Week 2 - Commanding Officers Notes

Our second week in Helmand has been as busy as the first. The handover by 2 YORKS continued, as did the theatre induction training and range package. Gradually we are acclimatising and getting used to our new environments. This last week has seen all remaining elements of our Main Body flights arrive and many of our number have already moved off from our main base in Camp Shorabak to the several outstations. We now have elements of the Battlegroup centred on Sangin, Musa Q'ala and Gereshk as well as individuals in smaller satellite bases and checkpoints around those main operating areas. We have 2 people based at Kabul Airport and some of our chefs are helping out in Lashkar Gar.

On Tuesday 25 March 1 R IRISH formally took over command with a simple flag changing ceremony by the OMLT Battlegroup Memorial in Camp Shorabak. The BG HQ mentors have been spending increasing amounts of time across in the Afghan camp trying to establish productive relationships with opposite numbers.   Endless cups of chai ease the natural frustrations caused by cultural and language barriers.

Our main aim this week has been to bed in the barracks training programme for Kandak 3 and to establish a disciplined operations and intelligence briefing routine amongst the Afghan Brigade staff. The CO, Major Max Walker and Capt Lee Shannahan have conducted many visits and meetings to further understanding of future operations and the development of the ANA's capabilities. The Danish BG visited to propose joint operations and visits to Kandahar and Lashkar Gar were conducted to link up with the 3 chains of command who influence our lives: Helmand Task Force, Regional Command (South), 205 Corps ANA and the American led Afghanistan Regional Security Integrated Command.

Helmand Province now has a new Governor of 3 weeks standing, called Gulab Mangal. He held his first Security Shura (meeting), where he laid out his approach to dealing with the insurgency and furthering the development of governance and a functioning economy. His arrival has been greeted positively and his youth energy and pragmatic approach compare favourably with his successor. There are grounds for optimism although progress here is neither fast nor easy.

Several of the outstations are poorly served with communications facilities and are what we would term 'bare bases'. Rest assured that the BG HQ staff is making a strong case to have the scale of welfare satellite phones increased - but at present I recommend that for some the best means of communications are old fashioned, or e, blueys - and even they will need to wait for a scarce helicopter run to be delivered. That said, we anticipate 2 of the Kandaks rotating in the next 2 weeks - so OMLT 1 should return from the Sangin Area of Operations (to be replaced by OMLT 3) as should OMLT 4 from the Gereshk AO (to be replaced by the CS Kandak). Both should then have some time in the relative luxury of Camp Shorabak

E B M Freely
Lieutenant Colonel
Commanding Officer
1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment