Just in Time to save lives? or Just in Time To get the headlines?
- Thread starter Rich Parsons
- Start date
Aw heck, who needs that stuff? A length of aluminium gutter as a launcher, a trip to Walmart for ammo, and an old pickup truck, and you got yourself some mobile art-ill-ery.
Yes, it seems sarcastic, until you realize that if you can get the right height, all you need to do is get some debris of the right type into a jet engine, and you got a good chance of bringing that bird down.
Course, the military stuffs got a few pluses...range, warhead strength, effectivness, less likely to have a yellow smiley guy on it....
I of course am very impressed. Every day thousands of pounds of narcotics get smuggled ashore, and hundreds sneak across our borders. But, after millions of bucks, and months of research, the combined forces of -3- major governments have stopped the importation of -1- surface-to-air missile. Obviously the guys taking delivery never thought of going to a gun show in the mid south.
I say its a headline grabber.
:shrug:
Yes, it seems sarcastic, until you realize that if you can get the right height, all you need to do is get some debris of the right type into a jet engine, and you got a good chance of bringing that bird down.
Course, the military stuffs got a few pluses...range, warhead strength, effectivness, less likely to have a yellow smiley guy on it....
I of course am very impressed. Every day thousands of pounds of narcotics get smuggled ashore, and hundreds sneak across our borders. But, after millions of bucks, and months of research, the combined forces of -3- major governments have stopped the importation of -1- surface-to-air missile. Obviously the guys taking delivery never thought of going to a gun show in the mid south.
I say its a headline grabber.
:shrug:
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pknox
Guest
From what I remember being taught in ROTC, shoulder-fired weapons such as the RPG, Stinger, and Redeye are not able to be picked up by either aircraft-based or land-based radar, and therefore can be especially nasty to defend against. That was a while ago, so I really hope that has changed, but I'm not sure. I do remember that the Stinger is fire-and-forget (we made it, but that doesn't mean there aren't any out there to be fired against us), but I can't remember if the same is true in regards to the RPG or Redeye. If this is the case, you have a weapon that is not easily detectable, does not require a great deal of skill to operate, and is relatively cheap to manufacture. Just what the third world is looking for. Ouch. To make you even more nervous:
http://www.csoonline.com/news/index.cfm?id=1652
http://www.csoonline.com/news/index.cfm?id=1652
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pknox
Guest
Yes. In a helo, you have a very versatile piece of equipment at your disposal, but you also definitely have a double-edged sword to contend with. If you fly high, you are more visible, so you can be seen far enough away to let the AAA folks set up for you, and you are also more susceptible to being attacked by fixed-wing aircraft, which are usually loads faster and more maneuverable then you (and often carry weapons with a longer range as well). If you instead fly low, you can sneak up on the AAA folks, and most of the jets can't come down and get you, but you are now in perfect range for the shoulder-fired missle guys, as well as the riflemen and machine gunners. Definitely not all fun and games. Makes me respect those guys even more, and also makes me very grateful that I'm sitting here at home in my living room.
