelicopterflyingoutto

dropsomeSASoperativesatanLZ.TheywereescortedbyLynxhelicoptersandithad

beenanuneventfulflightouttothetarget.Nodirectorindirectfireorevensignsoftracer

firefromthegroundbelow.Assoonastheygottothetarget,insurgentsbecamealertedto

their presence and started firing. There fire was quite heavy or though ineffective.

Throughnightvisiongoggles,thepilotcouldseeinsurgentscouldmoveintothecoverof

treesbelow.

The target of the mission was an insurgent leader and his second in command. A local

informanthadspottedhimgoingintothehousethattheywereabouttoraidandtippedoff

theCIA.TheLynxhelicoptersflyingwiththePuma’sweretheretoprotectthePumaand

alsotakeoutanyescapingvehicles.JustliketheApachenowdoeswithChinooks.

ThedoorgunneropenedthePuma’sdoorandletripwithhisgun;firefromtheground

becamemoreintensetheradiocrackledwithreportsasthepilotshoutedthatitwasnow

hotanddynamic,meaningtheywereunderfireandhadtododgethebullets.

TheOCdecidedtogetthemenonthegroundasquicklyaspossible.ThePumabecame

engulfed in dust as it tried to land, so the pilot decided on a last minute change, but

realisingthataLynxhelicopterwaspassingrightoverthem,thepilotdecidedtogoupand

thendownquickly.InordertoavoidtheLynx-thePumacamedownabittooquicklyand

slammedintotheground,rollingoverontoitsside.Theforceoftheimpactthrewmenout

of the helicopter’s side door. It was then realised that three men were actually trapped

underthehelicopter-twoSAStroopersandahelicoptercrewmember.

Those that had escaped quickly regrouped to plan a rescue attempt. The two SAS

trooperswererescuedandquicklytenderedtobythemedics.Thentheflamesstartedto

lickaroundthehelicoptergearboxandahelicoptercrewmemberwasstilltrapped.Tryas

they might the other two that were trapped could not be shifted. In moments, flames

engulfed the helicopter and soon rounds from the door-mounted machine gun were

cookingoffalongwiththewhooshofburningflares.Itwastoohotandtoodangerousfor

anyonetogetclose.Allanyonecoulddowasstandandwatchthehorrificsightandsmell

-asthetwotrappedmenwereburntalive.

Withallofusnowregrouped,CaptainCharlesputtogetheraquickplantoevacuateusto

a safe area for a rescue. We only had walking wounded and the greater the distance we

couldputbetweenusandthedestroyedPaveHawksthebetter.Wehadgotanevacuation

point,butitwas8milesfromourposition,whichmeantalongwalkbeforedawn.Thearea

wasamixtureoffieldswiththeoddtreeline.Wherepossiblewemadeuseofdeadground

orwadistohideourmovement.Keepingawayfromanytracks,aswehadneitherthetime

northeequipmenttosearchforanypotentialIEDs.

IwillgiveourSFhelicoptercrewscredit,thattheyhadnoproblemskeepingupwithour

fastpaceandwereswitchedon.Asplanned,wearrivedtheevacuationpointjustbefore

dawn,andtookcoverwhilstwewaitedforourridehometoKandahar.

KandaharAirbaseislocatedroughly10milessoutheastofKandaharCityinanalmost

desolatearea,whichisessentiallyaflatplainsurroundedbydesert.Therearemountains

tothesouthontheborderwithPakistan,tothesouthwestisLashkarGharthecapitalof

HelmandProvince.TheairbaseoccupiesavastspaceandisthemainNATOmilitaryhub

foroperationsinsouthernAfghanistan.TheairbaseisAfghanistan’ssecondmain

internationalairportafterKabulandoneofthelargestmilitarybases,capableofhousing

aroundtwohundredmilitaryaircraft.

Theairportwasoriginallybuiltinthe1960sbytheAfghangovernment.TheSoviets

occupiedtheairbaseduringthe1980SovietwarinAfghanistan.AftertheSoviet

withdrawaltheairportremainedincontrolofNajibullah’sgovernmentuntilhestepped

downin1992.LocalwarlordGulAghaSherzaiwasinchargeoftheairportuntilthe

TalibantookcontrolofKandaharin1994.Theyweredrivenoutofthecountryduring

OperationEnduringFreedominlate2001.TheairportwasdamagedbyU.S.andBritish

bombingsinOctober2001.

In2007,theairportwasrepairedandexpanded.Itisnowbeingusedforbothmilitary

andcivilianflights.MostoftheairportismaintainedbytheUSArmedForcesandthe

InternationalSecurityAssistanceForce(ISAF),whichhavelargemilitarybasesthere.The

2009surgeinNATOoperationsinsouthernAfghanistanpushedthenumberofaircraft

operationsatthebasefrom1,700to5,000flightsaweek.Thenumbersofflights,meant

thatKandaharbecamethebusiestone-runwayairportsintheworld.Oneinfamous

landmarkatKandaharairportistheaptlyname‘poopond’asquiteliterallythatiswhatit

isfullof,poomixedwithweeandcookingoil.Thestenchfromitcanbesmeltfromall

cornersoftheairport,especiallywithalittlebitofwindblowingthewonderfulsmell.Itis

alakeofsewagesittingontheintersectionofAll-AmericanBoulevardandLouisiana

Road.Itholdsthewasteproducedby30,000peopleusinghundredsofportabletoilets

acrosstheairbaseandalsoholdscommercialkitchengreaseandcookingoilwaste.

RumoursarethatishasbeenswambySpecialForcesforabet,buttheseareunconfirmed

rumours.Whyanyoneintherightmindwouldwanttoorevenbeabletomanagetoswim

acrossacesspitisbeyondme.

Theairportbuildingslookoldandtired.ThedepartureloungeofKandaharAirbaseisa

dusty,dirtybuildingwithaloungeinnameandnothingelse.Attimesitisfulloftroops

andciviliansallkeentomaketheirwaybackhome.Intotaltheairbaseishometoaround

15,000troopsfromallovertheworldandafurther10,000civiliancontractors.Onthe

tarmacoutside,therearemilitarytransportplanes,fightersandcivilianairliners.Itishard

tobelieveitisamilitarybasewiththevastswathesofcommercialairliners,some

contractedtotaketroopshome.

ChapterNine–FirefightfromHell

As the sounds of gunfire echoed around the area, back at Command they were

formulatinganewplan.TheseTalibanfightershadnointentionofmoving,theywantedto

killasmanyofusbeforetheywerekilledthemselves.NottoodissimilartotheJapanesein

WorldWar2,whowouldfighttothebitterend-surrenderwasnotanoption.

Almost as soon as we had jumped off the helicopter, we set up a perimeter around the

helicopter as the rest of the troop got off. We then checked our maps as the Pave Hawk

lifted off. Within seconds, the first bullets were zipping passed our head. We quickly

movedoutasinitiallywewereunabletospottheenemyposition,beinginarockierand

mountainousareanearthePakistanborder.Allwecoulddowasgetintobettercoverand

returnfireinthedirectionthebulletswerecomingfrom.

We found a small ridgeline a few metres high and got behind that. Our second in

command got up and scanned the area when a mortar round exploded several meters in

frontofhimcausinghimtoduck.Finally,aswecrawledtothetopoftheridgelinewesaw

several black-clad Taliban fighters a few hundred metres ahead of us silhouetted against

thenightsky.Wequicklygotourselvessetupandthesergeantmadesurethesnipersand

spotterswereteamedupandreadytogo,whilstthebossgotonthenettogiveasitrep,

Army speak for situation report. A Delta sniper got the first Taliban fighter and we saw

himbeingpulledawaybyanotherTalibanfighter.

Wemadethedecisiontocontinuetostayputandtakeoutasmanyoftheenemyaswe

couldsee,thenusethesmallamountofmortarswehadwithustogivesomeindirectfire

onTalibanpositions.WehadanApacheabouttoliftofffromBagram,butthatwastwenty

minutesaway.Twentyminutesinafirefightwasalongtime.AsmoreTalibanseemedto

startfiringonusthefirstRPGsstartedtohittheridgeline,showeringshrapnelandrock

fragmentsonus.

Thefirewasbecomingmoreintenseandmoreeffectiveanditwasbecomingobviouswe

would be overwhelmed and overrun quite soon. The boss had to make a quick decision,

which was to drop our rucksacks and get the hell out of there, ensuring nothing of any

valuetotheTalibanwasleftinanyrucksack,Icrammedanythingofanyuseintotheside

pouchesthatunzippedofftherucksack.Theamountofresistancewewereencountering

wasfarhigherthanhadbeenanticipatedbyourplanners.Thebossgotonthenetandtold

themwhatweweredoing.

We moved off and got ourselves into a much better defensive position a few hundred

metersthatwouldsufficewhilstwewaitedforairsupport.Theplanwastousetheslight

dropinenemyfireduetotheairsupportandgetthehelloutofthereonourtoes,asfastas

wecould.

By now, thousands of bullets had been fired at us and not one had found a target, the

RPGsandmortarfirehadgotmoreeffectiveandclosetoourposition.Ifwehadstayedon

the ridgeline it was only a matter of time before a mortar scored a direct hit. As we got

into our new position, there was only a small respite before the new wave of Taliban

positionsopenedupfromvariouscrevicesinthesurroundingrockyarea.Wereturnedfire

andfinallygotafewmortarsoffthatscoredsomedirecthitsinquitequicksuccession.We

weresofocusedonthefiercefirefightanddodgingRPGsandahailofbullets,wedidnot

noticetheApachethathadappearedonstation.Itwasalreadylettingripwithits30mm

chain gun, whilst taking some fire of its own. The crew could see that we had become

surroundedandhadnowheretogo,soithadcomeinquiteclosetodrawsomeofthefire

aswellasfirebackontheTalibanpositions.

Bynow,wehadtakensomecasualties,nothingserious,justafewshrapnelwoundsand

smallcutsfrombulletsthathadgotalittletooclose.Iwon’tmindsayingthatasthebattle

ragedon,itwasabsolutelyterrifying.ItwasthefiercestbattleIhadeverbeeninandnever

eclipsed. The amount of fire that the Taliban had, was immense, it just kept on coming.

The bullets were easy enough to dodge, but the RPGs and especially the mortars were

somethingdifferent.

Without the Apache, we would have been dead, without a doubt. Whilst the Apache

couldnotclearallthefightersitdealtwiththeRPGsandmortarpositionsquitequickly,

leavingustodealwiththesmallarmsfire.CaptainCharlesdecidedthatfourofuswhich

included me, were to move out of our position and try to flank the enemy as best we

could.Beingsurroundedmeanttakingoutthepositionsbehindusfirst.

WewouldneedtomovefastandhittheTalibanfightersbeforetheywereawarewewere

there.Withcoveringfirefromourposition,wewouldcirclebackaroundandtakeoutas

many of the Taliban as we could. It sounded so simple, the key was to maintain

momentumandnotgetboggeddown.Theminutewegotboggeddown,theTalibanwould

pumpinmorefightersintoourlocationandtheelementofsurprisewouldbelost.

We carefully claimed our way up and over the various rock to the higher positions the

Talibanwasin.Itwasslowprogresstoensurewewerenotnoticedandusedanycoveras

bestaswecould.Justaswewereabouttogettothetop,wesawonaridgeline,aTaliban

fighter huddle behind a rock and firing down on the rest of the troop. One shot from

Barnesrightintothesideofhisheadandanotherpositionwassilenced.Wemovedalong

theridgeswiftly,butsilently,takingouteachpositionwecameacross.Theyneversawus

coming-suchwastheirtunnelvisionastheycontinuedtogivequickburstsoffireonthe

restofourtroop.

With eight under our belt some being killed in pairs as two of us shot them both

simultaneously.Thiswaswherealltheroundsfiredandweaponstrainingwehaddone,so

wecouldbeexpertmarksmenreallycameintoitsown.

Bynow,theApachehadleftus,aftergettinglowonfuelandammunition,butwewere

gaining a foothold. An AC-130 Spooky was not that far out, after being sent to us from

another operation. With the spooky on station the remaining Taliban fighters would not

standachance.TheupgradedAC-130U“Spooky”aswellasthesingle25mmGAU-12

Equalizeralsohasa40mmL/60Boforscannonanda105mmM102howitzer.Theseare

allmountedonthelefthandsideoftheaircraft.

We were still working our way along the ridgeline and killing Taliban fighters, until

finallyapositionacrossfromusfinallysawusandchangedtheirfiringposition.Itooka

bullet in the shoulder just above the ballistic plate in my chest armour. It was a hot

stingingsensationasthebulletenteredandthenexited.

TheforcethrewmeoffbalanceandIdroppedonehandoffmyweapon,stumblingback

slightly. The shriek I had made about being hit caused Barnes standing next to me, to

shout“Fuck!Stone’sbeenhit.”Barnesquicklygotmebehindarockandpulledmybody

armour off to check for holes. Other than a painful shoulder I did not feel too bad as

Barnesslappedabandageontheentryandtheexitportionofthewound.Patchedupand

withtheadrenalinestillflowing,IfoundIhadnodifficultycarryingonthefight,although

hadtousemyleftshoulderforthebuttofmyweapon.

BarneshadbeenintheUnitforeightyearsandhadprettymuchseenitall,initiallyhe

hadspenthistimewiththemobilitytroopbeforemovingovertoairtroop.Hejoinedthe

Unit with just over three years’ service in the Welsh Guards and he was originally from

Wales.Hewasarealracingsnakeleanandverymean,catchhiminabadmoodandyou

wereguaranteedtobepunched.Inbattle,hewasacoolandcollectedasyoucouldbea

realfightingmanandnaturalwarrior.HelivedandbreathedtheArmy,havingnotimefor

relationships. I have no idea what he will do, when the time comes for him to leave the

Unit.

With disaster averted we went back to eliminating enemy positions just as the spooky

laid down fire starting with a couple of shots from the 105mm cannon to take out two

larger positions. Even from a few hundred metres away we could feel the ground shake

andthesubsequentblastwave,feltlikeastronghotwindonourfaces.

