Afghanistan: Liz McConaghy, Royal Air Force - There at the Beginning of Op Herrick and There Until the Very End

James Glancy is “of the 9/11 era. There is a big difference in the experience of Serving in the Royal Marines or the military in the 90s to the post 2001 era…I was in Afghanistan within two months of passing out…I did three Troop Commands on combat operations on the ground. It was an amazing 10 years.”When he left “I missed the intensity of operations so much, it’s without doubt one of the best things I’ve ever done in my life and I just loved being at war, it sounds a strange thing to say but I loved it. I loved being with the lads, I loved just doing something that I felt at the time was the right thing to do and working with the best possible people.” War is “...way less complex…It’s just the sense of purpose, everything is really black and white…everything’s done for you in the military…”James eventually found some upsides to Civvy Street “Being independent of a military mindset, thinking for yourself, taking your own opportunities…your own risks…an incredibly important thing in life. I’m out the other side of that transition but there were 3 to 4 years that were…more challenging than you could ever realise, especially after those Afghan years.”James finally returned as a film-maker feeling there was a story to be told “Very few people got to actually understand the Afghan people, the real structure of how the tribes work and who they were…” He provides insight into Afghanistan witnessed at a very particular moment in history, “Even though the full withdrawal hadn’t been announced…the Doha Agreement by Trump made it very clear…My view was, we don’t have forever to make a film where we can travel freely around the country because I think the Taliban will very quickly start taking over…I obviously didn’t predict how quickly it would fall.”Watch the trailer of Afganistan on YouTubeDid you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Sir Laurie Bristow was central to the military withdrawal in 2021, there’s nobody better placed to give us the inside story than the last British ambassador in Afghanistan. He takes us through the days and hours counting down, “15th August we started the day with President Ghani behind his desk broadcasting to the nation…roughly 2.30pm” He’s “left the country…a few hours later you’ve got the Taliban behind that desk…taking their selfies.”Laurie shares his views on the Doha Agreement and tries to make sense of what happened and why, “How was it that we invested so many lives, so much money, so much political capital and the results were so lamentable?”He describes the evacuation “…panic doesn’t even begin to cover it…I struggle to find the words…Miles…of desperate people…” Among them “there are certainly Taliban…extreme violence going on…children, old people trampled in the crush…dead children being pulled out of those crowds…extreme heat…a Covid wave…Somehow…you’ve got to find, identify, pull out the people who qualify for evacuation.”“We train these young men and women for combat, this is harder…By the 15th there were not enough soldiers to control the airport…It all becomes suddenly very very real, the government has collapsed, the Taliban are back in charge…The next thing you see is people falling off the plane…There were moments where we didn’t know if we would get out alive.”Sir Laurie recognises the “incredible job that the military…the civilians working alongside them did; and the fact that we got out over 15,000 people…What I saw of the performance of our soldiers and our civilians was really quite humbling…The youngest of our ‘sunburnt young soldiers’ were just 18 years old.”Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Oliver Lee resigned over the Marine A controversy and epitomises moral courage. He took over command of 45 Commando in 2009 as it came back from Afghanistan. Knowing they’d return in 2011 and to fulfil his vision of “Less violence, more engagement with people and culture… It’s about Afghans before anybody else” he ensured that the entire unit “all played a part in the production of the plan…What I was trying to do was to persuade young hard charging Royal Marines, whose last experience was Sangin, to operate in an extremely different way.”The unit distilled their operational design into 10 principles such as “Always: Treat Afghans with dignity, use the minimum possible force, think clearly even when angry and afraid, always place Afghans first…”During the tour these values “were lived by every day…What was achieved was remarkable…an 86% reduction in violence…That led to mission success which was a transfer to Afghan lead security authority 12-18 months ahead of the plan…There was not a single piece of collateral damage inflicted by us. There was not a single civilian casualty caused by us and we brought everybody home alive” something “I never thought even possible. In bandit country we did 7600 patrols over that six months and everybody came home alive…It was a remarkable tour.”However, for the last three weeks, Oliver's command increased to include that of Marine A’s unit “Very sadly, it was during that three weeks that Marine A committed his battlefield atrocity so it was during the period of my command, which I therefore felt I had to carry some responsibility for even though I didn’t know him, I didn’t know that unit, I hadn’t prepared them, I hadn’t led them for the vast majority of the tour. Leadership is about carrying responsibility.” Oliver shares his unique perspective on this as well as the action he took next.