Forward Operating Base Salerno is a former

forward operating base A forward operating base (FOB) is any secured forward operational level military position, commonly a military base, that is used to support strategic goals and tactical objectives. A FOB may or may not contain an airfield, hospital, machine ...

used by the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...

from 2002–2013 during Operation Enduring Freedom. It is located in the southeastern province of

Khost Khōst ( ps, خوست) is the capital of Khost Province in Afghanistan. It is the largest city in the southeastern part of the country, and also the largest in the region of Loya Paktia. To the south and east of Khost lie Waziristan and Kurram ...

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 ...

, near the city of

. On November 1, 2013, U.S. forces withdrew from FOB Salerno and transferred control of the installation to the Afghan National Army.

Base Overview

The facility was built by members of the Assault and Barrier Platoon, HHC, 307th Engineer Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division and 618th Engineer company, respectively. These Combat Engineers were part of Task Force Panther, centered around the 3rd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment from Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It was named for the beachhead in Salerno, Italy that the 505th PIR parachuted onto on 14 September 1943 (

Operation Avalanche Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, but ...

). Construction began in early October 2002, where the Engineers were inserted via CH-47s prior to the Infantry, responsible for their own security and life support. After acquiring a lone D-8 Bulldozer provided by local Afghan forces, construction began on the initial footprint. This consisted of a living area, helicopter landing pad, forward arming and refueling point (FARP) and a 3,000-foot dirt runway, which conducted the first landing in November 2002 by a C-130. Over the years, the base grew to house a population of nearly 5,000 servicemen and -women, civilians, and contractors. Salerno grew to the size of a small city and included features such as a combat support hospital, large gymnasium, post exchange, chapel, large chow hall, aviation hangars, maintenance facilities, billets, the runway and FARP, and sub-camps for U.S. Special Operations Command units. In November 2009, a portion of FOB Salerno, where US Special Forces worked and lived with an Afghan Commando unit, was renamed Camp Pucino after SSG Matthew Pucino died that month. SSG Pucino was a member of ODA 2223. Soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th BCT, 101st Airborne Division, popularly known as

Fox Company Fox Corporation (stylized in all-caps as FOX Corporation) is a publicly traded American mass media company operated and controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in New York City. Incorporated i ...

, were the last U.S. Army Soldiers to occupy FOB Salerno, exiting on 31 October 2013 after transferring FOB Salerno to the Afghan National Security Forces. Salerno is geographically isolated from the rest of Afghanistan being connected to the rest of the country through the

Khost-Gardez Pass The Khost-Gardez Pass, frequently abbreviated as the K-G Pass, and known locally as the Seti-Kandow Pass, or the Satukandav Pass by Soviet forces, is the main land route connecting Khost, the capital of Khost Province, and Gardez, the capital o ...

, this pass serves as a natural choke point to the region and the pass has been the scene of many battles throughout the

US war in Afghanistan In late 2001, the United States and its close allies invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban government. The invasion's aims were to dismantle al-Qaeda, which had executed the September 11 attacks, and to deny it a safe base of operation ...

as well as the

Soviet war in Afghanistan The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. During its operations two

Sapper A sapper, also called a pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparing ...

platoons specializing in route clearance operations were stationed at Salerno. Most of the route clearance units were drawn from the

National Guard of the United States The National Guard is a state-based military force that becomes part of the reserve components of the United States Army and the United States Air Force when activated for federal missions.IED threats as well as escorting convoys through the heavily mined area. The route clearance units at FOB Salerno were also responsible for routinely clearing the

. Route clearance is a slow operation as units make slow progress to neutralize mines along the route, since the K-G Pass is relatively long and susceptible to attack the mission routinely took several days to complete. The base is in a hostile location and is only 30 miles south of

Tora Bora Tora Bora ( ps, توره بوړه, "Black Cave") is a cave complex, part of the Spin Ghar (White Mountains) mountain range of eastern Afghanistan. It is situated in the Pachir Aw Agam District of Nangarhar, approximately west of the Khyber ...

, it is also only 25 miles north of the location of the friendly fire incident that killed

Pat Tillman Patrick Daniel Tillman Jr. (November 6, 1976 – April 22, 2004) was an American professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) who left his sports career and enlisted in the United States Army in May 2002 in the afterma ...

U.S. Commands

*Task Force Geronimo – 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1–501st PIR (October 2003 – August 2004) *Task Force Devil – 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division (January 2003 – July 2003) *Task Force Thunder - 25th Infantry Division Artillery, (~March 2004 - March 2005) *Task Force Devil – 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division (March 2005 – March 2006) *Task Force Spartan – 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (March 2006 – March 2007) *Task Force Fury – 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment,

4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division The 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division is an inactive Airborne Brigade of the United States Army. The brigade was active from 1968-1969, and from 2006-2014. The brigade conducted three rotations to Afghanistan, in 2007 and 2008, 2009 a ...

(2007– March 2008) *Task Force Currahee – 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (March 2008 – March 2009) *Task Force Yukon –

4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division The 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division is an airborne infantry brigade combat team (BCT) of the United States Army. The unit is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska and is the only airb ...

