Ham Among Americans Killed in Afghan Attack

Jim McLaughlin, WA2EWE/T6AF, was killed April 27
in an attack by an Afghan pilot at Kabul Airport.
(Photo courtesy Steve Herman, W7VOA)

U.S. amateur James McLaughlin, WA2EWE/T6AF, was among the nine Americans killed in a shooting at Kabul airport Wednesday when an Afghan military pilot opened fire in an operations room of the Afghan Air Corps, according to Voice of America reporter and fellow amateur Steve Herman, W7VOA/T6AD.  According to Herman, the attack was the worst single episode of an Afghan turning against his coalition partners.

Writing from Seoul, where he is chief of the VOA bureau, Herman said McLaughlin, who was also a friend of his, was a career U.S. military officer working as a contractor training Afghan pilots.
Herman says he first met Jim in August, 2009, when they were the only two hams operating in Kabul.

"Jim had put together a fine radio shack in his quarters," Steve wrote, adding, "It was obvious from spending time with Jim that ham radio was an important morale-boosting pastime and (he) usually spent a couple of hours per day (on the air), logging thousands of QSOs."