With a few more well placed rounds from the 25 mm Gatling gun and 40mm Bofors

cannon. This silenced a few more positions before those that were left fled the scene,

realisingthatwenowhadtheadvantage.

The Taliban must have known we were coming or we had stepped into a heavily

defendedarea.AllIknew,wasthatIwasstartingtofeellikeshitandalittlelightheaded.

MymouthhadgonetotallydryandIfeltslightlynauseous.Thebosstoyedwiththeidea

ofcollectingourrucksacks,butdecidedthathecouldnotputitpasttheTalibantohave

boobytrappedafewofthemastheyleftthearea.

Inamatterofminutes,weweremakingourwaytoanLZunderthewatchfuleyeofthe

spooky still flying above. Back at Bagram, I was patched up and taken off operational

dutiesfortwoweeks.Icouldhavegonehome,butfelthappierbeingintheopsroomand

doingmybittohelpotherDeltaoperations.Myshoulderdoesstillgivemetheoddtwinge

everynowandthenandIstillhavethebulletwoundscars,whichIdomybesttohide.I

know I had made a lucky escape and other than the odd cut and bruise was the only

seriouswoundIreceivedduringmytimeinthe‘Unit.’

The Australian SAS had their own intense firefight from hell in 2010, when on the 10

June the battle of Eastern Shah Wali Kot was raging. The large scale offensive against

Taliban insurgents in the district of Shah Wali Kot, was part of ISAF’s HAMKARI

initiative, an ongoing civil-military activity aimed at bringing security, governance and

economicopportunitytothepeopleofKandahar.TheAustraliansweretryingtobreakthe

Taliban’s grip on the mountains, valleys and the main road between Tarin Kowt and

Kandaharcity.AnalystshadidentifiedthecrossroadsvillageofChenartuofhighstrategic

importance.Perchedonarockyoutcropandfuelledbyadrenalineintheheatoftheday

Australian snipers lay waiting for a target. In the village below an intense barrage of

machinegunfireandrocketswascomingfromtheTaliban.ThosetwodaysinJunewere

some of the most intense fighting the Australians have endured so far in Afghanistan.

AlongwiththeSASwastheAustralian2ndCommandoUnit’sAlphaCompany.

Theoffensivebeganwhencommandosweresentintogatherintelligenceandwinover

locals.Atdawnon10June,around100commandosweredroppedinavillageinorderto

tempttheTalibanouttofightthem.InthehopeTalibancommanderswouldorderinmore

insurgents to reinforce them. Not long after dawn the Taliban responded and the snipers

startedtodotheirbittakingoutTalibanfighters.Itwasasituationofkillorbekilledand

what would become an extremely intense firelight in searing heat. The Australian major

wouldinbetweentheburstsoffightinghaveteawithvillagechiefs-animportantAfghan

custom–beforegoingbacktojointhefightasiteruptedagain.

The initial battle ended the same afternoon it had started when an air strike by the US

destroyedtheenemyonthehighground.Ithadbeenaharddayoffightingandattimes,

veryintense.TheratioofTalibantoCommandoswasaboutonetoone.However,thenext

day28AustralianDeltatrooperstookonnearly90TalibanfightersinTizaksome3miles

westfromChenartu.InTizaktheDeltahadbeentaskedwithkillingorcapturingacouple

ofTalibancommanders.Ithadbeenexpectedtobearoutinemission–howeverETroop

landedinhelicoptersunderheavyfirejustafter9am.

Thefirewassoheavy,alltheycoulddowascrawlontheirbeltbucklesandtheycould

haveeasilyhaveretreated.AsETroopgotclosetotheobjective,theysplituptotakeout

themachinegunpositions.Theyweretryingtogetthemselvesduginasbestastheycould

underaheavybarrageofenemyfirethathadvirtuallypinnedthemdown.Robert-Smith

thenchargedintoamachinegunnestpinningthemdownkillingtwoTalibanfightersand

forthatactionheearnedhimselfaVictoriaCross.Oncethefirstmachinegunpositionhad

been taken out, it turned the tide to their advantage. The Delta Operators then

systematicallydestroyedeverymachinegunpositioninthevillage,despiterunninglowon

ammunitionandwater,beforereturningtoTarinKowtat3amthenextday.Someeighty

oddTalibanfighterswereleftfordeadoutofanestimatedforceofaround100,withonly

oneciviliancasualty,withanelderlyAfghanmalewhohadbeenshotinthehand.There

werenoallieddeaths,withonlyoneAustralianandoneAfghansoldierwoundedduring

thebattle.

ChapterTen–SuicideBomber

Justafter0200hours,wewereatourobjectiveandmakingourwaythelastfewhundred

metres to the assault point. I could hear all the radio chatter over the headsets from the

varioussupportgroups-wehadattachedtousforthisop.Wemadeourwayunhindered

to the house in Kandahar and two of the team members moved forward and peered into

the house. It appeared completely quiet for a change, looking back maybe too quiet.

Commandgavetheordertobegintheassault.Wemovedpastaseriesofparkedcarsand

thenenteredthehouse.Assoonasweenteredthehousetherewasaburstofgunfireand

twoDeltaguy’shadbeenhitbyalonefighterlurkingintheshadowsofacorridorasthey

enteredthehouse.

We turned round and ran back out of the door, taking the wounded with us and placed

them behind one of the parked cars. The radio burst back into life with the words

“CONTACT.”Wehadtakentwocasualtiesbeforemanagingtofireoffasingleround.Our

fingers probed the two casualties for bullet wounds. I ripped open my trauma pack and

helped treat the casualties. Both the wounded had been able to walk out with a little

support,butwithanywounditwasessentialtomakesuretheywerenotgoingtobleedto

death.Weneededtolocatethewoundandchecktomakesureithadnothitanimportant

artery.

Withthehousenowonfullalertsmallarmsfirestartedtoraindownontheparkedcar

wewereusingascover.TheskinofacarisverythinandanAK-47caneasilygostraight

throughifthebulletdoesnotricochetofforstoppedbyamoresolidelement,suchasan

engineblock.Justpushtheoutsidedoorpanelonacartoseehowthincardoorpanelsare.

Thebestplaceifyouhavetositbehindacaristhefrontendandusetheengineblockarea

forprotection.Therewasnochoicebutwehadtoresumetheassault.Weapproachedthe

buildingundercoveringfirefromfouroftheteambeforeJacksonlobbedinacoupleof

grenadesinquicksuccession.

Abitofshrapnelfromoneofthegrenadesmanagedtoslicemyfinger.Addingmetothe

casualtylist-evenifitwasanon-lifethreateninginjury.Justthenoneofthesurveillance

helicoptersthatalsohadasniperinitnoticedsomeonecomeoutoftherearofthehouse

wearingasuicidevestandcarryinganAK-47.Thesnipergothimselflinedupforashot,

butthesuicidebomberhadfoundsomeoverheadprotectionbeforehehadachancetotake

ashot.

Meanwhile, we were now inside the house and had already killed one Taliban fighter

withtwoshotstothehead-aswecarriedoutaroombyroomclearance.Inoneroomwe

burstin,tofindhalfadozenterrifiedwomencoweringinthecorneroftheroom.Oncewe

hadclearedalltheroomsinside,weneededtogoandcleartheroof.Astheleadingtwo

Delta Operators got near to the top of the staircase a bomb was detonated by a suicide

bomberatthetopofthestairs.Theblastblewthembackdownthestairsandontopofthe

restofus.Unharmedtheybrushedthemselvesoffandwentstraightbackupshootinglike

menpossessed.Itdidthetrickandkilledbothofthefinaltwofightersontheroof.

Thesuicidebomberhadcomeoutofhidingandwasmakinghiswaytothecarthatthe

wounded soldiers and medic were. He did not get very far before the sniper in a Pave

Hawkshothimstraightthroughthehead,beforehehadachancetodetonatehisvest.

Withalltheroomsclearitwas,timetogatheranyintelligence,evenifthehousewasa

totalshamblewithspentbulletcasingsandbloodallovertheplace.Weneedtomakesure

we did not miss anything. We recovered, a couple of Nokia 1100 mobile phones now

giventhetitleof‘dumbphones’asalltheycandoismakecallsandreceivetexts,unlike

the current crop of touchscreen Smartphones that seem to be able to do just about

anything.

TheNokia1100wastheworld’sbestsellingmobilephonewitharound150millionsold.

Totheaverageteenager,itwouldbelabelledabrickorsomethingtobeteasedforowning.

InaharshenvironmentsuchasAfghanistan,itsrobustnatureandlongbatterylifemakeit

ideal.IdoubtaniPhone6SorSamsungGalaxy6typehandsetwouldlastmorethanafew

days in the heat and the dust of the summer months. The intense heat would probably

causethedevicetoshutdownifitdidanythingmorethansendtexts.

Both the wounded had been stabilised and the wounds whilst serious were not life

threatening.Wehadmadeagoodintelligencecoupwiththemobilephones.Thenumbers

and texts that may be on them would lead to other mobile phone numbers that could be

tracedandyieldusefulintelligence.

ChapterEleven–TalibanCamp

A short while before dawn, we moved out of our OP (Observation Post) that had been

ourhomefortwocolddaysandnights.Wedroppedourrucksacksandstartedtomakethe

finaltrekuptotheTalibanpositionnearlyakilometreawayhighupinthemountainsthat

borderwithPakistanneartoTajikstan.Westillhadquiteahardtrektotheridgelineupa

steep incline on the side of a mountain. The views of Afghanistan from up here were

breath taking - with no sign of the war raging on below. Only the odd helicopter or jet

aircraftinthedistancebrokethesilenceandanF-15jet.

WeneedtohaveattackedourobjectiveandwithdrawnbacktoourOPbeforefirstlight.

Theclockwastickingaswescrambleduptherockfacetryingtobeasquietaspossible.

When we reached the ridgeline, we got ourselves into cover behind some rocks. In the

dimmoonlighttheshadowyfigureofaTalibanfightercouldbeseenabout10metresfrom

ourposition–hehadstartedtowalktowardswhereweweretakingcover.Ashewalked

towardsushefinallycaughtsightofus.Hequicklyturnedandstartedtorunbacktothe

tent where the other Taliban fighters were holed up. Captain Charles gave the order to

attack. We charged towards the tent, as AK-47 fire could be heard, but at that point, we

could not see where it was coming from. I managed to fire one round from my HK417

beforeIgotastoppage.CaptainCharlesgotthefirstkill-asanotherfourTalibanfighters

appearedfromthetent.

I worked frantically to clear my stoppage, as the Taliban fire finally became more

effectiveandwaskickingupdustandsmallrocksallaroundus.

OneTalibanfighterranstraighttowardsusandGunnshothimstraightthroughhishead.

The force of the impact pushed the Taliban fighter backwards before he dropped

motionless onto the cold hard rock of the ridgeline. Another Taliban fighter had tried to

flank us to our right and with my stoppage cleared – I fired several bullets to the chest,

which stopped his advance and he dropped to his knees before falling forward. Another

Taliban fighter tried to run away from the ridgeline and a couple of rounds in the back

fromGunn-senthimtumblingdownthemountainside.

Wemovedfurtherforwardbeforeallfourofusemptiedanentiremagazineintothetent-

justincasetherewereanyfighterslefthidinginthere.WiththeridgelineclearofTaliban

fighters, we gathered up any intelligence, which included various maps and documents

that may yield information about Taliban movements or plans. Although Taliban tactics

weremainlygleanedfromthebattlefieldaswesawhowtheyplannedandcarriedouttheir

attacks.

It seems that Taliban fighters have stuck doggedly to the same guiding principles of

guerrillawarfarehonedbytheMujahedeen,theforerunnersoftheTalibanwhofoughtthe

Sovietarmytoastandstillinthelate1980s.

Speed, surprise, mobility and flexibility are integral factors in such ‘asymmetric’

campaigns; where a smaller, irregular force faces a far larger, better-armed one. History

has shown that a smaller, local force will often fare better. Their favoured guerrilla

methodsincludeambush,sabotage,roadsidebombingsandassassinations.Oftentheywill

probeanareatoseehowstrongthedefenceisandwhatreactiontheyget.

With the tent clear we pulled back, whilst I was given the task of setting up some

explosivestoblowthewholeofthesmallcamp,completewithRPGsandaDShK.

TheDShKoriginallycametofruitionin1925attherequestoftheRedArmy.TheDShK

hassincebeenmodifiedandupdated.ThecurrentversionusedbytheTalibandatingback

to 1938 and many were ‘inherited’ from the Russian forces during the occupation of

Afghanistan.

TheDShKisagasoperated,12.7x109mmcalibre,beltfed,aircooledmachinegunthat

firesfromanopenboltandinautomaticmodeonly.Thegaspistonthatreloadsthenext

roundandchamberarelocatedbelowthebarrel;thegaspistonisofthelongstroketype,

and is attached to the bolt carrier. The gas chamber is fitted with a gas regulator, which

requiresaspecialwrenchtomakeadjustments.

Theheavybarrelisfinnedforbettercooling,andisfittedwithalargemuzzlebrake.The

barrelcanbedetachedfromtheweapon,butithardlycanbecalled“quickdetachable”;it

isscrewedintothefrontofthereceiver,andthenfixedtherebythecross-bolt,whichis

alsoscrewedinplace.

The ammunition feed is via non-disintegrating steel belts, from the left side only. The

beltfeedunitwasdesignedasanafterthoughtfortheoriginalmagazine-fedDKmachine

gun,soisclampedontothetopofthereceiver.

Inthemanual(groundandAA)applications,thegunisfittedwithdualspadegripsatthe

back of the receiver, and a dual trigger. Charging handle is also shaped as a spade grip,

andislocatedhorizontallybelowandbetweenspadegrips.Standardsightingequipmentis

anopensightadjustableforrangeupto3500andwinddirection.Additionalanti-aircraft

sightscanbeinstalledforAAuse.

The standard mount for the gun is of a universal setup, which can be used for both

groundandAAroles.DesignedbyKolesnikov,thismountconsistsofadetachabletwo-

wheelbaseandthreefoldinglegs,whichformthetail-boomforgroundapplicationsand

areextendedtoformatripodforAAapplications.

