ak47more powerful than m16
- Thread starter swabjocky
- Start date
Mike Irwin
Staff
I think the Taliban has several of the armored gunship helicopters, and that's about it. Hinds, I believe they're called?
Anyway, if that's the case, NO SMALL ARM is going to bring one of those creatures down.
Anyway, if that's the case, NO SMALL ARM is going to bring one of those creatures down.
Jake 98c/11b
New member
Mike, they have more MI-8 Hip than MI-24 Hind. The Hind is armored but the Hip can carry more ordnance if it is set up that way. The Hip is a general utility helicopter but it is a durable airframe, bigger than our UH-1 but about as versatile. You CAN bring down a Hind with small arms fire but it is almost an academic question, I wouldn't want to try but it is possible and it has happened before, damn tough thing to do I would imagine. Our soldier manuals give targets but it they are small, hard targets.
Destructo6
New member
Didn't you guys every see, "Red Dawn"? Sheesh...
Well, if an AK could do it, why couldn't an AR?
Like Correia said, if they were able to get something airborne, you'd probably hear about a hundred pilots claim dibs on it.
Well, if an AK could do it, why couldn't an AR?
Like Correia said, if they were able to get something airborne, you'd probably hear about a hundred pilots claim dibs on it.
Art Eatman
Staff in Memoriam
Hey, massed full-auto fire can make messes not expected by designers, armor or no. There are always oil lines, for instance, or lots of hickeys in rotor blades. Bearing housings come to mind; even a crack may allow a hydraulic leak. The chopper may not actually go down until far away from the scene of the crime, of course.
In high-elevation mountain country, the shooters might actually be firing down at a chopper, and there's no armor on top, SFAIK.
FWIW, Art
In high-elevation mountain country, the shooters might actually be firing down at a chopper, and there's no armor on top, SFAIK.
FWIW, Art
Nightcrawler
New member
The AH-64 Apache is heavily armored. The rotor blades themselves are designed to withstand several hits of 23mm and not break.
the Mi-24 (NATO "Hind") helicopter is even tougher. It's WINDSHIELD is rated to stop .50BMG, from what I understand, and there are no exposed components that are vulnerable to small arms fire.
In other words, an M16 or a Kalashnikov of any variety isn't going to cut it against a dedicated attack helicopter.
Hueys, Mi-8s, Blackhawks, Bell Jetrangers, Lynxs, etc. are different stories, however. The older ones are made of aluminum, the newer ones are made of aluminum and fiberglass.
the Mi-24 (NATO "Hind") helicopter is even tougher. It's WINDSHIELD is rated to stop .50BMG, from what I understand, and there are no exposed components that are vulnerable to small arms fire.
In other words, an M16 or a Kalashnikov of any variety isn't going to cut it against a dedicated attack helicopter.
Hueys, Mi-8s, Blackhawks, Bell Jetrangers, Lynxs, etc. are different stories, however. The older ones are made of aluminum, the newer ones are made of aluminum and fiberglass.
Abominable No-Man
New member
I'd like to pick up on something that Art said earlier, about
firing down on helicopters from mountains.
I don't remember where I heard this, but I was told some years
ago that when the Russians were still in Afghanistan, the Afghan
rebels used to climb up the hills to get at them from above. But
instead of firing on them from above, they would use long chains
and other things to tangle up the rotor system. That way, they
could cause the helo to crash without firing a shot.
ANM
firing down on helicopters from mountains.
I don't remember where I heard this, but I was told some years
ago that when the Russians were still in Afghanistan, the Afghan
rebels used to climb up the hills to get at them from above. But
instead of firing on them from above, they would use long chains
and other things to tangle up the rotor system. That way, they
could cause the helo to crash without firing a shot.
ANM
Abominable No-Man
New member
I forgot to mention something else. Enough massed small arms
fire could bring down a helo if enough bullets were sucked into
the intakes. This would cause the engine to "FOD out".
ANM
fire could bring down a helo if enough bullets were sucked into
the intakes. This would cause the engine to "FOD out".
ANM
OkieCruffler
New member
RUN AWAY!!!!
I wave my private parts at your auntie!
Nothing can withstand taunting a second time!
I wave my private parts at your auntie!
Nothing can withstand taunting a second time!
You could do a lot smarter things than shoot at a helicopter. Even unarmored ones will take a lot of abuse due to small critical targets within and redundant systems. We puzzled this before.
http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=77268&highlight=helicopter
Yes a M-16 could down a helicopter, but read any good helo pilot's combat accounts and its the crew served stuff that keeps 'em worried.
Further I would assume that any taliban helo has been bombed back into the stone age by now. Some of the airfield overheads showed very efficient destruction of everything sitting on the ramp.
http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=77268&highlight=helicopter
Yes a M-16 could down a helicopter, but read any good helo pilot's combat accounts and its the crew served stuff that keeps 'em worried.
Further I would assume that any taliban helo has been bombed back into the stone age by now. Some of the airfield overheads showed very efficient destruction of everything sitting on the ramp.
K
KilgorII
Guest
The talking heads on the news seem to think that the Taliban can threaten our helicopters with shoulder fired (I believe) "Stinger" missles that we supplied to the Afgans during the Russian "occupation."
I'm sure the higher end helos such as the Apache have systems to avoid this. True?
Kilgorii
I'm sure the higher end helos such as the Apache have systems to avoid this. True?
Kilgorii