by DAVID AXE
Helicopter landing zones in Afghanistan are “hotter” than those in Iraq, Marine Corps aviation boss Lieutenant General George Trautman said back in May. How hot? Air Force Times reporter Erik Holmes is at Bagram, in eastern Afghanistan, and described one recent mission by a pair of Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk medevac crews. The aftermath is pictured.
“As the two Pave Hawks landed in a river bed to rescue five seriously wounded Afghan National Army soldiers, they began taking fire from four different positions on the riverbanks. An RPG exploded in mid-air less than 20 meters from one of the helicopters. The American gunners pumped more than 1,100 rounds of machine gun ammo into the enemy positions, and they believe they killed multiple enemy fighters. Two of the guys we talked to said it was the hairiest rescue situation they had ever been in.”
You might recall the Marines designed their V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor without side guns. For Afghanistan, the Marines are adding a belly turret, in addition to the standard ramp gun. The idea is to squirt rounds to keep the Taliban fighters’ heads down while the V-22 unloads.
(Photo: Air Force Times)
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spooky…