What's new

U.S. Military Vacates Afghanistan’s Bagram Air Base After Nearly Two Decades

Xone

FULL MEMBER
Joined
Oct 13, 2019
Messages
643
Reaction score
0
Country
Pakistan
Location
Pakistan
U.S. Military Vacates Afghanistan’s Bagram Air Base After Nearly Two Decades
Siladitya Ray
Siladitya Ray

Forbes Staff
Business
Covering breaking news and tech policy stories at Forbes.

Updated Jul 2, 2021, 04:55am EDT
TOPLINE
All U.S. and NATO Troops on Friday left Bagram Air Base—one of the biggest military bases in Afghanistan—after nearly two decades of continuous presence, in a move that serves as a precursor to the imminent exit of the American military from Afghanistan.
Withdrawal From Bagram Air Base Afghanistan

File photo of U.S. Army soldiers walking to their C-17 cargo plane for departure at Bagram Air Base, ... [+]
GETTY IMAGES

KEY FACTS
Citing unnamed officials, both AFP and Reuters reported that all coalition forces had exited the key base which is about 30 miles north of capital city Kabul.
The base will now be handed over to the Afghan defense ministry at a ceremony on Saturday, the Reuters report added.
Both the U.S. military and NATO forces are winding up their two-decade-long involvement in Afghanistan and they are expected to bring home all their remaining troops by September 11.
KEY BACKGROUND
Bagram Air Base served as the nerve center of all U.S military operations in Afghanistan, coordinating its air assets and providing logistical support to ground troops. Over the years, Bagram became a mini-city of sorts, featuring swimming pools, cinemas, spas, supermarkets and even a boardwalk with American fast food joints such as Burger King and Pizza Hut. According to AFP, Bagram also hosted a prison that was used to hold thousands of Taliban and jihadist inmates. All U.S. troops are set to exit Afghanistan by September 11, as part of a negotiated peace deal between the U.S. government and Taliban.
BIG NUMBER
2,218. That’s the total number of U.S. military personnel who have died in Afghanistan as part of the two-decade-long war in the country, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. Some 1,833 soldiers have been killed in combat action while nearly 21,000 troops have been wounded in action.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
As U.S. troops prepare to leave Afghanistan, the Taliban has launched a relentless offensive across the country in the past two months, taking over large swathes of territory. Afghan security forces have been forced to consolidate their power largely in the country’s major urban areas. The Afghan forces’ ability to maintain control over Bagram will likely be critical for the Afghan government to retain control of Kabul and keep pressure on the Taliban. Bagram Air Base has come under rocket fire several times in the past few months. The attacks have been claimed by the Islamic State, prompting fears that terror groups are already eyeing the base.


 
please tell more.
Well, during my period with Charter flights we did a number of flight for companies like KBR (with one Charter Operator) and Fluor (another Charter Operator).

During my time with 'em, i've spent countless nites in Bagram, Kandahar Airfield, Camp Bastian, Camp Dwyer & once at Mazar-e-Sharif.

Bagram was by far the most advanced of the lot & pretty huge. Movement in the Base was restricted like all bases & you could only move out of the Camp where you were stationed if with an Escort from the companies that utilized our services.

We'd often do flights that we referred to as 'Milk-runs'. That is: Dubai - Kandahar - Bagram - Camp Bastian - Bagram - Kandahar - Dubai. Since NO Crew is permitted to do so many sectors in a day, so we'd carry a spare crew (Dead-Heading). One set of Crew would get off in Bagram, spend the nite & another would continue on to Camp Bastian before returning to get us.

Was in Kandahar once when the horn went off while we were headed to the Mess for lunch. The driver stopped at the exact spot, told us to get out & lay on the ground. Yeah, there was an attempt at the Base, but it was at the other end where the Commercial (Airport) end. The shopping area was called Boardwalk.

As for Bagram Airfield (the Base) - they had pretty much everything from TGIF to Burger King and other Fast Food joints like KFC. Shops that sold everything from the US & even a Harley Davidson & GMC dealership for the Soldiers. It was mainly for guys there to make down payments on them & pick them up back in the US - I think TAX FREE or something.

Note: Mazar-e-Sharif was probably the ONLY base that wasn't USAF OR NATO. It was purely German & was the most modern & CLEAN Base I have ever been to (including the ones in Iraq).
 
Well, during my period with Charter flights we did a number of flight for companies like KBR (with one Charter Operator) and Fluor (another Charter Operator).

During my time with 'em, i've spent countless nites in Bagram, Kandahar Airfield, Camp Bastian, Camp Dwyer & once at Mazar-e-Sharif.

Bagram was by far the most advanced of the lot & pretty huge. Movement in the Base was restricted like all bases & you could only move out of the Camp where you were stationed if with an Escort from the companies that utilized our services.

We'd often do flights that we referred to as 'Milk-runs'. That is: Dubai - Kandahar - Bagram - Camp Bastian - Bagram - Kandahar - Dubai. Since NO Crew is permitted to do so many sectors in a day, so we'd carry a spare crew (Dead-Heading). One set of Crew would get off in Bagram, spend the nite & another would continue on to Camp Bastian before returning to get us.

Was in Kandahar once when the horn went off while we were headed to the Mess for lunch. The driver stopped at the exact spot, told us to get out & lay on the ground. Yeah, there was an attempt at the Base, but it was at the other end where the Commercial (Airport) end. The shopping area was called Boardwalk.

As for Bagram Airfield (the Base) - they had pretty much everything from TGIF to Burger King and other Fast Food joints like KFC. Shops that sold everything from the US & even a Harley Davidson & GMC dealership for the Soldiers. It was mainly for guys there to make down payments on them & pick them up back in the US - I think TAX FREE or something.

