Harry elated by war zone but top brass ponder veto on future postings

Risk to missions will hinder prince's desire to return to Afghanistan, reports Martyn McLaughlin

HE HAS described his time in Helmand Province as among the most exhilarating few weeks in his life, but Prince Harry's desire to return to the front line "very, very soon" will be hindered by the fact his presence could put at risk any future missions.

With the young prince's appetite for operational deployments far from sated by his ten weeks in Afghanistan, the head of the armed forces warned yesterday that Prince Harry would never be able to have a normal military career.

Harry, 23, has said he now intends to discuss his options with his commanding officer. But, he stressed, he has no plans to quit the army, and even hoped his older brother, Prince William, might see action soon.

Prince Harry said he was disappointed that publicity from foreign media had ended his tour, but praised the British media for keeping the secret of his deployment as long as it did.

"I was surprised by the way the British media kept to their side of the bargain. I hate to say it but, no, I'm very grateful for that and thanks to all the British media for keeping their mouths shut.

"But I'm back here now and I suppose deep down inside it's quite nice. I'm looking forward to having a bath… but no, I would like to have stayed back with the guys."

The Chief of the Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, said Prince Harry had been withdrawn from Afghanistan once his presence became known because it would have increased the chances of attacks on the troops around him.

Any future deployments by the prince, he added, would depend on ensuring that was not the case.

"I would have to be clear that the risks to the operation, in the widest sense of the people deployed on that operation, would be no higher than they would normally be in such circumstances," he said.

Sir Jock refused to be drawn directly on the prince's chances of going on future operations.

However, he acknowledged that Prince Harry could never have an entirely normal military career because of who he was.

"Of course, it can never be like some ordinary person's career. He is a member of the Royal Family, he is in the line of succession to the throne and that's always going to make a difference.

"But so far, he has been able to have as normal career as I think anyone in such circumstances ever could have."

The air chief marshal said that after news of Prince Harry's presence in Afghanistan was leaked on a US website, commanders in the field realised that he would have to be withdrawn.

"It is very clear that his presence in-theatre would have had a significant effect on what the opposition did.

"Once it's known that he is there and people get some idea of whereabouts he is, there is a significant risk that more determined attacks will be made against UK and other forces in the region."

The former head of the army, General Sir Mike Jackson, said he thought it could be possible for Prince Harry to deploy again. "He has now got a campaign medal. I wonder if it will be the first and only one. Somehow I doubt that."

However, he said the chances of Prince Harry's elder brother, Prince William, being deployed on operations were "rather more difficult".

"There are some difficult judgments to make. I think we should trust those whose responsibility it is, my successor for example, who has handled this, I think, very well indeed, to come to those judgments as circumstances actually dictate at the time," he said.

Sir Mike Jackson acknowledged that the publicity surrounding Harry could give a boost to army recruiting.

"Well, it's not unhelpful, shall we say, I am sure. The young prince put it rather vividly – the sense of comradeship, the sense of common purpose is absolutely accurate and he has got the sense of it."

MECHANIC WHO FOUND HIMSELF WORKING ALONGSIDE ROYAL
WHEN he signed up at his local army recruiting office, the last person Oliver Devlin expected to be fighting alongside was a member of the Royal Family.

The 20-year-old vehicle mechanic from Glasgow holds the rank of Craftsman in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME). For his first operational tour with the army, however, he has been attached to C Squadron of the Household Cavalry, working around the clock keeping a fleet of ageing Scimitar and Spartan light tanks running.

When he was first attached to C Squadron, Craftsman Devlin – who now lives in Winchester, Hampshire – had no reason to expect Prince Harry to be working alongside him.

Although a member of the same regiment, the Household Cavalry, Prince Harry is usually part of a separate squadron (the cavalry equivalent of an infantry company).

But until last week, when his secret deployment to Afghanistan was exposed by foreign media, the prince was working alongside C Squadron in the desert as its Forward Air Controller (FAC).

"When I first got to the regiment, I knew that he was obviously in the regiment along with Prince William," Craftsman Devlin explained. "When I first saw him it was a bit of disbelief really, I just said: 'Hello Sir'.

"I had no idea he was out here. There was the whispering, the rumours, but I didn't really believe it until I saw him."

Speaking before Prince Harry's emergency extraction after his cover was blown, Craftsman Devlin said: "I think it's good he's out here; he joined the army, he's doing his job."

Describing his own experiences he said: "This is my first posting with the army, the lads are great – a good laugh. Within the fitter section, because it's a small group, you get to know each other better – it's as if they are older brothers to me."

Constantly coated in a mix of oil and sand, Craftsman Devlin and the REME team are both soldiers and mechanics. Braving extremes of hot and cold, the squadron's light aid detachment (LAD) has managed to keep its fleet of reconnaissance vehicles running.

Designed in the Cold War era, the tank-like wagons are now coping with life in the deserts and wadis (dry gravel river beds) of Helmand Province – with its sand, stones, mud and even snow.

"There is a lot of work, but it is good. I suppose we are quite a tight-knit group now," he said.