Taliban takeover of Afghanistan

Airbornewolf wrote:

JohninMK wrote:US SF 160th SOAR in Kabul. Yet more valuable gear to remove or destroy by the 31st. Must be one hell of a journey to fly those helicopters all the way to/from the Gulf. Ten hours+? They say they that the US Gov hasn't allowed their use so far.

First photo is labelled a Black Hawk MH-60, there looks to be 4 in the third picture and 4 MH-6 Little Birds in the second.

]

They can load up the choppers here pretty easily on C-17's or A400's.
Its easier than loading it up with regular cargo.
It takes two minutes, seriously.
Strap it down in another two-three minutes and it's ready for Take-off.

All it takes is removing the fuel and rotor blades and some heavy-duty straps inside the C-17.
Considering the pricetag here involved, i'd take them with me.

However the question is if there is time and an airplane available to take these with you back home?.
If they can not take them with them because of time constraints, they propably roll an Magnesium grenade into them when they board the last transport out of there.

Yes and all those "black" helicopters will have some special coatings and gear that would not be for export to Russia and China

Airbornewolf wrote:

JohninMK wrote:US SF 160th SOAR in Kabul. Yet more valuable gear to remove or destroy by the 31st. Must be one hell of a journey to fly those helicopters all the way to/from the Gulf. Ten hours+? They say they that the US Gov hasn't allowed their use so far.

First photo is labelled a Black Hawk MH-60, there looks to be 4 in the third picture and 4 MH-6 Little Birds in the second.

]

They can load up the choppers here pretty easily on C-17's or A400's.
Its easier than loading it up with regular cargo.
It takes two minutes, seriously.
Strap it down in another two-three minutes and it's ready for Take-off.

All it takes is removing the fuel and rotor blades and some heavy-duty straps inside the C-17.
Considering the pricetag here involved, i'd take them with me.

However the question is if there is time and an airplane available to take these with you back home?.
If they can not take them with them because of time constraints, they propably roll an Magnesium grenade into them when they board the last transport out of there.

I had assumed that that was how the MH-6 and MH-60 got into Kabul but maybe the MH-47 would have come in under its own power, it has the refueling probe.

As I have said the easy part it getting manpower and gear in but the hard part is getting them out, against the clock, with reduced defending troops as every flight out leaves. Perhaps 4/5 will be the last to leave in a group with the Chinook last one out. Plus all the other nations withdrawing.

A planning nightmare for next Tuesday whichever way you look at it.

NEWS: 11 minutes ago Civil aircraft

My highlight, not heard of those 800 before.

CAIRO, August 23. /TASS/. All flights to and from Kabul International Airport are suspended until further notice due to large crowds seeking to flee Afghanistan, the national civil aviation authority said in a statement issued on Monday.

"All flights at Hamid Karzai International Airport are suspended until further notice. Passengers looking to fly to different regions around the country and abroad will be notified in advance when flights will be resumed. These measures are taken to avoid crowds and unrest in the airport," reads the statement published on the agency’s Facebook page.

The statement also stresses that the Afghan aviation authorities "are working hard for domestic and international flights to and from the Kabul airport to resume as soon as possible."

The situation at Kabul International Airport has remained tense after Taliban (outlawed in Russia) fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, and gained full control over the Afghan capital within a few hours on August 15. Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani said he had stepped down to prevent any bloodshed and subsequently fled the country. Vice President Amrullah Saleh said that under the constitution, he would become "the caretaker president" in the absence of the president and called for armed resistance against the Taliban. Several countries began evacuating their citizens and embassy staffers.

Around 800 civil representatives of NATO allies are maintaining operation of the Kabul airport round the clock, while order is observed by military personnel from the US, the UK and Turkey. Thousands of people are trying to fly out of the country. Tear gas and warning shots had to be used to disperse crowds on the airport tarmac. People were clinging onto landing gears and hulls of planes to flee the Afghan capital.

According to the latest reports, at least 20 people died in the past week in these incidents.

Nothing like a new map of a potentially hot area


IWN
@A7_Mirza
·
3h
#Afghanistan
The southern front of #Panjshir province is calm, and Taliban militants have been sent to Jabal Seraj and nearby areas and are stationed at the beginning of the entrance route to Panjshir province.

