Targeting Terror’s Roots—Part 1

By Rob Neil.

In September 2006, Pacific Wings was fortunate in being able to join Heli Ops magazine on the first of two trips to Afghanistan to spend time with the DOS-INL Air Wing, which supports the Afghan Eradication Force’s (AEF) fight to stop the flow of poison from Afghanistan’s poppy fields. In this first article of two, Rob Neil describes the first visit to this ancient land and backgrounds the INL Air Wing’s role.

The entire civilised world is at risk from the harmful effects of drugs and terrorism—two evils so inextricably linked that it is no longer possible to separate them in the countries where drugs are sourced. The Afghan Eradication Force (AEF), supported by agencies like the Air Wing of the US State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL), stands against the tide of poison flowing from Afghanistan’s poppy fields.

Perhaps the biggest impediment to Afghanistan’s successful unification with the modern world and a return to a life of peace for its people is its heritage as the world’s historical opium capital. The vilely insidious evil of opium and its derivative, heroin, pervades every aspect of life in Afghanistan, for which opium comprises anywhere from 60 to 80 percent of its GDP.

It is a cruel irony that under the Taliban, the opium crop was ostensibly banned and opium criminals faced the death penalty. The “sincerity” of the Taliban’s assertion that its edicts against opium crime were because it was contrary to the tenets of Islam is in sharp contrast to a resurgent Taliban’s willingness to now embrace opium as a source of funding for arms; apparently Allah has had a change of heart about opium since 2001! From a total of less than 80 tonnes under Taliban rule, the size of the 2006 opium crop was estimated to exceed 6,000 tonnes.

There is no argument that opium money is now a massive source of terrorist funding. This means that the world’s war on drugs is a war on two fronts; it is a fight against the ravages of drugs on the social fabric of our societies as well as a fight against the terrorist zealots who would destroy other aspects of Western civilisation by fear and violence. Without a doubt, counter-narcotics and counterterrorism form a single, inseparable mission.

Osama Bin Laden might like the world (particularly the Islamic world) to believe he funds his terrorist empire from Islamic charities and family fortunes. However, with an opium income from a single Afghan network estimated to have netted him around US$24 million in 2004, Bin Laden is obviously nothing more than the world’s worst narco-terrorist. His degenerate disregard for life clearly also extends to “his” people in the Islamic world—those he claims to “represent”—who, along with addict infidels, suffer the same ravages of opium and heroin; it makes a blatant lie of Bin Laden’s assumed religious piety!

I visited Afghanistan in September 2006 to spend time with the men and women on the front line in one of the world’s most difficult wars—Afghanistan’s war against drugs. The lead US agency responsible for planning, co-ordinating and ultimately achieving US counter-narcotics interests overseas is the Department of State (DOS), which works hand-in-hand with sister agencies such as the Department of Justice and its Drug Enforcement Administration for law enforcement programmes, and USAID for alternative development programmes. The size and scale of DOS’s global counter-narcotics aviation operations might surprise many people. DOS operates a massive fleet of aircraft in several countries around the world—something like 200 aircraft of various types—and a veritable army of civilian contracted workers fight an unrecognised daily battle with some of the world’s most evil and dangerous criminals.

In addition to its work in Afghanistan, the DOS International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) Air Wing conducts aerial counter-narcotic operations in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia and Pakistan, and maintains two training bases in the US. Less than four percent of the Air Wing’s approximately 1,000–1,150 personnel are DOS government employees (only the senior administration, planning and oversight positions). The remainder of the Air Wing’s personnel are civilian contracted workers employed by the giant DynCorp Corporation.

Not surprisingly, the majority of current Air Wing staff are ex-military. Many have served in military Special Forces around the world and they are thus no strangers to the potential risks inherent in their new “civilian” roles.

While the Air Wing is an entirely “civilian” operation, it logically borrows much from the combined military wisdom and experience of its diverse and highly qualified personnel. Many procedures and regulations derive from the world of Army aviation where time, experience and lives have honed them to best effect over many years. The self-discipline engendered by military life, and encouraged by those in oversight positions within the Air Wing, has imbued the unit with an air of total professionalism that is immediately apparent.

While it might have been possible for the Air Wing to put on a “show” for visiting journalists making a single brief visit or accompanying the crews on a one-mission “ride-along”, I was privileged to spend a full week with the Air Wing at its bases in Kabul and Kandahar, and accompany several day and night missions with free reign to witness every aspect of the Wing’s operation and to talk to anyone I pleased. What I witnessed was not for show and it was impossible not to be impressed!

