The days of the Royal Navy being confined to the sea are long gone. Tina Rowe looks at how a certain type of helicopter is helping in the war in Afghanistan.

IT'S a fiery finale which always makes the crowd jump to its feet – the “Junglie” helicopters flying in men, vehicles and weapons, with the troops then dropping down ropes as part of their impressive display.

But however impressive the pyrotechnics and the skills of the crews, the mock battle on an airfield in the lush Somerset countryside cannot mimic the gruelling conditions faced by the Royal Navy squadrons in the field.

Two of the four Sea King Commando helicopter squadrons in action on Air Day – 846 and 845 – have been, and still are, intensely involved in Afghanistan, where they have helped in the fight against the Taliban in treacherous flying conditions.

Their Sea King helicopters, all based at Yeovilton, support the Royal Marines, and won their nickname of Junglies operating in the jungles of Borneo in the 1960s.

Commander Niall Griffin, commanding officer of 846 Naval Air Squadron, explains some of the new challenges in Afghanistan: “Probably the most significant challenge is the desert dust. When the aircraft approach to land, the downwash from the rotors causes the dust to fly up in a cloud of recirculation, normally to the extent that pilots encounter 'brown out' and lose sight of the ground.

“One aspect of the flying demonstrated on Air Day, the Junglie speciality of under- slung load lifting (where weapons and machinery are carried in nets beneath the helicopter), has been essential in the resupply of UK forces in the more remote areas of Helmand province. Air Day sees a combination of a number of roles conducted by Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) assets.

Many of the roles have been developed to allow troops to be deployed from helicopters in terrain that would otherwise preclude their operations, for example, the abseiling technique enables troops to descend through the jungle canopy where helicopters would not be able to land.

Fast-roping is a similar method, just from a lesser height, to enable the ground forces to drop on to confined spaces like a ship's fo'c'sle (the living quarters), again where the helicopter cannot land. “Fortunately the terrain in Afghanistan allows the helicopters of CHF to land almost anywhere, therefore abseiling and roping are not needed,” says Cmdr Griffin.

“It does bring challenges. The mountains are far higher than anything Britain has to offer and flying around such high and harsh terrain is very reminiscent of the training the CHF conducts annually in Norway.

“With our commitment to Afghanistan anticipated to endure for the foreseeable future, one flight from 846 Squadron is currently deployed in Kandahar, along with a flight from 845 Squadron. In addition, many people are on exercise in Oman training for future deployments to Afghanistan.”

Lt David Brewin paints a vivid picture of some of 846's achievements from the perspec- tive of the squadron's “'D' Flight which “finally emerged from a blacked-out RAF Tristar aircraft in the middle of the Afghan night to a warm reception from the squadron advance party on November, 22 2007, occupying their new home in the vast expanse of the multi-national base at Kandahar Airfield.

“The base is home to about 15,000 military and civilian personnel from the USA, Canada, the Netherlands, Denmark, France and many other nations. The first of the Sea King HC4+ arrived a few days later, allowing the engineering team to quickly start the job of preparing the aircraft for aircrew training flights, consisting of day and night Theatre familiarisation and dust landings.

“On December 1, the flight was declared operational and the Sea King assumed responsibility for some of the re-supply tasking in Helmand Province.

“Since then our role has expanded to include the whole of Regional Command (South) and tasking now includes troop movements, under-slung loads, mine strike evacuation, command tasks and force protection including 'Eagle' vehicle check points, whereby troops are inserted next to roads to check vehicles for illegal weapons and explosives.

“Much of this tasking is conducted in mixed formations of aircraft from all three UK services and other coalition elements and often with UK or US Army Apache AH64s. While forward operating at Camp Bastion, the Sea King force was on high alert during the highly publicised aviation assault on the Taliban stronghold of Musa Quala in northern Helmand.

“This operation has created a requirement to re-supply troops in this highly dangerous area, via new and very dusty landing sites in and around the main areas of population.

“Elements of 845 NAS joined 846 NAS in April 2008 and both have established an exceptional reputation. This will no doubt continue to grow as the Sea King footprint expands, especially as ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) 'took the fight to the enemy' over the winter months, depriving the Taliban of its traditional rest and reorganisation period in the mountains.

“Commando Helicopter Force (Afghan- istan) is here to stay, and with the potential of other units and assets being deployed in the coming year, the RN will represent more than half of the UK contingent by the end of 2008.

“The Royal Navy will become accustomed to contributing to land-locked operations in the coming years and is proving its capability to project over a 'sea of sand' just as well as it has in the traditional maritime environment.”

Look out for the agile Lynx helicopters from 847 Naval Air Squadron, which also form a key part of the Commando Assault.

The squadron returned from a four-month tour of duty in Iraq earlier this year, where it had endured constant mortar and small-arms fire while operating out of Basra Air Station – yet still managed to win the coveted Fleet Air Arm flight safety trophy. Later this year the squadron is bound for Afghanistan.

In battle, its role is to provide armed reconnaissance and direction of supporting arms – able to call in targeted fire from artillery and naval gunfire, as well inserting small numbers of men at speed. This squadron is unique in flying army-owned helicopters, operated by Royal Marines and Royal Navy pilots.

Like all the Yeovilton-based Commando helicopters, 847 squadron primarily supports 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines. The Commando Sea King training squadron – 848 – has a strong presence in the display, but busy though their operational schedules are, 846 and 845 are keen to be part of the celebration.