We set off in the early hours of Tuesday morning to a base in the west to be processed and our luggage to be checked in. We spent until around 7am in the holding area before being shipped off to RAF Brize Norton for our flight, which was cancelled when we arrived there due to bad weather and we had to be diverted to Manchester Airport. As you can imagine we were wondering if we would ever get to Afghanistan. At 4pm we set off.

Whilst flying me and the rest of the lads tried to grab as much sleep as possible, as we knew there would not be much chance when we landed. I was woken with the announcement that we were nearing Khandahar and we were to wear our body armour and helmet for landing. As we descended all the lights went out and we were plunged into darkness for those long few minutes, until the bump and screech of the tyres touching the ground came. For a while we stayed in darkness and it felt really strange, we could have been anywhere and I certainly didn’t appreciate that we were in a warzone until the sound of jet fighters flew low over our heads.

We disembarked the plane and not long after, the sun rose. What a spectacular view of the area, really flat dessert surrounded by sandy coloured mountains. The platoon was whisked off to an area where British personnel can grab a cot bed and relax until their next flight arrives. All the lads rushed straight off for the cook house to grab some breakfast as we were all hungry and exhausted. We burst through the doors and stood there for a few moments in shock as to the size of this dining facility, it was huge with all kinds of food to eat and you could have as much as you wanted. So we dived in and really made pigs of ourselves. In our spare time we got washed and went for a look around the base, the place was immense, it was like a mini city, the base had everything in it. It’s not until you get to see firsthand just how much resources and effort that has been put into this campaign, that you really can appreciate the sheer magnitude and determination of the nations involved.

The platoon loved this place, it was like a soldier’s paradise with shops, cafes and bars and to top it off, it was a beautiful, hot sunny day. The guys grabbed as much sun as they could. The call came to move; we packed our gear and headed off back down to the airstrip. Arriving at the holding area, we were informed that Kabul had been hit by approximately seven suicide bombers and a government building had been attacked by gunmen, there had been several local national fatalities. Well I can certainly tell you that my nerves were rattled at that point.