“Moral Courage…Above all, it’s about doing the right thing.”Oliver Lee delivering a speech on a beach to 45 Commando's before their deployment to Afghanistan and Oliver talking to Channel 4 News about Marine A.Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Cayle Royce was severely injured in action. His difficult yet inspirational story is told from his mother, Bronwyn’s perspective. Cayle lost both legs above the knee and part of his hand as well as further blast injuries after stepping on an IED.“It is a very challenging story, but lots of positives to be taken…From where we were…To where we are now. The hospital, to adventures across the world. My child has come a long way…18 months after injury, Cayle rowed the Atlantic for the first time.” That was just the start, Cayle and his adventures have since gone from strength-to-strength and he has been awarded an MBE for his Service and achievements after recovery. If anyone feels in need of hope after facing similar experiences, this story is for you, “If we can reach one person who needed to hear this story, that’s what it’s all about, to just give somebody hope. There is hope post-injury.”Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Frank Ledwidge is angry. His hard-hitting, bleak and perhaps controversial perspective is born out of his work in Afghanistan and  personal investigation, “I wanted to know what the human cost was…The image we had of ourselves was, we are here to help” but “We were seen as…invaders…That came as something of a shock to me.”Frank’s background was as a lawyer and a Reservist, “I joined one of the more discrete units of the Navy, a Joint-Service unit with the Army and Air Force…Got called up to Bosnia, then Iraq as a Military Intelligence Officer on the ground and ended up as Head of Branch and retired after 15 years…In real life, I worked in international organisations and for the British government in Security and Justice…in the former Soviet Union…Balkans, Afghanistan, Libya” more recently “in Ukraine during the war there.”Frank does not hold back with his views “...after Iraq, where I felt we’d been… lied to, my job in Iraq…was literally to look for weapons of mass destruction…that pretext was entirely false; I went into Afghanistan, sincerely believing that it was ‘the good war’...enemy…‘evil’...our side…essentially ‘good’ and we were going to defeat the enemy and replace them and sort that country out...and I think very many of us went into that…on that basis…It was very clear that by 2010, things were critical…The question had to be asked, ‘So what are those costs, how many people have been killed or injured, not just in physical terms, but also psychological…?’...Nothing was achieved. The evacuation was a chaotic disaster…I’ll just be blunt and truthful…There’s no sugar-coating this.”He also explores lessons learned for the future, “In order to put things right, you have to understand where you went wrong.” Frank closes with empathy for fellow veterans, “There’s a small minority who aren’t fine, so if you know anyone like that, just say hello and be their friends…Bare them in mind, the war’s over but they’re still here.”Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

James Malone remembers leaving Lympstone, “In every fibre of being, I felt like I could do anything…You just wanna get stuck in.”His tour was “Something that definitely changed the course of my life. War does that…to everyone who experiences combat…the first major casualty…was sobering…we had fairly regular contact, gunfights, rocket attacks, IED strikes…I was a Point Man, barma-ing, trying to stop people standing on IEDs…first into most situations, whether clearing a compound to set-up for overwatch, or a firefight or…a Shura with Elders, you’re first in there, first through any doorway, you don’t know what’s on the other side...”James talks about an incident that he has not shared before outside his most trusted circle, “...What was difficult to deal with was I no longer had control…When you’ve got something going on in your head…it’s like being in solitary confinement and the only thing you have for company is those experiences and they’re all horrific…I kind of dealt with it by pulling the pin and being a bit of a social hand grenade…I felt like I was going down in flames. It got to a point where I was contemplating filling my pockets up with stones and walking into the sea.”“It is hard to talk about…but I think it’s important…There’s going to be someone else…who had a very similar experience…So I need them to know that there are other people out there too and they understand…Afghan definitely corroded that feeling I had of being able to do anything.” Now through working with Afghan veterans as a full-time photographer and film-maker, “I’ve been able to rediscover a little bit of that again.”Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Tom Corrigan wanted to be an Apache pilot... “I thought, ‘Yeah Apache, that looks pretty awesome, up for a bit of that’. It’s something I’d wanted to do since I was a pretty young lad, I just thought, ‘that looks pretty epic.’”Tom’s first tour was in 2009, “You were just chomping at the bit to get out there really…We all thought it was going to be fairly quiet…we’re here as a peace-keeping force…It was not like that, it was full on…intense...We were up 10 minutes and…‘Troops in contact requesting Apache’. So my front seater was like ‘Right, have you got your big boy pants on? It’s all kicking off.’ It’s literally my first airborne in Afghanistan and it’s firing on targets straight away…I certainly wasn’t prepared for how quickly it was going to go from, you’ve literally arrived in theatre to off you go it’s all happening now. There’s no build-up, it's…0 to 60 like bang.”Tom returned in 2011 as a front seat Gunner Commander. We hear about the technicalities of flying, finding targets, tactics and engaging. Also about the impact on Tom,  “It was a rollercoaster…We had certain days where we had big mass casualties, multiple British Servicemen, either with horrendous injuries or being killed and it was really hard because you felt you’re doing everything you can…You have to do what you think is making a difference at the time and I hope what we did out there did have positive impacts on some people. It’s quite mixed emotions.”Forward to today, he plays guitar in a rock band, “It started off as a bit of fun and it’s all got quite serious now… Music is such an amazing creative force…this really positive aspect in my life…even some negative emotions that you’ve had it’s been, ‘Well let’s do something with this, let’s write it…and put it into a song…That real freedom to be an exaggerated version of yourself…When I’m on stage it’s not me, it’s a stage version of me. It’s really liberating…jumping around and pretending to be a rockstar. I can’t recommend it enough!”Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Nick Denning gives us an insight into his life and responsibilities as a very new Platoon Commander in Helmand Province.“It was all a very rapid, flash-to-bang experience getting there…You want to feel worn-in and seasoned and up-to-speed as quickly as you can…You wait for your first patrol, your first contact with the enemy, your first engagement with the local nationals…There was just this huge sense of ‘This is it’…I knew from the start I had a very strong command team…We spent the first third of the tour in Nauzad…the latter 2/3 in Sangin…We did patrol and counter-insurgency. We also took part in a number of Company level, Battle Group level and Brigade level operations, where a concerted, deliberate offensive was mounted.”We hear about the impact of sustaining fatalities and surreal realities of war, “The most bizarre thing, it started raining… We were just sat there in the middle of the desert, and I just remember feeling absolutely empty… And then the show has to go on.”Nick also describes his respect for his soldiers, “They just got on with these tasks…the exertion was incredible…I think 53 was the highest temperature we experienced…and just the quiet grit they had will stay with me forever.”Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Liz McConaghy “amassed 10 Op Herricks”, deployed three months at a time as part of the Chinook Force...“We were there at the beginning of Op Herrick…when Camp Bastion didn’t even exist… and we were there, pretty much at the end, when we turned the lights off and walked away. Because of that, we saw the whole campaign grow and develop. Lots of mixed emotions throughout the entire journey.”Liz joined the military to, “...have a purpose and do a job and it’s fair to say, Afghanistan gave me that in bucket loads. Every single day…we were making a difference to someone.”Finally in 2020, PTSD,  “Caught up with me in spectacular fashion…so much that I ended up taking a huge overdose to end my life.”Liz is a real ‘overcomer’. She’s written a book about her journey and it’s from the heart, told with real honesty and absolutely tons of humour.“It was my life, it wasn’t even a job to me.”Read Liz's book Chinook Crew 'Chick'.Did you serve in Afghanistan or Iraq?In order to better understand the wellbeing of Afghanistan & Iraq Veterans with which we work, we're asking you to answer a few short questions.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.

Ken Benbow Served in the 7th Escort Group in the Atlantic convoys. With no torpedoes, just guns and depth charges to protect Allied merchant ships from U-Boats, they sailed back and forth through ‘No Man’s Land’, 1,500 miles of ocean with no air cover, being “attacked every hour by the Germans”. Age 17, Ken went from working on a farm to Serving in the Royal Navy and his story is at the very heart of The Battle of The Atlantic.This podcast is supported by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.If you’re a member of the Armed Forces community and need support with your mental health, Op Courage can help. Or you could phone the Combat Stress Helpline on: 0800 138 1619Company of Makers exists to support veterans and their families who are struggling on civvy street no matter how long ago they left the armed forces.We do this by running a programme of Podcasts | Talks | Workshops.Company of Makers are trying to reach, and better understand, all members of the armed forces community who are also gamers. We’re especially interested in those that have served in Afganistan & Iraq.To find out more contact us.