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Risks to grow as U.S. forces hit the ground
Helicopters, special forces expected to take over as battle leaves skies
10/11/2001
WASHINGTON – The next phase of the military campaign in Afghanistan is likely
to be even less visible and far more dangerous for U.S. forces than the first
four days of airstrikes, experts say.
Osama bin
Laden is a man of many hideouts. Fifty-five locations in Afghanistan have
been identified recently as spots in which he has been seen. Reports by
U.S., Pakistani, and Russian intelligence analysts, along with accounts
from reporters in the region, have pinpointed several of the most likely
in the geographically forbidding country. They include: • The Dara
Kayan valley near Pol-e Khomri, which reportedly has been cleared of
residents by Taliban authorities to provide bin Laden and his Taliban
supporters with a haven. This is where Mr. bin Laden fled when U.S. cruise
missiles attacked his training camps in 1998. • The
snow-topped Pamir Mountains in northern Afghanistan, near the border with
Tajikistan. • The rugged
mountains of Oruzgan province, in central Afghanistan not far from the
Taliban stronghold of Kandahar. He has used the area as a meeting place
and base off and on since being given haven by the Taliban in 1996.
• Kandahar,
where he is reported to have established a system of underground bunkers,
or in Kabul, the Afghan capital. These sprawling cities offer numerous
hiding places, friendly civilians and Taliban forces to protect him.
SOURCE: Wire reports Having established control of the skies, U.S. and British forces are expected
to launch secret helicopter-borne commando raids to target the al-Qaeda
terrorist group for airstrikes and help Afghan rebels gain the upper hand in
their battle with the Taliban government. "Discrete, in-and-out raids going after specific individuals or groups are
quite possible," said Michele Flournoy, a former Pentagon counterterrorism
expert. Such raids would be mounted by special operations troops – U.S. Army Rangers,
the secretive Delta Force and Britain's SAS, for example. The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, based in Okinawa, also could come into
play, noted retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Fred McCorkle, who retired last month
as deputy commandant. "The entire MEU is special operations-capable," he said.
And while such forces typically operate under cover of darkness, the risk of
a helicopter being shot down or troops taking casualties is ever present. "You'll probably see helicopters inserting special forces personnel and
extracting them," said Sen. John McCain,R-Ariz. "You probably have to go in on the ground to make sure that the training
camps and other terrorist networks are eliminated, and that means the risk of
American lives." Targets to change Taliban troop concentrations, suspected hiding places of al-Qaeda terrorists
and other "targets of opportunity" will be the main focus as U.S. air forces try
to "level the military playing field between the Taliban and opposition forces
on the ground," Ms. Flournoy said. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Tuesday that one goal was to help the
opposition overthrow the Taliban, though the United States isn't backing the
Northern Alliance specifically. "The other piece of phase two is to make it uncomfortable or unsafe for
members of the al-Qaeda network to stay in hiding and force them to move
somehow," Ms. Flournoy said. "When they move, we'll potentially have the opportunity for direct action."
Among the weapons U.S. air forces used Wednesday as they sought to put
al-Qaeda on the run was a 5,000-pound "bunker-buster" warhead – the BLU-109 –
designed to penetrate concrete bunkers. The warhead punches through earth or concrete and explodes when it hits a
cavity. The BLU-109 can be loaded on a variety of bombs – such as the laser-guided
GBU 28 – and missiles that are laser-guided or use the satellite global
positioning system to find their targets, said Air Force spokesman Chief Master
Sgt Andy Stanley. 'Good cave people' "We've got good cave people," Col. Darley said, declining to discuss specific
techniques troops might use in such situations. Pentagon officials refuse to discuss possible operations. Col. Darley,
however, noted that the Special Operations Command "has some of the assets you
can bring to the table – all of which are applicable, depending on what the
president wants to do." Among others, they include: • Three battalions of 600-700 men in the Army's 75th Ranger Regiment. "These
are the best-trained light infantry the Army has," Col. Darley said. • Special Forces, or Green Berets, whose main job is to train, organize and
lead irregular forces behind enemy lines. Green Berets already are working with
the Northern Alliance rebels in Afghanistan, according to reports from the
region. • The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, based at Fort Campbell, Ky.
The 160th flies specially outfitted MH-60 Blackhawk assault helicopters, MH-47
Chinook medium-lift transport helicopters and armed AH-6 and MH-6 "Little Bird"
choppers, used for reconnaissance and transporting small teams of commandos.
• Air Force Special Operations Command, which operates MH-130 transport
aircraft and AC-130 gunships, which carry Gatling guns and cannon able to
obliterate targets on the ground in a hail of bullets. The Air Force also has commando teams trained to parachute into enemy
territory, or "fast rope" down from a helicopter, to give medical treatment to
pilots who have been shot down and injured. "All these forces spend most of their time training at night," Col. Darley
said. Staging area unclear The 10th Mountain Division troops "are there to protect the search and rescue
teams, both Air Force and Army, that have been introduced in there so that if
any pilots go down, we can go in there and pull them out," said retired Lt. Gen.
Ted Stroup, former deputy chief of staff of the Army. Any ground operations under way at this point probably are merely for
reconnaissance, possibly in conjunction with the Northern Alliance, whose
estimated 15,000 fighters have been locked in a stalemate with the Taliban, Gen.
Stroup said. "In this reconnaissance phase, there also would be satellite, aircraft and
UAV – unmanned aerial vehicles – taking pictures," he noted. Having a helicopter shot down is among the risks for special operations
forces, experts said. Somali rebels used rocket-propelled grenades to down two Blackhawks in
Mogadishu in 1993. That led to an all-night gunbattle in which 18 Rangers were killed and dozens
were wounded. The event was widely viewed as a disaster, even though the Rangers, Delta
Force operators and Navy SEALs fighting with them killed more than 500 Somalis
and captured two warlord lieutenants. But those helicopters were flying in daylight when they were shot down, and
the Somalis who fired the grenades did so at close range. Concerns about Stingers But retired Marine Corps Gen. McCorkle, who flew 1,500 combat missions as a
helicopter pilot in Vietnam, said almost all military choppers today are
equipped with countermeasures that can defeat a heat-seeking Stinger, such as
flares that trick the missile into missing. "A lot of them now have the automatic system, where the pilot or the crew
don't even have to see the missile," Gen. McCorkle said. "The aircraft itself sees it. As soon as it does, these flares are put out
automatically, which are far, far hotter than the engine the guy's shooting at."
The Stinger "is a big concern," he added, "but from what I know – and it's
quite a bit – I don't think these guys [the Taliban] have nearly the capability
that the opposing force had in Kosovo. I wouldn't hesitate. I'd love to lead the
first mission in there."
The ruling Taliban's military forces
have been unable to threaten U.S. bombers and strike aircraft. But much of the
action from here may have to take place on the ground.
Where is he?