Afghan forces achieved success in the initial days of the war, taking the British and Indians by surprise in two main thrusts as the Afghan regular army was joined by large numbers of Pashtun tribesmen from both sides of the border. A series of skirmishes then followed as the British and Indians recovered from their initial surprise. As a counterbalance to deficiencies in manpower and morale, the British had a considerable advantage in terms of equipment, possessing machine guns, armoured cars, motor transport, wireless communications and aircraft and it was the latter that would prove decisive.[6]