Task Force Helmand

---

title: "Task Force Helmand" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["ad-hoc-units-and-formations-of-the-british-army", "military-units-and-formations-established-in-2006", "military-units-and-formations-disestablished-in-2014"] topic_path: "geography/united-kingdom" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Task_Force_Helmand" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox military unit"]

Field	Value
unit_name	Task Force Helmand
dates	April 2006-1 April 2014
countries	{{unbulleted list
command_structure	Regional Command Southwest
garrison	Kandahar Airfield(April – November 2006)MOB Lashkar Gah(November 2006 – August 2013)Camp Bastion(August 2013 – April 2014)
battles	War in Afghanistan

• Helmand province campaign | | role | Combat forces | ::

| unit_name = Task Force Helmand | image = | caption = | branch = | dates = April 2006-1 April 2014 | countries = {{unbulleted list| |United Kingdom |Bosnia and Herzegovina |Denmark |Estonia |Jordan |Tonga | allegiance = | command_structure = Regional Command Southwest | size = | type = | garrison = Kandahar Airfield(April – November 2006)MOB Lashkar Gah(November 2006 – August 2013)Camp Bastion(August 2013 – April 2014) | battles = War in Afghanistan

• Helmand province campaign | role = Combat forces | notable_commanders = | decorations = Task Force Helmand was the name given to a military unit of the International Security Assistance Force in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Task Force Helmand was part of Regional Command Southwest and consisted primarily of personnel from the British Armed Forces, as well as contribution from NATO allies Denmark and Estonia. It was established in April 2006, which coincided with the deployment of Operation Herrick 4.

During August 2013 the Headquarters of Task Force Helmand moved from MOB Lashkar Gah to Camp Bastion.

On 1 April 2014 the command was disbanded and its responsibilities were turned over to Regional Command Southwest.

Commanders

• Brigadier Ed Butler (April 2006 – October 2006)
• Brigadier Jerry Thomas (October 2006 – April 2007)
• Brigadier John Lorimer (April 2007 – October 2007)
• Brigadier Andrew MacKay (October 2007 – April 2008)
• Brigadier Mark Carleton-Smith (April 2008 – October 2008)
• Brigadier Gordon Messenger (October 2008 – April 2009)
• Brigadier Tim Radford (April 2009 – October 2010)
• Brigadier James Cowan (October 2009 – April 2010)
• Brigadier Richard Felton (April 2010 – October 2010)
• Brigadier James Chiswell (October 2010 – April 2011)
• Brigadier Ed Davis (April 2011 – October 2011)
• Brigadier Patrick Sanders (October 2011 – April 2012)
• Brigadier Douglas Chalmers (April 2012 – October 2012)
• Brigadier Bob Bruce (October 2012 – April 2013)
• Brigadier Rupert Jones (April 2013 – October 2013)
• Brigadier James Woodham (October 2013 – April 2014)

References

Citations

Bibliography

References

1. "UK in Afghanistan transformed country, says commander". [[BBC]].
2. "Ceremony Marks End of Task Force Helmand". [[British Forces Broadcasting Service]] (BFBS).
3. (23 October 2014). "UK military 'made wrong calculations' on Afghanistan". BBC.
4. (15 January 2007). "MoD names two dead UK servicemen". BBC.
5. (13 April 2007). "Shura held in Sangin District Centre yesterday". NATO.
6. (10 October 2009). "Keeping us in picture on Afghan conflict". The Scotsman.
7. (5 October 2008). "War in Afghanistan cannot be won, British commander Brigadier Mark Carleton-Smith warns". The Telegraph.
8. (1 June 2008). "British troops put Taliban 'on the run'". The Guardian.
9. Harnden, Toby. (2011). "Dead Men Risen: The Welsh Guards and the Real Story of Britain's War in Afghanistan". Quercus.
10. "11 Light Brigade". mod.uk.
11. (10 April 2010). "Brigadier Richard Felton takes over Task Force Helmand". BBC.
12. "Major-General James Chiswell". Paradata.
13. (6 June 2011). "Petraeus visits Royal Marines in Helmand". Defence News.
14. "12 Mechanized Brigade has taken command of Task Force Helmand in Afghanistan, officially marking the start of Operation HERRICK 16". Ministry of Defence.
15. "1st Mechanized Brigade takes over in Helmand". Ministry of Defence.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::