Sniper Elite (17 page)

We stayed in location that night to see if anything further would eventuate. Everything had gone quiet, so NC made a decision to move. We continued to snoop about this area gathering more information. We were contacted several more times, and on one occasion the car I was travelling in was targeted by 107s. Luckily they dropped about 150 metres short, but when I had a look around I could see piles of rocks about 1–1.5 metres high that seemed to be placed at 100–200-metre intervals. Smart bastards: they were using them as range finders, and we were parked right in the centre of them. Using these markers they could very easily bracket us with their rockets until they were on target. So I shouted to RH, ‘Let's get out of here quick!' Through the captured radio we had determined that there was a spotter guiding the enemy onto us. We did have a scout around for him, but it was uneventful.

Task complete, we drove the two-day journey back to Tarin Kowt. We had been living in the field now for a full month and in contact with the Taliban a quarter of that time. So it was good to get back not only to relax, but to get stuck into a decent hot feed, have a warm shower, but more importantly get a few beers inside us to release built-up tension.

One week later we were back in the field. We had decided that we had some unfinished business in the areas surrounding Saraw. This time I was in a different patrol and riding one of our Polaris ATVs. Dave O'Neil and MR were on ATVs also and Dave was the 2IC. (Unfortunately Dave died in a Melbourne car accident a couple of years ago. He was a great bloke, always happy and keen for a laugh.) Once again we found ourselves at the base of IED alley and began to clear it by foot. Shep was using a hand-held metal detector to sweep the road for possible IEDs and their components. We gingerly followed behind him. On reaching the top Shep had made a gruesome discovery. Three locals with hands bound had been beheaded and just left on the side of the road.

We gathered as much intelligence as possible and moved on to set up OPs in strategic locations around Saraw. We remained in that area for a few days, becoming very aware of the spotter network in the hills. At night we could see where they were camped because they had lit fires and you could see the faint glow several kilometers away. It was rapidly approaching winter and the nights were becoming extremely cold especially for those spotters at altitude. They were well out of range for the weapon systems we had, and access to these locations could only be achieved by local knowledge. Even behind a stone wall we could still see the glow from the fires through our NVGs or thermal imagers. The nights were generally very quiet, the peace only broken by a distant barking dog or burst of machine-gun fire.

Just before dusk we would prep ourselves for the night routine of sentry duty and rest. We had already had a hot feed and a brew, and there were no fires or white light once darkness fell. The level of threat at the time determined just how many blokes we would have providing security. If we were very secure we could reduce the number of sentries and get more rest. The 2ICs made a roster that included every man at various stages throughout the night. I didn't mind doing piquet at night as it was so peaceful; the night sky became alive with light shows in the way of shooting stars as they entered the Earth's atmosphere. Reveille for the locals was at 0500 hours when they were woken by the wails of their call to prayer through a cheap PA system.

On the third night I was woken by radio traffic from RH whose patrol was on an opposite feature 2.5 kilometres away. Through their thermal imager they were watching three Taliban fighters planting an IED into the gravel road. Two Taliban were doing all the work while the third was keeping watch. We knew that an American convoy was going to be travelling on that road in the coming hours so RH decided to contact the fighters. To make sure that the Taliban were killed and all the IED components destroyed and explosive burned, the Javelin was chosen because of its accuracy. Suddenly I heard the thump and whoosh of the rocket being launched and nine seconds later it impacted on its target. After the initial explosion I could make out the home-made explosive (HME) burning as it sparked and flickered in the night. A couple of bursts of .50-calibre and 40 mm followed the javelin rocket to make sure that the enemy was neutralised.

Just west of Saraw we had good intelligence that there was a medium-value target (MVT) who was operating from a small village and was watching us. As well as keeping in regular contact with commanders and his own fighters he had revealed a few other patterns. One particular pattern we had picked up was that every morning around the same time he would move to a similar position to radio his commanders or his spotter network.

We decided to set a sniper ambush on the high ground about 800 metres away, and the weapon of choice was the Barrett semi-automatic .50-calibre sniper rifle. Due to our being the prominent sniper patrol we were given the task and split into two three-man teams. My observer was Dave O'Neil. The PC came up with a plan and ran it past us. Once we'd given it the nod he went away and wrote his orders.

The plan was to get another patrol to drive us towards the high ground, stopping about 3 kilometres short, where we would dismount and walk the rest of the way. That vehicle-mounted patrol would then remain in that location and become our QRF. At the base of the high ground we would split and move to two key locations we had previously identified that were around 500 metres apart. Once in location we would set up a firing position that had good fields of fire and OBs onto the approximate area the MVT would go to that morning. On the call from the PC the two snipers would simultaneously engage the Taliban leader, continue to observe for a short time, then extract.

So once the PC had delivered his orders to us, we went to work getting our gear ready for the short task. EH and I were the shooters so we made sure our .50 calibres were clean and serviceable. I pulled the barrel through as a matter of course. Because of the short duration of the task we only took day sacks with minimal food and some water. It was early December and the start of winter so we resigned ourselves to the fact that we would freeze up there. We took a windproof smock, a beanie and a pair of gloves each. I also took a flask of hot water to add to the dehyde I took as food for the following morning. I took 20 rounds for the Barrett and carried a browning 9 mm pistol. Dave had his M4 and carried the optics in his day sack; MR carried a 5.56 mm Minimi light machine gun as he was to be our rear protection. We all carried personal radios.

Once we had completed our battle prep and actioned our weapons, we got stuck into a good feed and a hot brew. Darkness fell, and shortly after we were on the back of the two LRPVs moving slowly towards the back end of the village. On reaching our drop-off point (DOP) we all went silent for 10 minutes to establish if there was any movement in our immediate area. After that we conducted a quick comms check and set off on our foot insertion.