JustasIwasabouttomove,oneoftheTalibanfighterswhowasstillalive,startedtofire

offsomeroundstowardsme.Allfourofusmusthaveopenedupsimultaneouslyandhe

droppedbackdownmuchquickerthanhehadbeenabletogetup.

StillbeingveryalertforanymoreTalibanfightersstillalive,Iputacoupleofroundsin

theheadofeachbodyIcameacross–justtobesuretheyweredead.Theexplosiveswere

planted and I set the timer for 15 minutes, which would be enough for us to get off the

ridgelineandintocoverbeforetheexplosionlitupthenowalmostdawnsky.

The plan was then to go back to our OP for another two days and observe, seeing if

anyone came back to the camp and how it was resupplied. These camps were set up to

bothobserveandiftheygotthechancetofireatalliedaircraft.Ourjobwastogoinand

eradicatethem.Theproblemwasthattheywerehardtofind–sendingaircraftintooclose

rantheriskofthembeingfiredatorshotdown.

Duringatwo-monthattachmentwiththeSAS,IlearnthowtheSASsetupanOP.Itgoes

something like what is written below, and yes the term ‘Zombie Apocalypse’ is used,

althoughIhaveyettoseearealZombie,theclosestisaDeltaoperatorwhohasnotslept

fordaysandyouhavetodraghimoutofhisbedintheearlyhoursofthemorning.

StartingOut

BeforegoingouttocreateanOP,certainthingsmustbetakenintoconsideration.First,

accordingtotheSAS,thelengthofthemissionisalways28days.Therefore,enoughgear

should be taken with each agent for them to survive that long on the mission. Four

operativesshouldbeselectedastheOPteam.Onewithgoodeyesandears,asmartguy,

who will be the scout and point man. Another operative who can operate a radio and is

goodwithexplosivesshouldmaketheteam.Twooperativeswhopossesssniperskillsand

goodweaponsskillsshouldroundouttheteam.

This team of four operatives should gather their gear together. Everything they take

shouldmakethemcombatready,andsurvivalcapable.Eachagentshouldhaveahandgun

as well as a rifle. The two sniper agents should also carry sniper rifles. Each operative

shouldcarryfiveloadedmagazinesforeachweapon,aswellas200–400rounds.Each

agentshouldalsohaveenoughrationsandmeanstogatherwaterfor28days.Thesepacks

canweighupto130pounds.

The team of operatives should then form what the SAS calls a “Chinese Parliament”,

where the four agents determine the plan of action. It is imperative that these four

operativesdeterminetheplanthemselves,andagreetoitwithoutoutsideinput.Afterall,

theywillbetheonesperformingthemission.Everyoperativesinputshouldbeconsidered

duringthismeetingandplanningsession.Next,itistimetobegintheoperation,andhead

towardstheobjective.

Insertion/MovingtoOP

Oncethepatrolispackedandready,theymustbeginmovingtotheOP.Almostalways

theteamwillwanttomoveunderthecoverofdarkness.Thoughsomezombieshavebeen

knowntosmelloutahuman,takingawaytheabilitytoseetheteammovingisessential.

ThepatrolshouldmoveslowlyanddeliberatelytowardstheOP/objective.Thepointman

should lead the way, and determines the best and most tactical route for the team. The

teamshouldcover360degreeswhilemoving.

The patrol should move as silently as possible, using pre-determined hand signals to

communicatealongtheway.Avoidspeakingatallifpossible,andstoppingeverysooften

to listen to the surroundings. Stay concealed, avoid creating silhouettes, and determine

ERL(EmergencyRendezvousLocation)alongtheway.Thisway,ifthingsgowrong,the

teamknowswheretomeet.Ifthepatrolhastomovethroughcampsofothersurvivors,it

isbesttonotletthemknowaboutyourposition.Ifcommunicationwasestablishedbefore

themission,useacodetoconfirmtheyarewhotheyclaimtobe.TheSASdoesthisby

speaking a number – the answer must add up to 9, otherwise they are considered

combatants.Moveslowlyuntilyouareabout500meterstotheOP.

SettinguptheOP/LUP

Oncethepatrolisabout500metersfromtheOP,itistimetosetuptheLUP(LyingUp

Position).ThisisadefensivepositiontheSAScreatesbehindtheOPtoallowforeating,

sleeping,andprovidingcoveroftheOP.Atthispoint,thepatrolsplitsupintopairs.The2

sniperswillmoveuptotheOPwhiletheothertwocreatetheLUP.

For the LUP, holes are dug deep enough to allow plenty of room for each operative.

Though not necessary during the Zombie Apocalypse, the SAS will actually hide every

ounce of dirt removed from their holes, and leave no trace of their existence behind. In

fact, they even remove with them their own body waste. During the ZA, however you

must still dig the hole, and use the SAS method of stuffing chicken wire with local

vegetationtocreatearoof.OncetheLUPiscreated,thepatrolwillrotateonandoffwho

isresting,andwhoisintheOPobservingzombiemovements.

While at the OP and LUP, the proximity to the undead may be close. Therefore, the

patrol must use what the SAS refers to as “Hard Routine.” This means speaking in

whispersonly.Nofiresorcooking–coldrationsonly.Nothingthatwillalerttheundead.

From here, the team should plan to spend a month in the ground observing zombie

movementsandtakingnotes.Thoughtheundeadmovementsareunpredictable,numbers

can be observed, as well as supplies, possible zone entry points, and more. The patrol

shouldtakenotesoneverything.

Evacuate

Thepatrolshouldcleanupallevidenceofthembeingthere,andreturntotheirstarting

location.Becarefultouseadifferentroutethantheoneusedtoarrive.AnotherChinese

Parliament can be held before departure, but it should be silent and swift. Again, move

duringthecoverofnight,andgetbacksafely.Relayalltheinteltotheotheroperatives,

andmakeaplanfromthere.

ChapterTwelve-RiseofTerrorism

TheArabworld’sresentmentofAmerica’sdirectandsubstantialsupportforIsraelgrewsteadilyaftertheUnited

StatesbecametheirbiggestsponsorinthewakeoftheSixDayWarin1967.By1973largeamountsofarmswerebeing

shippedandtheseplayedacriticalroleinblockinganEgyptian-SyrianVictoryintheYomKippurWar,theUnitedStates

werefirmlyplacedonacollisioncoursewiththerisingtideofpan-Arabnationalism.FromthispointforththeAmerican

publicwouldnolongerbeaccidentalvictimsbutactualterroristtargets.

DuringtheSixDayWar,thesweepingsuccessesoftheIsraelimilitarymadeitcleartotheArabworldthatchange

couldnotbeguaranteedbyconventionalforcesalone.WatchingfromthesidelinesweremillionsofPalestiniansliving

inforcedexileintheMiddleEastandinEurope.TheUnitedStatesatthetimewasfocusedontheVietnamWar,civil

rightsandcommunism.TheUnitedStateshopethatwitheverythingelsetheyweretryingtofightagainst,theyhoped

everyeffortwouldbemadetosolvethelongstandingissuesintheMiddle-Eastpeacefully.Ifthatfailed,thehopewas

thatdisagreementscouldbepreventedfromturningintoopenwarfare.Thiswasnottobeamidsmokeandgunfireinthe

HashemiteKingdomofJordon.

ConcernedwithSovietsponsored,SyrianarmedPalestinianforcesintentonusinghiscountryasastagingareafor

raidsonIsrael,KingHusseinibn-TalalusedhisarmytodrivethePalestiniansintoSyriaandreassertedhisauthority.The

KingandhisHashemitefollowershadneverenjoyedaneasyrelationshipwiththevariousFedayeengroupsmakingup

YasserArafat’sPLOanditsmilitaryarmtheFatah,whichwasopenlyencroachingonthecountry’scontroloftheJordan

RiverValley.Onefaction,GeorgeHabbash’sPFLPthelargestandmostanti-Hashemiteofthefaydeenhadtriedhardto

undermineHussein’sthronelongbeforetheconfrontation.

TheintensefightingforthecapitalofAmmanandacrossnorthernJordaninSeptember1970causedgreatconcernin

theNorthernJordaninSeptember1970causedgreatconcernintheWest.Eventhoughmilitaryforceswereputon

standbytoassistandsuppliessenttoJordan,theJordanianarmywasvictorious.

ThisdefeatoftheFatah-ledPalestinianshowever,laidthegroundworkfortheemergenceofterroristorganisations

sucha‘BlackSeptember’aradicalgroup,whichoperatedunderthe“moderate”PLOuntilitsplitoffonitsown.The

nameitselfcelebratesfedayeen’sexpulsionfromJordan.TakingrevengeonthemanwhodirectedKingHussein’sforce

–PremierWafsiTalbyassassinatinghiminCairoayearlater.

ThefledglingterroristssawtheWesternworldasthecauseofvirtuallyalltheArabproblems,eitherperceivedorreal.

ThisledtotheWesternworldintheterrorist’seyesbecomingalegitimatetarget.WesternEuropewasclosetothe

MiddleEast,anditsopensocietiesgavetheterroristsalargedegreeoffreedomtocarryouttheiractivities.

Theseterroristsusedtothethreatofviolenceagainstindividuals,usingtacticsthathavebeenusedthroughouthistory.

Thisnewwaveofterroristsunderstoodtheuseofglobalmediaoriginallywithjusttelevisionandradio.Inmorerecent

timessocialmediahasbeenusedasapropagandatoolforterroriststomakethreatsandlayouttheirdemands.

The1970ssawanexponentialriseofterroristattacks.1970sawseveralcommercialairlinershijacked.Thedramain

the1972OlympicGamesinMunich,Germany.OperationThunderboltof1976whenanIsraelistrikeforcemounteda

hostagerescuemissionatEntebbeAirportinUganda.Theseterroristattackswouldseethegrowthofcounterterrorism

forcessuchasGSG-9in1973andDeltaForcein1979.EvenexistingSpecialForcessuchastheSASsettingupa

counterterrorismunitwithinitsranks.AtthetimethePLOwasthemainterroristgroup,howevertherewasalsothe

IRAandothersmallergroupsstartingtoemerge.alQaedabecameactivebetweenAugust1988andlate1989beingset

upbyOsamabinLaden.TheTalibanwhowouldlaterworkwithalQaedaweremilitiafrom1994-1996andthenin

powerasthegovernmentofAfghanistanbetween1996and2001.Theythenbecameaninsurgencyfrom2004topresent

day.ISIScametolifein1999andjoinedalQaedain2004.alQaedacuttieswithISISinFebruary2014afteran8-

monthpowerstrugglethatcamefollowingafailedmergerwithalQaedaandalNusraFront.

ChapterThirteen–FirstFirefight

IremembermyfirstfirefightasanewInfantryprivateduringthesecondIraqwarin

2003.IcannotthinkofatimewhenIwasmoreafraidandjustfrozeforamomentortwo,

beforemytrainingkickedin.Iwasjusttwomonthsintomyfirsttourandsomedaysit

waslikealivinghell.Livingoutofrucksacksinaharshenvironment.Ourplatoonhad

justbeentaskedtorecceanareaforanewForwardOperatingBase(FOB).Therationale

forlookingatanewFOBwastotryandprotectthefarsideofourarea,whilstatthesame

timeprotectthemainroadrunningthroughit,whichservedasanegressrouteusedbythe

TalibanafterplacingImprovisedExplosiveDevices(IEDs)andambushingconveys.

CommandwantedanFOBtherebecauseofthehighenemyactivity.Wehadtheair

supportifneeded,buttheywereprettytiedupdealingwithinsurgentsintheirlocalityand

werehavingmuchmorecontactthanus.

Wehadsomeassets,includingamortargroupandcouldcallinairsupportifneeded.

MyselfandtwoguysalongwithourM16AshadacoupleofM67fragmentationgrenades.

WhichmadeupthebulkofthefirepoweralongwithanM240MachineGun(MG).We

finallymadeittothenewsuggestedFOBsite.Theareawasquiteflatwithnothingbut

patchesoflonggrassandsunbakedearth.Treessurroundtwosidesofthefield,which

wouldofferussomeprotectionifwewereattacked,evenifitdidblockourfieldofview

andmeanttheinsurgentscouldusethetreestosneakuponus.

Mostofuswentintoall-rounddefense,whilstacoupleoftheguysdidacheckforIEDs.

Afterwelloveranhour,thesitewasfoundtobeclear,sowegotourselvesduginforthe

night.Withourentrenchingtools,weduginthehardsunbakedsoil,whichturnedtodust

themomentyoudugintoit.Thetemperaturewasnowinthe40’s,butafterthreemonths

oftheheat,yougrewacclimatizedtoit-evenifforthefirstfewweeksyouweredrinking

virtuallynon-stop.Especiallywitha10-poundloadonyourback,flakjacket,weaponand

ammunition,finallytoppedoffwithahelmet.Ihaveseentheoddguyhavetobe

medevac’doutduetoheatexhaustion.

Wehadaquietnightwithnocontact,butnoneofuswereallowedtosleepasthechances

ofbeingattackedwereextremelyhigh.AsthedawnbegantobreakalargeburstofPKM

firesnappedoverourheadsandlandedinthehardsun-bakedsoilwithashallowthud.I

wasinaworldofmyown,andittookafewsecondsformymindtorealizewhatwas

goingon.TheMGopenedup,asdidthewholeplatoon.Wefocusedonthedirectionthe

firecamefrom,asoureyessearchedformuzzleflashestobebetterabletogetafixonthe

insurgentposition.Then,allofasudden,theenemyfireseemedtogetheavier.More

roundswerelandingamongstus-almostasifithadstartedrainingheavily.

Irememberseeingtracerswhizzingpastmyheadandhearingthegunfirethatseemedto

cutoutallothersounds.AsIletoutanotherburstafterchangingmagazines,Iheardavery

largescreechingsoundfollowedbytwothudsbehindus.Ilookedaroundandsawtwo

cloudsofdustandsmokefromwheretheRPGshadlanded,andmysquadleaderyelling

“RPGS,FUCKINGRPGS!”Wecontinuedtolaydownroundsandthenheardaverylarge

shoutforthemedic,meaningwehadacasualty.

