Left seat: Pilot Thomas Sonne; Right seat: Major Bill Tice. Kandahar, Afghanistan 10 February 2010 American forces are stationed at bases far and wide around Afghanistan. Some bases are like towns, such as Camp Bastion, Kandahar Airfield, and Bagram Airfield.
Kandahar, Afghanistan 08 February 2010 American troops are spread widely across Afghanistan. Some are remote and accessibility is difficult. In 2008, I was with six soldiers in Zabul Province who didn’t even get mail for three months. They had no
15 January 2010 Cobra Battery at FOB Frontenac Arghandab, Afghanistan Artillery is called “The King of Battle.” When it comes to the delivery of force, probably nothing outside of nuclear weapons can outmatch the sustained delivery of extreme brutality. Cannons
Arghandab, Afghanistan New Year’s Eve, 2009 On this small base surrounded by a mixture of enemy and friendly territory, a memorial has been erected just next to the Chapel. Inside the tepee are 21 photos of 21 soldiers killed during
20 December 2009 Arghandab, Afghanistan As Christmas approaches, many people are thinking about the troops, who in turn are thinking about loved ones at home. Cards and letters are tacked up on many walls. The favorites are from the little
13 December 2009 Kandahar, Afghanistan People are confused about the war. The situation is difficult to resolve even for those who are here. For most of us, the conflict remains out of focus, lacking reference of almost any sort. Vertigo
16 November 2009 When New York Times journalist David Rohde was kidnapped last year in Afghanistan, the company engaged in a painstaking effort to squash the story. They succeeded in persuading major media who learned of the kidnapping to keep
08 November 2009 Got a ping today about an attack on the road between Jalalabad and Kabul. It’s a dangerous road and I don’t like to drive it. The source has always been reliable, so I pinged Tim Lynch (who
November 04, 2009 Helo Halo Luminous halos twirled above a Boeing CH-47 Chinook on a recent night around 11:30 p.m. local time at Forward Operating Base Jackson in Sangin, Helmand Province, Afghanistan, as helicopters ferried casualties and supplies in and
03 November 2009 British soldiers at war are an incredible group. Courageous, competent, and committed in very difficult conditions. An email came today from London, from a BBC correspondent who has been to Afghanistan saying that Staff Sergeant Olaf Schmid
21 October 2009 In 2008, I was trekking in the Himalayas in Nepal preparing for a return to Afghanistan. A message came from a British officer suggesting to end the trip and get to Afghanistan. Something was up, and I
[This dispatch was written by me in December 2008 in southern Afghanistan. It was never published though I recently found it in the unpublished archives. The photos came from the same period.] Published: from Nepal on 14 October 2009 On
Published: 12 October 2009 from Nargarkot, Nepal Kandahar City, Afghanistan Slowly, surely, the city is being strangled. Signaling the depth of our commitment, security forces are thinner in Kandahar than the Himalayan air. During the days and evenings, there were
Sangin, Afghanistan Published: 08 October 2009 “In April this year it became 2 Rifles’ dubious fortune to be sent to Sangin on a six-month tour. By mid-August their battle group, a composite force from various units built around a core
July 2009, Sangin, Afghanistan. 05 October 2009 In July, British soldiers and I boarded a CH-47 helicopter at Camp Bastion for the flight to FOB Jackson at Sangin where fighting is brutal. The helicopter was so stuffed with men, gear
Note: I asked Danish journalist Camilla Fuhr Nilsson to write a couple of stories about the Air Force Pedros. After publication of her first installment, she emailed from Afghanistan, surprised to have gotten “thank you” notes from readers. As a
I asked Danish journalist Camilla Fuhr Nilsson to write two dispatches about USAF Pedros. Camilla accompanied me at Camp Bastion. Here is the first: By Camilla Fuhr Nilsson Published: 27 September 2009 It is the last weekend of August 2009.
