Final Task Unit 5

This lesson will integrate the knowledge about terrain and task verbs addressed in the previous lessons into a more comprehensive set of tasks, including listening, reflecting, and writing.

There is an old saying in the military: “Amateurs talk tactics, professionals talk logistics”. The logistics are not easy in Afghanistan, a landlocked country where the terrain is the enemy.

Listen to the 4-min podcast on pre-deployment concerns prior to US troops entering Afghanistan. Pay specific attention to aspects regarding terrain and logistics.

TASK 1: List at least two challenges US forces were expected to meet, and describe how they would have impacted combat capabilities.

TASK 2: Now fast forward to 2021, when Coalition forces have just finished withdrawing from Afghanistan. Hypothesize on how withdrawing from such an environment might have affected morale among the troops. Speculate on the psychological factors that make or break soliders’ willingness to put themselves in harm’s way, and relate them to the Afghanistan mission area.