Map?

Ah yes, the good old days

What is America's end game in Afghanistan?

https://www.brownpundits.com/2021/08/15/americas-brilliant-strategy-in-afghanistan/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=americas-brilliant-strategy-in-afghanistan

US and German forces engaged in a deadly gun battle this morning at Kabul airport after Afghan guards and unknown assailants exchanged fire, with one guard killed;

Taliban fighters surrounded resistance forces holed up in Panjshir Valley, north of the capital - long known as an anti-Taliban bastion - but are looking to negotiate;

The UK wants to double its Kabul airlift numbers to 12,000 this week, but Johnson accepts that the success of the mission is reliant on US troops maintaining control of Kabul airport, where an estimated 20,000 people are waiting to board flights.

British military commanders are understood to have pencilled in August 25 as the last day they can process refugees, including former British interpreters, before the focus shifts to getting about 1,000 British troops and government officials home safely.

It could mean the last British evacuation flight may have to leave as soon as tomorrow or Wednesday to allow soldiers enough time to withdraw.

Amid the chaos, a firefight broke out between unidentified gunmen, Western security forces and Afghan guards at Kabul airport last night.

One Afghan guard was killed and three others were injured in the battle, which also involved US and German forces, the German military said on Twitter.

The report did not specifying whether the dead Afghan was one of the Taliban fighters deployed to guard the airport.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9918373/Taliban-warn-consequences-Britain-try-extend-August-31-withdrawal-deadline.html




Retired British soldier, 60, disguises himself as an Afghan to make daring escape from Kabul through Taliban checkpoints after ignoring Foreign Office advice to stay put

Lloyd Comer made escape through Taliban checkpoints disguised as an Afghan

Former British soldier was told by the Foreign Office to wait for them to fetch him

He was flown on C-17 transport plane to the UAE, and managed to fly home to UK

Ironically, last night, safely back in the UK, Mr Comer received a call on his mobile – the first contact in which the Foreign Office had contacted him – asking if he was still in Kabul. 'It tells you everything, really, he said.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9918601/Retired-British-soldier-60-disguises-Afghan-make-daring-escape-Kabul.html



Washington Post reporter reveals how she and her team were rescued by brave BRITISH troops after Biden banned US forces from venturing out of Kabul airport

The Washington Post 's Susannah George told her harrowing tale of trying to escape Afghanistan accompanied by her Afghan colleagues and their children

George said security around the airport was 'crumbling' and that her Afghan co-worker and his young daughter were beaten by Taliban fighters
British troops had arrived at the security compound where George was staying to escort a larger evacuation and she asked them to help escort her too

George and her colleagues used private armored cars to travel to the airport on roads being guarded by the UK service personnel
Her difficult journey contradicts President Biden's assertion that anyone with an American passports would be allowed through checkpoints
Biden said the U.S has not extended their perimeter beyond Kabul airport to avoid the risk of having U.S. forces and civilians of being attacked by terrorist

George said security around the airport was 'crumbling' and that her Afghan co-worker Tassal and his young daughter were beaten by Taliban fighters as they waited on the civilian side of the airport for a flight that never arrived.

'I will never forget how they beat my small daughter,' Tassal told her as he showed her a dark blue bruise on her side. 'They will never change. My country is gone forever.'


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9917535/Washington-Post-reporter-shares-British-troops-escorted-Afghan-colleagues-safety.html

Here is a more complete list of US-supplied and left behind equipment list now controlled by Taliban:

