MILITARY OBSERVER WESTERN SAHARA: Air patrol, the desert from the air

Carsten Dombrowski - here is the homepage of his CAPSARIUS ACADEMY, which delivers the excellent "Callsign Doc" newsletter - was deployed as a military observer of the German Bundeswehr in the Western Sahara. Today he takes to the air:

Among the tasks of the UN observers is the monitoring of the conflict parties from the air. Positions, military facilities, training grounds, and troop concentrations can be better identified and documented from the helicopter. For this mission, an MI 8 from Ukraine is available.

The areas to be monitored are dictated by the UN staff in LAYOUN. A flight plan is then created and the area is marked on the map. Key points are named using a number sequence. Due to the noise inside the helicopter, as well as the open side window, communication within the team is hardly possible. Therefore, after the pilot or navigator announces the flyover about 2 to 3 minutes in advance via the on-board radio, the photographer is shown the corresponding number. The photographer then takes aerial photographs of the ground facilities.

Despite the good and precise preparation, it is sometimes difficult to spot the military units on the ground. With a flying altitude of about 1,000 meters above ground, vehicles and buildings on the sandy terrain are well camouflaged. However, larger combat vehicles such as tanks or artillery are easier to detect.

Ultimately, these surveillance flights also focus on so-called heavy equipment. The location of military equipment is important for adhering to the ceasefire agreement.

The counting of firearms up to mortars is then done again as part of patrols on the ground.

An air patrol may seem idyllic at first glance, but due to its duration of several hours, the noise, the open window, and the sometimes flown contour flight, it is also strenuous.

However, it is definitely an experience of a special kind.

Military observer in the Western Sahara - to read more:

Part 1: The Selection

Part 2: The Training

Part 3: Helipatrol and Fake Tanks

Part 4: In the Land of the Puszta and Magyars

Part 5: When German soldiers go on trips

Part 6: Following the dust

Part 7: Papa Lima with the Desert Hawks

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