Special Forces - Helicopter Extraction

A United States Army Special Forces patrol prepare to board a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter as it lands at a site in Kunar province, Afghanistan.

The Special Forces were carrying out a reconnaissance operation for a 'future village stability platform' ie a site from where to base coalition special operations forces and Afghan forces in order to live and work with Afghan villagers.

Special Forces are highly suited to so-called 'hearts and minds' operations, which are a vital component of a counter-insurgency (COIN) strategy.

A 12-man Special Forces A-team includes linguists who can communicate directly with the local populace, medics who can provide health care and engineers who can help with infrastructure improvement projects.