AMTG’s helo support

Rare bird: An RAF Merlin helicopter assigned to the Joint Helicopter Force - Iraq touches down at the Camp Smitty helipad. Photo by Cpl Cameron Jamieson

By Cpl Cameron Jamieson

HELICOPTER support is on hand at Camp Smitty with the assignment of a detachment of Britain’s Joint Helicopter Force - Iraq to the base.

The helicopters have been assigned to support Task Force Eagle, the combined military force made up of the Light Dragoons cavalry regiment from the British Army and the AMTG.

CO AMTG Lt-Col Roger Noble said the Task Force Eagle helicopters were available for aeromedical evacuations and general tasking.

“The helicopters include the RAF’s new three-engine Merlin helicopter, which features an extended range capability,” he said. “That means it can cover the whole Al Muthanna province very quickly.”

The other helos are Sea King Mk.4s from 845 Sqn RN, which has a long history of frontline service, including the airlifting of Australian soldiers during the Borneo campaign of the 1960s.

Helicopters and crews will be rotated regularly from the main Joint Helicopter Force - Iraq base at Al Basrah, ensuring the availability of fresh crews who can be called out at short notice.