Contacted at Loy Doreh

Fire Support, 1 R WELSH had a patrol to undertake in the afternoon. Within 20 minutes of leaving Checkpoint Bennett (a new CP established to provide security along Route 603), the 30 man patrol came under fire from the Taleban. It was a feisty skirmish from the insurgents, with a sustained small fire arms attack.

In the Ops Room, map pins were rapidly pushed into a grey map showing the positions of the three platoons and suspected insurgent position. Captain Frankie Taylor, the 2ic of the company was calmly questioning the two radio operators to establish were the contacts were coming from. But no sooner had the ground picture been established, than the Taleban melted away. There had been lots of shouting heard over the radio, as soldiers carried out tried and tested drills. There had been no reports of casualties.

Frankie and the ops team dutifully reported the incident to HQ and the rear party. Soon after, the CO of the Royal Welsh, Lieutenant Colonel Nick Lock then landed at the checkpoint for a planned visit to meet the Fire Support team both in the compound and on patrol. Having done a quick tour of the compound he was out on the ground to join up with the patrol.

It was only to be 20 minutes later that the crack of gunfire could be heard from the compound. The crack turned into a vicious exchange of shots, with each side aggressively laying down fire. The radio operators could hear the excited and charged voices of the platoon commanders panting out positions and updates. Two of the afghan soldiers had been wounded.



The compound gates were rapidly opened. However, it was not the wounded but the CO who came into the compound. “We missed the action by about 2 minutes”; there was a tinge of regret in his voice. Frankie was able to brief the CO that both casualties were walking wounded; one had been shot in the foot whilst the other had sustained shrapnel wounds to his right leg and arm. The two combat medics had rushed to their aid patching up both soldiers deftly and the platoon quickly got them out of harm’s way. Brought in by jackal vehicle, the two casualties were very quickly bandaged and made comfortable; Corporal Raphael Gbedebu and Private Jason Edwardson, the combat medics, saw to that.

“Give these guys some room”, shouted  one of Corporals in the team as concerned Afghan comrades gathered around the injured men. His tone of voice needed no translation. The two medics then set about treating their wounds gently but quickly. Both soldiers were very much aware of their injuries but had been reassured by the medics that they would be patched up and that their injuries were “very manageable”.



Frankie put in the “9-liner” report on the triage state of the casualties and requested that a helicopter casevac the wounded soldiers back to Camp Bastion. He was a thorough in his reporting as he was deft. Over the net, HQ acknowledged the request. “Boys”, said Frankie in a beguiling Welsh lilt, “let’s get these casualties to the helicopter site; medics say they can walk – job done”. Praise doesn’t come higher than that in Fire Support company. “Well not for us old and bolds”, said Frankie.



Pictures: Sqn Ldr Dee Taylor

Off to Afghanistan at the toss of a coin

A soldier who joined the Army after a bet and chose to be a medic at the toss of a coin now finds himself working with the Afghan National Police in the searing heat of the Afghan summer.

Lance Corporal Michael Birkett is currently deployed to Helmand province with 2 Medical Regiment.

He says that he never had any intentions of ever joining the Army, but explains:

"My brother, Corporal Paul Birkett, is in the Royal Signals, and he said I wouldn't be able to do it, so I made a £10 bet with my granddad and joined the Army. I then didn't know what trade I wanted to do so I tossed a coin and chose to be a medic."

Lance Corporal Birkett deployed to Helmand with 19 Light Brigade in April 2009. His role there has so far been varied. He explained:

"For 11 weeks I was based at Musa Qaleh working with 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and the Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team. I also went out on deliberate operations such as Operation MAR LEWE with 2nd Battalion The Royal Welsh and I used to go out with the TAC [Tactical Command] Group."

Operation MAR LEWE contributed to disrupting insurgent activity by strengthening security in the Musa Qaleh area:

"I've been to all the Patrol Bases - Woqab, Minden and Zulu - and I would deploy with 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles at the start on the recce [reconnaissance] group's foot patrols providing immediate life-saving care.

"Most of my work has been out with the Police Mentoring Team securing the route 601 to deter the insurgent improvised explosive device threat as part of holding operations."

After his R&R (Rest & Recuperation) Lance Corporal Birkett came back to Lashkar Gah where he has continued working with the Police Mentoring Team made up of British soldiers who are teaching the Afghan National Police weapons-handling skills and survival skills. Lance Corporal Birkett added:

"I teach them basic first aid lessons as well as providing medical support to the troops on the ground. I also give medical treatment to the Afghan National Police if they have ongoing medical issues; I've done a lot of dressing changes.

