PROLOGUE

Mike Foster, Neall Ellis’ co-pilot, penned the following observations while flying alongside him after take-off from Kabul in summer 2011. The helicopter, a Russian-built Hip registered ZS-RIX, was on its way to Khowst Salerno, a remote military outpost that routinely comes under attack.

He’s a tough bugger, this Nellis guy, still flying helicopter support missions in his 61st year and there is no talk of retirement. That’s roughly 40 years of action in a dozen or more wars, and he has never been wounded. He says he can’t stop now because he’s got to put bread on the table … too many people depend on him.

A peculiar, likeable fellow, Neall has become something of a legend in his time. He’s a father, a military man to his fingertips, a totally unforgiving mercenary fighter when placed in an uncompromising situation and, to his mates, honest to the point of being exploited by those less fortunate than he might be. He is peculiarly sensitive to the problems of others, although he’s got a bunch of his own that he rarely talks about, including the recent untimely loss of the woman with whom he shared six good years of his life.

He can also be stubborn, interesting and occasionally infuriating, especially if things involving the machines he flies haven’t been done his way. He refers to it as ‘survival—straight and simple’. Then he’ll add: ‘Just do it right and we won’t have problems when we least expect them,’ which has been his credo throughout his career.

These are all qualities that are typical of the Neall Ellis that I have got to know over the last two or three years. He is physically short, perhaps a bit stocky, but as confident as hell, with a discerning personality and force of character that reflects good leadership. He had probably acquired all that by the time he made colonel in the South African Air Force almost a quarter of century ago.

Neall Ellis has quite a few other accolades, which he won’t talk about. He has been acclaimed by quite a few notables, including General Sir David Richards, Britain’s Chief of the Defence Staff following victory against the rebels in Sierra Leone. That was the first time in recent history that British armed forces had worked hand-in-glove with an acknowledged mercenary. Before that, he was involved with Sandline’s Colonel Tim Spicer, who apparently has a high regard for him. There are others, but he’s non-committal about them as well. He just smiles when asked.

Neall also has the gift of being a good listener. There has never been a time when he hasn’t made me feel comfortable, even when he has been really busy and I have interrupted him or intruded on valuable time, of which he doesn’t have much because he’s often still at his desk at 10 o’clock at night working on the next day’s flying schedules. He always makes you welcome and gives you his undivided attention. What more can I say?

Neall was in the SAAF with me, but I never had much to do with him then as he was a lot senior to me. I only really got to know him after we’d been deployed to Kabul. Afghanistan is a land of contrast, harsh but pure, arid but green, sweltering heat contrasting with high altitude tables of snow, that’s how we pilots all see it. That is also where I really got to understand the man.

Roughly the size of Texas, Afghanistan has very few major roads. The ones that are there are being increasingly monitored and mined by the Taliban. These actions have forced Coalition Forces to rely more on aircraft to move troops and supplies. Indeed, many remote military bases and out-posts—particularly in the mountains—can sometimes be reached only by helicopter.