An army girl's life in Afghanistan - The Real Deal

MC Toys did not portray Army girls in the right light (see the preview pictures HERE) so I think the following story will put things in the proper perspective and give Army girls the proper respect they deserve for putting their lives on the frontline and serving their country for the betterment of peace.

The accompanying pictures and text are taken from the UK's DailyMail (full article HERE) where Photojournalist Alison Baskerville spent six weeks in Helmand Afghanistan following Captain Anna Crossley, 31, a nurse at UCL hospital and Lieutenant Jessica French who had spent six months going into villages and small settlements to talk to women and earn their trust. The photos capture the everyday lives of the Army's women 'engagement officers' who fight in the vital battle for hearts and minds across Helmand.

click in the pics for a better view

On patrol: Lieutenant Jessica French visits an Afghan community in Helmand. As a Female Engagement officer, her jobs is to gain the support and trust of Afghan women

Show and tell: Lieutenant French speaks to a crowd of mostly women. She believes education is key to a brighter future for female Afghans

Ready for action: Captain Crossley, a nurse at UCL hospital on a six-month tour in Afghanistan, stands in full military gear against a backdrop of mountains

Making friends: Anna's language training has helped her to gain access to compounds and the residents are intrigued by her.

Captain Alice Homer is an officer with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. She has just spent six months running a small section of soldiers in Camp Bastion

Getting kitted up: Two female soliders prepare to head out on a joint patrol to engage with local Afghan families to train them in basic veterinary care. It is often the children's responsibility to look after the goats for the family

Captain Crossley heads out to join soldiers from 3 Rifles as they prepare for a patrol to help her gain entry into a local compound

All equal: The soldiers look exactly the same as one another as they go on patrol

Expectant: Captain Crossley is pictured in the Upper Gereshk Valley of Helmand. Here she kneels down as she joins a patrol to see whether she can access a local Afghan compund in the hope that she may meet women and children

Captain Crossley (pictured) said one of the highlights of her tour was 'seeing the absolute fascination of women in the compound when I removed my helmet and glasses to speak to them in their own language.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2221475/Our-women-war-Portraits-Afghan-frontline-female-troops-winning-hearts-minds-Afghanistan.html#ixzz2ATY9EDHc
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Incoming: Caltek 1/6 scale Medal of Honor Warfighter Tom "Preacher" 12-inch figure

Medal of Honor (MoH) is a series of first-person shooter video games. The first game was developed by DreamWorks Interactive (now known as Danger Close) and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation game console in 1999. Medal of Honor spawned a series of follow-up games including multiple expansions spanning various console platforms and the PC and Mac. The first twelve installments take place during World War II, while the more recent games focus on modern warfare.

Medal of Honor: Warfighter, the upcoming fourteenth installment in the series and the direct sequel to the 2010 game, is scheduled to be released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC on October 23, 2012. In the video game, Tom "Preacher" is an American sailor and Navy SEAL and the Rifleman of AFO team Neptune. Preacher is a hardened DEVGRU Operator in AFO Neptune.

Caltek has managed to secure the license from Electronic Arts and will be releasing the Caltek 1/6 scale Medal of Honor Warfighter "Preacher" Set very soon. The Caltek 1/6 scale Medal of Honor Warfighter Tom "Preacher" 12-inch figure will come with Crye Precision Combat Shirt & Pants (AOR1 Camo), LBT-0612F Medium Riggers Belt (AOR1 Camo), Merrell Refuge Core Mid, Black Watch Cap, Mechanix Original Gloves, American Flag patch, Task Force MAKO patch, Kaenon Hard Kore Sun Glasses, Tan Shemagh...