Theenemyfireseemedtohavemovedtoalmostencircleusbynow.Ilookedbackto

assessthesituationandthedarkAfghanistantwilightwaslitupbyredandgreentracers.

Itwasalmostsurreal.ItmademethinkIwasinamovieoravideogameasopposedto

reallife.TheInsurgentshadsetupinatreelineacouplehundredmetersout.Theyhad

usedaPKM,whichisamodernizedversionofthePKbothofwhichareasingleBipod

lightmachinegunofRussianorigin.Theyhadusedthistodistractuswhilstthemain

forcegotintopositionbehindus.

AnotherRPGcamecrashingdownonusandthistimeIfelttheblastpushmeback,

followedbyasubsequentshowerofdirtthatlandedonme.Theguylyingnexttomewas

bleedingfromtheneck.ApieceofshrapnelfromtheRPGhadlodgedinhisneck.It

wasn’ttoobad,butatthispointintimeitwastoodangeroustotrypatchinghimup.With

theintensefirefightnowgoingonbehindus,wewereorderedtomoveandlaydownfire

tothefront.Bynow,ourmortarteamhadopenedup,andwaslayingdowneffectivefire

ontheenemy.Nowwewereallreturningfirefromourfoxholesasroundswereraining

downonus.Arockethadwhizzedbynomorethanafootfrommyhead.Thescream

deafenedmeandIcouldn’thearmyownvoice.

Aswesetupinournewposition,theentiretreelinelookedlikeitwasflashing;itwas

likealargefireworkdisplay,onlythisfireworkdisplaywasdeadly.Itwasimpossibleto

countallthemuzzleflashes,butthereseemedanawfullotofthem.Pyrotechnicsand

rocketslitupthedawnsky,almostliketherewasaconstantsun.Mortarscontinuedtorain

downintothetreeline,andthisfinallyallowedustogaintheupperhand.Isawtwo

Insurgentsrunningalongtheridgelinejusttotheleftofus;Iletoutaburstandsawone

drop.Theotherinsurgentwasdroppedafewmeterslater.Icouldbarelystickmyheadout

oftheholeIwasin,withroundsimpactingallaroundus,kickingupsmallcloudsofdust.

Finally,weheardajetoverhead,anF-16offeredfiresupportintheformoftwo500lb

bombs,whichweredroppedontheIraqiposition.Thenoiseandtheforceoftheblast

fromthesetwobombswasimmense.Theshockwavesrattledourposition.Themuzzle

flashesceasedandalltheechoesanddustcloudsfromtheplanestookoverthescene.I

hadexperiencedtheawesomepoweranddestructionofairsupportbefore,butitstillleft

meinawe.ThankGodforittoo,otherwiseIdon’tthinkwewouldhavesurvived.Thank

Godthefighterjocksaregoodathittingtherightspot,asitwasgettingdangerouslyclose!

Asignaltoceasefirewasgivenbytheplatooncommander,andsentdownthechainof

commanduntiltheentireplatoonwasyellingthecommand.Atthispointitallwenteerily

quiet,andtheringinginmyearsbegan.Bynow,theguynexttomehadhiswholeneck

wrappedingauze.Tryingtoremovetheshrapnelinthefieldmightcauseittobleedmore,

sopressurewasappliedaroundit.Hewasnottheonlycasualty;wehadlostanotherman

duetoenemyfire.Abullethadsomehowmanagedtopenetratehisheadjustabovehis

righteye,butbelowthefrontofhishelmet.Itwasoneofthoseonceinamillionchance

shotsfromastraybullet,myfellowsoldierjusthappenedtobeinthewrongplaceatthe

wrongtime.

Thiswasthesecondoftheguystobekilledbyabulletinaweek.OnlylastweekPrivate

Stensonhadclimbeduptheladdertotherooftoppositiononabuilding,tobeginhiswatch

behindaMG.HewasbriefedbyPFC(PrivateFirstClass)Harristostaylowafterseeing

twosuspiciouscharactersmoving200meterstothefront.Hecouldnotmakeoutany

weapons,buttherecouldwellbeInsurgents.Todayhadbeenadaywhenwehadreceived

moredirectfirethanusualfromvariouslocations.Afteranhour,acoupleoftheguys

shoutedupatStensontotellhimwhattheywouldbehavingfortea.Stensonliftedhis

headupslightlytoreplywhentheyheardthesoundofahighvelocityround.

Theguysbelowsawhishelmetflyoff,andshouted,“Mandown!Mandown!”Ispun

aroundtoseeStenson’sshouldersslumpforward,andranover.Oneoftheguysclimbed

theladderandsawbloodgushingontothesandbagsfromthebackofStenson’shead.As

theSergeantranuptheladder,Stensonwasslumpeddownwithhismouthandeyeswide

open.Hewasclearlyunconsciousandhadasinglebulletwoundtohisforehead.We

draggedhimdownandremovedhisbodyarmorwhilewewaitedforamedevac.Another

PrivategotontheMGandletoffsomerounds,fromwherehethoughtthebullethad

comefrom.Thiswasdonemoreoutofangerandfrustrationthanthehopeofhitting

anything.TheInsurgentsresponsible,afterhavingseenStensongodown,knewthere

wouldbeareprisalandwouldhavebeenquicktogetaway.Stensondiedonthehelicopter

onthewaytohospital.Hewasconfirmeddeadwhenhearrived.Igotthepleasantjobof

removingthebloodsoakedsandbagsandreplacingthem.

AsthedustandsmokesettledintheFOBtheairwasfilledwiththesmellofcorditeand

ahintofburntflesh.SeveralIraqi’slaydeadtoourfront,andtherewereprobablymorein

thetrees.TheIraqiswouldrecovertheirdeadoncewehadgone,whichwouldbesoonas

wepackedupquicklyandpreparedtoleave.Itookadeepbreathandsaidthankyoufor

survivingmyfirstfirefight,theworst.HappinessfilledmeandIletoutahugesighof

reliefasfearwasreplacedwitheuphoria.

Asmyadrenalinerushcalmeddown,andparanoiasettledin,Ilookedaroundand

noticedthatsomeofuswerefilledwitheuphoriawhilstotherslookedterrified.Allofus

thoughtaboutwhathadgonewrongandwhywehadendedupinanambush.Themain

questionwas:howdidsomanyofthemgetsoclose?Aswassooftenthecase,

intelligencethatexpectedlightresistancehadbeenwrongagain;wehadjustencountered

heavyresistance.WehadbeenpromisedsupportfromanM1A1Abramstank(named

afterGeneralCreightonAbrams),butthishadthrownatracknotfarintoitsjourneyand

endedupbeingtakenbacktoitsbaseforrepair.Eventhoughnormallyatrackcouldbe

putbackonorrepairedinthefield.ImustsayIlovethenoisefromtheM1sturbine

engine–asortofgrowlwithasmoothwine.Itreallyisagreatsighttoseewhenwading

intoofferfiresupport,justitsmerepresencemaywellhavekeptIraqireinforcements

away.

ChapterFourteen–TeachtoLearn

AfghanNationalSecurityForcesaremadeupoftwomainforces,theAfghanNational

Army (ANA) and the Afghan National Police (ANP). These groups are mentored and

trainedbyISAFforces.EnsuringANSFarestrongenoughtoenforcesecuritythroughout

AfghanistanisfundamentaltotheISAFstrategyandessentialiftheyaretotakecontrolof

Afghanistan’ssecuritywhenAlliedforcesleave.

Once of our varied roles was to undertake training of the Afghan National police, 23

SAS(TerritorialArmysameasourNationalGuard)hadinitiallybeeninvolved,however,

itwasfelttheydidnothavetheskillsetnecessaryandwaspassedbacktotheregular22

SASalongwithDeltatocontinuetheirtrainingandmentoring.

The current Afghan National Police was established after the removal of the Taliban

governmentinlate2001.Itreceivesfunding,trainingandequipmentfromNATOstates.

Various local and Federal government employees from the United States as well as

Germany’s Bundespolizei (BPOL), the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence Police

providedmostofthetrainingwithinputfromtheDeltaandtheSAS.

In2002,theEU-ledmission(EUPOLAfghanistan)washeadingthecivilianpolicingin

the Kabul area, but by 2005 the United States established training programs in all the

provincesofAfghanistan.TheAfghanNationalPolicehadnearly149,000activemembers

inSeptember2012,whichishopedwillreachabout160,000by2014.Morerecently,the

Afghan government, with persuasion from NATO, has employed local police forces

knownasArbakaiorAfghanLocalPolice(ALP).

TheANPiscomposedofthefollowingsub-agencies:

AfghanUniformPolice(AUP)TheAUPistheprimarycivillawenforcementagencyin

Afghanistan. It is divided into five regional command centres, as well as the Afghan

National Civil Order Police or ANCOP. Other forces falling under the command and

controloftheANPincludelocaltrafficpolicedepartmentsandthefiredepartment.

Afghan Border Police (ABP) The ABP are responsible for securing the borders of

Afghanistanagainsttheillegalentryofpersonsandthesmugglingofillegalgoods.

AfghanHighwayPoliceThehighwaypoliceareasub-departmentofthenationalpolice

that is currently being dissolved. Their primary responsibility is to provide traffic safety

and overall security of the ‘Ring Road’ highway that connects most of the major

population centres in Afghanistan. Some of their roles are due to be undertaken by the

newALP.

TheprimaryvehicleoftheANPisthefour-wheeldrive,diesel,4-doorFordRanger(and

RangerSORVs),providedbytheUnitedStatesintheirthousands.Othervehiclesinclude

Humvees (2256 ordered in 2010), diesel-powered variants of the U.S. consumer Nissan

Frontiers, Toyota Hilux pickup trucks exported from Thailand, and Volkswagen

Transporter T4/Eurovans, as well as Yamaha motorcycles donated by Japan. Older

vehicles,liketheUAZ-469all-terrainvehicle,wereobtainedfromtheSovietUnion.

The ANP carries a variety of weapons but has since been standardised to Smith &

WessonSigma9mm,AMD65assaultrifles,AK-47assaultrifles,Vz.58assaultriflesand

rocket-propelledgrenadesystems.

TheUniformswornandbodyarmouraresometimesmismatchedandpoorlydistributed.

Mostpolicepersonnelareissuedwithatleastoneuniformthatischangeddependingon

theseasonwhenitcanbeeitherveryhotorverycold.Itiscommontofindavaryingarray

of blue, green and grey uniforms amongst the police due to different manufacturers and

therapidgrowthoftheforceinthepastfewyears.Somepoliceofficershaveresortedto

havingtheirownuniformscustommade.Bodyarmourisonlyissuedasandwhenneeded

and is a mixture of Russian, Chinese and American. Plans to upgrade weapons and

uniformarebeingdraftedbytheAfghangovernment.Typically,theANPbadgeisworn

ononeshoulderandtheAfghanistanflagontheother.

The training we gave to the ANP was mainly weapons handling and general military

training including some SF training for such things as hostage rescue and dealing with

largerscaleattacksandterrorism.Theon-goingissuewehadandstillhave-isthosethat

defect to the Taliban and take operational knowledge with them, or those that decide to

switchsidesandcreateagreenonbluesituation.

Greenonblueattacksisthenamegiventoagrowingseriesofincidentswhereseemingly

rogueAfghansecurityforcesturntheirgunsonNATOcounterparts.Theseinsiderattacks

have led to the deaths of more than 50 NATO troops during 2012. Subsequently, NATO

responded in September 2012 by halting joint operations with Afghan security forces to

preventfurtherattacks,followingthedeathsofsixInternationalSecurityAssistanceForce

(ISAF)troopsinoneweekend.

Withtheincreasedfrequencyofgreenonblueattacks,thetopichasbecomeanimportant

subject for western media. It is usually portrayed as a religious and cultural problem in

whichAfghantroopsreacttoperceivedinsultsbyAmericantroops’behaviour.Otherscite

TalibaninfiltrationintoAfghansecurityforces.However,thereasonsbehindtheseattacks

go much deeper than cultural and religious incompatibilities or suspected Taliban

infiltration.Rather,themotivationbehindthegreenonblueattackshasdevelopedoverthe

pasthalfadecadeofNATOoperationsinAfghanistan.Manyhavegrownfrustratedwith

theoccupationandtheperceivedtreatmentofAfghan’sbyNATOforcestolocalpeople.

Most of those rogue soldiers who undertook the green on blue attacks have become

lethal enemies, usually after losing a family member through NATO airstrikes or NATO

fire.IfsomeoneiskilledasaresultofanaccidentalNATObombingoraction,itislikely

thattheyleftafamilybehind.Thiswillmeanthefamily’sprideiswoundedandsomeone

inthefamilymustbringtheprideback.Thiscanleadtotheneedforretributionandthe

greenonblueattacksthatseemtobecomingmoreandmoreprevalent.

Over the past years, most who joined the Taliban were those brothers and fathers who

hadlostlovedonestoalliedfire.Oneofthemainreasonsthealliedforcesaresocareful

with any airstrike of assault, and why the more surgical type raids provided by Delta,

especially in built up areas are preferred. Fifty standard soldiers and a few tanks will

almost certainly mean civilian casualties, even if the civilians just get caught up in the

crossfire. There is no real answer as in war innocent people get killed. However, by

educating the local populous and showing them we are there to help them, ensuring the

ANPandAfghanArmyarewelltrained,equippedandpaidproperlywillgosomewayto

resolvingthepopulation.TouseastandardBritishArmyterm‘winningtheheartsandthe

minds.’ThistermwasfirstusedduringtheMalayanEmergencywherepracticestoensure

the British kept the Malayans’ trust and reduced a tendency to side with ethnic Chinese

communists. The main element was to give medical and food aid to the Malays and

indigenoustribestokeepthemonside.

