How to Watch TV on Ops

Going To Afghanistan?

How To Watch TV on Ops

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We can supply you with all the kit you need – in theatre – just order it here!

What BFBS Television channels will I get?

You'll get these channels: (Click on image for larger version)

What sort of programmes are on the channels?

BFBS 1 has a bit of everything, from chat shows to soaps, dramas to news, documentaries to sport. We carry the BBC News channel overnight.

BFBS 2 is a 6-hour block of programmes which repeat around the clock. Home to shows like CSI and the Simpsons, sci-fi and  comedy.

BFBS 3 KIDS does exactly what it says on the tin, so if you're old enough to be in HM Armed Forces, you possibly won't find much here for you....

BFBS 4 is our movie channel. Two movies a day, which  repeat around the clock.

Then there are our carriage channels - direct live relays of two Sky Sports channel, a music channel and Sky News.

And finally our '1 day later' channel'.  We repeat peaktime BFBS1 the next day only earlier, so you get 'peaktime at teatime not bedtime'. This channel was designed especially for Afghanistan to help combat the time difference.

Coming soon

In the next 2 or 3 months, we'll be adding factual entertainment and documentaries on BFBS3 in the evenings, and we'll repeat that again the next day, only earlier, as '3 catch-up' to better fit the Afghan timezone.

How do I watch BFBS TV?

BFBS TV in Afghanistan is via DTT in the main areas of Helmand Province. This means you can take your own TV with you and watch it in your own bedspace - you'll just need to take a 'Freeview' box and of course an external aerial. Most new TVs have an integral digital tuner, so you won't even need a Freeview box, just an aerial. If you are taking a laptop, a USB stick (such as Freecom) to let you watch DTT on your laptop costs around £35. This will also require an external aerial and co-axial cable. If it's too late for you to buy before you go, all these items are available on the internet from websites like Amazon, who will post to BFPO addresses, and are under the 2kg BFPO limit. Make sure you follow their BFPO address guidelines. 

This website has advice on the best digital TV products www.ricability-digitaltv.org.uk

Is DTT everywhere in Afghanistan?

DTT is available at Kandahar Airfield, Camp Bastion, Lashkar Gar and Gereshk. At smaller FBs there is more likely to be a communal TV fed directly from a satellite dish. Further forward at small patrol bases there may be no TV at all. Elsewhere in Afghanistan, reception is via cable or DTH. There's a cable system in Camp Souter, so you plug your own TV into the socket in your accommodation. Elsewhere in Kabul it's DTH to communal TVs. 

For more information on the sort of kit you need to take, click here.

What if there's a problem?

You can report a problem with TV reception here