LBT-6094B Slick Plate Gen I Plate Carrier (AOR1 Camo), LBT-1961G Load Bearing Chest Rig (AOR1 Camo), LBT-2649E Hydration Back Panel (AOR1 Camo), Source WXP Hydration Helix Hydration Reservoir, Hose, & Valve, LBT-9022B Quick Release Med Pouch (AOR1 Camo), LBT-2367F Safety Tie-In (Coyote Tan), LBT-2626A Wrist Pouch (AOR1 Camo), SureFire Saint Minimus Headlamp, Combat Application Tourniquet, Suunto X-Lander Military Watch, Garmin Foretrex 101 GPS,

LaRue Tactical OBR 5.56 rifle with 18 inch Barrel, Trijicon ACOG 4x32 ECOS Rifle Scope with Trijicon RMR RM01 4 MOA LED Weapon Sight, Harris HBRS Bipod, SureFire SR07 Remote Dual Switch for Weapon Lights, SureFire FA556-212 Sound Suppressor, Magpul PMAG x5, LBT-2500BZ Weapon Sling (AOR1 Camo), SIG SAUER P226 Pistol & Mags (x2), LBT-0372-RH Large Auto Pistol Holster (AOR1 Camo)

Scroll down to see more pictures

Some trivia about Preacher: Preacher's callsign is rather ironic, as he doesn't talk very much during gameplay. His callsign may allude to a hidden faith or religion, most likely Evangelical Christianity or Catholicism as Preacher doesn't appear to use curse words as often or frequently.

Preacher's line about needing a bigger boat is a reference to the movie Jaws. His real name is Tom, making him the first Task Force member to have part of their real name actually said.

Like they say in the United States Navy SEALs: "The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday"

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October 7 – The Day the War in Afghanistan Began with U.S. Special Forces leading the way

continued from earlier post "Remembering 9/11"...

In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, many U.S. citizens held the view that the attacks had "changed the world forever." The Bush administration announced a war on terrorism, with the goal of bringing Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda to justice and preventing the emergence of other terrorist networks. These goals would be accomplished by means including economic and military sanctions against states perceived as harboring terrorists and increasing global surveillance and intelligence sharing.

On October 7, 2001, the War in Afghanistan began when U.S and British forces initiated aerial bombing campaigns in Afghanistan targeting Taliban and Al-Qaeda camps, then later invaded Afghanistan with ground troops of the Special Forces. This was the second-largest operation of the U.S. Global War on Terrorism outside of the United States, and the largest directly connected to terrorism, resulting in the overthrow of Taliban rule in Afghanistan, by a U.S.-led coalition.

The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front (Northern Alliance) launched Operation Enduring Freedom. The primary driver of the invasion was the September 11 attacks on the United States, with the stated goal of dismantling the al-Qaeda terrorist organization and ending its use of Afghanistan as a base. The United States also said that it would remove the Taliban regime from power and create a viable democratic state. More than a decade into the war, NATO forces continue to battle a widespread Taliban insurgency, and the war has expanded into the tribal area of neighboring Pakistan. The War in Afghanistan is also the United States' longest running war.

In the first phase of Operation Enduring Freedom, ground forces of the Afghan United Front working with teams of U.S. and British Special Forces and with U.S. air support, ousted the Taliban regime from power in Kabul and most of Afghanistan in a matter of weeks.

This is the BBI released Elite Force 1/6 scale Richard Marcinko, Land Warrior 12-inch figure. Richard "Dick" Marcinko (born November 21, 1940), is a retired Navy SEAL commander and Vietnam veteran. He was the first Commanding Officer of SEAL Team Six and Red Cell. After retiring from the United States Navy, he became an author, radio talk show host, military consultant, and motivational speaker.

On 7 October 2001, the U.S. government launched military operations in Afghanistan. Teams from the CIA's Special Activities Division (SAD) were the first U.S. forces to enter Afghanistan and begin combat operations. They were soon joined by U.S. Army Special Forces from the 5th Special Forces Group and other units from USSOCOM.