ChapterFifteen–RangerRescue

Taking shelter under a ledge on the side of the mountain, we could hear the Taliban

fighting above. A predator drone was circling high above recording the fight. Delta

operators were engaged in some fierce fighting trying to get into a cave complex

reminiscentofToraBorain2001.WehadbeenduetogiveRangersfiresupport,butthey

hadgoneinslightlytooearlyaftercommunicationconfusionandourradiosfailing.

Bygoinginearlierthanexpected,wehadbeenunabletogetintopositionandwewere

nowpinneddown.TheRangersweredoingtheirbest,butjudgingbythesoundandtone

of their voices things were starting to turn bad. We needed to go in and give some fire

support. The predator drone feed to HQ was then relayed back to us, and helped us

formulateaplanandpotentialroutetotakeouttheTalibanposition.

TheRangershadalreadygotonefatalityandanotherminorinjury,soanyplanneededto

beformulatedandputintopracticequicktime.Charleswasnotquitehisusualsharpself

anditwascommandthatcameupwithaworkableplan.Theplanwasforustospiltinto

twoandoneteamoffourtoflankfromtherightandonefromtherear.Usingthepredator

dronetogivesusupdatesonTalibanpositionsandhelpusvectorinonthem.

The Predator is another great piece of kit able to undertake missions of up to 24hours.

Manufactured by General Atomics MQ-1 Predator is known as an Unmanned Aerial

Vehicle(UAV)andisusedprimarilyintheUSAFandCentralIntelligenceAgencyCIA.It

was initially conceived in the early 1990s initially just for reconnaissance and forward

observation roles, the Predator carries cameras and other sensors, but has been modified

and upgraded to carry and fire two AGM-114 Hellfire missiles or other munitions and

called the MQ-1A. The final 195

Predator was delivered to the USAF in March 2011.

Theaircrafthasbeeninusesince1995,andhasseencombatoverAfghanistan,Pakistan,

Bosnia,Serbia,Iraq,Yemen,Libya,andSomalia.Intotal70Predatorshavebeenlost,55

were lost to equipment failure, operator error, or weather. Four have been shot down in

Bosnia, Kosovo, or Iraq and 11 more were lost to operational accidents on combat

missions.

NotableAfghanPredatormissionssofarare:

DuringFebruary2002,armedPredatorswereusedtodestroyasportutilitytypevehicle

belonging to suspected Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar and inadvertently kill

Afghan scrap metal collectors near Zhawar Kili because one of them resembled Osama

binLaden.

On March 4, 2002, a CIA-operated Predator fired a Hellfire missile into a reinforced

TalibanmachinegunbunkerthathadpinneddownanArmyRangerteamwhoseCH-47

Chinook had crashed on the top of Takur Ghar Mountain in Afghanistan. Previous

attempts by flights of F-15 and F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft were unable to destroy the

bunker.

On April 6, 2011, the Predator had its first friendly fire incident when observers at a

remotelocationdidnotrelaytheirdoubtsaboutthetargettotheoperatorsatCreechAir

ForceBase.

Wesplitupintotwoseparateteamsandbeganaclimbthatwasmoreofascrambleupa

looserockfacetogetintoadecentfiringposition.Thefirstteamcameunderfirealmost

straightawayandtheybecamepinneddown.Wewerealittleluckierandwiththehelpof

the feed from the Predator managed to go round the back of a group of Taliban fighters

before opening up. That was four fighters down and what looked like another twenty to

go.Theotherteamhadgonebackdowntherockfaceandtriedgoinginfromadifferent

anglewithgreatersuccessandalsotakingoutaTalibanpositionoftwoTalibanfighters.

Rangers were still pinned down and getting low on ammunition. Air support was

available,butduetothecloseproximityanddifficultterrain,makinguseofitranthehigh

riskofablueonblue.

ThenextpositionthePredatorhadgotusvectoredontohadheavierweapons,includinga

LMG(lightmachinegun)intheformofaPK,50mmmortarandRPGs.Thispositionwas

theonethatwascausingRangersthebiggestheadache.ThemortarandRPGfireandbeen

prettyinaccurate.ItwasthePKthathadcutdownaRanger.ThePKisa7.62mmgeneral-

purposemachinegunthatwasdesignedintheSovietUnionandisstillinproduction.It

wasintroducedinthe1960sandusedbyawholehostofcountriesaroundtheworld.

Theyhadagoodbunkerpositionthatwouldhavetakenquiteabitofefforttoneutralise

ifwehadnotgoneforamoredirectattack.Icouldjustaboutmakeoutoneofthebunkers

occupantsinmysights.Theconcernwasthatifwetookoneout,thenthePKfirewould

starttoraindownonus.

Barnes, being as mad as ever, volunteered to crawl on his belt buckle and lob in a

grenade,ifweputdownsomecoveringfire.Barnesstartedhiscrawlonhisbeltbuckle.I

putthebuttofmyrifleintomyshoulderandtooktwoshortbreathsandholdingit,before

gently pressing the trigger and letting off a shot. The shot went straight into the bunker

and slotted an RPG gunner, just before he launched an RPG. As expected the PK fire

turned on us and we began to fire into the bunker. The PK fire was accurate and we

needed to come in and out of cover to give covering fire for Barnes. Barnes was now a

mere10metresfromthebunkerandclosinginfast.Atabout3metres,hepulledthepin

andheldthegrenadeforafewsecondsbeforethrowingitintothebunker.Ahollowblast

followedwithsmokepouringoutofthebunkerwastheendresult.

Barnes stayed low made his way in and let off a few rounds to ensure everyone inside

was dead. The grenade had made a bit of a mess with blood splatted inside and three

TalibanFighterslyingmotionlesswithoneminushishead.

With the bunker silenced the Rangers were finally able to move forward and into the

caves, killing seven Taliban fighters in the process. The other Delta team moved into a

positionsothattheycouldgive‘overwatch’totheRangersastheywentintothecaves.

We held firm at the bunker – keeping eyes on for any Taliban movements towards us,

although the Predator that was still flying above us had done a good enough job on its

own.

Withthecavesandsurroundingareanowclear,wewereorderedtomoveoutbeforetwo

F-16’s came in and dropped two JDAMs each in order to destroy the cave complex and

preventitfrombeingre-occupied.

ChapterSixteen–Ambush

WehadjustbeenalertedtoagroupofTalibanfightersinpickuptrucksmakingtheirway

intoHelmand.TheywereconnectedtoarecentspateofIEDsthathadcausedhavocwith

recentconvoysandliveslost.Thiswasatargettoogoodtomissandspottedbyan

Americandroneonroutinepatrol.AcoupleofU.S.MarineAV-8Bscameinandtookone

truckoutanddamagedanother.Thiswasaquickreactionoperationandwasacaseof

grabbingourkit,mountingourridetoquicklysetupanambushonwhatwasleftofthe

convoy.Thiswasarareopportunitytocaptureabout20fightersinonego.Ourtaskwasto

ensuretheydidnotescapeandtheconvoydestroyed.Whatwehadnotcountedonwas

howlongthisambushandsubsequentcontactwouldlast.

Wehadaround10minutestogetintopositionbeforetheconvoyappearedmovingat

speed.Thethreeremainingpickupswerealmostshroudedindustandhardtopickout.

Duetothespeedofgettingintopositionwehadnorealsupportattachmentsorheavy

weapons.TheensuingfirefightwouldrequireourtrustyHK417sandafewgrenades,

althoughtheclosequarterfirefightweendedupin,meantwenevergottothrowa

grenade.

WiththefirstfewshotsthepickupsskiddedtoastopandtheTalibanfighterspouredout.

Insteadoftryingtofindcover,theyquitesimplyranatusatafearsomepacewithAK-47s

blazingaway.Thereturnvolleyoffirewasintense-suchwastheshockandaweofthis

actofbraveryorsheerstupidity.Itcausedustofindcoverandbeonthedefensiveinstead

ofoffensive.Igotmyselfbehindawallastheroundsbouncedoffthewall.Oneofthelads

wasjustgettingintocoverwhenanAK-47roundhithimsquarelyintheback,shattering

theceramicplateinhisbodyarmour.Atthesametimesavinghislifeandleavinghim

withnothingmorethananastybruise.

AswestartedtoreturnfiretheTalibanfightersstartedtofindcoveraswellandinsome

instanceswereonly20-30feetaway.Theyfoughthardandittookoveranhourbeforewe

couldstartmovinguponthem.Thefireremainedfierceandthesewerehighlyskilledand

determinedfighters.Ittookallourskillandtrainingtopushthemback.Onebyonewe

pickedthemoff-somestillcontinuingtofireevenaftertheyhadbeenhitseveraltimes.

Wedidwonderifsomeofthemwereundertheinfluenceofdrugs.Eitherwaythisgroup

offightersweremorethanaworthyfoeandthemosttenaciousandresilientgroupIhad

comeacross.Wewereluckynottotakeanycasualtiesourselvessuchwastheintensity

andaccuracyoffire.20Talibanfighterslaydeadinaverygruesomeandmacabrescene;

suchweretheirinjuries.

Whenyouaredealingwithfanaticswhoaredeterminedtofighttotheirdeath,shootto

wound-sotheenemyhastotreattheirwoundeddoesnotapplytotheTaliban,whojust

carryonfighting.Thelowercalibre5.56roundscarriedbymostsoldiersaredesignedto

maimnotkill.ThisiswhyrecentlyUnittopbrasshastakenonourdebriefs,wherewe

havereportedbloodyclasheswithTalibanjihadistswhomanagedtoignoretheirbullet

woundsandcarryonshootingatus.

ThatiswhywehavetheHK417whichisa7.62mmweapon.TheHK417issimilarin

internaldesigntotheHK416,butthereceiverandworkingpartsareenlargedtosuitthe

larger7.62mmNATOroundinsteadofthe5.62mmround.Theboltisa7-lugrotating

type,whichsitsinaboltcarrierandoperatesinaforgedalloyreceiverresemblingthoseof

theStoner-designedAR-10,AR-15andM16rifleseriesweapons.TheHK417’sgreater

accuracy,effectiverange,andpenetrationoffsetitsgreaterexpense,itslowerrateoffire,

anditssmallerammunitioncapacitybothinmagazineandcarriage.

LiketheHK416,theHK417isagas-operated,withashort-strokepistondesignsimilar

tothatoftheHeckler&KochG36.Theshort-strokepistonismorereliablethanthe

originaldirectimpingementoperationoftheAR-10andAR-15designsbecause,unlike

theseweapons,itdoesnotventpropellantgasesdirectlyintothereceiver,whichdeposits

carbonfoulingontotheboltmechanismaswellasheatingitup;suchcarbonfoulingleads

tomoremalfunctions.DeltaForcereplaceditsM4swiththeHK416in2004,aftertests

revealedthatthepistonoperatingsystemsignificantlyreducesmalfunctionswhile

increasingthelifeofparts.

The7.62mmroundwillstoptheTalibanintheirtracksandpreventcoalitionsoldiers

beingwoundedorkilledintheintensefirefightswehaveallbeenin.Westillhavelarger

calibremachinegunsandotherweaponsforlongrangebattles,butaremuchlesseffective

andunwieldyinaclosequarter’sbattlethatmoreoftenthannotDeltacounterterrorism

roledictates.TheroundscurrentlyissuedasstandardtoDeltaOperatorsformostoftheir

riflesare5.56 mmcalibre.Wearebetteroffthoughwith7.62 mmrounds–whichare

almosttwiceasheavyanddesignedtokillwithasingleshot.Thedifferencethesebigger

roundsmakeinacontactisakintobeingabletothrowarockinsteadofapebble.

PotentialriflescouldincludetheUS-madeSpecialOperationsForcesCombatAssault

Rifle(Heavy)Mk17–knownastheSCAR-H.Itisamodularrifleandfires7.62 mm

roundsfromanewlydesignedmagazinethatholds20rounds.Itcanalsobefittedwith

differentlengthbarrelsforclosequarterbattlesandbefittedwithvariousattachments.The

USNavySEALshavebeensuccessfullyusingitforacoupleofyearsandtheSEALguys

wehadspokentowereveryimpressedwithit.TherifleismadebyFNHerstal(Fabrique

Nationaled’Herstal)locatedinHerstalBelgiumoriginallyfoundedin1889.TheMK17

HeavycomesinthreeversionsMk17CQC(CloseQuarterCombat)witha13-inchbarrel,

Mk17Standardwitha16-inchbarrelandtheMk17LB(LongBarrel)witha20-inch

barrel.TheMK17canalsobeadaptedtofire5.56mmroundswithaconversionkitifthe

needarises.TheTalibanthemselvesfire7.62mmroundsfromtheirAK-47sandRussian

sniperrifles.Soineffect,weareputtingourselvesonanequalfooting.

ChapterSeventeen-Taliban

ItisimportanttorememberinAfghanistanyouarenotanativeofthecountryandeven

thoughyouarethereforthegreatergood,lifeinAfghanistanisfarfromeasy.Under

Talibanrule,lifewasevenharderinAfghanistan.Theyruledwithanironfistandanyone

whosteppedoutoflinewasseverelypunished.Theirbeliefinwhattheyweredoingwas

righteousandmakingforabetterAfghanistan.Theirbeliefsweresostrong,thatone

TalibanleaderwasbemusedwhentheRedCrossrefusedtocomeandhelphimexecute

individuals,whichhedidnothavethetimetoexecutehimself.Afghanistanisoneofthe

mostchallengingplacesintheworldtobeawoman:Morewomendieinpregnancyand

childbirththanalmostanywhereelseintheworld.1in50womenwilldieduring

pregnancyorchildbirth—oneevery2hours,9out10womenareilliterate.Womenhave

morethan5childrenonaverage,yet1out10childrendiebeforetheirfifthbirthday.The

lifeexpectancyofanAfghanwomanis44,oneofthelowestintheworld.Morethan50%

ofAfghangirlsaremarriedorengagedby10.Almost60%ofgirlsaremarriedby16.

