Best Helicopter

What is the best Helicopter?

  • Total voters
    68

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DerAdlerIstGelandet said:
I believe so. It has been used in several movies however. I love that movie though. It is corny and a typical 80s movie, but it has cult status for me.
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I loved it too when it came out.
If you remember it was the first time Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze worked together.
I was 19 at the time and it tapped into the sentiments I felt at the time.
The "evil empire" and all that.

It's being remade for a 2010 release too.
The Chinese and Russians are the "bad guys" this time.
Red Dawn (2010)
I personally don't see it doing that well.
We have a new boogeyman these days.


Wheels
 
DerAdlerIstGelandet said:
No it is not. The MH-60L Direct Action Penetrator (DAP) can also carry passengers as well as armed with up to 16 Hellfire missiles, 2 mini-guns or an assortment of missiles and rockets.
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Never heard of it, so I had to google that one up. Looks interesting, here's what I found after a quick search: MH-60L Direct Action Penetrator (DAP) / AH-60L

As I understood it is used only by one unit - US Army's 160th Special Operation Aviation Regiment - so it can not be compared with widespread use of Mi-24. Also it appears that it can't carry troops and weapons in action simultaneously (or at least it is not recommended to do so) in the same way as Mi-24 is capable of. I find this quote particulary interesting:

In the Direct Action role, the DAP would not normally be used as a primary transport for troops or supplies because of high gross weight limits.
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One could argue that this is not in fact an dedicated attack helicopter (which Mi-24 is), but rather transport helicopter modified for attack role, which could be done more or less with many other types of transport helicopters. But, if one wishes to be exclusive about it then yes MH-60L can carry troops and act as attack helicopter. Something similar was done with Mi-8 during wars in former Yugoslavia I believe.



 
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It is an interesting aircraft. I got to see one of them at the Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker about 20 year ago.


Yes it is only used by one unit the 160th. I have a friend who flies them.

It is a dedicated attack aircraft it can carry troops as well. It was chosen over other more traditional attack aircraft (Cobra and Apache) for use by the 160th. The reason I include it is because it has the equipment and instruments to be a dedicated attack aircraft. For instance I use to crew the Blackhawk (regular utility version of the same aircraft) and we could mount rockets, guns etc to the aircraft, but that would only make it a transport/gunship (similar to what the US Army did with the Huey in Vietnam). We did not have the avionics and equipment to be a dedicated attack aircraft. The DAP does, making it more than just a transport/gunship.
 
OK this might sound perverted, but I just lurve the UH-1 Iroquois/Huey (the single-engined one, not the twin versions, or the longnosed variants). For me, it's the sound and shape - just something about it.

I also love the Hind, the later variants with the exhaust supressors, but not the fixed cannon.

I also love the Ka-52, esp the Erdogan and the HueyCobra and Hog.

- and yes, of course DerAdler, the Blackhawk!

However, I dislike the Apache and Havok.
 
Cheyenne................................
 

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How was the Cheyanne the best Helicopter?

It was only a prototype, was never put into production, was never used outside of test flights, and was passed over by the AH-64 Apache?

Seriously? I can understand if you say it is your favorite, but it certainly was not the best...
 

I already voted once ....just thought someone might not know what it looked liked......not showing any preference.

Derailling/hijacking was an honest mistake
 
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Don't worry you did not derail or hijack anything. I just thought you were saying it is the best, and I was asking why you thought that.

Nothing else...
 
At the risk of being laughed at and though it is not listed, I would put in a vote for the OH-6. It was a wonderful, tough, maneuverable and very crashable little bird loved by its pilots.
 
I certainly agree that it is a great helicopter. I used to fly with someone who had quite a bit of experience with them with the SOAR. He love it. The only reason I would not vote for it as best, is because it was very limited in what it could do. Great fun chopper though!
 
I was surprised the OH-6 wasn't even on the list.
In what way do you consider it limited ?

In it's day we thought it was a pretty great little bird. Small target, very manuverable, great acceleration, it pioneered some great crash survival ideas.
 

It is a pretty great little bird as you call it, but it is limited in payload, armament and capability.
 
eagle, as an "old timer" our first helo in vietnam was the old H-34 kingbee. the pilots, mostly VNAF loved them for that big 32-cylinder engine between them and ground fire. and it was tough. riddled with holes and cylinders blown it still flew home.
being tall you could hover against a steep hill on one wheel and not hit anything with the blades. they were old, filthy, full of holes which the VN mech had cut to get to parts and they leaked pink hydralic fluid constantly. there was at least two cases on board for each flight. the single door left it blind on the left and the mechs had fitted it with an old .30 machine gun hung by bungee cords
 

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It was a light observation helicopter, not intended to carry cargo. But it could airlift another downed OH-6, thank God, we never had to , because that's way into overload, overtorque territory.
Armed with a minigun and a doorgunner, it was far from toothless.
Even with the doors off and the minigun on the side it would still top 110 knots, slicked up with doors and no minigun, you could add 10-15 knots. The only thing faster at the time in the Army's inventory was the Cobra and the Chinook.

It was a far better chopper than the OH-58 the Army tried to replace it with.
 
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this is what we called a "loach" the kid in black is a VC deserter the goodie bag is all the stuff he got from us
 

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That and the OH-23 Hiller was what the OH-6 replaced. They were long gone by the time I got there in 70.
I wonder how the Army come up with those OH numbers. The OH-6 replaced the OH-13 and 23, then it was replaced by the OH-58. Kind of confusing.
I guess i've got a emotional attachment to the Hughes and always considered the OH-6 THE LOACH, but I guess it does have a ancestor.
 
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