-2,000 Armored Vehicles Including Humvees and MRAP’s
-75,989 Total Vehicles: FMTV, M35, Ford Rangers, Ford F350, Ford Vans, Toyota Pickups, Armored Security Vehicles etc
-45 UH-60 Blachhawk Helicopters
-50 MD530G Scout Attack Choppers
-ScanEagle Military Drones
-30 Military Version Cessnas
-4 C-130’s
-29 Brazilian made A-29 Super Tocano Ground Attack Aircraft
208+ Aircraft Total
-At least 600,000+ Small arms M16, M249 SAWs, M24 Sniper Systems, 50 Calibers, 1,394 M203 Grenade Launchers, M134 Mini Gun, 20mm Gatling Guns and Ammunition
-61,000 M203 Rounds
-20,040 Grenades
-Howitzers
-Mortars +1,000’s of Rounds
-162,000 pieces of Encrypted Military Comunications Gear
-16,000+ Night Vision Goggles
-Newest Technology Night Vision Scopes
-Thermal Scopes and Thermal Mono Googles
-10,000 2.75 inch Air to Ground Rockets
-Recconaissance Equipment (ISR)
-Laser Aiming Units
-Explosives Ordnance C-4, Semtex, Detonators, Shaped Charges, Thermite, Incendiaries, AP/API/APIT
-2,520 Bombs
-Administration Encrypted Cell Phones and Laptops all operational
-Pallets with Millions of Dollars in US Currency
-Millions of Rounds of Ammunition including but not limited to 20,150,600 rounds of 7.62mm, 9,000,000 rounds of 50.caliber
-Large Stockpile of Plate Carriers and Body Armor
-US Military HIIDE, for Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment Biometrics
-Lots of Heavy Equipment Including Bull Dozers, Backhoes, Dump Trucks, Excavators

JohninMK wrote:Here is a more complete list of US-supplied and left behind equipment list now controlled by Taliban:

 

Now that is some serious shit!
And Sujoy posted something about the brilliant US exit strategy!

ALAMO wrote:
How the Chinese (and Russkies, but this is being said much more quietly) dare to grab the minerals, that were supposed to be Murican ones!  

Yes according to CNN IT IS the property of the US!

Chad Gilmartin
@ChadGilmartinCA
·
1h
Reporter: “How many Americans are left in Afghanistan, Mr. President?”

President Biden:



Joel Pollak
@joelpollak
·
43m
We’re about two days away from the Biden administration declaring the Afghanistan debacle a shining victory


The twitter to go to for photos and info

Muslim Shirzad
@MuslimShirzad
·

Cowboy's daughter wrote:Washington Post reporter reveals how she and her team were rescued by brave BRITISH troops after Biden banned US forces from venturing out of Kabul airport
.................
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9917535/Washington-Post-reporter-shares-British-troops-escorted-Afghan-colleagues-safety.html

British troops get to play brave because they do it on US tab

Without US troops acting as adult at the airport Brits wouldn't even dare get near the city let alone act tough

Muslim Shirzad
@MuslimShirzad
·
3h
Rare photos from #Panjsher: Anti-Taliban commandos are in the valley, saying “we will never bow to the Talibanism”

Fire breaks out at Kabul airport as desperate Afghans try to escape

Josh Layton
Monday 23 Aug 2021 7:38 pm
A fire has been reported at Kabul’s international airport as tens of thousands of Afghans make desperate attempts to leave the country.

Mobile phone footage shows smoke billowing out from an unseen location apparently inside the mass evacuation point, where a mass airlift has been taking place amid a fraught and deadly security situation.

Political activist Muslim Shirzad told Metro.co.uk tonight that the fire shown at 4.22pm local time today was inside an entrance gate and was the work of ‘Taliban or foreigners’.

Despite the smoke in the sky, desperate Afghans continued to wait outside the perimeter hoping to find a place on evacuation flights.
Mr Shirzad said: ‘It’s calm and normal right now.

‘The airport firefighters with the help of foreigners have got the fire under control.

‘It was after the entrance to the first gate inside the airport.

‘It was the work of either Taliban or foreigners.

‘There is still smoke above the airport but people are still outside, frustrated people don’t care about fire or bullets.

‘They are the real image of a hopeless nation where they think everyone abandoned them.’

One former British Army interpreter told Metro.co.uk today how he gave up trying to gain access to the airport with his wife and one-year-old son amid the sheer weight of numbers gathered outside.

Metro.co.uk has approached the Ministry of Defence for comment.


https://metro.co.uk/2021/08/23/fire-breaks-out-at-kabul-airport-as-desperate-afghans-try-to-escape-15140174/

ALAMO wrote:How the Chinese (and Russkies, but this is being said much more quietly) dare to grab the minerals, that were supposed to be Murican ones!  

