HMForces

Afghan strategy changes in 'rebalancing' process as UK soldiers go to Helmand. A TOWN which played an iconic and controversial part in the British mission in Afghanistan is to be handed over to the Americans in a move signalling a major change in Western strategy. Musa Qala, where 23 British soldiers died, will be the first of a number of ...

  10,000 bikers to ride in Wiltshire for Afghan Heroes   Up to 10,000 bikers will be travelling on the M4 in Wiltshire on Sunday in support of the armed forces serving in Afghanistan. The riders will be taking part in an organised ride from Hullavington Airfield to Wootton Bassett. The Highways Agency said motorists would encounter increased traffic throughout the ...

Chairman of the Advanced European Jet Pilot Training (AEJPT) Programme Group from the Belgian Armed Forces, informed a large audience of the latest plans for the future military pilot training system of the Consortium of European Nations. The Pre-contract MOU was signed in 2008, with a planned duration of 4 years until a development contract was to be let. However, under ...

The US Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, has emphasised the importance of the joint strike fighter (JSF) 35 program, both for enhancing military logistics and improving global security. Gates spoke at a visit to Lockheed Martin's Fort Worth plant, where the final assembly operation for the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter is taking place. The company secured the $41 billion contract ...

A tiny portrait of a British Navy hero who helped set the White House ablaze is estimated to fetch £15,000 at an auction next month. The miniature of Sir Pulteney Malcolm - who was born near Langholm, Dumfriesshire in 1768 - measures 4in (10cm) high. In August 1814 he was third in command of a fleet that set fire to ...

Thousands of residents force council to reject plans for giant mosque next to Sandhurst military academy   By Paul Bentley and Lucy Ballinger     A controversial plan to build a mosque with two 100ft minarets next to Sandhurst has been scrapped to the jubilation of thousands of residents.   The £3million building would have had a clear view over the ...

Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Saturday called the official version of the Sept. 11 attacks a "big lie" used by the U.S. as an excuse for the war on terror, state media reported. Ahmadinejad's comments, made during an address to Intelligence Ministry staff, come amid escalating tensions between the West and Tehran over its disputed nuclear program. They show that ...

To prepare troops for action, the Army has turned a training camp into a simulacrum of an Afghan village - complete with amputees, fake blood and suicide bombers. To a casual observer there is little to distinguish the peaceful country lane seven miles north of Thetford from any other slice of rural Norfolk. That is until you spy the high ...

Ian J. West, head of the Technical Centre at the NATO Computer Incident Response Capability (NCIRC), joins us to explain the awakening of forces to the urgent need for cyber security over the past decade, the differences in motivation between similarly operating offenders, and the "People, Process, Technology" basis for working towards solutions…read more

The market for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) continues to grow, with military leaders recognising their huge potential in modern warfare. Teal Group recently predicted that the value of the UAV market will reach over $80 million (£53 million) in the next 10 years. Annual expenditure will go up from $4.9 billion currently….

Entrepreneurship courses are helping create jobs despite the economic downturn. Georgia Rakusen, 24, and Beckie Darlington, 27, used to be competitors. Two freelancers managing cultural events in Newcastle, they met pitching for the same clients. It was only after winning scholarships on an entrepreneurship course at Teesside University that they were able to join forces and form their new company, Haus ...

A MIDLAND town came to a halt as proud residents clapped and cheered on soldiers from the Mercian Regiment when they marched by. Nearly 1,000 onlookers gathered around Sandwell Council House, many waving the Union Flag, to see the regiment's 2nd Battalion (Worcester and Foresters) as they were granted the freedom of the borough yesterday afternoon. Even youngsters from the ...

Injured commandos saddle up for rehab   An Aberdeenshire charity which uses horse riding to rehabilitate injured soldiers has welcomed more than a dozen commandos to its Deeside centre. Horseback UK offers veterans and serving personnel a chance to recuperate and develop new skills. The Royal Marines from 45 Commando arrived at the centre this week. Co-founded Jock Hutchison said of ...

THE commanding officer of one of Scotland's elite military units yesterday threatened to banish his men from the town where they are based following a weekend of rowdy and drunken incidents. At least one bar in the Angus town of Arbroath was forced to close its doors on the orders of police and three other pubs closed early due to ...

THE first batch of troops from The 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland set off for Afghanistan in the early hours of this morning to begin a six-month tour of duty. The main task for the 400-strong group will be training and mentoring the Afghan National Army and police in Helmand province, in the south of the country as ...

A SOLDIER described how he picked up a Taliban hand grenade which landed at his feet and threw it back towards the enemy. Rifleman James McKie saved the lives of two of his comrades by throwing the grenade back off the roof where the men were coming under fire from three different directions. The device exploded in mid air just ...

A FORMER head of MI5 has accused intelligence services in the US of deliberately hiding the mistreatment of terror suspects from their British allies. Baroness Manningham-Buller, giving a lecture in London last night, said the US was "very keen" to prevent Britain discovering how they were getting vital intelligence. She cited the case of Binyam Mohamed, a British resident, who was ...

THE GREATEST number of gallantry awards in recent times is expected to be announced next week in recognition of last summer's brutal fighting in Afghanistan. More bravery awards will be posthumous after 19 Light Brigade suffered 67 deaths and 283 wounded. While medal recipients remain a closely guarded secret, The Independent understands that the ferocity of last summer's fighting is to ...

group called GB United have organised the Afghan Heroes Tractor Drive of Great Britain, to honour thecourage and sacrifice of soldiers who have lost thier lives in Afghanistan.        One person will be driving the Landlegend 25hp compact tractor for 272 days one day for each fallen hero, plus one extra day for the Sunday Mirror reporter.  The tractor drive will be travelling through out Great ...