By Michael Yon 25 September 2009 The surprise discontinuation of my embedment from the British Army left my schedule in a train wreck. Until that decisive moment, I am told, that my embed with the British Army had lasted longer
Published: 24 September 2009 Dear Mr. Yon: It is my pleasure to forward to you the attached copy of the amicus curiae brief which we filed with the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on
14 September 2009 Helmand Province, Afghanistan With the war increasing, Air Force Pararescue has been crisscrossing the skies picking up casualties. That’s the Green Zone of Helmand Province, the opium capital of the world. Those fields are the great ATM
08 September 2009 Helmand Province, Afghanistan Just before the mission, soldiers form up near the memorial for our fallen. The mission was simple. Taliban had been watching FOB Inkerman and British patrols from various compounds and we were going to
6 September 2009 This story was published in the New York Daily News on 6 September 2009. Helmand, Afghanistan – The West is losing this war. This has been obvious for more than three years. Less obvious is that in
31 August 2009 Helmand Province, Afghanistan The historical Afghan elections scheduled for 20 August were days away. While the west mostly continued to vote for Afghanistan, the big question was, “Will Afghanistan vote for itself?” The latest media wave splashed
27 August 2009 My embed with British forces has ended. Will be out with U.S. forces for the foreseeable future. After that, will strike out alone into the wilds of Afghanistan. There are two more stories in the pipeline about
On Pharmacy Road Captain Henry Coltart on Pharmacy Road 24 August 2009 Helmand Province, Afghanistan The British soldiers of 2 Rifles had a mission: clear and hold Pharmacy Road. FOB Jackson is currently home to Battlegroup headquarters for 2 Rifles.
Helmand Province, Afghanistan A gunshot ripped through the darkness and a young British soldier fell dying on FOB Jackson. I was just nearby talking on the satellite phone and saw the commotion. The soldier was taken to the medical tent
17 August 2009 Sangin, Afghanistan The roads are so littered with enemy bombs that nearly all transport and resupply to this base occurs by helicopter. The pilots roar through the darkness, swoop into small bases nestled in the saddle of
10 August 2009 Sangin, Afghanistan Daily dramas unfolded, including the bangs, booms and small-arms fire that punctuated the times. At 1800, I was preparing to go to orders with 1 Platoon, A Company of 2 Rifles, when shots from a
Thursday night, 06 August 2009 Afghanistan I made this photo last night in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. This Landing Zone is very dangerous. A few weeks ago, another helicopter was coming into this LZ and was shot down at the last
05 August 2009 The helicopter pilot wearing night vision goggles roared in so fast it looked as though he were crashing. The four green Cylums (Americans call them Chemlights) mark the HLS. While the helicopter is above the dust cloud,
03 August 2009 Sangin, Afghanistan The bugs are not bad in this part of Afghanistan. The scorched terrain is biologically boring. Mice and ferret-like creatures dash around in the evenings when sparrows and doves and a few other sorts of
Sangin, Helmand Province Afghanistan 29 July 2009 Orders are given before every operation. The orders filter down through various unit levels involved, until each platoon finally receives its specific mission. The concept for this mission came down from the 2
27 July 2009 Sangin, Afghanistan I cannot operate in the war without your support. If support does not substantially increase, I will be forced to abandon war reporting in September. There has seldom been much interest in the Afghanistan war.
25 July 2009 Sangin, Afghanistan Have been out with British forces in the area of Sangin in northern Helmand Province. This area appears to be turning into the main effort of the current fight in Afghanistan, but this is unclear
22 July 2009 Filed from Sangin, Afghanistan (This dispatch is from Ghor Province, though I am now with British forces down south.) Lithuanian soldier on Swedish C-130 from Kabul to Kandahar and finally to Chaghcharan. On his left are Filipino
Yesterday, a helicopter crashed on base at Kandahar Airfield, killing sixteen. Later that night we had a minor rocket attack which caused me to roll out of bed onto the floor, while this morning, I got up to the great
16 July 2009 Ghor Province, Afghanistan On a per capita basis, Afghanistan is becoming more dangerous for British and American troops than Iraq ever was. For those who fought in places like Anbar, Basra, Baghdad, Diyala and Nineveh, that’s saying
13 July 2009 Ghor Province, Afghanistan The wake-up alarm sounded at 0345, and by 0430 the Lithuanian soldiers were ready to roll. The Lithuanians had always arrived early, prepared for action before every mission, but this time we relied on
08 July 2009 (Filed from Afghanistan) The fight in the southern Philippines varies in intensity and technique. Commanders in the AFP (Armed Forces Philippines) will say that the fight consists of about 80% carrot and 20% stick. The relationship between
06 June 2009 Filed From Chaghcharan, Afghanistan Overview Until recently, Afghanistan was called “The Forgotten War.” The dramatic domestic, regional, and international politics of the Iraq war largely eclipsed the fact that our people were fighting just as hard in