"I've enjoyed being able to see that we are making a difference. I have also trained a lot of the young medics at Musa Qaleh. I like being able to put all of my knowledge and skills that I have learned over the years to good use.

"I've dealt with over 40 traumas, any bleeding that could potentially lead to death, within the Forward Operating Bases and out on the ground, and 150 primary healthcare cases, anything from the common cold to appendicitis.

"Working with the Police Mentoring Team is interesting as this is where a lot of our effort is going, and it's good to know I'm playing my own little bit in the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

Obviously he is happy with his chosen trade as he adds:

"The thing that I have found most satisfying is knowing that I am able to play a part in saving people's lives - I'm at the sharp end of Army clinical medicine. It's good to see the look of relief in parents' faces when they know their children who have been injured are now in safe hands."

After spending a few years as a printer, Lance Corporal Birkett, now aged 28, joined the Army in November 2004.

He completed his basic training at the Army Training Regiment Winchester before commencing his phase two training as a medic at Keogh Barracks in Aldershot for approximately eight months:

"I was posted to 1 Close Support Medical Regiment in Munster, Germany, and deployed on Operation TELIC 10 to Iraq in November 2007 providing staffing for the 1 UK Medical Group hospital," he said.

"I gained lots of experience working on GU [Genitourinary] ward, medical ward, surgical ward and then the emergency department. I have moved with 2 Medical Regiment to Hohne and I am now due a posting and need to decide where I want to go."

He is due to return home from Afghanistan in October and is looking forward to seeing his father David and stepmother Yvonne in New Marske:

"I'm either going to buy a big car or a house. I'm also going to Miami and to South Africa for New Year with my girlfriend Lucille. The hardest part about this tour has been the effect it can have on personal relationships. It is hard saying goodbye to loved ones."

Angel of Operation Panther's Claw

Brave squaddie fought at the very heart of Operation Panther’s Claw

Standing just five feet tall, Private Kerry Smith is one of the smallest soldiers in the British Army, but the challenges she has faced over the last three weeks have been enormous.

24-year-old combat medic Kerry has been at the very heart of Operation Panchai Palang or Panther’s Claw, the British military operation to clear one of the last remaining Taliban strongholds in Helmand Province.

In sweltering temperatures often topping 50 degrees, Kerry accompanied soldiers from The 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment into fierce fighting through a rabbit warren of mud compounds and across rugged terrain, as they tackled Taliban fighters at every turn.

Despite her small stature, Pte Smith has been in the thick of it, holding her own with the men of 2 Mercian, who’ve been involved in some of the toughest fighting yet seen in Afghanistan.

“The first few days of Operation Panchai Palang were the hardest. We were coming under fire all day and were suffering lots of casualties from IEDs and RPGs. It was certainly very hard work.”

Kerry, who is from Dunscroft near Doncaster, spent 28 weeks learning her life saving skills before she deployed to Afghanistan and her experiences on Operation Panchai Palang. Her job as one of two combat medics looking after 35 soldiers in the field has seen her provide life-saving treatment to some of the most badly wounded soldiers in the moments immediately after injury.

“Before I came here I’d never done this for real; only in training. Since I’ve been in Afghanistan I’ve dealt with shrapnel wounds, missing limbs, head injuries and shock. I’d never seen anything like this before and, if I’m honest, I thought I’d freeze. But I didn’t. I just got stuck in and my training took over.”

With a Bergen not much smaller than Kerry herself, she showed extreme levels of fitness, sticking by the unit through thick and thin and providing medical treatment to those that really needed it.

“To be honest one of the most difficult things for me has been carrying all the kit; it’s so heavy! My pack weighs about 20kg and then I have my body armour and weapon to carry too. All together it’s almost as big as me,” she said laughing.

Treating her comrades has proved challenging for Kerry, but they have not been her only patients. Whilst on patrol recently Kerry had her first experience of treating a local Afghan female from a compound they’d just liberated from insurgents.

“The other soldiers cleared the route ahead so that I could get to the patient’s home safely. The threat of IEDs is always around. Because I was a female medic, the men of the village were OK with me treating the women.”

After treating the woman for a throat infection, the patrol were soon on their way again. Kerry said: It was an interesting experience. There’s such a lot of variety in this job. At the end of the day we are here to deal with any medical issues. Anyway that I can help, I will.

“This tour has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I’ve grown much more confident over the past few months. It’s very rewarding.”

Operation Panchai Palang began on 19th June 2009, with an air assault along a canal north of Lashkar Gah. The Light Dragoons Battlegroup, which two companies of 2 Mercian are attached to, have been responsible for sweeping across the Babiji area, clearing towns and villages and securing them prior to the Presidential and Provincial elections next month.