(March 2009 – March 2010) *Task Force Rakkasans – 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (March 2010– January 2011) *Task Force Duke – 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division (January 2011 – January 2012) *Task Force Spartan – 4th Airborne Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division *Task Force Rakkasans – 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (August 2012 - April 2013) *Task Force Currahee - 506th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (April 2013 - November 2013)

Incidents

19 August 2008 attack

On 19 August 2008 insurgents attempted to assault FOB Salerno with a double car bomb. The bombs detonated close to the base perimeter and killed 15 Afghans, though estimates from those at the base at the time list this closer to 50. Throughout the day small arms fire and rockets landed on the base and around midnight the next day the base came under heavy mortar fire and was attacked by about 30

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalist, militant Islamist, jihadist, and Pasht ...

insurgents, though initial estimates listed this closer to 100

. Several of the initial 30 insurgents were of Saudi descent and trained to operate Apache Helicopters. The attackers attempted to breach the base near the airfield in an attempt to steal Apache gunships as per intelligence reports at the time, where there is no

HESCO bastion The Concertainer, known colloquially as the HESCO MIL, Hesco barrier, or Hesco bastion, is a modern gabion primarily used for flood control and military fortifications. It is made of a collapsible wire mesh container and heavy duty fabric liner, ...

. Nearly all of the attackers carried suicide vests, three of which detonated their vest early as they came under machine gun fire from the base's towers. Afghan commandos and US Special Forces are credited with surrounding the other suicide bombers before they had a chance to attack though several of the insurgents also detonated injuring Afghan Commandos. Another group of

was observed preparing for an attack 1000 meters from the base before coalition forces opened up small arms fire though rocket fire from the Pakistan border carried through throughout the rest of the evening and the rest of the following day. Helicopter gunships, A10 warthogs and Reaper Drones later pounded the Taliban staging area and surrounding rocket sites, resulting in 3 known deaths. After the attack the insurgents were found in possession of anti-personnel

Type 69 RPG The Type 69 85mm RPG (Ручной Противотанковый Гранатомёт, 'Hand Anti Tank Grenade Launcher'), made by Norinco, is a Chinese variant of the Soviet RPG-7. First introduced in 1972, the Type 69 is a common individual ...

s. As anti-personnel RPGs are rare in Afghanistan it is unclear how the weapons were obtained, though there is a connection with Northwestern Chinese units selling their munitions to the Taliban for profit and could be the origin of the AP RPG-69's.

2009 Regional Volatility

FOB Salerno continued to receive a large amount or mortar and rocket fire through the summer of 2009. In one incident, a rocket detonated over the Base Defense Operations Center and a number of personnel was struck by shrapnel, but there were no significant injuries. Months later, another rocket landed near a vehicle checkpoint occupied by Task Force Yukon (

) security personnel, which led to armed Kiowas being scrambled to search for enemy combatants in the area. On 13 May 2009 there was a green on blue attack when AAF detonated a VBIED in the FOB Salerno Local National parking lot just outside of FOB Salerno facilities killing and wounding FOB Salerno Local National workers and families attempting to use medical resources on the installation. US forces and local nationals working with U.S. and Coalition Forces supporting everyday operations were targeted. On 30 December 2009 FOB Chapman, another nearby installation was attacked by a suicide bomber who was involved with the CIA as an undercover agent infiltrating Al Qaeda. The double agent wasn’t properly searched by base security as he was allowed into the base and detonated his explosives while meeting with the CIA Station Chief and other personnel. Seven

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

operatives were killed, making this attack the deadliest for the agency since the

1983 United States embassy bombing The April 18, 1983 United States embassy bombing was a suicide bombing in Beirut, Lebanon, that killed 32 Lebanese, 17 Americans, and 14 visitors and passers-by. The victims were mostly embassy and CIA staff members, but also included several U ...

August 2010 Attack

FOB Salerno was once again attacked by a group of Taliban on 28 August 2010. The attack started around 0400 with small arms and mortar fire. In addition, suicide bombers participated in the attack. As the attack commenced, some of the insurgents were able to penetrate inside the base and attempted to detonate themselves, but were stopped by coalition forces. Afghan forces also detained five insurgents and destroyed a recoil-less rifle at the scene. After the failed assault,

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

forces conducted an airstrike on a car occupied by 4

Haqqani Network The Haqqani network is an Afghan Islamist group, built around the family of the same name, that has used asymmetric warfare in Afghanistan to fight against Soviet forces in the 1980s, and US-led NATO forces and the Islamic Republic of Afghanist ...

fighters in the area.

