Interesting Vid: Evolution of Attack Helicopter Concepts of Employment

[[R-MOD]Mongolian_dude]

Originally Posted by Cheditor

Wow good find, very interesting, though maybe i shouldn't be watching this before a general studies exam ^^

Its general studies, Dude.
This could come up!

With a bit of tweaking of the helicopter LZR degs, Im quite sure that similar collaborations would work well in PR between recon and attack choppers.


...mongol...

[[R-DEV]Rhino]

Interesting vid indeed

[[R-DEV]Pride]

Originally Posted by Cheditor

Wow good find, very interesting, though maybe i shouldn't be watching this before a general studies exam ^^

haha, i think i just sat the same exam as you

And its general studies, of course you shouldn't be revising

interesting vid though.

[M.Warren]

Check the video at 7:10

"It learned the most effective employment of the helicopter in low intensity combat was at altitude of 1,200 feet. Where it was least vulnerable to ground fire and it's weapons were most effective."

Conversion Calculator
1,200 feet = 365.76 meters

Before you click the below picture, would you care to do a little test? The picture below is of you inside of an AH-64 Apache on Kashan Desert at 367 meters (as close as you'll get to 365 meters in the above referenced altitude) and you are looking for hostile targets. Interested on giving it a shot?

Alright, here's the rules. After clicking on the picture and it fully renders on your screen you have 5 seconds to find the hostile target within your field of vision... I'll give you a hint. The Apache is already facing in the general direction of the target.

Okay. Are you ready? Click in 3... 2... 1... AH-64 Apache Assault

Did you find the hostile target?

A. Yes? = Congratulations!
B. No? = Click here.

________________________________________

See... This is the issue in PR. Limited sight distances reduce your detection range. If you thought that was difficult, keep in mind that Kashan Desert has one of the largest view distances in PR maps.

The issue here is that sight distance limits the abilities of attack helicopters, this also forces helicopters within the envelope of enemy Anti-Aircraft vehicles. Additionally, the other problem is that helicopters also are vulnerable to fire coming from the ground. Such as tanks, AT rockets and small arms fire.

Check the video at 8:20

"It found that helicopters could routinely evade enemy detection and engagement by flying at altitudes below 15 meters."

Conversion Calculator
15 meters = 49.21 feet

How does this effect us in PR? Well, it's quite simple. Helicopters perform poorly at high speeds as they begin to act more similarly like jet aircraft and you turn the helicopter by rolling the aircraft. Truth is that helicopters require the yaw inputs provided by the rudders which are a critical flight control at such low altitudes.

Yet again, another reason why helicopters are used improperly. Not entirely by the players, but simply moreover that players are at the whim of the limitations imposed in the helicopters in PR. By forced habit, players are not given the amount of agility that a helicopter really should have. So rather than having the proper control to manuver the aircraft, it instead has this tendency to always roll back into the center direction in which it's traveling.

Matter of fact, I remember playing on Combined Arms once. It was to my great relief that such confining controls were removed and the emphasis of skill and use of aircraft abilities had made helicopters truly formidable. Until such restrictions are uplifted, it's a losing uphill battle to use helicopters as they do not have the proper agility they desperately deserve. With that in mind, players still tend to fly overhead with attack helicopters which is directly opposite which is intended; to fly lower and hug the terrain and geography.

[waldo_ii]

M.Warren, the SA-7 wasn't deployed on a large scale during the time of the testing. The research conducted in 1967 cannot be used in today's modern environment, especially in conventional warfare.

The SA-7 was put into service one year after the testing, 1968. Source


(And yes, in my few seconds of examination that was one of the possible threats I saw. I was more worried about the armor column to the right, though. The gunner's optics would have decided whether or not it was a legitimate threat)