A Sample Feature From Aviation News
Kabul – Afghan Airhead

Denis J Calvert visits Kabul and reports first-hand on the work of the coalition force which is helping to bring a fragile peace to a war-ravaged country.

WIt’s a long journey from Brize Norton to Afghanistan, even when you have in-flight freedom of the cavernous hold of an RAF C-17A, just 40 passengers and an ample supply of cardboard-box packed meals. Our Flight 6772, ZZ171 of No 99 Squadron, left the UK on the morning of April 27, refuelled and slipped crews at Bahrain and landed in the very early hours of Sunday April 28. Our arrival at Kabul Airport – Kabul International as it had been in earlier years - was in near total darkness. The cabin had been dimmed to red light only and the crew used NVGs (Night Vision Goggles) for terrain avoidance; the landing approach was steep and tactical. There is still a perceived SAM threat from shoulder-launched missiles of Russian origin, and the airfield itself has come under rocket attack. Unloading of the C-17 was carried out in almost total darkness with little or no lighting on the apron; a Globemaster III - perhaps especially a leased one - is a high-value asset, and not one to be risked. As a result, no RAF C-17 is to be seen in daylight at Kabul, turnarounds are rapid and the return flight departed before the sun rose again to illuminate the mountains, which provide such an impressive backdrop to the city.

Despite the length of the trip and the unearthly hour, our party - 12 UK journalists of ‘Her Majesty’s Press’ - were taken through the minimal immigration formalities (claim your baggage by torchlight from outside the ‘terminal’/tent) and then given a number of theatre briefings. These were very much ‘no holds barred’, starting with personal and environmental health and the dangers of disease (malaria, anthrax, cholera, rabies), local food and water supplies and wild animals (including packs of wild dogs, rodents and eleven types of snake). The story was told of the Italian soldier who found a scorpion in his underpants, going on to detail the exact part of his anatomy where it chose to plant its sting. The moral? Check your clothes and bedding before getting in to them. Then on to the dangers of Afghan roads (potholes, poor surfaces, driving from age 13 and no driving tests - facts which soon became obvious), security on the roads (password challenges, the need for armed escorts and to travel in convoy, police check points, etc) and details of the military police in theatre (French, Danish, Spanish, Dutch). Finally, the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) brief. There are 11 million mines in Afghanistan, this figure equating to one for every person in the country. Ten casualties a day are suffered from unexploded munitions and passage through the city later revealed a depressing number of one-legged adults and children. To minimize this danger, there are 22 EOD teams, including an immediate response unit on 15-minute readiness. The worrying statistic is that 10% of all air-dropped sub-munitions fail to explode, but will ignite if touched; the advice against walking on the grass - any grass - was duly noted by all present. Then the briefings were over, the sun was beginning to rise and it was time to be transported to our tented accommodation 20 minutes away. ‘Gentlemen, welcome to Kabul’.

After 23 years of war and uncertainty, some form of normality is returning to the streets of Kabul, but the ravages of the conflict have to be seen to be believed. Certainly, the writer had encountered nothing else like it in his travels, and found it both sobering and depressing. On our arrival, we were made aware of a rocket attack on Kabul Airport at 22:00hr the night before; fortunately, none of the three Chinese-built 107mm rockets had exploded upon impact, but their launching from hills to the east of the city proved - if proof were needed – that there is still a military threat. Much of the city has no electricity, a large percentage has no safe water supply and houses which have seemingly been destroyed in the fighting are still in fact inhabited. With the banishing of the Taleban, people are again out on the streets, although a 22:00hr curfew remains in force. While crime is still high and firearms still ridiculously easy to get hold of – our party was offered an AK47 rifle by a policeman, who proposed to trade it for a British Army helmet or any other saleable item – military clashes in the city have ceased.

The new-found confidence shows itself in an increased level of commercial activity, with more traders out on the streets, even if what they are selling (low grade food, indescribable cuts of meat, some surprisingly attractive vegetables, fake branded goods including some most unusually marked bottles of ‘Coca Cola’ and ‘Pepsi Cola’, large parts of motor vehicles, firewood and what might best be described as scrap metal) seems far from meeting the needs of a consumer society. Schools have reopened and the University of Kabul is flourishing despite a clear lack of money and resources. Civil service salaries are again being paid; while the average wage is no more than US$5 a day, English-speaking interpreters are in great demand. The all-conquering US Dollar is the de facto currency in Afghanistan, with the Afghan currency - and its huge denominations - seemingly sidelined to transactions between locals.

For the rest of this article please see the July issue.