New Multi-Mission Helicopter

[wtmusic]

Friday, Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky Aircraft rolled out the first MH-60R Multi Mission Helicopter.

The new helicopter is equipped with new high tech safety and combat features. NewsChannel 34's Michelle Marsh tells us about the advances and how could they benefit our troops in Iraq.

<>

Meyer says, "This will be helpful in the 'War on Terror' because it has a lot of sensors...."

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/12101938/from/RL.3/

Excuse me if I don't get all hot and bothered about this $30M new piece of garbage which will most certainly be used to aid in our move from boots on the ground to indiscriminate killing from the air...when the sensors are capable of determining whether we belong in the country at all, it will be well worth $30M.

[leveymg]

1. I have a lot of sensors, too. My BS Sensor detects a $30M ripoff

[petronius]

11. Yep - and my sensors are telling me that

"in the neighborhood of 30 million dollars" actually means something like "$60 million apiece and climbing; but - hey! Check out my new yacht!"

[Missy M]

2. All that money being spent on a war that has failed.....

is mind boggling. 12 billion dollars being spent by next year on these helicopters is a crime. We should be spending that money on Katrina and the decaying infrastructure of this country.

[wtmusic]

8. Exactly

What $12B could do right here in the USA.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. The military industrial complex is thriving.

The Generals and Admirals who demanded this new toy are getting ready for their retirement jobs at Lockheed and Sirkorsky as lobbyists.

[bigtree]

4. more money for dealing out death

our troops would benefit from an immediate exit. Anything less is just more killing and getting killed.

[hiro]

5. ....whoa

...and what I have to ask is, "Why? What's a helicopter gonna change?"

I remember back in high school when I found out about the F-22 Raptor, I was still in the mode of "Fighter jet! Cool!"...but one good thing about that time in my life was that I learned the cost of some of these things. Now, that means something different to me.

30 Million dollar helicopter? Yeah right...and probably built with quick, shoddy construction that will first and foremost cause a lot of accidents and take even more lives from among the ranks of this nation's soldiers. And what's more, no matter how "smart" a weapon is, it's still going to cause damage. When you've got a barracks next to a hospital, for instance, there is NO way that you're going to not cause some sort of damage to the hostpital.

The F-22 is even worse...apparently it was 65 million dollars about a decade ago...and now it's probably even more. And I hear that Lockheed isn't making enough money off it, so they're thinking of exporting it. All that much-vaunted "stealth" nonsense that they said was supposed to give us an edge, now being treated as nothing and EXPORTED...like we don't have enough trash on our hands, we have to supply the world with more military trash.

Back to the issue of the helicopter-- just from the name of it, it sounds like another rehashed version of the UH-60 Blackhawk.

Even if you cut ONE F-22 and ONE MH-60 from the budget...that adds up to what, 95 million dollars? Do these people have ANY idea how even that "little" could help this nation?


...Is anyone thinking anymore?

[leveymg]

6. $30M chopper can be taken down with a $400 RPG

As we learned in Somalia. Talk about asymmetrical conflict.

Consider this:

The Helicopter's Grim Future in Modern Combat
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.military.com/NewContent/0,13190,Defensewatch_120303_Helicopter,00.html
DefenseWatch


This article is provided courtesy of DefenseWatch, the official magazine for Soldiers For The Truth (SFTT), a grass-roots educational organization started by a small group of concerned veterans and citizens to inform the public, the Congress, and the media on the decline in readiness of our armed forces. Inspired by the outspoken idealism of retired Colonel David Hackworth, SFTT aims to give our service people, veterans, and retirees a clear voice with the media, Congress, the public and their services.

December 3, 2003



By Ralph Omholt

Despite our rapid defeat of the Iraqi army last spring, one clear lesson that has emerged from both the combat and occupation phases of the war is that the entire concept of helicopter operations in battle is undermined by their extreme vulnerability to ground fire.

SNIP

The Iraqis in 2003 seemed to have adapted a lesson from the Afghani resistance that fought the Soviets more than 20 years ago and was repeated over Mogadishu in 1993: The art of downing a helicopter is a well-known methodology - lure and destroy.

Of particular concern to the helicopter pilot today is the time-tested Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG). They are cheap and effective weapons. "Close" counts with RPGs, given their 4.2-second time-fuse and associated 900-meter burst-range (lacking physical contact), ensures that a volley of RPG firings will be effective against the frailty of a helicopter's main or tail rotor.

Second, the electronic frailty of the modern helicopter leaves an exposed Achilles heel. Packed with "black box" components, wire bundles and sensors, the modern helicopter is at a terrible disadvantage against a machine gun or even an ordinary rifleman's bullet. Beyond the combat scene, the maintenance factor for modern UH-60 or AH-64 helicopters is also a major challenge, compared with the Huey or CH-47 Chinook from the Vietnam era. Given the limited numbers of helicopters, ground time is the greatest expense and also a liability.
A third element of weakness involves the matter of budgetary limits on basic airmanship and training flights. Time and again, the events surrounding the helicopter accidents and combat losses show a distinct pattern of inadequate training in basic flying skills, judgment and tactics. Whether a high-altitude accident or a midair collision, certain truths stand out. There should be no doubt that part of this problem stems from unrealistic expectations by mission planners.
The modern helicopter pilot finds more demand on his/her data management skills than airmanship. The dollar expense of "blade time" additionally detracts from the skill of the pilots, through non-currency and total experience in actual flight.

[newyawker99]

12. Hi hiro!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[acmejack]

7. Think how handy they will be for crowd control in the homeland!

They did say multi-mission, didn't they?

on edit: I'll say it first, they can paint them BLACK too!

[Rex]

9. Perfect for 'domestic surveillance'

over the Iraqi skies! I might eat my own words one day and have to admit to the military being able to control a population by sheer fear and terror. We just might do it.

[FogerRox]

10. Another Blackhawk version, yes.

which is a good troop carrying chopper, but it is not (IIRC) a hi performance air craft. A "hot rod" chopper would be better able to dodge an RPG. NO?



This may be Land Sharks best post ever. If you only read one DU post today, let it be Land Sharks post, here:





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