Lifeline in Helmand: RAF Front-Line Air Supply in Afghanistan: 1310 Flight in Action

288 Pages·2010·10.8 MB·English

by  Annett

First published in Great Britain in 2010 by
Pen and Sword Aviation
An imprint of
Pen and Sword Books Ltd
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Barnsley
South Yorkshire
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Copyright © Roger Annett 2010
ISBN: 978 1 8884 274 8
ePub ISBN: 9781844681624
PRC ISBN: 9781844681631
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1988.
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Contents
Author’s Note
Foreword
Chapter 1 Dress Rehearsals
Chapter 2 Towards the Airbridge
Chapter 3 Afghanistan, Theatre of Conflict
Chapter 4 Kandahar Base
Chapter 5 Hercules into Action
Chapter 6 Forward to Camp Bastion
Chapter 7 Operation Diesel
Chapter 8 Air Resupply
Chapter 9 Joint Operations
Chapter 10 Links with Home Base
Chapter 11 Where is All This Getting Us?
Chapter 12 Getting On With the Job
Chapter 13 Reliefs in Place
Chapter 14 On and On … and On
Glossary of Acronyms
Author’s Note
This book is about people at war, with the focus on Royal Air Force men and
women of all ranks and trades, operating alongside partner Services from many
nations in combat air-supply in Afghanistan.
Whatever the rights and wrongs of the conflict, the military in this narrative
have taken an oath of allegiance to the Crown – to do their duty, no matter what.
That means long periods away from home base and loved ones, in an alien
environment and among a populace where the welcome is uncertain, and where
the threat of hostile fire is ever-present. And they go back time and time again.
The Americans and the British entered this theatre in 2001 and many of the
air and ground crews, medics and support personnel in this story have returned
there every year since. That takes a special commitment, and courage. Of course,
the same or greater demands are made on the ground troops posted to this
vicious and frightening battle, including those from the RAF Regiment, the
Army and the Royal Marines who have contributed to this narrative. Many of
them are airmen too, serving either in the supply-dropping transports, or flying
in vulnerable helicopters on air-support operations.
I am hugely indebted to the serving men and women who have shared their
experiences with me for this book. My special thanks go to ‘the Boss’ of 27
Squadron ‘C’ Flight, and the Media and Communications Officers of RAF
Odiham and Lyneham, Flight Lieutenants Leigh Shaughnessy and Louise Daly –
all three exceptionally helpful in getting the project started and completed.
Thanks are also due to their chiefs at Air Command and the Ministry of Defence
for their assistance in steering the book through the hoops of contractual and
other processes. One of those was Group Captain Andy Turner, who not only
contributed the Foreword, but also, along with the Boss, my son and my
painstaking wife, kindly took the time to read and edit the manuscript in draft.
Roger Annett
Foreword
Roger Annett’s Lifeline in Helmand is a vivid account of one of the most
challenging operations that has been undertaken by the UK in the contemporary
past. Set in one of the most beautiful and beguiling parts of the world, among an
ancient and honourable people and pitched against an illusive, fleeting and
tenacious enemy who is not particularly disposed to respect either the Geneva
Convention or the Law of Armed Conflict, the trade in blood and treasure is
tangible, but the purpose is deeply honourable.
Operation Herrick, the UK Government’s name for military operations in
Afghanistan, blends the very best of the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, the British
Army and the Royal Air Force into a tight-knit force under the command of
NATO. The endeavours of the UK Armed Forces are more often than not
audacious, but always highly courageous, where the enemy is constantly
battered, bruised and always kept on the back foot. While the kinetic tit-for-tat
has the international media’s interest, our focus is not the enemy but the
population for whom peace, stability and self-determination, which have so
rarely been tasted, are deeply sought.
In this dusty mêlée, the unparalleled bravery and energy of the men of 42
Commando Royal Marines stands out a mile. The marching motto that ‘there is
nothing that a small band of determined men cannot achieve’ rubs off and acts as
a talisman and a sort of moral compass for the RAF Chinook and Hercules
Forces deployed in Afghanistan. It drives our tenacity to get essential food,
water, ammunition and fuel into the remote and sometimes isolated forward
bases, it is a critical impetus when on immediate-response standby to extract
casualties, it propels the planning of deliberate operations at the vanguard of
Task Force Helmand’s operational design and it drives the RAF machine at
Odiham and Lyneham to maximize Chinook and Hercules effort in the field.
In Lifeline in Helmand Roger Annett has captured all of this, in a style that
shines a light on a very great deal of detail of daily life. The narrative tracks a
small group of Chinook crews, who will ultimately adopt the prestigious mantle
of 1310 Flight on arrival in ‘the Stan’, from the early part of 2009, and follows
them through their tour of duty. It starts as they transition through their pre-
deployment training in Scotland, follows them along the Airbridge into ‘theatre’
and reflects on their trials and tribulations throughout their tour. It sets out their
feelings and thoughts, the bravery and self-doubt, and is a window on their raw
ability to pilot and crew the mighty ‘Wokka’ around the dusty high-altitude
deserts of Southern Afghanistan. It is an honest account of life on the front line,
drawing the reader into the cockpit and across the deserts of Helmand, but above
all it is an important account of the bravery and courage of the crews of the UK
Chinook Force.
Group Captain A.M. Turner OBE MSc BA MRAeS RAF
Officer Commanding RAF Odiham UK Chinook Force Commander
CHAPTER 1
Dress Rehearsals
A 2008/9
UTUMN/WINTER
C
HINOOKS IN THE SNOW
Soon after a December dawn, a team of mechanics swarms over a trio of RAF
Chinook helicopters standing massively in line astern on the Lossiemouth
dispersal. The upwind aircraft has its twin rotors roped down against the
freshening breeze off the Moray Firth, but the other two are being made ready
for flight. Engine-covers are lifted off, electronics checked for gremlins and
hydraulics tested for leaks. These heavy-lift machines, painted drab green and
designed for the battlefield, will soon be ready for action in the Scottish snow.
In an Operations Room fifty yards across the grass from the tarmac, there’s
an air of expectancy – a score or more aircrew in olive-green flying-suits are
making final preparations for their morning missions. Accompanied by ground-
crew, they ferried the three Boeing support helicopters up from their Odiham
base at the weekend, two days ago – four bum-numbing hours from Hampshire
at 6,000 feet. These are the young men and women of ‘C’ Flight, 27 Squadron
RAF.
In a couple of months, the flight will be thousands of miles away in Central
Asia, on yet another ten-week deployment in southern Afghanistan, operating,
along with some 8,000 other British servicemen and women, in the NATO-led
force tasked with establishing security in Helmand – a province getting on for
the size of Scotland, and in its northern parts even more mountainous. For many
of those in the Ops Room, this will be their first trip – others will have been
deployed up to five times already. ‘C’ Flight was last there from March to May,
sweating on the plains in 35 degrees Celsius – this time, it will start off icily
cold, with temperatures in the mountains dropping to as much as 25 degrees
below. That’s why, as part of their PreDeployment Training (PDT), they’re up
here for five freezing days in the Scottish Highlands.
‘C’ Flight has the use of a large, square, briefing table, a line of cupboards,
aircrew lockers, a sofa and chairs, and a laptop computer installation. Shelving