Nearly80percentofmarriagesinpoorruralareasareeitherforcedorarrangedtomen

mucholder–sometimesintheirsixties.Itisattheweddingthatmostbridesfirstmeetthe

mantheyaretomarry.Oncemarried,theydropoutofeducation,withmanystaying

illiteratefortherestoftheirlives.Islamicextremistsinsistwomenandgirlsstayathome,

andcanonlyleaveiftheyarefullycoveredandaccompaniedbyamalerelative.Inthe

citiesmostwomenwearaburqathatcompletelycoversthem.Thefactthatgirlslivewith

theirhusband’sextendedfamilyoftenresultsinthembeingtreatedlikeservantsorslaves,

leavingmanywomentofeelisolated.UndertheTalibanrule,womenweretreatedworse

thananyotherpointinthehistoryofAfghanistan.Theywereforbiddentowork,toleave

thehousewithoutamaleescort,toseekmedicalhelpfromamaledoctor.Underthe

Talibanregime,womenwerealsoforcedtocoverthemselvescompletelyfromheadtotoe,

evencoveringtheireyes.Womenwhoweredoctorsandteacherssuddenlywereforcedto

bebeggarsandevenprostitutesinordertofeedtheirfamilies.Womenaccusedof

prostitutionwerepubliclystonedtodeathinthesoccerstadiuminKabul.

Lifeinthecityisdifferenttolifeinaruralarea.Inmanywaysthoselivinginthemore

affluentpartsofthelargertownsandcitieshavealifestylethatisnottoodissimilartothe

oneweliveinWesternEuropeorNorthAmerica.Yearsoffightinghasreducedthemale

populationgreatlynotjustthecurrentAfghanwar,butalsothepreviouswarwiththe

Russians.Afghanistanhas1.5millionwidows,oneofthehighestproportionsintheworld.

Partofthisisduetowar,butanotherelementisduetomarryingmucholdermenoroften

diewhentheirchildrenarestillbabies.

TheTalibanisbestthoughtofasahighlyreligiousandfanaticalIslamists.Theyarea

fundamentalistgroupandwereinpowerinAfghanistanfrom1996to2001.Itwasborn

outofthemujahedeenthatweretrainedinPakistan,duringthewarwithRussia.Mullah

OmarstartedtheTalibanmovementwithlessthan50followers,butsoongrewinsizeand

power.Pakistan’sInter-ServicesIntelligence(ISI)wantedtousetheTalibanasaregime

thatwouldbefavourabletoPakistanandhelpedthemintopower.Sincethecreationofthe

Taliban,theISIandthePakistanimilitaryhavegivenfinancial,logisticalandmilitary

support.TalibanfightersarenotjustmadeupofnativeAfghanistan’stheycomefroma

wholehostofWesternandArabcountries,ledbythebeliefthatAfghanistanisaholywar

thatistheretocleanseandridthecountryofanywesterninfluenceandcorruption.Below

isanaccountfromaTalibanfighterinAfghanistan:

Inanywar,thereisalwaysmorethanonesidetoastory,andGriffinhadonceread

areallyinterestingaccountofaTalibanfighter.Insomeways,italmostmadehim

feelsorryforthem.Theyhadanoverwhelmingfeelingthattheirswasajustcause

andtheyweresimplyfightingfortheirowncountry.This,however,hadcomeata

greatcostwithaTalibanregimethatwasdeemedoppressive.Itwouldhappilyhave

bothsoldiersandcivilianskilledtoensureitslawswerefollowedandrid

Afghanistanofalliedforces.Still,theaccountthatGriffinhadreadwasquite

thought-provokingandprovidedaninsightintohowtheTalibanoperated.

ChapterEighteen–HostageRescue

IcouldfeelthevibrationsfromthePaveHawkthroughthelightlypaddedseat,outsideit

was dark and dawn would be upon us in an hour. We were on a dawn raid to rescue a

hostage.AnApachehelicopterwasalsocomingalongwithus.ThehostagewasanItalian

journalist.ShehadbeensnatchedfromablackPajero4x4inKabulafewdaysearlier.The

Talibanhadreleasedatapewiththeirdemands,otherwisethejournalistwouldbekilled.

Intelligencehadnotknowntheexactwhereabouts,butbelievedtheyhadheadedtowards

themountainsontheAfghan/Pakistanborder.Itwasatipofffromavillagenearbyanda

Predator drone that had found the potential hideout. No one was a 100% sure, but on

watchingthesurveillancefootagefromthePredatordidmatchthedescriptionsofsomeof

thehostagetakersinvolved.

AplanwasformulatedandwewerebundledontoaPaveHawkandtakentoanLZsome

twomilesshortofwherethehostagewasbelievedtobeingheld.Theareaofferedgood

protectionforanattackingforceandsomegoodareasthatwecouldplaceasnipertoact

asoverwatch.At4am,wewereonthegroundandmakingourwaytotheobjective.We

wantedtobeinpositionreadytostarttheattackby0430hours,soweneededtogeton

ourtoesandmovequickly.

Iwaslyingdownbehindabushjustbefore0430hours,waitingforDeltasniperstoletus

know they were in position. Therefore, they could take any of the targets out before we

pushedforward.Thereweretwobuildings,asmallerandalargeroneofthenormalmud

construction found in Afghanistan. We hazard a guess that the hostage would be in that

one and would be the main focus of our assault. We needed to make sure we got to the

hostagebeforethehostagetakersdid,astheywouldkillthejournalistinrevengeforour

attack.

The sniper had two targets lined up in his sights; one was a guard on the door to the

smallerbuilding.Hewouldbethefirsttarget,butwedecidedtogetevencloserbeforethe

sniper dropped him. We moved closer to the compound and Captain Henson gave the

orderforthesnipertofire,theinstanttheroundhititstargetwepushedforwardasquickly

aspossible.Thenoiseofthesniperroundhadalertedtherestoftheguardsandtheybegan

shoutinginPashtotoawakentheotherstotheattack,threeguardsweretakenoutinquick

succession.

Iwentwithtwoothersstraighttothebuildingwebelievedtocontainthehostages.The

guardwaslyingonhissidewithabigholeinhishead.Weshovedhimoutofthewayof

the door and I got my size tens on the door. With two hard kicks, the door fell off its

hinges and we moved in. The floor was covered in dirty straw and in the corner a

frightenedlookingwhitefemalecowered.Shelookedlikethepicturewehadbeengiven

ofher.Shewasslightlydirty,slightlydishevelledanddisorientated,Ihadtograbherand

pullherupsoIcouldgethertocomewithus.Wemadeaveryquickegressawayfrom

bothbuildingsandintocover.Thefirefightwasstillragingoninsidethelargerbuilding

withsomequitefierceresistance.TheTalibanwerenothappy,thatwehadcometotake

awaytheirprizedhostageandmoreTalibanfighterswouldbeontheway.

ItwasdecidedthebestthingtodowasforustogetgoingwiththehostagetotheRVand

theresttoundertakeafightingretreatafterwehadputsomedistancebetweenusandthe

restofthepatrol.Backatthecompound,thesniperhadmanagedtodropanothertwoof

thehostagetakersastheytrytopursueus.Theymanagedtogetafewineffectiveshotsoff

withAK-47s,thesehitthetreestothefarleftofus,aswemadeoff.Thejournalistafterall

she had been through was almost out pacing us as she made her bid for freedom. Her

EnglishwasmuchbetterthanourItalianwasandithadnottakenherlongtorealisewe

wereSpecialForces.Iwasunsure,ifitwasduetoourfoulmouthrepertoireorseeingus

inactionthatwastherealgiveaway.

Ourfast-pacedwalkbacktotheLZwasuneventful;thesamecouldnotbesaidforthe

restofthepatrolwhohadabout20TalibaninhotpursuitwhohadarrivedintwoToyota

Hilux’s.Duetotheterrain,theTalibanhadtodismounttopursueandwherepossibletried

to fire off the odd wildly placed RPG. The rest of the lads were getting low on

ammunition.CaptainHensonhadcalledinfiresupportintheshapeofanA-10Warthog,

its 30mm Avenger cannon would make short work of the Taliban as soon as it got on

station. Due to the proximity of the Taliban to the rest of the patrol and to ensure the

journalist safety we would continue to the RV (Rendezvous point) and the rest of the

patrolwouldgoontotheERV(EmergencyRendezvousPoint)thatwasaslightlylonger

distanceawayandawaitextraction.

APaveHawkhelicopterwouldnowbesenttopickusandthejournalistupandgetus

backtoKabulandsafety.Meanwhiletherestofthepatrolwasfinallygettingfiresupport

intheformofanA-10‘Warthog,’whichswoopeddowntoabout200feetbeforeopening

up on the advancing Taliban; with one pass over half of the Taliban fighters were now

lyingdeadandthefireonthefleeingDeltapatrolwasreduced.Withtheadvantage,Delta

turnedroundandreturnedfiretokeeptherestoftheTalibanfighterspinneddownsothe

A-10 could finish the rest of the Taliban off. To some the A-10 may be an ugly aircraft

hencethename‘Warthog’butalsoliketheWarthog,aswellasbeinguglyisslow,lowto

the ground, and almost impossible to stop due its mixture of high survivability and

immense fire power. Which is what makes it such an effective platform to have as fire

support,beingjustaseffectiveandasmenacingastheApacheonthebattlefield.Butwith

one hell of a gun in the form of the GAU-8 Avenger 30mm Gatling gun that can tear

throughbuildings.

WiththeTalibannowneutralised,thepatrolcouldgetbacktotheERV.Iwasalready

onthePaveHawkflyinglowandatspeedbacktoKabulforteaandmedals.

A couple of other notable hostage rescues carried out by the Delta was in 2012, the

DeltacarriedoutthehelicopterraidonthecavewhereHelenJohnston,whowasworking

foranaidproject,wasbeingheldalongwiththreeotherhostagesaspartofa£7million

ransom. It was conducted as a joint operation with American Delta Force at 1am in the

Shahr-e-Bozorg district, a large forested area near the Tajikistan border called Koh-e-

Laran.DeltaandDeltaForcearrivedbyhelicopterandtookpartinthe“longmarch”toa

cavewherefouraidworkers(1British,1Kenyan,2Afghan)werebeingheld.Oneofthe

other hostages was Moragwa Oirere a Kenyan-born aid worker who had previously

workedwithSavetheChildren.

DeltaandSASweredroppedinat1:30ambyaPaveHawkhelicopterandthenbegana

five-miletrektotheirobjective.

The aid workers – Helen Johnston and Moragwe Oirere and two Afghan colleagues -

were kidnapped on May 22, 2012. They worked for Medair, a humanitarian non-

governmentalorganisationbasednearLausanne,Switzerland.

Badakhshan the area where they were kidnapped is an impoverished and mountainous

provinceinAfghanistan’sfarnortheast,andwhilemainlyquiet,therehavebeenpockets

ofinsurgentactivity.

HelenJohnston-studiedattheLondonSchoolofHygieneandTropicalMedicine,she

hadworkedforthecharityinAfghanistan.

Morgue Orr was born and educated in Kenya and subsequently worked for Save the

ChildreninAfrica,aswellasotheraidprojects,beforeworkinginAfghanistan.

Theraidcamelessthantwoweeksafterthewomenhadbeenseizedwhiletrekkingon

horsebacktotreatvillagerssufferingfrommalnutrition.

TheBritishPrimeMinisterDavidCameronsaidaftertheraid,“Theyshouldknowifthey

takeBritishcitizensashostagewedonotpayransoms,wedonottradeprisoners.They

canexpectaswiftandbrutalend.”ThePrimeMinisteralsoaddedthattherescueshould

serveasawarningtoterroristsacrosstheworldwhotakeBritishcitizenshostage.

Deltasoldiers,assistedbyothertroopsfromISAF’sJointSpecialForcesGroup,which

includes elements American Delta Force soldiers and Navy SEALs, as well as local

Afghan security forces, were transported to the cave by helicopter and stormed into it,

freeingthefourhostages.

Afterashortbutintensefirefightsixheavilyarmedhostage-takerswerekilledduringthe

rescueoperation.Thekidnappers,whowerebelievedtohavebeenacriminalgroupwith

linkstoinsurgentsinAfghanistan,hadmadearansomdemandinavideo.

The SF entered the cave complex and came under quite intense fire but were able to

overcome the intense fire and rescue all four hostages safely, no British troops were

injured and a number of Taliban and hostage-takers were killed. The cave complex in

itselfwasachallengetostormbeingonmultiplelevels.Thekidnappersalsohadbotha

height and visual advantage, being in a commanding position. By 0730 hours, all the

hostages had been rescued and six kidnappers lay dead. The freed hostages were then

takenfromtheareaonfootbeforebeingplacedintoahelicopterbacktoKabul.

A statement from the British Foreign Office added, “Helen and her colleagues were

rescued by ISAF forces, including UK forces, in a carefully planned and coordinated

operation.

“This operation was ordered by the Commander of ISAF and was authorised by the

PrimeMinister.

In a statement from the American General John Allen, the overall commander of the

International Security Assistance Force, which includes British and American troops in

Afghanistan, said: “First, I would like to thank the Afghan Ministry of the Interior and

MinisterMohammadifortheirtremendoussupportthroughoutthiscrisis.

“Second, this morning’s mission, conducted by coalition forces, exemplifies our

collectiveandunwaveringcommitmenttodefeattheTaliban.

“I’m extremely grateful to the Afghan authorities and proud of the ISAF forces that

planned,rehearsed,andsuccessfullyconductedthisoperation.

“Thanks to them, Miss Helen Johnston, Ms Moragwe Oirere, and two co-workers will

soonbere-joiningtheirfamiliesandlovedones.”

ThreeAfghanscapturedwithherwerereleasedunharmedafewdayslater.

Another noteworthy hostage rescue mission the Unit took on that I was not involved

with.WasforthedaringrescueofaCIAagentfacingtorturebyAlQaedafanatics.Delta

Forcecommandoswerethoughtatthetimetonothaveenoughbattleexperienceforthe

mission behind enemy lines. The CIA agent was virtually a dead man. He only had one

chance-thatwasDeltadoingwhattheydobest.

The four-man patrol plucked the agent from a heavily-armed house in the Taliban

strongholdofKandahar.Hehadbeenbeatenandwasabouttobetorturedforinformation.

