The Scotsman By Jerome Starkey in Lashkar Gah HUNDREDS of Scottish troops were consolidating their positions yesterday, following a daring airborne operation to seize a vital piece of territory in Helmand from the Taleban. Around 350 soldiers from the Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, swooped into Babaji, in central Helmand province, on a wave of Chinook helicopters, backed up by Apache gunships, American Black Hawks, Harrier jets and unmanned drones. Officials said they overwhelmed Taleban fighters who tried to defend a series of key bridges into the district, as engineers worked through the night to build a chain of combat outposts for the Afghan security forces.