This is the 2002 released Dragon Models Limited (DML) 1/6 scale CIA Covert Ops Agent "Jones" 12-inch figure supposedly operating in Qala-i-Jangi in November 2001. He came with sunglasses, green hooded sweat shirt, 3-colour desert camouflage trousers, web belt with utility pouch, Smith & Wesson 1006 pistol in holster, Woodlands camouflage butt pack, M9 bayonet in scabbard, Camelbak water carrier, watch, TACBE radio, Kalashnikov AK–47 with Surefire tactical light and double magazine, and Adidas shoes.

The Dragon "Jones" Head sculpt was meant to resemble David Beckham, world famous footballer. This was probably one of the first sculpts done of him. Since then, there have been plenty of Beckham head sculpts released. See MORE pictures HERE :)

Dragon Models Limited (DML) also released this 1/6 scale US Army Special Forces "Dean" 12-inch military action figure in 2002 with head sculpt resembling that of Liev Schreiber who played CIA operative John Clark in the 2002 film "The Sum of All Fears", which was very loosely based on Tom Clancy's 1991 novel of the same title. See MORE pictures HERE

"Dean" wears a black knit cap, goggles, black leather and wool jacket, woodlands camouflage assault vest with utility pouches containing his Motorola Walkie-talkie radio and Mk13 signal flare, desert camouflage trousers, web belt with ammo pouches plus two M67 fragmentation grenades, drop-down holster with his Beretta 92F pistol, water canteen, first-aid pouch, M9 bayonet in scabbard, drop-down woodlands camo pouch with AN/PVS-7 NVG and is armed with the SOPMOD (Special Ops Perculiar Modification) M4A1 Carbine fitted with AN/PEQ2 laser designator and M68 Aimpoint plus the Barrett M82 .50inch sniper rifle.

"Dean" also comes with a HUGE backpack. The color has faded from the original green to this coyote brownish tan over the years, a natural weathering process haha

This is a kitbash 1/6 scale the Afghan United Front (Northern Alliance) soldier. The US-led Coalition was assisted by the Northern Alliance forces (a military-political umbrella organization created by the Islamic State of Afghanistan in 1996. The organization united various Afghan groups fighting against each other to fight the Taliban instead) in Afghanistan.

This figure is originally Dragon Model's "Mustapha" of the Moroccan Infantry French Expeditionary Corps, circa Monte Cassino 1944. His getup in basically the same, only weapons and gear have been updated.

Close-up of the "Mustapha" head sculpt. MORE pics HERE

This is the first Hot Toys released NSW DEVGRU (Naval Special Warfare Development Group) operator, released in 2003. Before Hot Toys got into the movie business, they were concentrating their efforts in the military genre and produced some very nice 12-inch military action figures.

This 1/6 figure came with the then revolutionary rubber body but as you can see, the rubber has hardened and cracked over time. You can see my post HERE on "What to do about Cracking Rubber and Disintegrating Suits"

The cracked skin does go well with the tiger stripes desert camouflage pants haha

This is the later released Hot Toys 1/6 scale CIA operative in Afghanistan (released in 2007) 12-inch figure with updated equipment and accessories including the LST-5C SATCOM.

He also had on him Afghan wool hat, tactical eyewear, LASH II headset, long-sleeved Afghan style shirt, Shemaghs, AK47 chest-rig, civilian vest, Binoculars, H.A.W.G. Hydro backpack, LST- 5C SATCOM, pants, M9 pistol in 6004 tactical holster, Hiking boots, AKMs with GP-25 underbarrel grenade launcher, flexi-cuffs, camera, mobile phone, SONY WAIO laptop and digital camcorder

Head sculpt was meant to resemble Eric Bana who played Sergeant First Class Norm 'Hoot' Gibson in "Black Hawk Down [2001]" based on real Delta Force operator Norm 'Hoot' Hooten

Last but not least, 1/6 scale Viggo Mortensen as US Navy SEAL. Viggo Mortensen was Master Chief John James 'Jack' Urgayle of the US Navy SEALs in "GI Jane (1997)" together with Demi Moore. He certainly makes a fine addition to the US Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU), premier Navy SEAL unit and the USN's primary Counter-Terrorism and covert operations unit.