The going under foot was quite treacherous when crossing the dry wadi (river bed), but once on the other side we made good time. At the base of the large hill we confirmed a few ‘actions on' and then we split to our respective positions. The night was very dark and when we approached the top of the hill we began to look for a suitable firing position without silhouetting ourselves. The other team was lucky enough to get into position almost straight away upon reaching their final location. We had a bit more of a climb.

MR got into a good position and started to provide security, which gave us a little more freedom of movement to pinpoint a good firing position. Dave and I still weren't happy with the final position we'd selected, but we were running out of time and it was quickly approaching daylight. This position offered a good platform for me to shoot from, but cover from fire and view was minimal, which was going to make it extremely difficult for us to move around once daylight broke. The escape route we had identified wasn't the best either. If we were compromised and started to take rounds we would have had to momentarily expose ourselves to the engaging Taliban in order to get away–far from ideal!

Just before daybreak we saw some human movement which we observed like hawks as we felt quite exposed. When the light was sufficient I ranged my scope into the likely area our target was using–850 metres, an easy task for the Barrett. I assessed the wind, which was blowing gently on an oblique angle from right to left up the valley, and added a couple of clicks right to compensate for that.

After an hour of daylight a lone male approached the area where our target was supposed to be. He stayed for about 10 minutes and didn't seem to be doing anything out of the ordinary. This gave me time to recheck the range and wind. He turned out to be slightly closer and the wind had picked up a little. I made the necessary adjustments and then continued to observe him through my scope.

The other half of our patrol confirmed via radio that he did not appear to be a threat; but we continued to observe on chance that he was our guy and became the target. As it happened, he never did pose a threat and the task was called off. Even though it was dud, all the excitement and adrenaline was present. It is these very emotions that need to be suppressed before you pull the trigger on a live target, because if you don't, you will miss.

The order was given to move back towards Saraw, as a combined clearance was to take place. Once in location 4RAR were dropped to the east of the village behind a huge feature and walked to a blocking position on high ground. Their mortars were dropped off in front of our location. The ANA conducted a sweep from the south with some of our blokes in support. It wasn't long before the ANA had found some enemy and started shooting. I and some other snipers took up a position on the high ground to provide overwatch and commentary, and to engage any threats. We located some likely enemy positions and gatherings but did not see any weapons at that stage.

As the clearance progressed we moved locations to another feature, which allowed us to see right into the village. We could also see the 4RAR blocking position but nothing else came of that clearance at that stage. We RVd back with the rest of our patrol, who had been watching a possible MVT on an adjoining feature some distance away to the one 4RAR had just walked around. This bloke was quite fidgety and talking into something regularly. He would run from position to position as though we were shooting at him, which wasn't the case, as he was well out of range.

We scanned the feature in detail from left to right to ascertain whether or not there were more individuals up there. This guy was on the far left, and 4RAR had somehow ‘seen' someone on this feature also. Orders for a mortar fire mission were being given by the mortar fire controller (MFC) to the mortar section, which had three ‘tubes' (mortars).
Bang!
One mortar was released and splashed onto the right-hand side of hill. The MFC gave a correction to his section.

Dave and I rode down to them on our 6 x 6 Polaris ATVs to see what they were firing at, and to my amazement they described the bloke we had been observing for the last hour and a half.
Bang!
Another spotter round was sent flying to start the MFCs bracketing procedure. Dave politely let the MFC know that the bloke they were trying to target was on the opposite end of the ridgeline. The MFC didn't want a bar of our advice, so we sat back with our binoculars and watched the show.

‘Fire for effect!' the MFC ordered his section and round after round was sent flying. All the time we were watching the area to see what our man was doing. The MFC then corrected his mortars onto a new location which saw his rounds disappear over the back of the ridgeline. Dave and I gave each other a very confused look. The MFC then declared, ‘Target destroyed, end of fire mission!' Dave turned to me and said, ‘How do you call “target destroyed” when you can't see if it has been destroyed–that is if there ever was a target up there!' I had my doubts also. We rode back up to the rest of our patrol and they couldn't see what the MFC was firing at either, but our man had disappeared over the back of the feature. Someone had given these guys the wrong target indication.

That was pretty much the last contact of that trip. It opened my eyes to the command structure of the enemy, which was quite loose. Some of the commanders were old-school from the Mujahideen days against the Russians, and good at wheeling and dealing their fighters; some of the younger guys coming through weren't as confident or as aggressive. Either way, when rounds are winging past your ears it doesn't matter who they are coming from; they are just as dangerous.

By the time we left Afghanistan it was January 2006 and when we reached Kuwait on the way home those of us who had come over as reinforcements picked up another job: personal security detail (PSD) for the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF), Angus Houston. He was on a tour of Iraq and Afghanistan and we were ready and waiting for him when he arrived in Kuwait. We had a small enclave inside an American base and he met us there. It was no more than a meet and greet but even at that early stage we all took to him immediately.

Myself and one other bloke were the recce party for this job and with the help of a liaison officer from the regiment we visited all the venues on his schedule a week before to ensure the smooth running of the PSD. Once the task had started we were the daily reconnaissance team that moved ahead to every venue and approved the route. If there was an incident or blockage on the route, the PSD would be diverted and we'd have to approve another. At the venue we would clear it and give the team leader the ‘all clear' for the motorcade to move in.

The CDF invited us to have dinner with him one evening, to share ideas on kit and equipment. This was also an opportunity for him to guage how things were going with us, and a chance for us to express our ideas.

To protect someone's life by sacrificing your own plays on your mind a fair bit. It certainly ran through mine occasionally as we travelled through Baghdad and I rehearsed a multitude of scenarios in my head. We were constantly alert, always seeking dodgy looking areas, vehicles or characters and thinking, ‘What if?'