Deltaoperatorssliddownropesfromahelicopterontotheroofofthehousethrewinstun

grenadesthenburstthroughwindows.ManyAlQaedafighterswerekilledorhurtduring

theensuingfiercegunbattle.TheTalibanandAlQaedafightersweretakenbysurprise.

Whentheyreturnedfire,theyweredisorientatedanditwasinaccurate-meaningnotone

of the patrol was hit. The assault ran with three of the patrol laying down fire on the

enemyinclosequarterbattlewhilstafourthlocatedtheprisonerandgothimbacktothe

rest of the patrol. They then took the CIA agent out on to the roof and he was flown to

safety.TheDeltahelicopterflewinlowtoavoiddetectionandtheguardshadnohintof

therescueuntilDeltaalongwiththeSASstormedthecompoundtheCIAagentwasbeing

heldin.

HewasfoundafteraknownTalibanvehiclewastrackedbyahelicopterobservingfrom

a long way off through an image intensifying camera. The helicopter crew were able to

pinpoint the building the CIA agent had been taken to and the Americans requested

assistancefortheSF.AcoupleofhourslatertheDeltawentintoaction.’

Thiswasado-or-dieoperationinthebesttraditionsoftheDelta.Therewasnotimeor

opportunity for sophisticated monitoring technology such as that used in the Iranian

Embassysiege.ItwasaverymuchQBO(QuickBattleOrder)stylemissionplannedina

matterofhours.

ChapterNineteen-Copycat

Being in the Delta, you do feel like the elite and the odd Delta Operator does have a

certainswaggeraboutthem.Weareverygoodatwhatwedo,butthefatalmistakeisto

thinkthatbecauseyouarethebestthereisnochanceoftheenemyreplicatingwhatyou

do.Norcanyouaffordtogetcomplacentandtheneedtotrainandlearnnewtechniquesis

part of being a Special Forces operative. The Taliban managed to do just that on an

audaciousraidonCampBastion,araidthatwewouldhavebeenproudifwehadcarried

out ourselves. On the withdrawal of American and British Forces, Camp Bastion was

handedovertotheAfghanArmytouseasabase.

Camp Bastion was the main British base and was four miles long by two miles wide -

built by 39 Royal Engineers. The British decided to call the new camp Bastion – a

reference to the huge earth-filled bags that have been used to define its boundaries. The

bomb-proofbagsaremadebyaUKcompanycalledHescoBastion,whichwassetupbya

Britishinventor,JimiHeselden.Hehasmadeasmallfortunesellinghisinventiontothe

British military, thousands of the bags now line the roads around this camp, and almost

everyotherinthecountry.

Theotherubiquitousbuildingblockofthecitywastheshippingcontainer,thesortyou

see on travelling on the backs of trains, trucks or the decks of ships at ports around the

world.Therearenow10,000shippingcontainersatBastion,almostallofthembroughtin

byroadthroughPakistan,afterbeingshippedfromEuropeorAmericatoKarachi.There

aresomanythatitisestimateditcouldtakedecadestotakethemallawayagain.

Ratherthanbringinginwatersuppliesfromelsewhere,theBritishsetupawater-bottling

plant on site, drawing the water from the two existing boreholes. The plastic bottles are

madeattheplant,whichprovidesonemillionlitresaweekforBastion,aswellasmanyof

theothersmallerbasesandcheckpointsacrossHelmandprovince.

Mostofthefreshfoodwasflownin,withtherestcomingbyroad.Therewasacentral

warehousewheremostofitisstored–itissaidtobethesecond-biggestbuildinginthe

whole of Afghanistan. With between 20,000 and 30,000 people on the base at any one

time,thequantitiesneededtofeedeveryonearevast-27tonnesofsaladandfruitcomein

every week alone. Convoys of trucks, with armoured support, thunder out of the camp

mostdaystosupplyotherbases,oftenleavinginthemiddleofthenighttominimisethe

disruptiontothevillagesandtownsthattheyrumblethrough.

Thebasehadbecomesobigthatithadeightincineratorsandaburnpittogetridofthe

rubbish.Thecampalsohasitsownbusservice,firestationandapoliceforce.Thereare

on-site laws and regulations too. One of them is the speed limit – 24kph (15mph). It is

enforced by officers with speed cameras, who can leap out from behind containers, or

frominsideditches,tocatchanyonefloutingtherules.Anyonecaughtspeedingmorethan

threetimeswasbannedfromdrivingonthebase.Thoughthelimitisquitelow,manyof

themilitaryvehiclesaresobig,andthedusttheychurnupsoblinding,thatitisdangerous

forthemtobegoinganyfaster.

Therearen’tanypavementsatBastion,orstreetlights,sowalkingaroundatnightcanbe

perilous without a torch. The airport was busy day and night. It dealt with around

2,980,000piecesoffreightamonth,including73,000palletsofmail.

There wasn’t much in the way of nightlife in the Camp, less the air-conditioned gyms

that become regular haunts for many – there was a Pizza Hut that traded from inside a

converted shipping container. Customers could even sit outside on pub-style benches.

TherewasalsoabarnextdoortothePizzaHutcalledHeroes,whichhadgiantTVscreens

showingnewschannelsfromtheUK.

Whiletheairportwasthehubforflightsinandoutofthecountry,theheliportisbusier.

Everyday,RAFChinook,SeaKingandMerlinhelicoptersranlikebuses,ferryingtroops

to and from the base. They were responsible for the bulk of the 600 movements

undertaken across Helmand every day. There was also the British Apaches that go out

with them to offer top cover and also go out on a wide range of missions offering fire

supporttotroopsontheground.

OneofthemostsurrealsightsinthecityisitsAfghanvillage,areplicavillagebuiltby

theBritishArmyRoyalEngineers.Ithasasmallnumberoflocalresidentswhotendtoa

bread oven, riding motorbikes and selling food at a market. The idea of it is to give

soldiers a better feel for what to expect when they go on patrol. There is also a training

areadesignedtohelpidentifyIEDs.Theyhavebeensetupsosoldierslearn;theycanalso

betaughtaboutthedifferenttechniquesforplantingIEDs,andhowthevillagersmightbe

tryingtowarnthemoftheirwhereabouts.IfanAfghanhasstoppedusingabridgetocross

astreamorariver,thereisoftenareasonandthesearethesubtlepointsthatweallpick

upoutonpatrol.

***

OnadarkSeptembernightjustafter2200hoursinCampBastion,anexplosionechoed

across the Helmand desert from the east. A two-metre hole had been blasted high in the

razor-wire-toppedwallsurroundingwhatwasthoughttobeoneofthemostimpregnable

military camps on earth. Fifteen fighters dressed in American army uniforms and armed

with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades raced through the gap. T hey ran 100

yardsandskirtedablastwalltorunoutontoarunway,brightundersecuritylights.

Alongsideitwere10canvashangarscontainingHarrierjets.TheseTalibanattackers,a

verywelldrilledandcohesiveunitofmen,dividedintothreeteamsopenedfire.

OnegroupbeganshootingatthegroupofMarineCorpspilotsandmechanicsworking

on the AV-8B aircraft. The commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Christopher Raible, who

always went and visited the hangars around 10pm every day, had to pull out his 9mm

pistolsohecouldtakeontheattackingforce

He had little chance against the intruder’s superior rifle firepower and he was killed

alongwithamechanic,SergeantBradleyAtwell.NineotherMarineswerewoundedinthe

attack.ThesecondgroupofTalibanfightersmanagedtodestroythreerefuellingstations.

Athirdpartythenheadedfortheaircraft.TheAV-8BHarriershadonlyarrivedatthebase

inJuly–theyhavebecomehatedbytheTalibanfortheirdeadlyefficiency.Becomingjust

ashatedastheApacheandA-10.Theattackershadtimetoplantexplosivesonseveralof

theplanesandotherswerehitwithRPGs.

Intotal,theydestroyedsixaircraftandtwobadlydamagedinthesinglemostdestructive

strike on a NATO base in the Afghan war so far. It was an astonishing raid - one that

DavidStirlinghimselfwouldhavebeenproudof.Itwasreminiscentoftheraidscarried

outin1941intheAfricandesert.Youcouldsaytheyalmostcopiedthoseaudaciousraids

inmanywaysandcarriedthisraidouttogreateffect.

Oneseniorofficerevensaid,“ItwaslikeatextbookSFattack”

As the Marines came under attack at Bastion, motion detector alarms went off in the

securitycommandpost.RAF51Squadron,whichwasinchargeofprotection,dispatched

a 15-strong force in armoured Jackal patrol vehicles. The British took an estimated 12

minutestogettotheattackafterthealarmwasraisedandvarioussensorshadgoneoff.

The12minutesittookwassimplyduetothesizeofCampBastionwithits27milesof

perimeterfence.

The15-strongRAFsquadandU.S.Marinesstoodtheirgrounduntilafurther120NATO

soldiers were in action. However, the Taliban dodged between blast walls, and their

American uniforms caused confusion. The ensuing firefight was so fierce that the RAF

troops alone fired over 10,000 rounds. The battle raged for almost four hours until a

BritishApachehelicoptergunshipendeditbyfinishingtheTalibanoff,withsome30mm

cannonfireastheytriedtoescapeacrossopenground.Bydaybreak14Talibanweredead

andonewaswoundedandcaptured.

The fear is that the Taliban has created their own special operations unit to infiltrate

highly protected facilities. They suspect the masterminds to be the Haqqani network,

notorious militants based in Pakistan. The Haqqanis were set up in Afghanistan in the

mid-1970sandwerehelpedbytheCIAandPakistan’sInter-ServicesIntelligenceagency

against the Soviet in the 1980s. According to US military commanders, it is “the most

resilientenemynetwork”andoneofthebiggestthreatstotheU.S.-ledNATOforcesand

theAfghangovernment.

For the raid on Camp Bastion, the Haqqani network, even had some detailed maps of

Bastion as well as the correct US uniforms. That was subsequently used in the raid on

CampBastionandledtotheconfusionoftryingtoidentifywhowasfriendandwhowas

foe.TheTalibanmusthavehadsomeformofinsideinformation,possibleinformationthat

hadcomefromAfghanarmydefectors.AlocalTalibancommanderwhogavehisnameas

AbdulBaritoldaleadingNewspaperthatplanningbeganamonthbeforetheraid-whena

seniorHaqqaninetworkofficeraskedfor20volunteerstobecomesuicidebombers.They

werethentrainedinPakistaninpreparationfortheraid.

The commander said an Afghan Taliban had gone to Pakistan to collect the militants a

few days before the attack. They had spent two nights in a safe house in Afghanistan

beforestriking.

TheHaqqanisspecialiseinco-ordinatedattacksandwerebehindtheassaultontheUS

embassyinKabul.DespitecloselinkswithPakistan’smilitaryintelligence,theHaqqanis

havebeendesignatedasaterroristoutfitbytheObamaadministration.

TheSASpriortotheCampBastianattackhadhelpedsmashasuicidebombplotagainst

theAfghanistangovernmentinamidnightraidononeoftheirhideouts.Theraidwason

the same Haqqanis who led the raid on Camp Bastion, and have become dubbed “the

SopranosoftheAfghanWar.”TheHaqqaniswereveryclosetoattackingseniorministers,

withawaveofsuicidebombersandgunmen.TheSAShelpedtheAfghanversionofMI5

- the National Security Directorate and forced their way into the Haqqani hideout and

seizedfourkeytargetsinanoperationjustoutsidetheKabulastheypreparedtolaunch

theirattack.

British SF operating helped plan the raid on a heavily protected compound in the Shur

BazaarareaofKabulCityafteratip-offfromlocalAfghans.Afterapproaching,thearea

in vehicles British troops sealed off the area, allowing the Afghan NDS to storm the

building,throwingstungrenadesintothecompoundastheyblastedtheirwayin.

The Afghan NDS have worked closely with American and British SF for years on a

whole host of operations and this was a textbook operation. The operation was planned

quickly as the intelligence that said there was going to be a co-ordinated attack by the

Haqqanis–onlycameafewhoursbeforetheattackwasduetobecarried.

Theattackhadtheelementofsurprise,whichmeantthattheNDSwereabletoarrestthe

key players. The NDS seized suicide vests, AK-47 assault rifles, rocket launchers, hand

grenades,andhundredsofroundsofammunitionfromthehideout.Alsoconfiscatedinthe

raidwereaPakistani“Identitycard,”alongwithPakistanicurrencyandamobilephone.

Delta Force have on many occasions worked alongside other Special Forces often in

partnership with the British SAS whom Delta Force was based on by its creator Col

Charles Beckwith. The end goal for Delta has always been to save hostages or

capture/neutralize a target. However, no matter how well trained and proficient a delta

operatormaybeassomeofthebestshootersintheworld.Itmeanspreciouslittleiftheir

riflescannotbepointedinpreciselytherightdirectionatpreciselytherighttime.Nordoes

itmatteriftheyaren’tgivenpermissiontotakeactionevenwhentheycan.

By 2005, JSOC had become extremely adept at enabling Delta and other direct action

units to do what they do best. Never before was Delta so well supported by command,

alongside, and behind. F3EAD (Find, Fix, Finish, Exploit, Analyze, and Disseminate)

becametheorderoftheday,andthefinishersofthisparticularequationhadthesupport

fromaboveaswellastheassetstogetthejobdone.DeltaForceiscurrentlyinvolvedin

operationsallovertheworld.80%ofwhichneverhitthemediaandarenotinthepublic

domain.

Glossary

AK-47–TheAK-47KalashnikovassaultriflemorecommonlyknownastheAK-47or

justAK(AvtomatKalashnikova–47,whichtranslatestotheKalashnikovautomaticrifle,

model1947),anditsderivatives.Ithadbeenandstilliswithminormodifications,

manufacturedindozensofcountries,andhasbeenusedinhundredsofcountriesand

conflictssinceitsintroduction.ThetotalnumberoftheAK-typeriflesmadeworldwide

duringthelast60yearsisestimatedat90+million.TheAK-47isknownforitssimplicity

ofoperation,ruggednessandmaintenance,andunsurpassedreliabilityeveninthemost

inhospitableofconditions.

