Camp Bastionis the mainBritishmilitary baseinAfghanistan. Accommodating 28,000 people, it is situated northwest ofLashkar Gah, the capital ofHelmand Province, and exists to be the logistics hub for operations in Helmand.It is the largest British overseasmilitary campbuilt since theSecond World War.Built in early 2006 by personnel from39 Engineer Regiment Royal Engineersand various contracting firms, all under the supervision of 62 Works Group Royal Engineers, the camp is situated in a remote desert area, far from population centres. Four miles long by two miles wide, it has a busy airfield and afield hospitaland originally had full accommodation for the 2000 men and women.The base is divided into a number of different sections (Bastions). Bastion 1 and 2 were the first sections with Bastion 2 containing Camp Barber (US) and Camp Viking (DK), Bastion 0 was added in around 2010 and houses the contractors and Bastion 3 is used for in-theatre training.The base is home to a number of nations including the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Tonga.Camp Shorabak (formerly Camp Bastion) is a former British Army airbase, located northwest of the city of Lashkargah in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The camp was situated in a remote desert area, far from population centres.The camp was built by the British Army in 2005-06, and on 27 October 2014 the British Army handed over control to the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Between 2005 and October 2014 it was the logistics hub for International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations in Helmand during the War in Afghanistan and Operation Herrick,[8][9] and it was capable of accommodating over 32,000 people.[5] It was the largest British overseas military camp built since the Second World War.[10] The base was also home to troops from other states, including the United States and Denmark.Shorabak contained the Afghan National Army (ANA) camp (also called Camp Shorabak), and also held Camp Leatherneck until 2014.The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in July–August 2021; and the camp is now under control by the Taliban.[12]Camp Shorabak was known as Camp Bastion until 2014. It was a tactical landing zone set up by two air traffic controllers from the Royal Air Force's Tactical Air Traffic Control Unit. This provided a vital and strategic insertion point in Helmand Province during the western intervention in the War in Afghanistan.The camp started out with just a few tents in 2005.[10] However, from early 2006 personnel from 39 Engineer Regiment Royal Engineers and various contracting firms, all under the supervision of 62 Works Group Royal Engineers started to build the base with more robust facilities. In November 2006, the then British Prime Minister Tony Blair visited Camp Bastion, and, while addressing a gathering of British troops, described it as an "extraordinary piece of desert ... where the fate of world security in the early 21st century is going to be decided".Four miles long by two miles wide, the camp had a busy airfield and a field hospital and originally had full accommodation for 2,000 people.The base was originally named by the Commanding Officer of 62 Works Group (RE) based upon name of the gabions used to form the compounds walls; Hesco Bastion. The first camp to be built was Camp 251 which housed the construction force and they were housed in tents.[16] The first runway capable of handling C-17s direct from the United Kingdom opened in Camp Bastion on 3 December 2007.The base had previously been divided into a number of different sections (bastions). Bastions 1 and 2 were the first, with Bastion 2 containing Camp Barber (US) and Camp Viking (DK). Bastion 0 was added in around 2010 and housed the contractors and Bastion 3 was used for in-theatre training.Camp Bastion included Bastion Airfield, Bastion Garrison and Camp Leatherneck[18] along with Rowe Lines.By September 2014 it was reported that both Bastion 2 and 3 had reverted to desert.Camp Bastion airfield and heliport handled up to 600 fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft movements every day in 2011, operating combat, medical and logistics flights.[8] Its air traffic controllers were integral to the support of the UK's operations in southern Afghanistan and the Air Traffic Control Squadron at Camp Bastion was the first to recruit and train US Marines to UK air traffic control standards.In February 2014, snow fell in Camp Bastion for the first time since the base was established, eight years earlier.The camp was handed over to the control of the Afghan security forces on 26 October 2014.On 27 November 2014, insurgents infiltrated Camp Bastion. As of Sunday 30 November, the Afghan National Army had not fully driven out the "Taliban" fighters. At least five ANA soldiers were killed in the attack.Upon completion of British and US military withdrawal from Camp Bastion, it was renamed Camp Shorabak as this was the name of the Afghan base situated there.In December 2015, it was announced that a small contingency of British troops would return to Camp Shorabak in an advisory role, due to the Taliban overrun of Sangin district in Helmand province.The base was initially home to the Afghan National Army and during Operation Herrick 7 2nd Battalion, the Yorkshire Regiment's Battlegroup HQ.Before the 2021 Taliban takeover, home to 4th Kandak, 3rd Brigade, 205th Corps. The ring road, watchtowers and large parts of Bastion I still remain to be maintained.The main user of the camp was the United Kingdom which based a number of rotary and a few fixed-wing aircraft.During June 2011 a brand new air traffic control tower was opened[28] which was built by 170 Engineer Group, with Fixed Communications Infrastructure installed by 241 Sig Sqn, 10 Sig Regt.The main aviation unit was No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing which was responsible for the operation of the airfield and operated the Raytheon Sentinel R1 - Airborne Stand-Off Radar (ASTOR) along with Westland Sea King ASACs and Thales Watchkeepers.Joint Helicopter Force (Afghanistan) operated Agusta Westland Apaches, Westland Lynx, Westland Sea Kings, Boeing Chinooks of No. 1310 Flight RAF and Agusta Westland Merlins of No. 1419 Flight RAF. Both RAF Flights performed troop and cargo moves but the Chinook also carried the Medical Emergency Response Team (MERT) and Incident Response Teams (IRT).The base was protected by the Bastion Force Protection Wing as part of the multi-national Task Force Belleau Wood.During August 2013 the Headquarters of Task Force Helmand moved from Lashkar Gah to Bastion.In 2013, a training school for Afghan troops was opened.By March 2014, the population of the camp had reduced to 4,000 UK service personnel, as preparations were well-underway for UK military withdrawal from Helmand[39] in October 2014.During the dismantling of the base the scrap metal was taken away by ProCon Building Materials Trading LLC.
The United States Military used part of Bastion Airfield for their aircraft and they had their own camp within Camp Bastion until 26 October 2014.The last unit was the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward) which began operating from April 2014. It consisted of:
Marine Wing Suppprt Squadron-371(February 2009-October) laid aluminum matting in Camp Bastion and throughout Helmand Province.On 14 September 2012 Camp Bastion was attacked by a unit of 15 Taliban fighters. The base was defended by pilots and aircraft maintenance personnel from Marine Attack Squadron 211 and No. 51 Squadron RAF Regiment. Base security had been reduced in the weeks leading up to the attack, and the Taliban unit was able to damage or destroy eight USMC AV-8B Harrier II jets before all were killed or captured. Two Marines died in the fighting.
Camp Bastion's Hospital was built by 170 Engineer Group[29] and was operated by regular and reserve personnel of the British Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force of the Joint Force Medical Group, as well as medical assets from the US Army. Medical staff included Orthopaedic Surgeons, General Surgeons, Anaesthetists, Nurses and Medics. The hospital was the location to which wounded military personnel from the British, US and other ISAF forces in Helmand Province were evacuated from the battlefield for treatment, supported by US Army, Navy, and Air Force medics, or from which they were further evacuated to the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. Afghan civilians were also treated at the hospital for injuries sustained in war including victims of improvised explosive device attacks. The hospital was closed down on 22 September 2014.You will receive the item as shown in the first photo. Other items in other pictures are for your reference only, available in my store.They will make a great addition to your SSI Shoulder Sleeve Insigniacollection. You find only US Made items here, with the sameLIFETIMEwarranty.
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