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Special Forces find missile in Afghan countryside

by Sgt. Don Dees

KABUL, Afghanistan (Army News Service, Nov. 18, 2002) - U.S. soldiers stationed at the Kabul Military Training Center recovered a British-made anti-aircraft missile near Bagram Air Base recently, making air travel in the area a little safer.

A team from the 5th Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group, mobilized from Fort Carson, Colo., learned of the surface-to-air missile, commonly called a "blowpipe," when a local Afghan civilian approached the team at the training center, said Staff Sgt. Jason, who helped recover the weapon.

Soldiers from the battalion are identified only by rank and first name for security reasons.

The Afghan man came to the front gate and indicated he had information about the weapon and would like to turn it over to U.S. forces.

"He wanted to do it so it wouldn't fall into the hands of organizations trying to cause chaos in Afghanistan," said Jason.

The man received a reward for his patriotic and compassionate act.

Battalion staff members turned the information over to other organizations and through a relationship with the International Security Assistance Force, British explosive ordnance disposal soldiers began working with the 5th Battalion to recover the weapon.

"Their background is EOD, but they are also working on weapons recovery operations," said Jason.

Jason and his team verified that the information the Afghan provided was accurate, he said. Once the location and condition of the blowpipe was confirmed, British and U.S. forces worked to retrieve it. The British soldiers were on hand to verify the weapon's authenticity and to ensure it was safe to handle.

The mission was a success in that no one was hurt and the threat to Coalition forces was reduced by having one less missile that could take down an aircraft, said Jason.

Afghans provide information to U.S. forces frequently, Jason said, but it does not always result in recovered weapons. Sometimes the claims are bogus, he said.

"A lot of man-hours go into verifying something like this," Jason said.

He explained the concepts at work in Afghanistan are very different than the formal training and exercises his soldiers have participated in before. He and his fellow soldiers are re-writing the book.

"I think we are laying the groundwork for future operations everywhere," Jason said.

(Editor's note: Sgt. Don Dees, a member of the 356th BPAD, is attached to the 300th MPAD in Afghanistan.)