X Platoon

For three decades one of the most secretive units in the British military has not been the SAS or SBS: it has been a mystery force known variously as the Shadow Wing, the Black Unit or X Platoon. Officially there was no X Platoon. The sixty men in its elite number were culled from units across the Armed Forces, at which point they simply ceased to exist. X Platoon had no budget, no weaponry, no vehicles and no kit—apart from what its men could beg, borrow, or steal from other military units. For the first time ever a highly decorated veteran of this shadow force—who served as its Platoon Sergeant—reveals its history. From anti-narcotics operations in the Guatemalan jungles, to hunting war criminals in the war-torn hills of the Balkans, from being sent to war against the Russian military to calling in the largest parachute-borne force since World War II, Steve Heaney was at the cutting edge of X Platoon operations. The first non-officer in the British Army ever to win the Military Cross, he reveals the extraordinary missions undertaken by this tiny force of elite operators.

Steve Heaney joined the Parachute Regiment Juniors at 16, then passed Parachute Regiment selection and joined 3 PARA in 1987. Two years later he successfully undertook selection into X Platoon—more formally know as the Pathfinders. He went on to serve with that unit for over a decade, working with almost every Special Forces unit with which the British military has links. In 1999 he was promoted to Platoon Sergeant. The following year, he was the first non-officer in the unit's history to be awarded the Military Cross for his leadership and courage during Operation Mayhem. He has spent the last decade working as a senior military advisor to one of Britain's key allies.Damien Lewis worked as a war and conflict reporter for major broadcasters, reporting from across Africa, South America, the Middle and Far East, and has won numerous awards for his journalism. His booksOperation Certain Death, Apache Dawn, War Dog and Zero Six Bravo were allSunday Times bestsellers, as were his previous co-authored military books, Fire Strike 7/9, co-written with Sergeant Paul "Bommer" Grahame, and It's All About Treo, co-authored with Dave Heyhoe.