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GunHeloPr0nMotivation for the day after Tax Day

By The Armorer on April 16, 2009 | | Comments (8)
An AH-1 helicopter escorts a UH-1Y helicopter while U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Bryan E. Campbell prepares an M2.50 caliber machine gun in support of counter-piracy surveillance operations over the Gulf of Aden, April 6, 2009. Sgt. Anthony Petro, left, accompanied the crew during their flight. Campbell is a crew chief assigned to the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Petro is assigned to the Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Robert C. Medina
An AH-1 helicopter escorts a UH-1Y helicopter while U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Bryan E. Campbell prepares an M2.50 caliber machine gun in support of counter-piracy surveillance operations over the Gulf of Aden, April 6, 2009. Sgt. Anthony Petro, left, accompanied the crew during their flight. Campbell is a crew chief assigned to the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Petro is assigned to the Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Robert C. Medina
 


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8 Comments

By olga on April 16, 2009 9:34 AM
both are awesome :o)  I want both!!
 
By Pogue on April 16, 2009 12:27 PM
That's an odd configuration for that ammo box on that M2.  I'm assuming he's going to lift the retention plate over the top of the box prior to loading.  The way it's set up there looks like it would cause a malfunction in short order.
 
By Casey on April 16, 2009 12:38 PM
I can't help but note that the Marines are still making effective use of "obsolete" aircraft like the Hueys...

 
By BillT on April 16, 2009 12:39 PM
I see they're using the same mod for the Ma Deuce we used on our Nighthawk Hubert -- the external recoil mounts to buffer the vibration that *used* to break the hard points for mounting the gun. We made ours using the front shock absorbers from a Jeep.

And that Whiskey-model is loaded for taking down a Mother Ship, if need be. Hellfires are a bit of overkill for a skiff...
 
By Josh on April 16, 2009 1:31 PM
I can't help but note that the Marines are still making effective use of "obsolete" aircraft like the Hueys...

Air Force, B-52s, C-130s, KC-135s...
 
By olga on April 16, 2009 3:29 PM
Bill,
I noticed that, too... I can only guess that this is a standard load for taking off in the situations like this...
 
By BillT on April 16, 2009 3:58 PM
It's certainly consistent with the ROE, Olga, in that the Hellfire's a point weapon rather than an area one -- meaning the missile hits the point that the laser designates, rather than somewhere in the immediate vicinity. However, in this flight, the Huey's the primary interdiction aircraft and the Cobra's the escort.

Personally, I'd add a 7-shot rocket pod and carry only two Hellfires under each wing in order to cover the space between the max effective range of the gun and the minimum engagement range of the missile -- rockets do that *fast*, and they give you additional flexibility in deterrence. Cheaper than dropping a Hellfire across someone's bow, too.

Of course, that's just speaking from the point of view of the escort and the escorted (cuz I've been both), and not the Area Commander.
 
By Josh on April 16, 2009 10:09 PM
Will the laser designator paint the surface of the water? (assuming you're trying to fire an extremely expensive shot across his bow, rather than hit the vessel itself)

And if so, can rough seas affect that?