THE FALL OF TAFTANAZ... MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOU THINK!!

Although this story did seem to gather a lot of attention today, the importance of the loss of this airfield to Assad needs to be further examined.

True, it is more than just a moral victory for the rebels/freedom fighters/, but the psychological impact of this event on the Syrian government cannot be overlooked.

Taftanaz was a location a location the Syrian government did not want to lose.

Let's look at a few of the key reasons why.

For over a year now Syrian governments plan has been to limit the actual, "force on force", contact between Syrian ground forces and the opposition.

As I've said before, the logic behind this concept was and is based upon the fear of defections.

Syrian government a conscious decision to engage the enemy from a distance is often as possible and airfields such as Taftanaz made that concept possible.

Early on in the conflict, it became very clear to the opposition the strategic and psychological importance of the Syrian government Air Force bases.

Denying the Syrian government's ability to conduct air operations in the northern regions of Syria has been the goal; it appears now that goal is much closer.

Once the rebels/opposition/begin to realize they would not receive anti-air weapons and sufficient numbers to deny Syrian government air operations, it became clear the airfields had to become the primary targets.

It is for this reason the Syrian government has tried desperately to hold on to this particular location.

So what did the opposition gain tactically by overtaking this airbase?

In the process of evacuating for operating location, the items that are determined  that cannot be left behind are prioritized for removal.

Also becomes a category of items that falls into the, "too hard to move", column.

Bulk munitions, bulk fuel in simple supplies typically are left behind.

These are the rewards the resistance fighters gained by winning this airfield, tactically.

What I find interesting is the fact that the Syrian government left so many items for the resistance fighters to take.

It's not that difficult to blowup munitions storage site.

It's not that difficult to destroy bulk supplies in place.

So why didn't this happen?

The answer lies in the fact that the Syrian government forces had no plan and left too fast!

Those that could've have made decisions were probably the first to leave, leaving behind a disorganized panic filled shell of a force.

My point is this.

It's one thing to say this installation finally fell into the opposition's hands.

The true story here is what didn't happen and why.

My training in my experience tells me that this installation was evacuated by a defeated force not just tactically and physically but mentally.

There should be no pictures of resistance fighters climbing on Syrian government helicopters.

As I stated earlier, key assets should have never been left in place and if they were left in place they should have been destroyed.

These are truly the indicators of the defeated force!

 Now, let's go back to the issue of the strategic loss of this installation.

The age-old saying applies here; "bad news travels 10 times faster than good news"!

Continued news of defeat placed upon a force that has been conflict for nearly 2 years is more than devastating to morale.

Having to fly further distances does nothing but add additional strain on poorly maintained aircraft and high maintenance weapons.

Simply put, the victory belongs to the rebels and the anguish inside the Syrian government continues to grow.

I would not anticipate Syrian government attempting to retake this installation anytime in the near future if at all.

Walking the grounds of this airbase is probably still incredibly dangerous for at least another day or two.

After that, Syrian government simply cannot afford to spend the dwindling resources on revenge missions towards an installation that is already lost.

Soon and sooner than many think the battle lines will be drawn around Damascus and the question will become to the Iranians defend or simply decide to operate to the level they can achieve in a post Assad Syria?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20984142