My primary host for my Afghanistan stay was the Air Wing’s Safety Officer,“Dave” (For security reasons,INL staff are—understandably—less than popular with the criminals whose incomes they affect; individuals will not be named). Dave, who is one of the Wing’s few DOS government employees, spent “27 years, 9 months and 13 days” in the Army before joining DOS in 2001. While his professionalism and thoroughness were unmistakably “Army”, the non-confrontational, laid-back manner with which he approached his duties engendered obvious confidence and respect from staff.

Despite operating in some of the most inhospitable, inherently dangerous places on Earth, the DOS Air Wing maintains an enviable safety record that clearly highlights a genuine safety culture. Since 2001, the Air Wing has only lost two pilots to ground fire (in South America) and suffered two fatal accidents (also South America) resulting from human error. Considering the missions they fly and the terrain in which they operate, this is an outstanding achievement.

INL’s missions vary considerably between their various theatres around the globe. While in South America, much of their efforts directly attack drug crops with intensive spray programmes, in Afghanistan, the Air Wing’s role is to provide aerial support to the entirely ground-based poppy eradication programme.

From its (current) two bases in Kabul and Kandahar, the Air Wing operates a number of well-maintained Bell Huey IIs in direct support of ground operations by the Afghan Eradication Force (AEF), and leases a selection of transport aircraft to fulfil various logistical support roles—Mil Mi-8s, a Mil Mi-26 and an Antonov An-74. The additional use of Russian aircraft and crews for specific roles is indicative of DOS good sense in choosing the right tools for the job. While the decision to use Russian assets was originally one of expediency at a time when it was essential to get the operation up and running quickly, a subsequent objective re-assessment by State Department officials has recognised their suitability in Afghanistan. Not only are the aircraft ideally suited to the harsh environment, but many of their crews are familiar with Afghanistan from “having visited previously”!

The INL Air Wing is now firmly established in Afghanistan. Guy Charlton, the senior aviation advisor in the US embassy in Kabul, told me that he envisaged the need for a long-term presence in Afghanistan to assist the Afghan government’s eradication efforts; the long standing poppy cultivation problem will not be defeated in one season. INL has only had a presence in the country since January 2006, but has already established a programme to build valuable permanent infrastructure that will serve INL throughout its tenure in the country, and which it will eventually bequeath to the Afghan people.

Charlton was effusive in his praise of the people on the ground—both his own DOS personnel and the DynCorp civilian contractors. “This package and the people that have come in to do this job for the State Department have been the right team,” Charlton says. “The people on the ground here have been nothing less than stellar.”

Charlton’s comments about the calibre of people on the ground in Afghanistan mirrored my own observations of them. After an initial decision to install an Air Wing presence was only made in Summer 2005, the first personnel were on the ground—with the most basic of limited facilities—in January 2006. The first helicopters arrived disassembled aboard a US Air Force C17 on 27 January. Engineers and maintenance personnel (mostly all ex-military as well) worked 18-hour days at the beginning to get things underway. With willing assistance from US Army personnel (the Air Wing maintains an excellent working relationship with all of the military personnel in the theatre, all of whom recognise the Air Wing personnel’s own military backgrounds), the Air Wing’s helicopters were flying by 30 January and conducting initial training flights by 13 February in preparation for the poppy season from March–April.

This would have been a remarkable achievement in air-conditioned, comfortable and safe hangars. The fact that the Air Wing’s people achieved this in the open air—blasted by desert winds and dust, and under constant threat of bombardment by Taliban insurgents—gives an indication of their commitment and dedication.

Maintenance continues to be a constant challenge in Afghanistan’s harsh conditions. The ever-present fine, talcum-like dust that is Afghanistan’s most memorable attribute is a particularly troublesome issue that plagues engineers trying to keep any kind of complicated machinery functioning properly. Few machines are more complicated than helicopters—even the (relatively) “simple” Huey is a highly complex collection of rotating, vibrating precision components—so it is yet further tribute to the Air Wing’s professionalism that it has never suffered a maintenance-related mission cancellation.

Everyone in the Air Wing, from Guy Charlton at the embassy to the maintenance technicians in the field, realises the importance of providing adequate aerial protection to the ground eradication forces from the time they leave their forward operating bases until they return at day’s end. Careful planning is involved with every mission the Wing undertakes. There is no such thing as an unplanned or un-briefed flight, and every flying hour is carefully accounted for.

