Transport
Welcome to Khartoum
[video:youtube:uA3FOuo8iDo] The reassuring voice of air traffic control as you land in Khartoum International Airport courtesy of Blake Evans-Pritchard, “I must apologise for the time it took for us to taxi across the runway,†announced the pilot once we had touched down in Khartoum’s airport – already, his voice was dripping with sarcasm. “There were […]
Deborah Haynes gets upgraded
Times newspaper reporter Deborah Haynes blogs about the rigmarole associated with getting flights in Iraq as she seeks out the ‘Freedom Express’ on a mission to Mosul only to get upgraded to cockpit class, Travelling to northern Iraq for an embed is always a bit of a gamble because there are limited military flights and […]
A night on the road
The truck’s ‘extrication kit’ included shovels and a jack to deal with the mud; tools and spares for the Japanese diesel engine; and documents, cigarettes and whisky to ease our way through military checkpoints. We flew an identifying flag and had called the relevant field commanders before leaving. We were carrying supplies for a hospital […]
May the Mastiff be with you
Yesterday Frontline Club head honcho, Vaughan Smith, met the blast-proof ‘Mastiff PPV’ for the first time. As 25 tonne, £265,000 combustion engine powered vehicles go, it’s rather impressive. Introduced in September 2006, the gargantuan armour plated truck is quite literally a lifesaver, according to the Royal Tank Regiment’s Corporal Upton who speaks in Vaughan’s video […]