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Author Topic: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!  (Read 8702 times)

Offline shawn a

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Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« on: May 02, 2011, 10:06:13 AM »
Helicopters can be strategic instruments when used aggresively, as yesterdays events showed.
I assume the birds involved were MH-53s of the special ops variant.
Would there have been AC-130s assisting? How would a -130 get into position without being spotted by radar? Low level ingress?

Offline F-111 C/C

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #1 on: May 03, 2011, 06:56:44 PM »
Not too good when you go in with two and come out with one though and have to destroy what you left behind! :embarassed:
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Offline shawn a

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #2 on: May 03, 2011, 09:05:56 PM »
Yeah, I've heard two reasons for the abandoned bird--Mechanical problem,--and Mechanical problem caused by a hard landing.
I hope nothing too secret was salvaged by the Pakistanis. Seems like they carted away the wreckage first thing.
I also heard there were 4 choppers involved, well, I'll just have to read the book when it comes out!

Offline shawn a

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #3 on: May 04, 2011, 01:24:32 AM »
Just heard Leon Panetta say the choppers involved were "Blackhawks", that makes them some version of MH-60s, not MH-53s.
Still, Good Move!!!!!! whatever machines were used!!

Offline F-111 C/C

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #4 on: May 04, 2011, 07:39:02 AM »
Yeah I heard Blackhawks too (I didn't catch your MH-53 note). I also heard they are the most tricked out, specially modified versions ever, hence the need to completely destroy it before leaving.
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Offline F-111 C/C

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #5 on: May 04, 2011, 07:42:39 AM »
Some more info here:

The Helicopter That Crashed in the Bin Laden Raid Was a Secret Stealth Helicopter
By Clay Dillow Posted 05.03.2011 at 2:19 pm


It’s not uncommon for U.S. military forces to destroy an aircraft downed in a foreign land, but U.S. Special Forces had particular cause to blow up the ill-fated helo that participated in Sunday’s raid on Osama Bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan. Apparently, it was a secret stealth helicopter, the design of which U.S. military commanders would not be keen to share with the Pakistanis or anyone else.

For analysis we turn to Bill Sweetman over at Aviation Week’s Ares blog, who knows much about such things:

It was a secretly developed stealth helicopter, probably a highly modified version of an H-60 Blackhawk. Photos published in the Daily Mail and on the Secret Projects board show that the helicopter's tail features stealth-configured shapes on the boom and tip fairings, swept stabilizers and a "dishpan" cover over a non-standard five-or-six-blade tail rotor. It has a silver-loaded infra-red suppression finish similar to that seen on some V-22s.

The special ops team succeeded in destroying the critical technology, though the tailboom survived (it ended up outside the compound wall). It’s from this that many journalists and defense wonks were trying--with much trouble--to identify the downed aircraft.

But, as Sweetman notes, the images from Pakistan do answer some questions about Sunday’s raid. While we may not get the details on exactly what technologies the modified Blackhawks were packing, we do now have a pretty good idea of why Pakistani air defenses didn’t see them coming.


Wars are won by carrying the 'heavy iron' downtown!

Offline shawn a

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #6 on: May 04, 2011, 09:26:52 AM »
"Vark, did you see any of the photos on TV of The Pakistanis carting away pieces of something all covered with tarps?
That's a bummer to lose such a piece of kit, but I guess it was a small price to pay.
Glad to see we still have some tricks up our sleeves!

Offline F-111 C/C

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #7 on: May 04, 2011, 06:27:45 PM »
Yeah, I did see them hauling off the wreckage and thought the same thing that despite their attempt of demolition there seemed to be a lot left intact. I'm sure there were plenty of 'representatives' from 'non-allied' countries just waiting to pour over it. Too bad.
« Last Edit: May 05, 2011, 12:11:35 AM by F-111 C/C »
Wars are won by carrying the 'heavy iron' downtown!

Offline shawn a

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #8 on: May 04, 2011, 06:32:51 PM »
Yeah-The Pakistanis and the chinese are tight. I'm sure there were "benefits" offered to the Pakistanis to turn over wreckage to the chinese. And they wanted to be trusted with advance knowledge of the raid!

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #9 on: May 05, 2011, 10:52:19 PM »
Well, I'm sure there were "benefits" for them to turn it over to the US.
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Offline shawn a

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #10 on: May 06, 2011, 08:42:50 AM »
Hmmm... good point. Time will tell on this one-maybe.

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Re: Helicopters Prove Their Worth!!
« Reply #11 on: May 15, 2011, 01:43:28 AM »
But yeah, the engineers from PAC will have had a good look at it alrdy before it's returned, so the knowledge may end up in China eventually. I say eventually because Pakistan is not some puppet state, I think they understand very well the value, and love to have something to offer in a future joint venture rather than just turning it over and stay little more than a self-assembling customer.
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