AH-64Apache–TheBoeingAH-64Apacheisatwinengineattackhelicopterwithquite

formidablefirepowerconsistingofafullymovable30mmcannon,rocketsandHellfire

missilesstoredinpodsonthestubbywings.

AV8B–TheAV8BwasmanufacturedunderlicencebyMcDonnellDouglasandbasedon

theHawkerSidneyHarrierjumpjet.Capableofverticalorshorttakeoffandlanding

(V/STOL),theaircraftwasdesignedinthelate1970sasanAnglo-Americandevelopment

oftheBritishHawkerSiddeleyHarrier.Itfirstflewin1978andispoweredbyasingle

Rolls-RoyceF402-RR-408(Mk107)vectored-thrustturbofan.

CH-47Chinook-TheCH-47ChinookisanAmericanhelicopterbuiltbyBoeingwitha

tandemrotordesign.ItfirstflewinSeptember1961andhasgonethroughmanychanges

sincethen.OriginallypoweredbytwoLycomingT55-GA-714Aturboshaftengines.Ithas

seenservicearoundtheworldwiththeUSAF,USMC,RAFinavarietyofconflictsand

wars.Itiscurrentlyinservicewith26differentcountriesandatotalof1179havebeen

built.TheDeltausesaspeciallyadapted‘SpecialForces’versionoftheChinook.Eight

ChinookHC3swereorderedin1995asdedicatedSpecialForceshelicopters,whichwere

intendedtobelow-costvariantsoftheUSArmy’sMH-47E.TheHC3sincludeimproved

range,nightvisionsensorsandnavigationcapability.

DShK–TheDShKisaRussianheavymachinegunthatcameintoservicein1938.Itis

gasoperated,witha12.7x109mmcalibrebeltfedandaircooledmachinegun.Itcanbe

usedasananti-aircraftgunmountedonapintle.Itisalsoeasilymountedtotrucksor

othervehiclesasaninfantryheavysupportweapon.

GeneralDynamicsF-16‘FightingFalcon’–TheF-16isasingleenginesupersonic,

multirolefighteraircraft,developedfortheUSAF.ItfirstflewinJanuary1974andis

poweredbyasingleF110-GE-100afterburningturbofanengine.Itisoneofthemost

manoeuvrableaircraftintheworldandisusedbytheU.S.AirForceThunderbirdsdisplay

teamandhasbeenexportedtoquiteafewairforcesaroundtheworld.

Heckler&Koch417-TheHeckler&KochHK417isariflemanufacturedbytheGerman

manufacturerHeckler&Koch.Itisagas-operated,selectivefireriflewitharotatingbolt

andisbasicallyanenlargedHK416assaultrifle.Chamberedforthefullpower

7.62x51mmNATOround,insteadofalesspowerfulintermediatecartridge,theHK417is

intendedforuseasadesignatedmarksmanrifle,andinotherroleswherethegreater

penetrativepowerandrangeofthe7.62x51mmNATOroundarerequired.Ithasbeen

adoptedforserviceacrosstheworldbyarmedforces,SpecialForces,andpolice

organizations.

Heckler&KochMP7-TheHeckler&KochMP7isPersonalDefenceWeapon

manufacturedbytheGermanmanufacturerHeckler&Koch.ItischamberedfortheHK

4.6×30mmcartridge.ItwasoriginallydesignedwiththenewcartridgetomeetNATO

requirementspublishedin1989,astheserequirementscalledforapersonaldefence

weapon(PDW)classfirearm,withagreaterabilitytodefeatbodyarmour.TheMP7went

intoproductionin2001.

Humvee–TheHMMWV(HighMobilityMultipurposeWheeledVehicle),commonly

knownastheHumvee,isanAmericanfour-wheeldrivemilitaryvehicleproducedbyAM

General.IthaslargelysupplantedtherolesformerlyservedbysmallerJeeps.Ithasbeen

inservicesince1984andservedinalltheatresofwar.Poweredbyan8Cylinder.Diesel

6.2Lor6.5LV8turbodieselandwithatopspeedofover70mph,whichdropsto55mph

whenloadeduptoitsgrossweight.Itinitiallylackedanyarmourbutlaterversionhashad

somearmourprotectionaddedagainstsmallarmsfire.

LockheedC130Hercules–TheLockheedC130Herculesisafourengineturboprop

transportaircraftwithahighwingdesign.ItfirstflewinAugust1954.Sincethenthere

havebeenmanyvariantsusedbyover70countriesaroundtheworld.Originallypowered

byfour4AllisonT56-A-15turboprops.Itcancarryapayloadofaround20,000kgorup

to92passengers.Itisahighlyversatileaircraftandhasseenuseacrosstheworldoverits

50yearsofcontinuousservice.

M1AbrahamsTank–TheM1Abrahamsmainbattletankisanotabletank.Oneofits

moreuniquefeaturesisthefittingofaHoneywellAGT1500Cmulti-fuelturbineengine.

Wheremostofitscontemporarieshaveuseddieselengines.Itenteredservicein1980,

replacingtheM60mainbattletank.Ithasreceivedseveralupgradestoitsweapons

systemsandarmoursinceintroduction.Ithasatopspeedof42mphontheroadand

25mphoffroad.

M4Carbine-TheM4carbineisafamilyoffirearmsthatareoriginallybasedonearlier

carbineversionsoftheM16rifle.TheM4isashorterandlightervariantoftheM16A2

assaultrifle,allowingitsusertobetteroperateinclosequarterscombat.Ithas80%parts

commonalitywiththeM16A2.Itisagas-operated,magazine-fed,selectivefire,shoulder-

firedweaponwithatelescopingstock.LiketherestoftheM16family,itfiresthestandard

.223calibre,or5.56mmNATOround.

M16–TheM16isalightweight,5.56mm,air-cooled,gas-operated,magazine-fedassault

rifle,witharotatingbolt,actuatedbydirectimpingementgasoperation.Therifleismade

ofsteel,7075aluminiumalloy,compositeplasticsandpolymermaterials.Itwas

developedfromtheAR-15andcameintoservicein1963.TheM16isnowthemost

commonlymanufactured5.56x45mmrifleintheworld.CurrentlytheM16isinservice

withmorethan80countriesworldwide.Ithasgrownareputationforruggednessand

reliabilityandwasadoptedbytheDeltaoverthelessreliableSA80.LatertheDelta

adoptedtheC8.

McDonnellDouglasF-15E‘StrikeEagle’–TheF-15EStrikeEagleisanall-weather

multirolefighter,derivedfromtheMcDonnellDouglas(nowBoeing)F-15Eagle.Itis

poweredbytwoPratt&WhitneyF100-229afterburningturbofans,29,000lbfandcapable

ofMach2.5(2.5thespeedofsound).ItfirstflewinDecember1986andanF15SG

versionisonorderbytheorderedbytheRepublicofSingaporeAirForce(RSAF).

NorthernAlliance-TheAfghanNorthernAlliance,officiallyknownastheUnitedIslamic

FrontfortheSalvationofAfghanistan,wasamilitaryfrontthatcametoformationinlate

1996aftertheIslamicEmirateofAfghanistan(Taliban)tookoverKabul.TheUnited

FrontwasassembledbykeyleadersoftheIslamicStateofAfghanistan,particularly

presidentinexileBurhanuddinRabbaniandformerDefenceMinisterAhmadShah

Massoud.

GeneralAtomicsMQ-1Predator–ThePredatorisaUAV(UnmannedVehicle)usedfor

reconnaissanceoftargetsandtheforbattlefieldobservation.ItfirstflewinJuly1994and

poweredbyasingleRotax914Fturbochargedfour-cylinderenginepoweringasinglerear

mountedpropeller.TheMQ-1AhasbeenadaptedtocarrytwoAGM-114HellfireATGM

orAIM-92Stingermissiles.

Puma-TheEurocopterAS332SuperPumaisafour-bladed,twin-engine,medium-size

utilityhelicoptermarketedforbothcivilandmilitaryuse.Originallydesignedandbuiltby

Aérospatiale,itisanenlargedandre-enginedversionoftheoriginalSA330Puma.The

SA330firstflewin1965andtheAS332in1978.TheAS332ispoweredbytwo

TurbomecaMakila1A1turboshaft,thateachgiveout1,300kW(1,742shp).

SIGSauerGmbHistheGermansubsidiaryofSwitzerland-basedmanufacturingfirm

L&OHolding,whichalsoownsSwissArmsAG.InitiallySIGSauerIncwasestablished

in1985withthenameSigarms(untilOctober2007)toimportanddistributeSIGfirearms

intotheUnitedStates.

SikorskyUH-60BlackHawk–TheUH-60BlackHawkhasbeencementedinhistory

afterthebooksandfilm‘Blackhawkdown’.Itisafourbladedtwinenginemediumlift

helicopterdesignedfortheUnitedStatesArmy.ItfirstflewinOctober1974andhasbeen

usedinavarietyofrolesandvariantssincethen.PoweredbytwoGeneralElectricT700-

GE-701Cturboshaftenginesitcancarryavarietyofpayloadsandbeadaptedtosuita

widevarietyofmissions.Itwasdesignedfromtheoutsettoahighsurvivabilityonthe

battlefield.FirstbeingusedincombatduringtheinvasionofGrenadain1983.

ToyotaHilux–TheToyotaHiluxisasmallpickuptruckmanufacturebyToyotainJapan.

Ithasbeenproducedsince1968andiscurrentlyonits7

generation.Itcanhaveeither

frontwheeldriveorfour-wheeldrive.TheHiluxhasgainedareputationforexceptional

sturdinessandreliability,evenduringsustainedheavyuseand/orabuse,andisoften

referredtoas“TheIndestructibleTruck”.

WarriorTank–TheWarriortankislightweighttrackedvehicleintroducedin1988.Itis

poweredbyaPerkinsV-8CondorDieselengineandatopspeedof46mph.Armament

consistsofa30mmL21A1RARDENcannonalthoughthe40mmCTAInternational

CT40cannonisplannedasafutureupgrade.SecondaryweaponsareaL94A1coaxial

7.62mmchaingunanda7.62mmmachinegun.Theplanistoupgradethewarriortanks

furthertokeeptheminserviceuntil2025.

WestlandLynx–TheLynxisaBritishmulti-purposemilitaryhelicopterthathasbeenin

servicesince1978andhaditsfirstflightinMarch1971.Itwasthefirstaerobatic

helicopterandstillholdsthehelicopterspeedrecordafterbeingspeciallymodified.

Poweredbytwo2×Rolls-RoyceGemturboshaftengines,theLynxhasprovenitselfasa

versatilehelicopterandquitepotentasanattackhelicopter.ThelatestversiontheWildcat

isduetoenteroperationalservicein2014.

WMIK–BasedonaLandRoverDefender,theWMIKwasmanufacturedjointlybyLand

RoverandRicardoVehicleEngineering,featuredastrengthenedchassisandarestripped

downbeforebeingfittedwithrollcagesandweaponmounts.Typicallythevehiclescan

carryone12.7mmHeavyMachineGun,7.62mmGeneralPurposeMachineGun

(GPMG)oronoccasiontheMILANATGM,ontherearring-mount,withanadditional

pintlemountedGPMGonthefrontpassengerside.In2007,theywerefittedwithanew

belt-fedAutomaticLightweightGrenadeLaunchers(ALGL)madebyHecklerandKoch

(HKGMG).

ZSU-23-2–TheZU-23-2“Sergey”isaSoviettowed23mmanti-aircrafttwin-barrelled

autocannon.Itwasdesignedtoengagelow-flyingtargetsatarangeof2.5kmaswellas

armouredvehiclesatarangeof2kmandfordirectdefenceoftroopsandstrategic

locationsagainstairassaultusuallyconductedbyhelicoptersandlow-flyingairplanes.

Normally,onceeachbarrelhasfired100roundsitbecomestoohotandistherefore

replacedwithasparebarrel.

Bibliography

AndyMcnabBravoTwoZero(Bantampress1994)

BarryDavisHeroesOfTheDelta:TrueStoriesofTheBritishArmy’sEliteSpecialForces

Unit(VirginBooks;NewEdedition2007)

ChrisRyanTheOneThatGotAway(RedFox;JuniorEdedition2010)

DaltonFuryKillBinLaden(StMartin’sPress2008)

DamienLewisBloodyHeroes(Arrow;NewEdedition2007)

DamienLewisZeroSixBravo:60SpecialForces.100,000Enemy.TheExplosiveTrue

Story(Quercus2013)

JohnparkerSBS:TheInsideStoryoftheSpecialBoatService(Headline;2ndRevised

editionedition2004)

MarkNicolUltimateRisk(Macmillan2003)

MarkUrbanTaskForceBlack(Abacus2010)

MicahelAhserTheUnit:TheRealStoryoftheDelta(Penguin2008)

PeterScholeyTheJoker:20YearsInsidetheDelta(AndreDeutschLtd;Newedition

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PeterWinnerSoldier‘I’:theStoryofanDeltaHero:FromMirbattotheIranianEmbassy

SiegeandBeyond(OspreyPublishing2010)

Internet

www.USNavySEALs.Com

Document Outline

Foreword
Chapter One – Takedown
Chapter Two – Tora Bora
Chapter Three – Afghanistan
Chapter Four – Explosive Situation
Chapter Five – Big city takedown
Chapter six – Hit and Run
Chapter Seven – Out of Business
Chapter Eight – Pave Hawk Down
Chapter Nine – Firefight from Hell
Chapter Ten – Suicide Bomber
Chapter Eleven – Taliban Camp
Chapter Twelve - Rise of Terrorism
Chapter Thirteen – First Firefight
Chapter Fourteen – Teach to Learn
Chapter Fifteen – Ranger Rescue
Chapter Sixteen – Ambush
Chapter Seventeen - Taliban
Chapter Eighteen – Hostage Rescue
Chapter Nineteen - Copycat
Glossary
Bibliography

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