Patrick Bishop - 3 Para

Patrick Bishop

‘The following account is based on interviews with the soldiers of the 3 PARA Battle Group. Inquests have not yet been held into many of the deaths reported in these pages. The author has made his best endeavour to report events accurately and truthfully, and any insult or injury to any of the parties described or quoted herein or to their families is unintentional. The publishers will be happy to correct any inaccuracies in later editions.

Afghan identities have been obscured in a few cases in order to protect the individuals and their families.

Cover

Title Page 3 PARA Patrick Bishop

Dedication ‘The following account is based on interviews with the soldiers of the 3 PARA Battle Group. Inquests have not yet been held into many of the deaths reported in these pages. The author has made his best endeavour to report events accurately and truthfully, and any insult or injury to any of the parties described or quoted herein or to their families is unintentional. The publishers will be happy to correct any inaccuracies in later editions. Afghan identities have been obscured in a few cases in order to protect the individuals and their families.

List of Illustrations

Maps

1 Day of Days

2 Green On – Go

3 ‘The Lawless Province of Helmand’

4 Afghanistan’s Plains

5 The Road to Sangin

6 Operation Mutay

7 Rapid Reaction

8 Platoon House

9 The Testing

10 Jacko

11 Musa Qaleh

12 Operation Augustus

13 Eating Dust

14 Hesco

15 Attrition

16 The Musa Muckers

17 Peace of Exhaustion

18 Going Home

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Honours and Awards

Acknowledgments

Backad …

About the Author

Index

Photo Insert

Copyright

About the Publisher

FIRST PLATE SECTION

A Chinook is silhouetted above the Helmand desert.

Taliban fighters. © AP/PA Photos

Now Zad from ANP Hill. © Captain Nick French

Private Damien Jackson during Operation Mutay.

© Private Jamie Stewart Halton

Patrols Platoon during Mutay. © Lance Corporal Lee Hewitson

Looking out over the wadi and bazaar from a Sangin sangar.

Morning for the mortarmen at Kajaki dam.

© Corporal Andrew Evans

Patrols Platoon Commander Captain Mark Swann and Lance

Corporal Andrew ‘Chalkie’ White by their WMIK in Gereshk. ©

Lance Corporal Dave Bradbury

A GPMG gunner engages Taliban fighters from ANP Hill.

© Sergeant Peter White

Private Martin Cork flying back from Mutay.

© Captain Martin Taylor

Captain Hugo Farmer and Corporals Quentin ‘Prig’ Poll, Stephen

‘Hoss’ Cartwright, James Shimmins and ‘Chalkie’ White in the

shade of a stripped-down Pinzgauer. © Captain Martin Taylor

Corporal Tam McDermott on the roof of the Sangin district centre.

© Major Will Pike

Hostile faces in Sangin. © Private Marc Holmes

Private Neil Edwards, Lance Corporal Noel Brooksbank, and

Private Marc Holmes and Alistair Hartley in a Sangin sangar.

© Private Marc Holmes

Lance Corporal Paul Roberts, Corporal Stuart Giles, Sergeant Brian

Reidy and Medical Officer Captain Harvey Pynn.

© Sergeant Dan Jarvie

Soldiers doss down on the floor at the Sangin district centre. ©

Private Marc Holmes

Corporal Mark Wright in the Sangin compound.

© Captain Nick French

Lieutenant Any Mallet leads a patrol into Sangin town centre.

© Corporal Andrew Waddington

Sergeant Dan Jarvie. © Crown copyright

Major Will Pike, OC ‘A’ Company. © Crown copyright

Captain Martin Taylor. © Major Will Pike

WO2 Zac Leong. © Captain Martin Taylor

Captain Matt Taylor. © Lieutenant Martin Hewitt

SECOND PLATE SECTION

Captains Alex Mackenzie and mate Piers Ashfield having a brew at

Sangin. © Lieutenant Martin Hewitt

Corporal Jay Jackson on stag in Sangin. © Corporal Dave Salmon

Regimental Sergeant Major John Hardy.

© Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Tootal

Lieutenant Ollie Dale gets his head down in Sangin.

© Corporal Dave Salmon

The Pathfinders at Musa Qaleh. © Nick Wight-Boycott

Sergeant Major Mick Bolton in front of the Sangin district centre.

© Captain Euan Goodman

A mortar section at Sangin fires in support of patrols on the

ground. © Captain Euan Goodman

A Chinook takes off from Sangin under fire. © Corporal Carl Tees

Private Pete McKinley recovering from shrapnel wounds in the

base hospital. © Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Tootal

Corporal Bryan Budd on patrol in Sangin. © Captain Hugo Farmer

Rifleman Nabin Rai after a contact with Taliban in Now Zad.

© Major Dan Rex

Major Huw Williams, Captain Nick French and a signaller at Musa

Qaleh. © Captain Martin Taylor

A .50-cal heavy machine gun inside a well-reinforced sangar at

Sangin. © Major Jamie Loden

Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Tootal in the desert near Musa Qaleh.

© Captain Nick French

Heading out to the helicopter landing site after a successful

resupply operation at Musa Qaleh. © Crown copyright

‘Giving the Taliban the good news’. Watching an air strike go in

outside Musa Qaleh. © Crown copyright

Sergeant Christopher ‘Freddie’ Kruyer. © Staff Sergeant Pete Joiner

Dinner at Bastion. © Crown copyright

Major Adam Jowett, OC of Easy Company, chats with local elders.

© Gaz Faulkner

Captain Hugo Farmer on patrol in Gereshk in full kit.

© Captain Emma Couper

Private Dave Prosser and other members of Mortar Platoon.

© Sergeant Freddie Kruyer

A shura in Sangin.

While every effort has been made to trace the owners of copyright

material reproduced herein, the publishers would like to apologise

for any omissions and will be pleased to incorporate missing

acknowledgments in any future editions.

Afghanistan

Helmand Province

Sangin

Gereshk

Musa Qaleh

Now Zad