By Peter Schulteis, GUA Special Risk Division
Updated 4:44 PM ET, Tue August 10, 2021
U.S. Defense contractors play a vital role supporting U.S. Military Operations around the world. These contractors are literally involved in every aspect of national defense and military activities outside the U.S. The current and ongoing U.S. withdraw from Afghanistan is a perfect example and illustrates how important these contractors are to the U.S. military. As U.S. contractors prepare to depart from Afghanistan, their withdraw will present unique challenges for Afghan forces while they continue to fight advances by Taliban insurgents. Some of these challenges will be highlighted and exacerbated more prominently than others.
One of the most impactful issues the Afghanistan Military officials will face in the coming months is the fact that American Contractors (mechanics) that help repair and maintain helicopters for the Afghan Air force will be departing soon. Their departure will leave a void of highly technical mechanical jobs and responsibilities to Afghan forces and personnel. These U.S. contractors will not be easily replaced, as Afghan mechanics don’t have enough years of experience and have not been properly trained to repair and maintain one of the most sophisticated helicopters in the world – specifically the Black Hawk Helicopter, which is the “staple” of the Afghan arsenal.
Since the announcement of the withdraw, U.S. and Afghan Military officials have had to quickly reprioritize and accelerate many aspects of their military operations. This quick transition, directly impacts delivery of equipment, logistics, training, and resources that are vital to maintaining the continuity of operations for the Afghan Military and Air Force. The Afghan Air Force is one of the few success stories that have actually worked well against Taliban forces as the U.S. hands the “baton” to the Afghanistan Government . However, their challenges will begin to mount as the Taliban aggressively engages Afghan forces and U.S. personnel continue to withdraw.
Lots of things can and will happen in a month, but it will certainly be interesting to see how Afghan Officials and the current U.S. Administration will balance increasing attacks from Taliban forces. While simultaneously repairing and maintaining the current and expanding fleet of Afghan Air Force helicopters, which are currently being maintained by U.S. Defense contractors. Watching the latest YouTube video on how to repair and maintain a Black Hawk helicopter is not advisable.
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