Blaydon brothers serve together in Afghanistan

Jun 21 2009 by Coreena Ford, Sunday Sun

FIGHTING on the frontline side by side, these two soldiers really are “brothers in arms”.

Colour Sergeant John McCowliff and Corporal Steve McCowliff are two months into a six-month tour of duty serving with 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, in Afghanistan.

The pair, from Blaydon, Gateshead, are based at Forward Operating Base Nolay, near the previous frontier town of Sangin.

And while the pair miss their wives and children back home, they say their work is made easier by having family close by.

John, 29, is currently serving as a section commander in a Rifle Platoon, while his wife Alison and daughter Lexie await his homecoming in Gateshead.

He said: “It’s great having my brother here and we look out for each other, but knowing that I’ll be able to see my family soon really keeps me going.

“We have found a couple of IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) already, as well as weapons caches, in the short time we have been here.”

His brother Steve, 26, who is married to Lisa and has two children, Dylan and Summer, is currently second-in-command of the Fire Support Group.

Their task is to fire at the enemy, providing an umbrella of protection under which the rest of the Company can advance safely.

This job is made all the more difficult as it is now the height of the poppy season, when the flowers are harvested for the opium trade.

Steve said: “I would like to see an improvement in the lives of the ordinary, decent Afghans who stand to benefit from the reconstruction we bring with us.

“Seeing how hard it is to live out here has made me thankful for what we take for granted back home. It is difficult to respect an enemy who fights in civilian clothing and uses the innocent as a shield.”

Both brothers are looking forward to November when they can get back to their families, and enjoy a pint in their local, the Vulcan in Winlaton, Gateshead.

John said: “Right now it seems like a long way away but with the pace of life out here the time will fly by.”

The brothers’ dad, also John, who now lives in Essex, told of his pride. He said: “They have both done very well. John joined first when he was 17 and Stephen definitely joined to follow his brother . . . they’ve been together ever since.

“These are worrying times. Only the other week John was out on patrol when the front vehicle went over a landmine. It blew the wheel off and the driver broke his legs instantly.

“Both of them have been in Iraq, but the terrain in Afghanistan is totally different. Stephen’s told me how shots can be fired from 600 to 700 yards away, but all they’ll see is a puff of smoke.

“The Army has been great with me though. I have access to a website which shows where they are and what they are doing.

“If someone is killed in Afghanistan and a report is on the TV, I get a text straight away to let us know it wasn’t one of my boys . . . all the families get a text.

“I do worry, but they call once a fortnight, and they’ve both only got a few months to go until they’re home.”