Check out more pictures HERE :)

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was established by the U.N. Security Council at the end of December 2001 to secure Kabul and the surrounding areas. NATO assumed control of ISAF in 2003. ISAF includes troops from 42 countries, with NATO members providing the core of the force. In 2003, Taliban forces started an insurgency campaign against the democratic Islamic Republic and the presence of ISAF-troops in Afghanistan. Since 2006, Afghanistan has experienced a dramatic increase in Taliban-led insurgent activity. On May 21, 2012 the leaders of the NATO-member countries endorsed an exit strategy during the 2012 NATO Summit in Chicago.

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Incoming: Soldier Story 1/6th scale U.S. Army in Afghanistan 12-inch ISAF Military Figure

The heat is ON! We already know that Crazy Dummy will be coming out with two modern US Army Soldiers from the current Afghanistan campaign - one an infantryman (see previous post), the other a light machine gunner (previewed HERE). Guess what? Soldier Story will also be releasing a 1/6th scale US Army soldier in Afghanistan, but they have combined the infantryman AND the machine gunner into ONE set. That means you get the complete US Army Uniform Set (and figure) with new camo pattern (the Army's interpretation of MultiCam) PLUS you can choose between an M4 Carbine or Mk48 Light Machine Gun, with appropriate pouches to accommodate both weapons.

International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), often called the Coalition Forces, is a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan that was established by the United Nations Security Council in December 2001 by Resolution 1386, as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement. Its main purpose is to train the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and assist Afghanistan rebuild key government institutions but is also engaged in the 2001-present war with insurgent groups.

Soldier Story 1/6th scale U.S. Army in Afghanistan 12-inch ISAF Military Figure will come with: 12-inch S2 body and 1/6th scale head sculpt, Camouflage net, MICH 2000 helmet, NVG mount, Cat eye bands, PSQ-20 night vison goggles, PSQ-20 battery case, SF helmet light, Multicam TRU Gen2 combat shirt, OCP ACU combat pants, Khaki belt, Khaki combat suspenders, "M" gloves set, Leg kit, Bare feet short connected set

OCP IOTV Gen2 vest, OCP Boo Boo pouch, OCP 200RD SAW pouch, OCP M4 double mag pouch x 3, OCP smoke grenade pouch, OCP grenade pouch x 2, OCP flashbang pouch, CB IFAK pouch, OCP PRC-152 radio pouch, OCP 1QT canteen pouch, OCP waist butt pack, OCP hydration pouch with fabric tube, OCP knee pads, 26000 combat boots, Combat application tourniquet, Patches

As it's name implies, the Boo Boo Pouch was designed to hold non-essential essentials. Killing bad guys, defending Freedom, slaying hordes of undead is serious work – but sometimes a basic pouch is needed for other vital gear – like a phone or chapstick or wallet. Originally made to hold range essentials such as ear plugs, hand sanitizer, chapstick, and small bandages and offered as the "Boo Boo Kit", the pouch now comes slightly larger and empty to be filled with whatever items are needed.

CQC holster leg panel, CQC pistol mag case x 2, CQC M9 holster, Goggles, M frame 2.0 sunglasses, PRC-152 radio, Urban speaker microphone, M67 grenade x 2, M64 flashbang, MK18 smoke grenade, Chem bio reservoir 4.0 with tube, EMT scissors, MS2000 strobe light, 1QT canteen, Carabiner x 2, "G" buckle

MK48 Mod1 machine gun, 20-RD 7.62 chain, MK48 7.62 200-RD ammo box, M4 rifle, Rear sight, CTR stock, P-mag x 3+1, M9 pistol, M9 pistol mag x 2+1, AN/PEQ15 laser ATPIAL, AN/PEQ15A dual beam aiming laser A2 (DBAL-A2), TA31ECOS 4x32 scopes, M2 red dot sight, M962 gun light, M952V gun light, Grip x 2, BK machine gun sling, Khaki rifle sling

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