Note: Mazar-e-Sharif was probably the ONLY base that wasn't USAF OR NATO. It was purely German & was the most modern & CLEAN Base I have ever been to (including the ones in Iraq).
very insightful and interesting, so you work in which profession?
 
Well, during my period with Charter flights we did a number of flight for companies like KBR (with one Charter Operator) and Fluor (another Charter Operator).

During my time with 'em, i've spent countless nites in Bagram, Kandahar Airfield, Camp Bastian, Camp Dwyer & once at Mazar-e-Sharif.

Bagram was by far the most advanced of the lot & pretty huge. Movement in the Base was restricted like all bases & you could only move out of the Camp where you were stationed if with an Escort from the companies that utilized our services.

We'd often do flights that we referred to as 'Milk-runs'. That is: Dubai - Kandahar - Bagram - Camp Bastian - Bagram - Kandahar - Dubai. Since NO Crew is permitted to do so many sectors in a day, so we'd carry a spare crew (Dead-Heading). One set of Crew would get off in Bagram, spend the nite & another would continue on to Camp Bastian before returning to get us.

Was in Kandahar once when the horn went off while we were headed to the Mess for lunch. The driver stopped at the exact spot, told us to get out & lay on the ground. Yeah, there was an attempt at the Base, but it was at the other end where the Commercial (Airport) end. The shopping area was called Boardwalk.

As for Bagram Airfield (the Base) - they had pretty much everything from TGIF to Burger King and other Fast Food joints like KFC. Shops that sold everything from the US & even a Harley Davidson & GMC dealership for the Soldiers. It was mainly for guys there to make down payments on them & pick them up back in the US - I think TAX FREE or something.

Note: Mazar-e-Sharif was probably the ONLY base that wasn't USAF OR NATO. It was purely German & was the most modern & CLEAN Base I have ever been to (including the ones in Iraq).
A great experience on your part!! Thanks for sharing.....
 
Enjoy guys... - KODAK moment. Looks like Ajit Doval might be on that Imodium afterall.

PLEASSSSE listen to this hack at 4:47 & about the :pleasantry:Official Indian Map:pleasantry: & that it actually connects India to Afghanistan.

At mark 20:00 - he does what he's really good at... Pakistan Bashing & than asks the viewers to forget that & moves on.

 
The border between Pakistan Afghanistan is closed today till the next order. The situation in Afghanistan is worsening.
 
$2.2 trillion spent

thats over $2 billion per week for over 20 years

World is mad
 
Pakistan still ‘pushing’ Afghan Taliban for peace despite waning influence
Insurgents are still committed to peace efforts due to Islamabad’s influence, says official


Kamran Yousaf July 07, 2021

photo file

PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan is still pushing the Afghan Taliban for a political settlement behind the scenes despite Prime Minister Imran Khan’s recent statement that Islamabad’s influence over the insurgent group has diminished after the US announced a withdrawal date.
It was because of Pakistan’s “leverage and efforts” that the Afghan Taliban this week revealed that they have been working on a written peace proposal to be shared with the Afghan government in the coming months.
“They have made this commitment privately many months ago but now they have said it publicly. This is significant,” said a Pakistani official involved in the Afghan peace efforts.
The official, who requested not to be identified so that he could speak freely, told The Express Tribune that it was because of Pakistan’s efforts that the Taliban were still committed to peace efforts despite rapid gains they have made since the US and NATO forces started withdrawing from Afghanistan.
The official replied in the affirmative when asked whether it was Pakistan’s efforts that the Afghan Taliban publicly announced to share the written peace plan.
Pakistan is not only in touch with the Afghan Taliban but also reaching out to other players in Afghanistan. The Pakistani ambassador to Kabul has been meeting leaders from different political parties both in government and otherwise. The idea behind those contacts is to push for a political settlement, the official added.
As the Taliban captured districts after districts with little resistance from the Afghan security forces, the representatives of the insurgent group and the Afghan government held talks in Doha.
Those talks coupled with the Afghan Taliban’s announcement for presenting a written peace plan in the coming months have rekindled some hope for a peace deal.
“We have been telling the Taliban that you may take over Kabul by force but to seek legitimacy and international recognition the only way to come to power is through peace deal and talks,” the official said.
However, the official was sceptical about the success of those efforts because the situation was both “volatile and unpredictable”.
Pakistani officials said although Taliban gains were quite rapid in recent weeks, the situation could change if the Afghan security forces show some resistance.
“Therefore, it is too early to predict where things are heading in Afghanistan. The situation at best is volatile and unpredictable,” the official said when asked about the chances of Afghanistan slipping into another phase of chaos.
At a recent briefing given to a select group of parliamentarians, the military authorities in Pakistan painted grim prospects of any peace in Afghanistan. The members of parliament were told that Afghanistan was fast descending into civil war, something that did not bode well for Pakistan.
The negative fallout of unrest in Afghanistan includes rise in terrorism and fresh influx of Afghan refugees.
Pakistan expects half a million fresh Afghan refugees in case of a civil war in Afghanistan. This time authorities insist refugees would be kept at special camps in the bordering areas instead of letting them in the settled parts of Pakistan.
Pakistan is already home to three million registered and unregistered Afghan refugees. Islamabad, however, seeks their dignified and early return.
National Security Adviser Dr. Moeed Yusuf at a recent news conference made a fresh appeal to the international community for the early return of the refugees after an Afghan origin man was found involved in a recent terrorist attack in Lahore.
But with the situation fast deteriorating in Afghanistan, observers fear that Pakistan’s desire to see the early return of these refugees may never become a reality in the near future.

 
Back
Top Bottom