This is my first TL, so be gentle lol. I don't claim that it's researched all that well (any research is from wikipedia) nor do I claim that people will act entirely in character, but without mind reading or vast amounts of research I don't think it's sane to try. Later on there will something involving people I went to school with (although there will be a (mostly) plausible reason for giving them a footnote in history), which might be seen as nepotism, but oh well. I'm intending to post about one update a week (I have the first 8 written as I type). The style of the updates is inspired by Macargge1's Protect and Survive: A Timeline. Anyway, without further ado, the first part:
1 - Forces Sweetheart?
We'll meet again, don't know where, don't know when...
The history of the British - Iranian war of 2006 - 2009 actually begins in late 2005, although it has been argued that it was inevitable after the Invasion of Iraq in 2003. Certainly there was always the potential for conflict, and almost from the outset there had been accusations of Iranian involvement in attacks in Iraq. However, despite this being mentioned fairly regulary, it wasn't really in the public conciousness until the 22nd of December 2005, when a British transport helicopter flying to the Shaibah Logistics Base in Southern Iraq was attacked by anti-air missiles. One missile hit the helicopter's main rotor, causing it to crash almost instantly and as a result killing all 14 people aboard. 13 of those killed were British military personnel. One wasn't.[1]
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Katherine Jenkins (29 June 1980 - 22 December 2005) was a Welsh mezzo-soprano. She was a classical-popular crossover singer who performed across a spectrum of operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre and hymns. She was killed while on the way to perform for British troops when the helicopter she was travelling in was shot down in Southern Iraq.
- From wikipedia
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When it became clear that one of those killed was a British celebrity there was no shortage of groups claiming to be behind the attack. Many of them had little or no chance of actually doing such a thing, although most of the claims were investigated. The investigation became more intensive when it was found that the missiles used were of Russian (or, more likely, late Soviet) origin.[2]
The public reaction was at first one of shock. Katherine Jenkins was 25 years old and a promising singer. She had been in Iraq in order to perform for British troops in Basra at a Christmas dinner on the 23rd of December, having been inspired by a comment made by Dame Vera Lynn earlier in the year. News of her death, along with those of the other soldiers aboard the helicopter, was seen as a massive blow to public perception of the war.
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It's hard to say what I felt when I heard about it, shock I suppose mainly. 14 Britons being killed in one incident in any war is massive, but when one of them is a civilian who was there to iimprove morale, it makes it even worse. Had I known then what was going to happen I think I may have done things differently later on. - Harriet Harman, My rise and fall, an autobiography, published 2013.
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[1] Clearly this is the POD. In OTL the helicopter did come under a missile attack, but was not damaged.
[2] Artistic license and guesswork, since if the missiles weren't Iranian they'd be no story.
[3] The Title is a reference to the Katherine Jenkins album Living A Dream
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Dying a dream - A history of the UK / Iran war of 2006
1 - Forces Sweetheart?
We'll meet again, don't know where, don't know when...
The history of the British - Iranian war of 2006 - 2009 actually begins in late 2005, although it has been argued that it was inevitable after the Invasion of Iraq in 2003. Certainly there was always the potential for conflict, and almost from the outset there had been accusations of Iranian involvement in attacks in Iraq. However, despite this being mentioned fairly regulary, it wasn't really in the public conciousness until the 22nd of December 2005, when a British transport helicopter flying to the Shaibah Logistics Base in Southern Iraq was attacked by anti-air missiles. One missile hit the helicopter's main rotor, causing it to crash almost instantly and as a result killing all 14 people aboard. 13 of those killed were British military personnel. One wasn't.[1]
-------------------------------------------------------
Katherine Jenkins (29 June 1980 - 22 December 2005) was a Welsh mezzo-soprano. She was a classical-popular crossover singer who performed across a spectrum of operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre and hymns. She was killed while on the way to perform for British troops when the helicopter she was travelling in was shot down in Southern Iraq.
- From wikipedia
-------------------------------------------------------
When it became clear that one of those killed was a British celebrity there was no shortage of groups claiming to be behind the attack. Many of them had little or no chance of actually doing such a thing, although most of the claims were investigated. The investigation became more intensive when it was found that the missiles used were of Russian (or, more likely, late Soviet) origin.[2]
The public reaction was at first one of shock. Katherine Jenkins was 25 years old and a promising singer. She had been in Iraq in order to perform for British troops in Basra at a Christmas dinner on the 23rd of December, having been inspired by a comment made by Dame Vera Lynn earlier in the year. News of her death, along with those of the other soldiers aboard the helicopter, was seen as a massive blow to public perception of the war.
-------------------------------------------------------
It's hard to say what I felt when I heard about it, shock I suppose mainly. 14 Britons being killed in one incident in any war is massive, but when one of them is a civilian who was there to iimprove morale, it makes it even worse. Had I known then what was going to happen I think I may have done things differently later on. - Harriet Harman, My rise and fall, an autobiography, published 2013.
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[1] Clearly this is the POD. In OTL the helicopter did come under a missile attack, but was not damaged.
[2] Artistic license and guesswork, since if the missiles weren't Iranian they'd be no story.
[3] The Title is a reference to the Katherine Jenkins album Living A Dream
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