Amazing footage from an Apache recently released. Notice the concern for collateral damage…
The last heat signatures are US forces cleaning up after the hit. Notice the second to last Taliban blowing himself up.
– Christian
…and for the Taliban too…
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
poof!
Apache? The circular movement and fire rate not to mention the destruction caused really suggests an AC130 firing its 40mm. An Apache wouldn’t have been able to engage in the style shown.
I agree. . . those shells caused huge damage to come from an Apache. Spectre gunfire seems far more likely.
Most definitely a helicopter. Notice how quickly after you hear the shots you see the impacts. It wouldn’t be that quick with an AC-130.
Yes it is obviously an apache, not an ac-130. The apache’s gun is not a pea shooter, it is a 30mm chain gun. Look how big the rounds are:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/30_mm.jpg
Note the scale as well.
I do think it is lame, and for show, that the pilot bent over backwards regarding collateral damage. The military has to act as though it heart bleeds at the mere thought that someone might get hurt when it kills the bad guys, and I’m sure they do try to avoid it whenever possible, but for the most part I don’t really believe avoiding collateral damage is the overriding goal, especially since we KNOW that we inflict it with those hellfire strikes in afghanistan.
Send this to Fox News, theyd love this.
Great for movie theatres or IMAX to run during those pre movie ads & commercials.
Radical.
Way 2 cool.
Send copies to Gun shows for seeing & to the US House, Senate ASC, White House, Military Channel.com, Natl Archieves.
Loved the Taliban going Poof.
Good shooting.
2 bad Night shoot.
(could a used this in Nam)
It was clearly an Apache. What’s interesting to me, is that the targets seemed to be completely unaware that there was a helo in the area. While not as loud as a UH-1, an Apache is still a very traditional helicopter, and that equates to a fairly pronounced chopper sound reverberating through those canyons. That Apache was not flying particularly high, or far from the target while assessing the situation.
Anyway, the ROF of the gun, combined with the time-to-impact is a sure sign that this was an rotary-wing air strike. The 25mm Bushmaster on the Spooky looks and sounds like the weapon used in the video- but the sight picture would be from a much higher and slower moving perspective. Had the weapon been the 40mm Bofors, the ROF would be noticeably slower, and the time-to-impact much more delayed.
It’s great that an Apache was on-station and had the fuel to conduct the strike- but a couple 500lb GBU-38s fused for air-burst would have been the best way to start the party. Several GBU-39′s and/or Viperstrike might have been equally effective. Unfortunately, all these weapons require delivery by a fixed wing asset.
It would be really nice to be able to hit big and precise on an area target such as this, and still be able to mop up with a cannon. I think we need a new COIN asset to get on-scene quickly, loiter as needed, deliver heavy ordinance when/if needed, and still have the ability to clean up with a turreted cannon. We need a V/TOL gunship- how friggin’ hard can that be to implement?
Wasn’t “Puff” !!!!!