Posted on 08/24/2007 5:43:52 AM PDT by Abathar
LONDON (Reuters) - Three British soldiers were killed in southern Afghanistan when a U.S. aircraft supporting them in a battle against the Taliban dropped a bomb, the Ministry of Defense said on Friday.
The incident on Thursday takes the number of British deaths in Afghanistan since the Taliban was toppled in 2001 to 73.
Two other soldiers were injured.
The soldiers were on a mission to disrupt Taliban activity north west of Kajaki, in the lawless Helmand province.
"Their patrol was attacked by Taliban insurgents and during the intense engagement that ensued, close air support was called in from two U.S. F15 aircraft to repel the enemy," the ministry said in a statement.
"A single bomb was dropped and it is believed the explosion killed all three soldiers, who were declared dead at the scene."
An investigation into the incident has begun, the ministry said.
Just out of curiosity, have there been "friendly fire" incidents with the soldiers of other members of the coalition?
Prayers for the squaddies their families and for the pilot.
Regards
Mark my words...I’ll bet those soldiers’ families and some looney lib judge in Britain will try to press homicide charges against the pilot(s) for this accident in the heat of battle.
No doubt you are correct... Remember the bumper sticker, “SH*T Happens”? Well SH*T never just happens any more. Now someone is always responsible.
The problem in a nutshell... Fast-movers are a lousy choice for close air support. The pilot has very limited time to do target ID and to develop situational awareness. Should have called in the A-10s...
If there have been the only ones I have heard about are the ones we are responsible for. Of course we do most of the close air support, that tends to put us in the greatest chance of having it be our fault.
Yep. Brits LOVE the A-10.
Unfortunately it’s speed makes it a poor choice if it’s not loitering overhad.
Also it was an A-10 pilot who engaged the Brit convoy, killing one and injuring about 10. Some Brit lefties want to try the pilot for mutder.
Regardless of platform, CAS is a tough job and should be considered twice before picking up the UHF.
My prayers for these soldiers and their families. My thoughts also go out to the pilot who made a tragic mistake.
I think a couple of comments on here have been a bit callous towards the dead British troops. Imagine if a Brit plane had killed some US forces and the first comments were ‘I bet some loony judge will try to arrest the pilot’.
Just for clarity: in the earlier A-10 friendly fire incident no judge has called for the US pilot to be tried for murder in Britain.
“The problem in a nutshell... Fast-movers are a lousy choice for close air support. The pilot has very limited time to do target ID and to develop situational awareness. Should have called in the A-10s...”
That’s actually not so much the case anymore, if the ground troops have the right rangefinding equipment. It estimates the map coordinates of the target, then one or more JDAMs are programmed and dropped. Attack helos also make fine CAS platforms.
The future model for CAS aircraft will be ‘bomb trucks’ loitering overhead, possibly augmented by Reaper style drones and attack helicopters.
well said mate. i doubt the pilot will be pleased with his efforts, but its a very deadly, and tragic, accident.
Just to note that on other news sources they are calling the mission the Anglians were on a ‘fighting patrol’, just to put a nail in the coffin of all the comments concerning base-bound UK troops. They, as with all our servicemen and women, fight hard.
ISAF must be enlarged. Other NATO allies must allow their troops to be used in the resurgent hotspots of the south and east, in Helmand alone I reckon another 10,000 troops are needed. ANA and police can then be used to patrol the quieter areas, and gain valuable experience and show the Afghans that things are moving forwards.
Incidents like this are tragic for all involved but they are inevitable in war.
The British press, from the comfort of office desks, will make much of “cowboy pilots” and “gung-ho Americans”.
They will express outrage and cry crocodile tears on behalf of the bereaved, while secretly relishing the chance to stick it to the USA again.
At no point will any consideration be made to the number of lives preserved by close air support in the past or the number of times USAAF have pulled a dangerous situation on the ground back from the edge.
My heart goes out to the bereaved families and the pilot involved and I pray for all our troops, British and US, currently deployed. May they be safe until their eventual victory.
Regards
‘Mark my words...I’ll bet those soldiers’ families and some looney lib judge in Britain will try to press homicide charges against the pilot(s) for this accident in the heat of battle.’
If I had such a scant understanding of due process under English law, I would keep my mouth shut, lest I appeared a callous fool.
Under English law an investigation via a coroners court must be held in such circumstances, irrespective of whether the friendly fire was foreign or domestic. Homicide charges have and will never be brought. Punishment of the friendly fire pilots will never be sought. Compensation will never be sought. All that is sought is a verdict on the deaths so the soldiers families may have an end point to the tragedy. The only reason US forces ever get criticised in these circumstances is because despite claiming we are allies, they usually refuse to submit any requested evidence.
If allowing due process for the soldiers of families who fight and die alongside your troops is too much to ask, maybe the US and Britain have less in common than I thought.
Then how do you explain this?
Friendly Fire Death Ruled Unlawful
If allowing due process for the soldiers of families who fight and die alongside your troops is too much to ask, maybe the US and Britain have less in common than I thought.
Maybe so, since the British are effectively cutting and running out of Basrah...
Basra Falls to Unruly Militias as British Troops’ Role Recedes
Maybe you should show some solidarity by mourning the death of these soldiers, instead of making cheap points. Just like the 14 americans that died in the helicopter crash, this is just too tragic.
Cutting and running? There are british troops being killed and you make comments like that from the safety of your home.
Pathetic.
Yep.
They mistook the orange signal panels for a rocket launcher.
I don’t know how, but the cockpit video clearly shows it was FUBAR.
Can’t be easier at 400mph.
this is hardly the time or the place for virtual points scoring.
you is weak my son...
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