Commanders hail response to Taliban attack in Afghanistan

British troops responded "swiftly and decisively" to regain control of Camp Bastion in Afghanistan after the Taliban raided the base last week, military commanders said Thursday. Fifteen heavily armed insurgents breached the perimeter defences of the huge Afghanistan base, killing two US Marines in their attack. But Royal Air Force gunners did an "outstanding job" in reclaiming the airfield the Taliban had stormed, wielding machine guns, AK 47 rifles and rocket propelled grenades (RPGs). Members of No 5 RAF Force Protection Wing worked alongside the US Marine Corps to fight on the ground, while Army Apache helicopters were scrambled to fire on insurgent positions. All but one of the enemy fighters were killed, and the other was captured. Prince Harry, third in line to the UK throne, who is based in Camp Bastion for a four-month tour of duty, was at the Helmand Province military hub at the time of the attack, and was moved to a guarded location as the fighting unfolded. Sergeant Al Bedford was the RAF Regiment incident controller in the Joint Operations Room at the time of the attack, which damaged infrastructure and AV-8B Harrier jump jets in the US area of the base. He said in a statement: "We were attacked from multiple firing points, however we quickly co-ordinated ground troops and air assets to suppress the enemy and then utilised those assets to clear the airfield of any remaining insurgents. "We also coordinated medical support to the gunners on the ground and ensured re-supply was timely, allowing the lads to maintain their momentum." Sergeant Roy 'Doc' Geddes was a tactical commander of an RAF Regiment Flight consisting of 30 gunners on the airfield during the attack. He was injured during the assault, sustaining fragmentation injuries from an RPG. He said: "As I moved onto the airfield I could already see some Harriers on fire. We were soon engaged with the enemy, who used small arms fire and rocket propelled grenades, however, my gunners were quick to react and returned fire, suppressing the enemy position." UK Apache helicopters overhead provided support to the gunners on the ground, suppressing a number of insurgent positions. Squadron Leader Kev McMurdo, the commanding officer of 51 Squadron RAF Regiment said in a separate statement: "The gunners did an outstanding job dealing with the insurgent threat. "The Squadron reacted swiftly and decisively which prevented the insurgents crossing the airfield. The incident was contained quickly allowing normal air operations to resume shortly after the attack." Group Captain Jeff Portlock, Bastion Base Commander said: "This was a significant attack on Bastion. The response of the RAF and the Force Protection personnel and Firefighters was highly professional and courageous. Through their efforts, insurgents were contained and the damage limited. He added: "Bastion was quickly back to full operational capability and we continue to support Isaf operations on the ground throughout the region."