June 2012 Attack

There was a complex attack against the FOB in early June 2012. Insurgents utilized a local truck packed with 1,500–2,000 pounds of explosives; a suicide bomber detonated his truck bomb on the southern edge of the base, breaching the perimeter and causing significant damage to the base's buildings. The dining hall annex was leveled and the main DFAC (Dining Facility) sustained severe roof damage in the blast. Moments later, ten insurgents entered the breach armed with rifles, machine guns, grenades, and rockets; each bomber wore ACU digital military camouflage uniforms while one wore an ANA military uniform and most wore explosive suicide vests. The attackers were first engaged by two

Navy SEALs The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main functions are conducting sm ...

driving by the DFAC in a Toyota truck, and then by a five-man team consisting of three helicopter mechanics and two vehicle mechanics; who blocked the attackers advance from two directions. After a 7-minute firefight, US service members repelled the attack, killing all ten insurgents. With the last insurgent dressed in an ANA uniform being killed in a ditch. The first insurgent to fire shot a RPG rocket into the front of a Toyota truck hitting the front right bumper but did not explode. Then a Navy SEAL riding in the truck rolled down his window and shot the insurgent. Next two insurgents came around the second wall and were shot by two helicopter mechanics. Two base contractors were killed in the attack when the DFAC annex collapsed, and a US Soldier died of a fragmentation wound to his face from a hand grenade a few days later. Although initially downplayed in the media, in July 2012 both Long War Journal and al Jazeera published an unedited attack video released by the Taliban. Taliban spokesman

Zabiullah Mujahid Zabihullah Mujahid ( ps, ; ''Ẕabīḥullāh Mujāhid'' ; also spelled Dhabih Allah Mujahid) is an Afghan official Central spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan since 25 October 2021 and Deputy Ministry of Information and Culture ...

claimed that an airplane on an airstrip at the base was destroyed and that 'tens' of foreign forces were killed and wounded in the attack. The Taliban later released the video of the attack, showing the attackers practicing in Southeast Afghanistan, taking their photos, the group leader showing his shooting skills by shooting two machine guns and the suicide bomber in the truck.

Troop Draw Down

FOB Salerno was located approximately 25 km from the Pakistan border and the most viable path connecting it to Afghanistan was the

, which is highly vulnerable to attack and often lead to supply shortages at the base. In fact this path was the scene of

Operation Magistral Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

, the last large scale Soviet operation in Afghanistan. During the operation the Battle for Hill 3234 took place in which the 9th Company of the

345th Independent Guards Airborne Regiment The 345th Guards Airborne Regiment (345th PPD) of the Soviet Airborne Forces, and after 1992, the Russian Airborne Forces, was active from 1944 to 1998. History It was formed on 30 December 1944 at Lapichi, Osipovichi district, Mogilev Oblast, ...

was almost wiped out but managed to hold back the

mujaheddin ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term t ...

attack. During this battle the 39 soldiers of the 9th company held back 200–500 fighters, after the battle only 5 active soldiers remained as all others were either wounded or

KIA Kia Corporation, commonly known as Kia (, ; formerly known as Kyungsung Precision Industry and Kia Motors Corporation), is a South Korean multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It is South Korea's second lar ...

. FOB Chapman was built around the original Soviet airfield servicing Khost while FOB Salerno was built slightly north of this facility, together these two bases were the vanguards of the city of

since they were only several miles from the city, often sending forces to respond to attacks in the provincial capital. The

Battle of Tora Bora The Battle of Tora Bora was a military engagement that took place in the cave complex of Tora Bora, eastern Afghanistan, from December 6–17, 2001, during the opening stages of the United States invasion of Afghanistan. It was launched by the ...

took place approximately 30 miles north of Khost. Because of this geographic isolation FOB Salerno, being isolated from the rest of Afghanistan on one side and having the

Federally Administered Tribal Areas , conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas , nation = Pakistan , subdivision = Autonomous territory , image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg , image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...

of Pakistan on the other, the area remained vulnerable to insurgent attacks, supplies often had to be airlifted into the base when the path to Gardez was impassible adding to shortage and cost issues. The base remained a blackout FOB for its existence due to constant mortar and rocket fire, however losses were usually minimal as the indirect fire rarely hit the base. Insurgent activity remained a constant threat as the close proximity to Pakistan provided for easy mobility of the hostiles. Due to its rural location the base was selected for closure in 2013 as

ISAF ' ps, کمک او همکاري ' , allies = Afghanistan , opponents = Taliban Al-Qaeda , commander1 = , commander1_label = Commander , commander2 = , commander2_label = , commander3 = , command ...

forces prepare to draw down their presence in the country. On November 1, 2013 the Afghan Government fully took control of the base while before they operated in their own separate section as the last remaining US forces withdrew from FOB Salerno led by Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment. Constructed in 2002 the base hosted US and ISAF troops for over a decade. During the closure the Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction noted that the inadequate planning of the command staff on the base resulted in $5 million being spent on an incinerator. The incinerator was to replace the open burn pit on base which was thought to cause potential health problems, however once built it was never used and allowed to rust away. The base command continued open burn pit operations while being aware of the health hazard of an open burn pit, even though an incinerator was built and ready to use.http://www.sigar.mil/pdf/inspections/2013-04-25-inspection-13-08.pdf

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Forward Operating Base Salerno Military installations of Afghanistan Military installations of the United States in Afghanistan Fire support bases