If StarCraft taught me anything it's that minerals belong to whomever has the troops sitting on top of them

JohninMK wrote:Here is a more complete list of US-supplied and left behind equipment list now controlled by Taliban:

   -2,000 Armored Vehicles Including Humvees and MRAP’s
   -75,989 Total Vehicles: FMTV, M35, Ford Rangers, Ford F350, Ford Vans, Toyota Pickups, Armored Security Vehicles etc
   -45 UH-60 Blachhawk Helicopters
   -50 MD530G Scout Attack Choppers
   -ScanEagle Military Drones
   -30 Military Version Cessnas
   -4 C-130’s
   -29 Brazilian made A-29 Super Tocano Ground Attack Aircraft
   208+ Aircraft Total
   -At least 600,000+ Small arms M16, M249 SAWs, M24 Sniper Systems, 50 Calibers, 1,394 M203 Grenade Launchers, M134 Mini Gun, 20mm Gatling Guns and Ammunition
   -61,000 M203 Rounds
   -20,040 Grenades
   -Howitzers
   -Mortars +1,000’s of Rounds
   -162,000 pieces of Encrypted Military Comunications Gear
   -16,000+ Night Vision Goggles
   -Newest Technology Night Vision Scopes
   -Thermal Scopes and Thermal Mono Googles
   -10,000 2.75 inch Air to Ground Rockets
   -Recconaissance Equipment (ISR)
   -Laser Aiming Units
   -Explosives Ordnance C-4, Semtex, Detonators, Shaped Charges, Thermite, Incendiaries, AP/API/APIT
   -2,520 Bombs
   -Administration Encrypted Cell Phones and Laptops all operational
   -Pallets with Millions of Dollars in US Currency
   -Millions of Rounds of Ammunition including but not limited to 20,150,600 rounds of 7.62mm, 9,000,000 rounds of 50.caliber
   -Large Stockpile of Plate Carriers and Body Armor
   -US Military HIIDE, for Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment Biometrics
   -Lots of Heavy Equipment Including Bull Dozers, Backhoes, Dump Trucks, Excavators

A little off topic but what Russian aircraft is closest to C 130.

U.S. on Track to Evacuate Americans: Afghanistan Update
Bloomberg News
August 22, 2021, 2:56 PM CDT Updated on August 23, 2021, 2:57 PM CDT

Russia Says Developments Raise Terror, Drug Risk (6:15 a.m. ET)
Developments in Afghanistan present “real risks for the entire Eurasian region and the world in general” from terrorism and drug trafficking, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and other leaders in the region expressed concern that Islamic State retains a “strong position” in Afghanistan, at a summit Monday of the Collective Security Treaty Organization of former Soviet republics. They’ll resume talks on Afghanistan at a Sept. 16 summit, Peskov said. -- Ilya Arkhipov

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-22/biden-adviser-warns-of-threat-g7-to-convene-afghanistan-update?srnd=premium


Anti-Taliban resistance makes modest gains outside Panjshir
BY BILL ROGGIO & ANDREW TOBIN | August 20, 2021 | bill+roggio@gmail.com |

https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2021/08/anti-taliban-resistance-makes-modest-gains-outside-panjshir.php

The list of equipment  supposedly held by Taliban my not be as useful as it seems . Pretty much everything needs spare parts of ammo or proper training to use . Unless Pakistan supplies these . They probably have compatible equipment . The most useful item are the small arms . But then again Taliban only have two arms and there is only 70,000 of them . Adult population in Afghanistan who can fight is probably 5 million . I doubt many are going to sit on the fence , for long . The Emirate , may only rule for a short time or be limited to Pashtoon core areas . The Emirate can never be a Republic . Rule entire Afghanistan . The question is , should other Afghanistan neighbours  apart from Pakistan who support Taliban , give help ( A Carrot carries a heavier stick ) to Afghans to push back Taliban or form a Republic ? My answer is yes . Now that the greater threat of American bases is diminished , the next threat to regional peace must be addressed . Russia and China should lead . Since Iran's involvement may worsen sectarian conflict . Not increase democracy .