Article

2016-01-06 Afghanistan

1 US soldier killed, 2 wounded in Taliban attack in Helmand

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Posted by badanov 2016-01-06 00:00|| || Front Page|| [3 views ] Top
File under: Taliban

#1 but of course the "Good War™" is over, right, you feckless bastard?

Posted by Frank G 2016-01-06 06:58|| 2016-01-06 06:58|| Front Page Top

#2 Bad, bad area all the way up to the Kajaki Dam.

Posted by Besoeker 2016-01-06 07:15|| 2016-01-06 07:15|| Front Page Top

#3 Fox News this morning reports they've got air cover and are no longer trapped, surrounded by a howling mob of the enemy. After the three casualties and the crew of the damaged helicopter were evacuated, the American and Afghan Special Forces troops are staying on. The original mission apparently was to get Taliban ("clearing operation" was the vocabulary in the report), so I guess they're taking advantage of the target rich environment.

Posted by trailing wife 2016-01-06 10:18|| 2016-01-06 10:18|| Front Page Top

Probably not going to extract SOF until that PAV HAWK is pulled out. Suck them into the kill zone and let that orbiting AC-130 Spectre grind them up.

I'd love to see the After Action Report (AAR) on this one, intel estimates, overhead drone
surveillance, etc.

Posted by Besoeker 2016-01-06 10:25|| 2016-01-06 10:25|| Front Page Top

#5 And Tolo News reports that as of 18:35 local time reinforcement troops had got to them and got them out., leaving behind scores of Taliban casualties.

Posted by trailing wife 2016-01-06 10:38|| 2016-01-06 10:38|| Front Page Top

#6 So this is 'Pavehawk Down'?
Of 2 recovery birds, one took inflight fire and aborted, the other banged the disk on a wall? Isn't this a well practiced accident?

The 1st bird yesterday was reportedly disabled by a mortar. Why would the bus driver use a hard pad that had been targeted, or loiter long enough for the mortar team to setup and engage?

Blah, blah, blah,...easy to criticize badly reported events with incomplete information 12000 miles away from my keyboard. Sometimes I get tired of hearing myself think.

Posted by Skidmark 2016-01-06 10:42|| 2016-01-06 10:42|| Front Page Top

#7 Thank you for thinking aloud, Skidmark. You help me better understand what I read.

Posted by trailing wife 2016-01-06 11:06|| 2016-01-06 11:06|| Front Page Top

#8 I like stories about... "scores of Taliban casualties," no matter who is reporting.

Posted by Besoeker 2016-01-06 11:08|| 2016-01-06 11:08|| Front Page Top

#9 Why would the bus driver use a hard pad that had been targeted or loiter long enough for the mortar team to setup and engage?

I suspect that all possible landing areas in or near the base had been previously targeted for future use.

Posted by Pappy 2016-01-06 12:01|| 2016-01-06 12:01|| Front Page Top

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