Kandahar Airfield : the Australian Rotary Wing Group Operations (AWM 3)

Place Asia: Afghanistan, Kandahar Province, Kandahar, Kandahar Airfield
Accession Number F09581
Collection type Film
Measurement 15 min 50 sec
Object type Documentary
Physical description ProRes 422/colour/sound
Maker Martinkus, John
Martinkus, John
Place made Australia
Date made 2012
Access Open
Conflict Afghanistan, 2001-2021
Copyright Item copyright: © Australian War Memorial
Creative Commons License This item is licensed under CC BY-NC
Description

The final of the three commissioned documentaries produced by John Martinkus from over twenty seven hours of footage shot during his deployment to Afghanistan in 2011 as the Memorial's official cinematographer. Kandahar airfield is the logistical hub of operations in southern Afghanistan. Medivac, surveillance and transport missions are conducted around the clock. This piece begins with scenes of post flight maintenance checks on an Australian Army Air Service Chinook helicopter. The following sequence is of a next day flight conveying troops to various patrol bases around Kandahar. Topics discussed by crew members include; taking ground fire, the challenges of the terrain and making a dust landing; operational altitude for a Chinook in Afghanistan; weapons system on a Chinook; flying over Kandahar and the difficulties with flying low and fast over an urban environment.

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