FORWARD MARINE BASE, Afghanistan, Nov. 30 -- A force of U.S. Marines in this desolate stretch of Afghan desert grew to battalion strength today as several C-130 Hercules cargo planes carrying additional troops landed on an airstrip of packed and parched earth.
A parade of aircraft whipped up huge clouds of dust that drifted over the encampment, the particles so thick they could be tasted and smelled. Under the light of a full moon, a 50-foot sand dune nearby cast a long shadow, while helicopters, Humvees and light armored vehicles stood out as if they were on a photographic negative.
The Marines have seized an airstrip originally built to provide access to what has been described as a hunting lodge owned by a wealthy Persian Gulf family fond of falconry in the Afghan desert. But the walled compound seems more like a military compound.
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Four tall watchtowers loom at the corners of the wall enclosing several buildings. The buildings contain what appear to be large, barracks-like rooms, a warehouse and high-ceilinged maintenance bays for trucks. A small, one-story mosque was also visible, which the Marines, as a sign of respect, have barred anyone from entering.
The largest force of U.S. ground troops in Afghanistan, which the Pentagon said Thursday numbers more than 1,000, began arriving here less than a week ago from the USS Peleliu, the USS Comstock and the USS Dubuque in the northern Arabian Sea, setting up what Gen. Tommy R. Franks of the U.S. Central Command has named Forward Operating Base Rhino.
The troops have been digging foxholes several feet deep, conducting reconnaissance trips into the desert and test-firing mortars and heavy machine guns. Although Marine spokesmen did not give an exact number of Marine and Navy personnel here, a Marine battalion usually numbers 1,000 to 1,200.
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In addition, Navy Seabees have begun repairing the desert airstrip and expect to start building showers soon. Although the Marines have found no land mines, they have been busy detonating unexploded ordnance left by the Soviets after their occupation of Afghanistan during the 1980s.
The thrust of the troops' work so far has been to prepare for future military missions in Afghanistan.
"Our original mission was to seize a forward operating base," said Capt. Stewart T. Upton, a spokesman for Task Force 58, the command headquarters for Marines operating in the region. "Right now we're awaiting further orders regarding our mission. Once we receive those, we will accomplish them with a vengeance. Once we are done, we will leave Afghanistan and go home."
Under ground rules the military has imposed on reporters at the base, its exact location cannot be disclosed. In Washington, however, it has been widely reported that the airstrip, which was well known before the Marines got here, lies 55 miles southwest of Kandahar, the last major city under Taliban control.
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The Marines' one contact so far with Taliban soldiers occurred Monday, the day after the first of the Marines arrived.
Navy F-14 Tomcats flying nearby noticed a convoy of about 15 military vehicles, said Capt. David C. Romley, a spokesman for the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The pilots asked the Marines to send AH-1W Super Cobra helicopter gunships to get a closer look. Romley said the reconnoiter determined that the convoy was made up of Russian-made military vehicles.
"When they were positively identified as the enemy, U.S. aircraft engaged the enemy with bombs," Romley said, adding that the convoy was attacked by the Tomcats and two Cobras, which were armed with TOW antitank missiles, rockets and 20mm nose guns.
The Marine base is in a particularly dreary patch of desert. On a night flight to the base, ground lights were sparse and there appeared to be nothing but sand from horizon to horizon. Only sand dunes, rising as tall as five- or six-story buildings, broke the monotony.
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This operation is believed to be one of the farthest the Marines have conducted from their amphibious assault ships more than 400 miles away in the Arabian Sea.
Infantrymen from the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit dig forward positions near the U.S. Marine base in southern Afghanistan. They are the base's outermost line of defense.Cpl. Jamyn Williams, 22, from La Puente, Calif., cleans his machine gun as another Marine digs in near the Marines' forward base in a desolate patch of desert in Afghanistan.