The Air Wing’s role is entirely one of aviation support for ground eradication forces. It is not a combat unit; its tasks include medevac, reconnaissance, command-and-control, light logistics and general air movement. While well armed, its helicopters will only ever fire in self-defence and there are strict rules of engagement. It was another sign of the unit’s professionalism that, despite being staffed by what many might assume to be gung-ho “Type-A” personalities, the personnel all take great pride in the fact that they have not had to fire a shot in “anger” in Afghanistan. A great deal of care is taken in mission planning to avoid high-threat areas wherever possible.

I accompanied a night-time gunnery training mission that left no doubt of the Wing’s ability to defend itself should the need arise. Highly qualified expert gunners man 7.62 mm miniguns capable of firing up to 4,000 rounds per minute. It would be only the stupidest of “Talibunnies” who would risk a hosing from such a deadly stream. The Air Wing’s experience to date suggests that the constant presence of its helicopters over the eradication troops on the ground acts as sufficient deterrent to allow them to complete their work unmolested.

The Air Wing’s tactics dictate that—as far as potential aggressors on the ground are concerned—they remain as unpredictable as possible. Typical missions comprise three helicopters—two armed machines and a dedicated SAR ship. Wherever possible, in suitably secure locations, the SAR ship will land and remain on the ground close to the eradication sites, ready to launch at a moment’s notice, while the armed machines patrol over ground personnel. Other than in emergencies, there will only be a single helicopter on the ground at a time.

The poppy eradication work involves battalions (as they are known) of AEF personnel cutting poppies at just the right time in their growing cycle. Spraying is not a viable option in Afghanistan, with poppies often grown amongst other—legitimate—crops that it would be imprudent to destroy. There is a realisation by the political authorities that for many farmers, poppy is seen as their best hope of providing sufficient income for their families. Part of the international effort to wipe out the poppy culture involves seeking viable alternatives for Afghan farmers. The eradication effort is deliberately timed to allow those whose poppy crops are destroyed to still plant and cultivate alternative crops during the rest of the growing season.

There is some sympathy for destitute local farmers, and a realisation that they are generally not the “bad guys” in this battle. The villains in Afghanistan are those who encourage—and even force—farmers to grow the illicit crops. The hypocritical Taliban and their sympathisers, for whom opium was once a sin against the Koran, now kill and coerce those who do not grow the poppies that once justified the death penalty for growing them!

Despite the fact that the air assets and personnel are supplied and funded by the US State Department, the lead nation in counter narcotics in Afghanistan is the UK. It is important to note that while the US supplies the assets and personnel for battling the opium trade, it does so for the sake of other nations because almost none of Afghanistan’s opium reaches the US—it goes to the UK and Europe. The international nature of the battle means that all of the Air Wing’s operations are co-ordinated and planned at the highest political level between international representatives, the Afghan government and local provincial governors.

It is also important to note that while international counter-narcotics missions might have a higher profile, it is the Afghans themselves who are ultimately responsible for the eradication programme. The Afghan police and soldiers on the ground are those who do the leg work, and it is the Afghan government and local governors who must (and who want to) eliminate the opium menace. In many parts of the country, eradication is done independently of international assistance, and the areas where the INL Air Wing assists are largely those where local officials are reluctant (not necessarily “unwilling” or defiant) to conduct eradication themselves. Local political considerations may well make it difficult for local authorities to act as they might wish and it is recognised that local governors may not wish to destroy their own people’s perceived “only” income source.

While mainstream media might like to search out and focus on anything “negative” about happenings in Afghanistan, it was a humbling experience for this writer to witness the efforts by the Department of State’s INL Air Wing and to see the kind of people who—largely unappreciated—are fighting the war against terror in the most effective way possible—by targeting its roots.

I have since been back to Afghanistan (in March 2007) to rejoin the DOS INL Air Wing during poppy season. After watching these people at work, I very much look forward to sharing a second article with readers about the kind of people who are prepared to risk their lives to make a meaningful difference in the world.

For any who might believe the “gung-ho” or “macho” image is what drives those who would volunteer to put themselves in danger, I offer the words of an Air Wing pilot to close this first part of my Afghanistan story—his sentiments are typical of most that I spoke to:

“I have always believed we are doing the right thing by being in Afghanistan. This land has been in constant turmoil for so long. If we can bring some stability here, then this country stands a chance—but if the world backs off from that, the Afghanis won’t be able to avoid repeating their past and condemning themselves to war, poverty and misery.

“It doesn’t take a genius to realise that the average person out here is just like everyone else—they wake up in the morning and they want the same things we want—peace, security, food on the table and knowledge that loved ones will be safe.

“Is it going to be easy? Heck no! This is a multi-generational problem. No-one alive in this country has ever known a life of peace. They need to understand that a life without war is possible. We—the Western world, not just the US—need to have the will to persevere here if these people are to have any hope.”