Afghanistan DFC

Kyt · Mar 12, 2009

Amazingly brave man - and a well deserved DFC,

RAF pilot tells how he won bravery medal - Telegraph

A helicopter pilot decorated for bravery after coming under attack twice in Afghanistan has told how he flew through fire so intense it was like "a night in Berlin in the Second World War".

Flight Lieutenant Alexander "Frenchie" Duncan was one of more than 150 servicemen recognised in the first week of March for their gallantry in the UK and overseas during 2008.

He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for his "consummate professionalism" during the two attacks on his Chinook helicopter in southern Afghanistan last summer.

The two acts of heroism happened just six days apart and he was said to have shown great "strength of character".

The first incident happened as he was trying to land his helicopter in an area of Musa Qala, in Helmand.

The helicopter was carrying an Afghan official and Flt Lt Duncan was warned that it may come under heavy enemy fire as there was an increased Taliban presence.

The vehicle was hit by a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) - knocking out the rotary blade, part of the hydraulic system and part of the automatic flight control system.

Speaking about the incident publicly for the first time, the 32-year-old said: "We spotted a suspicious looking vehicle and I was just manoeuvring so we could bring our guns to bear on it when we suddenly jolted to the right and up. Then one of the crew shouted: 'We're hit'.

"For a second I thought 'oh - we are going in'. Then I tried the controls and they still responded. I said: 'Right, we're getting out of here'.

"We were still taking a lot of fire. The crew could hear the bullets hitting the top of the aircraft. We nearly hit a huge radio mast on a ridge nearby."

Eventually the married father-of-one managed to return the Chinook to base and land it safely, with no harm to any of its passengers.

But just six days later, Flt Lt Duncan was back under fire. This time he was leading a four-Chinook airborne assault on the Taliban fighters who had tried to bring down his helicopter and kill the Afghan official he was transporting.

He said: "The whole operation was at night. We were eight minutes behind the first drop and we heard they were already involved in a fire fight.

"We were going to drop our troops at a safer distance for us but we thought: 'those soldiers are under fire, they need the extra troops we are bringing now' so we went straight in.

"Amazingly, as we landed all the firing stopped. But as we pulled away an RPG went under our cockpit.

"It was so close I could see the purple fizz coming out of the back of it and I instinctively lifted my legs up off the controls.

"We went back to pick up more paratroopers and as we lifted up to begin the journey back we could see the amount of fire they were under.

"It was like a night in Berlin in the Second World War. Everything was going up. RPGs, heavy machine guns, the lot."

His aircraft came under fire again but he managed to avoid being hit. Flt Lt Duncan will be presented with his DFC at a ceremony at Buckingham Palace later this year.

He added: "The DFC is not just for me. It is also for the co-pilot and the crew, without them we would have crashed. They were fantastic."
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Antipodean Andy · Mar 12, 2009

A brave man and a humble one too. There will be many stories to come out of Afghanistan (there already has been). I don't think we've heard even 1% of the hair-raising personal accounts.

Gage · Mar 12, 2009

Indeed brave. Just reading about Apache pilots now.

jayjacinto · Nov 16, 2012

Yep I personally think it is more than being 'brave'. Imagine stepping inside enemy lines, up in the air, knowing that there will always be anti-aircraft below. I can't imagine myself doing that.

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