I’m a SAS vet – my most dangerous mission was codenamed ‘operation certain death’ and descended into 60-man punch-up
AN SAS veteran has recalled the most dangerous battle he was ever part of - codenamed "operation certain death".
The seemingly impossible mission saw Phil Campion and his comrades ambush a camp and rescue 11 soldiers in Sierra Leone in 2000.
The men from the Royal Irish Regiment had been captured by a gang called the West Side Boys.
Speaking to Dodge Woodall on the Eventful Lives podcast, Phil said the plan to get them out - officially called Operation Barras - was deemed so deadly as "the only real option was to fly a helicopter straight into the middle of the village at first light".
They then "jumped on top of everybody to have it out with them" and became embroiled in a 60-man punch-up.
Despite having been "blown up a few times in Northern Ireland" and "dodging a couple of bullets" elsewhere, Phil said it was by far the most dramatic thing he's ever been involved in.
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"You go through so many emotions in one day on something like that," he added.
Beforehand, he said he was filled with "anticipation" and "worry".
But once they got going all he had was "extreme focus".
During the assault, one of Phil's fellow squaddies and a good friend, Brad, was shot dead.
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This only spurred Phil on, leaving him "absolutely furious" and desperate to get his hands on anyone in sight.
"Just give me another one, give me anyone, give me one of them and I’ll do them with my hands," he said.
"[I was] absolutely mad angry, battlefield angry."
But once the fight was over, he had sipped a cup of tea and a second counter-attack repelled at the edge of the village, Phil said he finally calmed down.
"You get this feeling of phwoar, I'm glad to be alive," he explained - though he admitted there was also a little guilt as some of his mates didn't make it.
"You must go through every emotion the human body possibly has," Phil added.
But overall, he described the day as a "phenomenal experience" which gave him a real "buzz".
Phil's military career has taken him to almost every conflict-prone corner of the world, as a soldier in the Armed Forces as well as as an elite operator and mercenary.
The veteran, often known as "Big Phil" due to his size, joined the Royal Hampshires before becoming one of the few British soldiers to pass both the Royal Marines Commando selection and that of the Parachute Regiment, and then get into the Special Air Service (SAS).
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Phil later worked the private military circuit and became a global gun for hire.
He is now a best-selling author and public speaker.
