Kit's all yours: British Army will leave 40% of its equipment in Afghanistan

Mirror ^ | 7 Feb 2013 18:27 | Chris Hughes

[Pan_Yan]

Almost half of Britain’s military ­equipment sent to Afghanistan will never return – and could end up in the hands of the Taliban.

About 40% of gear being used in Helmand Province will be scrapped or sold when UK forces finally leave by the end of next year.

The Government estimates about 11,000 containers of equipment are in Afghanistan, including 3,000 vehicles.

Of these, defence chiefs plan to bring back about 6,500 loads – costing tens of millions of pounds. That means leaving 4,500 containers.

These will not include weapons – but besides everyday items will be non-lethal military hardware that could be of use to insurgents.

[Mr. Lucky]

Yes, but it was a British victory.

US combat troops didn't land in North Africa until after the battle of El Alamein.

Rommel was prevented from re-supplying his forces, and Montgomery was able to supply his, because of the British victory in the siege of Malta. By the time of El Alamein, the Luftwaffe in the Mediterranean was spent and British Supermarine Spitfires pretty much roamed at will.

[the scotsman]

Edgerton.

And yes it is a superb book. One that should be taught in history classes and be the subject of a major documentary.

[Winniesboy]

They had to increase shipments because most of it was sitting on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Hardly, since the increased tonnage I quoted (18.7 million to 20+ million) was the floating usable shipping tonnage on those two dates. In other words every hull lost to U-boats was replaced, and more. One factor contributing to this was the large number of merchant ships from countries occupied by the Germans which escaped to Britain and spent the rest of the war under the British flag. For instance, the entire Norwegian tanker fleet (then the third largest in the world) did this. Britain ended the war as it had begun, with the world's largest merchant fleet.

[Mashood]

“Good god, where did you learn your history?.”

I thought the conversation was centered around 1940... am I mistaken?

“Firstly, by 1942, the worst of the Nazi attempt to blockade us was over.”

Really? Facts are that in 1941 over 500 ships were sunk, and 1942 over 1100 sunk that year. In tonnage, 1941: 2.5 million tons of materiel, 1942: double 1941 losses... 5.6 million tons. These losses were unsustainable.

Not “by 1942”... 1942 was the worst year for the allies on the Atlantic sea lanes. Not only Britain but Russia too... ergo the Battle for the Atlantic. The Nazis weren’t blockading you... Britain had no resources to blockade (you were eating your leather shoes, remember)... they were blockading the US... most traffic was going one way... to England and Russia. Not much coming back.

“Secondly, and contrary to popular myth, in WW2, the British people grew most of the food they ate.”

You had to... nothing was getting in to fully resupply your country until mid-1943.