DefenceTalkDefence Secretary Philip Hammond has visited Afghanistan to mark the latest milestone in the drawdown of UK forces. Mr Hammond was in the country to witness the closure of Observation Post Sterga, the last remaining forward base to be used by UK troops. The closure of Sterga means that the only UK troops remaining in […]https://www.defencetalk.com/britain-closes-final-forward-base-in-afghanistan-59553/

DefenceTalkThe wars in Iraq and Afghanistan sent unmanned aerial vehicle production to record heights, but with the last U.S. military troops in Afghanistan slated to depart the country this year, the Pentagon’s demand for unmanned air vehicles is slackening. However, while fewer UAVs are expected to roll off the production lines from 2014 to 2023, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/uav-market-to-rise-strongly-through-the-next-decade-unmanned-land-sea-systems-also-growing-59337/

DefenceTalkAfter eight years of front line military operations involving tens of thousands of British Servicemen and women, the UK’s military headquarters in Helmand was disbanded yesterday. In the latest stage of the ongoing drawdown of UK operations in Afghanistan, the functions of Headquarters Task Force Helmand have been subsumed into the wider US-led Regional Command […]https://www.defencetalk.com/ceremony-marks-end-of-uk-task-force-helmand-59214/

DefenceTalkNATO will suspend cooperation with Russia on the maintenance of Afghan helicopters and a joint anti-drug operation, a source in the alliance told RIA Novosti. Foreign chiefs of NATO’s 28 member states earlier froze “practical civilian and military cooperation” with Moscow but vowed to keep intact the NATO-Russia Council and diplomatic contacts at the ambassadorial […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nato-to-suspend-cooperation-with-russia-on-afghan-choppers-training-59203/

DefenceTalkA British sniper killed five Taliban insurgents and a would-be suicide bomber in Afghanistan with one bullet, the Ministry of Defence has said. The 20-year-old marksman, a lance corporal in the Coldstream Guards, hit the trigger switch of the device from 930 yards away, causing the bomb to explode. The blast killed the would-be bomber […]https://www.defencetalk.com/single-snipers-bullet-kills-six-taliban-fighters-59195/

DefenceTalkUnited States Forces-Afghanistan has seen the inaccurate media reports stating that excess military equipment that is part of the U.S. transition is given to Pakistan. These reports are not correct. USFOR-A does not provide or intend to provide any such equipment, including MRAPs, from Afghanistan to Pakistan. “Our commitment to the Afghan people and the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-forces-afghanistan-not-providing-excess-equipment-to-pakistan-59174/

DefenceTalkRussia would be unable to disrupt the US military’s withdrawal from Afghanistan even if it cut off access to supply routes across its territory, a top US commander said Wednesday. Amid rising tensions between Washington and Moscow over the crisis in Ukraine, the head of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan reassured lawmakers that Russia could not […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-cant-derail-us-exit-from-afghanistan-general-59008/

DefenceTalkTRANSIT CENTER AT MANAS, Kyrgyzstan: The Transit Center’s final aerial refueling mission over Afghanistan landed here Feb. 24, completing the end of an era. After six hours of traveling, refueling A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, and F-16 Fighting Falcons, the KC-135 Stratotanker touched down to a fanfare of saluting Airmen. Col. Mike Seiler, the 376th Expeditionary Operations […]https://www.defencetalk.com/manas-kc-135s-complete-final-mission-leave-kyrgyzstan-58895/

DefenceTalkRussia began to deliver Mi-17V-5, the military transport helicopters, to Afghanistan. A total 30 helicopters of this type must be transferred to Afghanistan under this contract between “Rosoboronexport” and the US government. To date, three vehicles have been already supplied to the Afghan side. According to ITAR-TASS, the remaining helicopters will be delivered during the […]https://www.defencetalk.com/afghanistan-will-receive-a-new-batch-of-mi-17-helicopters-50708/

DefenceTalkAll good things don’t necessarily need to come to an end; sometimes they are just replaced by something even better. Such is the case with the venerable C-130H Hercules model aircraft here. The C-130 has been around since the Vietnam War, forming the backbone of the Air Force’s tactical airlift fleet. It is especially well-suited […]https://www.defencetalk.com/c-130h-end-of-an-era-in-afghanistan-50095/