Bravo Two Zero

;Sergeant Steven Billy Mitchell, DCM, MM, patrol commander: former Royal Green Jackets. MM: former 23(R) SAS. The only member of the patrol to escape capture. Author of The One That Got Away and better known under his pseudonym as "Chris Ryan". ;Lance Corporal :former Parachute Regiment. Captured by the enemy, later released. ;Trooper Robert Gaspare Consiglio, MM (posthumous): and former Parachute Regiment. former Australian 1st Commando Regiment. former New Zealand Special Air Service. Captured by the enemy, later released. Author of Soldier Five. Referred to as "Mark the Kiwi" in the books. ==The patrol==

Background In January 1991, during the prelude to the Coalition ground invasion of Iraq, B Squadron 22 SAS were stationed at a forward operating base in Saudi Arabia. The squadron provided a number of long-range, similarly tasked teams deep into Iraq including three eight-man patrols: "Bravo One Zero", "Bravo Two Zero" and "Bravo Three Zero". Ratcliffe lays the blame for the faulty radios on McNab as the patrol commander; it was his job to make sure the patrol's equipment was working. At the time of the release on 5 March of MacGown and Pring, they were described as "in good shape" by a Red Cross representative. They were last held at Abu Ghraib Prison before their release. Ryan's escape to Syria Ryan claimed to have made SAS history with the "longest escape and evasion by an SAS trooper or any other soldier" to make it to Syria, covering . ==Equipment==

Each member of the patrol wore a two-shade desert DPM uniform with a World War II era sand-coloured desert smock. While the other members had regular issue army boots, Ryan (the only member to avoid eventual capture) wore a pair of £100 "brown Raichle Gore-Tex-lined walking boots." Each member carried a belt kit, Bergen rucksack, one sandbag of food, one sandbag containing two NBC suits, extra ammunition bandoliers and a jerry can of water. "The belt kit contained ammunition, water, food and trauma-care equipment." The rucksack contained of sandbags and observation post equipment, seven days worth of rations, spare batteries for the radio, demolition equipment (including PE4 plastic explosive, detonators, and both Claymore and Elsie anti-personnel mines), and intravenous drips and fluids for emergencies. The patrol also had a PRC 319 HF patrol radio carried by Lane, four TACBE communication devices (carried by McNab, Ryan, and two others) to communicate with allied aircraft, a Magellan GPS carried by Coburn, and a KITE night sight carried by MacGown. The total weight of each member's kit was estimated at by McNab and by Ryan. McNab, Phillips, Ryan, and Lane carried M16/M203 assault rifles, while Pring, Consiglio, MacGown, and Coburn carried FN Minimi light support machine guns. Each member carried a 66 mm LAW rocket on his back. Due to a missing shipment within the squadron, Phillips was the only member who carried a backup weapon, a Browning Hi-Power pistol. ==Literary accounts==

• The first public literary mention of the patrol was in Storm Command, the autobiography of Lieutenant-General Peter de la Billière, who served as the commander of the British Forces during the Gulf War, although the patrol is only mentioned in passing. The book was released in 1992. • Patrol commander Steven Mitchell wrote an account of the patrol in a book titled Bravo Two Zero () under the pseudonym Andy McNab. Mitchell used pseudonyms and nicknames for the patrol members who survived, but controversially used the full names of those who died. The book was released in 2004. • Will Fowler writes of the patrol over a number of pages in SAS Behind Enemy Lines: Covert Operations 1941-2005 (). He named the patrol commander as Sergeant ″Philip ′Mitch′ Mitchell″, whilst naming the other members as per previous literary accounts. ==Dramatic and documentary accounts==

• ITV produced a one-off dramatic version of Armstrong's book, also titled The One That Got Away, in 1996. The film starred Paul McGann as Ryan and was directed by Paul Greengrass. • The BBC produced a two-part adaptation of Mitchell's book, also titled Bravo Two Zero, in 1998. It starred Sean Bean as McNab and was directed by Tom Clegg. In addition to using all of Mitchell's characters' pseudonyms, the names of the three deceased patrol members, Phillips, Consiglio and Lane were also changed for the film. • In 2002, Channel 4 aired Asher's documentary (which accompanied his book), also titled The Real Bravo Two Zero, directed and produced by Gavin Searle. • Also in 2002, the BBC's Panorama series released a documentary titled "A Question of Betrayal" featuring both Coburn and MacGowan, alleging that the patrol's distress calls had been received and ignored. • In 2003, the television series JAG ran an episode ("The One That Got Away", S9, EP04) loosely based on the story of Bravo Two Zero involving US Marines Force Recon in Iraq. The name of the team that was involved was Bravo Two One. • The video game I.G.I.-2: Covert Strike had "Chris Ryan" as a consultant for game development. • No Man Left Behind episode "The One That Got Away" is focused on Bravo Two Zero. == References ==