In the horrific roll call of death and injury that emanates from Afghanistan, it is sometimes easy to forget that each name, rank and number has its own unique story.
That is what makes this image of a seriously wounded Scottish soldier being treated in the heat of battle such an immediate snapshot of the random cruelty of war.
But the story of Private Stephen Bainbridge also describes the true bravery of a man forced to rebuild his life after a devastating injury sustained on Remembrance Day last year.
Now, for the first time, the soldier from Kirkcaldy, Fife, has spoken about his ordeal and the very different battle he now faces for the rest of his life after losing both legs.
Recalling the day he stepped on the mine, Pte Bainbridge, who has given his permission for the photograph to be used, said: ‘I was blown into the air, I felt the heat blast.
‘As I was coming back down it didn’t feel like I was falling, more like floating. That was until I hit the ground.’
The 25-year-old, who regained consciousness in hospital on November 20, added: ‘Before I woke up, I pretty much knew the legs were gone. I suppose I was conscious of the doctors talking. It still hit me when I woke up but not as badly as if I believed I was still all there. It wasn’t a pretty sight.’
Yet he has no regrets about joining the Army, saying: ‘I wouldn’t change anything. I chose the job, I chose to be with 3 Scots. There was no second choice, it was always going to be them.’
Pte Bainbridge was on patrol in Helmand Province on November 11 with 3 Scots (The Black Watch), alongside soldiers from 1st Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment.
Walking through open farmland that morning near Nad-e-Ali, they were part of a series of ops called Tora Pishaw, aimed at disrupting insurgent activity in the area.
Second Lieutenant Robert Weir led his men on a mission to clear a series of compounds – and later said they all had a feeling of uneasiness about the situation.
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