Task Force White Eagle (in Polish referred as Polskie Siły Zadaniowe (Polish Task Force)) was a
brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division.
Br ...
sized detachment of
Polish Land Forces
The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stret ...
in
Ghazni Province
Ghazni (Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in southeastern Afghanistan. The province contains 19 districts, encompassing over a thousand villages and roughly 1.3 million people, making it the 5th most populous province. The ...
,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. The brigade was under the command of the US
1st Cavalry Division.
[Winid Bogusław, Udział Polski w działaniach stabilizacyjnych w Afganistanie, Polski Przegląd Dyplomatyczny 1/2007] 30 October 2008 Polish forces taking over responsibility for Ghazni province. Throughout the activity of the Polish contingent in Afghanistan occurred fighting with the Taliban and other rebels. Polish troops took part in many military operations. During the mission 44 Polish soldiers were killed.
Structures
![Żołnierze 1 kompanii Zgrupowania Bojowego B strzegą reaktywowanego mostu na drodze A1 (-01)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/%C5%BBo%C5%82nierze_1_kompanii_Zgrupowania_Bojowego_B_strzeg%C4%85_reaktywowanego_mostu_na_drodze_A1_%28-01%29.jpg)
The brigade was divided into two major elements. The kinetic element consisted of units that are going into direct contact with the enemy and the non-kinetic element consists of support and logistic units.
* Kinetic elements
** Battle Group A (battalion sized) -
FOB Ghazni, FB Four Corners
*** 1st
Mechanized Infantry
Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also mechanized force).
As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is di ...
Company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...
(five infantry
platoon
A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may range ...
s)
*** 2nd Mechanized Infantry Company (five infantry platoons)
*** Logistic Company
*** Engineering Group
** Battle Group B (battalion sized) - FOB Warrior, FB Giro, COP Qarabagh
*** 1st Mechanized Infantry Company (five infantry platoons)
*** 2nd Mechanized Infantry Company (five infantry platoons)
*** Logistic Company
*** Engineering Group
** Special Operations Group - FOB Ghazni (
JW Komandosów TF50,
JW Grom TF49)
** Reconnaissance Group - COP Ajiristan
** Independent Air Group - FOB Ghazni
![Operacja Passage Afganistan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Operacja_Passage_Afganistan.jpg)
* Non-kinetic elements
** Psychological Operations Group
** Civil-Military Co-operation Group
*** 1st Tactical Support Group
*** 2nd Tactical Support Group
** Operational Mentoring & Liaison Team no 1 (3rd Brigade, 203rd Corps
ANA)
** Operational Mentoring & Liaison Team no 2 (1st battalion, 3rd Brigade, 203rd Corps
ANA)
** Operational Mentoring & Liaison Team no 3 (2nd battalion, 3rd Brigade, 203rd Corps
ANA)
**
Provincial Reconstruction Team
A Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) was a unit introduced by the United States government, consisting of military officers, diplomats, and reconstruction subject matter experts, working to support reconstruction efforts in unstable states. PRT ...
Ghazni (USA/POL)
** Agriculture Development Team Ghazni (USA)
** Medical Support Group - FOB Ghazni
**
National Support Element
National Support Elements (NSE) were part of the IFOR, and later the SFOR, NATO led forces, which were deployed primarily in former Yugoslavia from 1996 to 2004 (when replaced by EUFOR). Many of the NSE's were deployed in Hungary - even though th ...
- FOB Ghazni
*** Detached Logistic Support Group
**
Forward Surgical Teams
In the United States Army, Medical Detachments (Forward Surgical), popularly known as Forward Surgical Teams (FST), are small, mobile surgical units. A functional operating room can be established within one and a half hours of being on scene an ...
(USA) - FOB Ghazni
Size
Equipment
![Polish Army soldiers in Afghanistan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Polish_Army_soldiers_in_Afghanistan.jpg)
The basic combat vehicle of Battle Groups is
KTO Rosomak
The KTO Rosomak (Kołowy Transporter Opancerzony Rosomak) (pol. wheeled armored personnel carrier Wolverine) is an 8×8 multi-role military vehicle produced by Rosomak S.A. (formerly Wojskowe Zakłady Mechaniczne) in Siemianowice Śląskie (Upp ...
in various variants. Rosomak is complemented by
Cougar H
The Cougar is a mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) and infantry mobility vehicle structured to be resistant to landmines and improvised munitions.
It is a family of armored vehicles produced by Force Protection Inc, which manufactures bal ...
(MRAP) (from late 2008
[) and ]HMMWV
The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV; colloquial: Humvee) is a family of light, four-wheel drive, military trucks and utility vehicles produced by AM General. It has largely supplanted the roles previously performed by the ori ...
leased from the USA. Lightly armored HMMWVs are used only in situations that exclude use of heavier vehicles. Fire support is provided by 98mm M-98 mortars and 152mm Dana howitzers. Air support is provided by Independent Air Group using Mi-17
The Mil Mi-17 (NATO reporting name: Hip) is a Soviet-designed Russian military helicopter family introduced in 1975 (Mi-8M), continuing in production at two factories, in Kazan and Ulan-Ude. It is known as the Mi-8M series in Russian service. ...
and Mi-24
The Mil Mi-24 (russian: Миль Ми-24; NATO reporting name: Hind) is a large helicopter gunship, attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for eight passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and has been o ...
helicopters as well as UAV
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...
s. From 2010 there were used MaxxPro
The International M1224 MaxxPro MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle is an armored fighting vehicle designed by American company Navistar International's subsidiary Navistar Defense along with the Israeli Plasan Sasa, who designed and ...
MRAP,[Weber, Artur (in Polish). ''MaxxPro dla PKW-A'', "RAPORT Wojsko Technika Obronność" Nr. 10/2010, p.30] followed by Oshkosh M-ATV.
See also
* List of NATO installations in Afghanistan
This is a list of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) installations in Afghanistan used during the War in Afghanistan from 2001–2021. This list encompasses installations used by the International Security Assistance Force from 2001 to 201 ...
* List of Afghan Armed Forces installations
References
{{Reflist
Military units and formations of Poland
Military units and formations of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)