Soviet Paratrooper vs Mujahideen Fighter: Afghanistan 1979–89 (Combat Book 29)

If you have read "the Bear came over the Mountain" then you are aware of the situations the 40th Army put it soldiers in. This book is a decent review for those with no information or would like some quick read background to tackle something heavier. The Movie "9th Company" ( 9 pota) is also an excellent source, from the modern Russian view of what went on in Afghanistan. The Russians were brutal and the Afghans were brutal. The evolution of tactics is discussed in a general term but does include the why they evolved and that explains much, in a condensed version.all-in-all, a very good primer or quick reference on the two sides with three examples of how they fought.If I expected it to be a detailed explanation of the war I would give it one, but as a primer, I give it 5. (the Hidden War by Artyom Barovik is better but much more details and is two books in one: the initial invasion and glory and the getting out with out being the last to be killed and a great way to see what it as like at both ends.)

The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, not unlike some other invasions of that remote country, turned into an open-ended and frustrating military expedition. Soviet troops, in conjunction with their Afghan counterparts, expended much blood and treasure attempting to suppress the mujahideen fighters who infested the hinterlands of Afghanistan. The Soviets were slow to adapt to the challenges of the environment and their opponents, and paid a significant price in learning their combat lessons."Soviet Paratrooper versus Mujahideen Fighter" is an Osprey Combat Series book, well-authored by David Campbell, with illustrations by Johnny Shumate. This short book appears to represent commendably diligent research for its length and even-handed analysis by the author. The very readable narrative introduces the two sides and the capabilities, before closely examining three separate Soviet military operations.The author's analysis of the three military operations is interesting, even fascinating, and still timely. The text is very nicely supported with period photographs, battle diagrams, maps, and modern illustrations. Highly recommended as a concise introduction to a still controversial topic.

Eye opener. This book describes conditions in the soviet army I thought went out with the Tsarist armies. There are some great insight for a small book and quick read. Good background to current conflict(s).

A very poor book. It focuses on a very select set of engagements but still manages to be so general in its treatment of them as to be almost worthless.Very little time is spent on any analysis of the effectiveness of either side in relation to the other save for some very obvious and very pedestrian comments. Indeed the book ends with a bizarre section of the structure of either sides formations which, by necessity, there's precious little on the Mujahideen owing to their ad hoc nature anyway.After this pointless digression the book just peters out, not even containing the an analysis or concluding statement typical of this Osprey series.Overall this is the worst example of a rather woeful Osprey 'series' which, until Osprey comes up with some definite direction for its writers in this category, should be avoided.

Some formatting issues with the kindle version. Some paragraphs were in different size font that made it hard to follow what was text continued from the previous page versus captions/explanations of the pictures.

David Campbell's book looks at the Soviet invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and the subsequent fighting between elite Soviet airborne units and the Mujideen fighters. Campbell provides an objective look at the strengths and weaknesses of both types of soldiers, which was a bit of an eye-opener for me. I assumed that only first-class officers were assigned to airborne units but it seemed leadership was an element lacking in the Desantiya units deployed to Afghanistan, especially since NCOs were poorly picked and poorly trained. The Mujideen, for their part, were poorly organized but did have a kind of "mobile force" to supplement the local fighters who would take the initial brunt of fighting. Campbell uses excellent sources to tell the story of both sides in this book. Illustrated with original artwork and photos.

Good read! May give very good insight if read between the lines.

Ein hoch interessantes Buch zu einem Thema zu welchem leider nicht sehr viel publiziert wird. Wer sich also für den Konflikt interessiert, der wird ohnehin zugreifen. Für alle anderen gilt aber, dass der Konflikt leider sehr ein seitig behandelt wird. Die meisten beschriebenen Schlachten werden aus der Sicht der Sowjets beschreiben. Natürlich ist der Konflikt von dieser Seite aus einfach besser dokumentiert und deswegen habe ich auch vollstes Verständnis für die Vorgehensweise der Autoren.Dennoch ist der Textanteil abseits der drei beschriebenen Schlachten gleichmäßiger verteilt und so werden Struktur, Ausbildung und Hintergrund beider Konfliktparteien beleuchtet. Leider kommt mir persönlich dabei die Ausrüstung etwas zu kurz.

El libro sigue la misma estructura de todos los libros de esta colección. Empieza con una breve introducción a la guerra que enfrentó a la URSS conlos rebeldes afganos, desde 1979 hasta 1989, luego describe también brevemente cómo era, por un lado, el Ejército soviético, con especial énfasis en las tropas paracaidistas y aerotransportadas y, por otro lado, cómo eran los guerrilleros afganos. Después nos muestra la evolución del conflicto a través de tres enfrentaminetos entre ambos contendientes. El primero de ellos en 1980, el segundo en 1982 y el tercero en 1988. Por último, tenemos el apartado de análisis y conclusiones.Me ha parecido un libro interesante sobre un conflicto poco conocido en el que, entre otras cosas, asoman las debilidades del entonces todopoderoso ejército soviético y las circunstancias bajo las que fracasó en Afganistán, que son las mismas a las que se han enfrentado las fuerzas multinacionales (ISAF) desde el año 2001.

Osprey nos aporta un excelente libro sobre el conflicto ruso afgano con fotos, diagramas y dibujos que ayudan a la comprensión de esta contienda centrándose en los ejércitos participantes.

Operations informationen !!! Damit man sieht wie der Feind denkt und reagiert !