Posted on 05/06/2011 8:13:52 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Osama bin Laden dead: hi-tech secret may end up in China
There are growing fears that top-secret stealth technology taken from the helicopter that crashed during the raid on the home of Osama bin Laden could be smuggled into China and cause a diplomatic row.
By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent 05 May 2011
It has become clear that US special forces used a previously unseen stealth helicopter for the mission in order to evade Pakistani radar or being heard on the final approach to the home of the al-Qaeda terrorist.
The American troops used thermite grenades to destroy the helicopter’s main body but its rear section was left intact and taken away by the Pakistani military soon after the night raid on Monday. It is feared that if Islamabad refuses a request from Washington for the return of the tail section that the issue could turn into a diplomatic rift.
Relations are already fraught after the Seal Team Six raid entered Pakistan airspace apparently without permission and after the government was accused in some quarters of “harbouring” bin Laden.
It is believed that US Special Operations Command decided to give the operation the greatest chance of surprise by using the untested helicopters, probably modified Blackhawks.
Neighbours have said they did not hear the helicopters until they were directly overhead at 1am.
It is likely that the operation was launched from a special forces base inside the Afghanistan border. Their destination, Abbottabad, would have been at the limit of their range, although Blackhawks can be refuelled mid-flight.
One of the aircraft crashed during the raid after it is thought the engines developed a
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
As soon as I saw the paki convoy drive off with it I knew it was headed for China.
“untested helicopters”
“hard landing” was very nearly a monumental CF.
But some folks still say that the US-Paki relationship is all important and u need keep sending them F-16s.
I wish we could just make a parking lot out of that hell hole Pakistan. Nothing good for the US seems to come out of that crap hole.
Aww, the Pakis even loaned an F-16 to the Chicoms. How considerate of them.
http://www.southasiaanalysis.org/%5Cpapers2%5Cpaper166.htm
I may be overly confident, but I think our SEALS took out the most important Intel from the chopper, including whatever was crital from the tail.
If there was data that was critical a drone could have taken it out quickly.
JMHO
How can you blame the Chinese for wanting to check out what they’re financing?
Never looked at it that way. Hmmm... good point
I still want to know - if one helo crashed, how did the team + a corpse, get out?
Don’t worry guys, in the onsets of the report, CNN said the seals blew up the chopper after it encountered “mechanical problems” and crushed on the compound leaving nothing to chance. Yes, that was the word in the early reports.
Besides, words in the street had suggested as early as spring of 2010 that them there ChiComs too are fiddling around with something similar therefore this supposedly highly classified chopper probably means nothing to them.
Anyway, the question that keeps popping in my mind is this: how differently is this new and supposedly super chopper from that of an UH-60 or an AH-60 if it is as unreliable, mechanically? Not very my opinion. I find the Black Hawk and the Apache way way cooler than this supposedly new and highly classified chopper.
How would you know that the convoy was not acting on behalf of the Americans and that the destination of this downed chopper is instead covertly heading to the States? Hey! Even with all of this commotion, I can’t believe the Pakis are not [covertly] in on this OBL operation. There’s nothing wrong in requesting that they remain anonymous over fears of reprisals from radicals? As a partner of the US, I can’t believe that Pakistan is not involved in the operation.
If Obama doesn’t make Pakistan give the wreck back, then he needs to take the blame for it.
Hillary, too.
What the hell is wrong with these wimps? I suppose they could care less if their Chinese friends get their hands on it. As it is, GE is setting up in China and busy handing over all our technological secrets anyway.
Plan the op, and then take all the nukes from these stupid goat humpers.
Honestly. Either hit them HARD from the air, even tac nuke - or spend enough lives to get them.
Sooner or later it will bite us in the ass. And when it does, it’s going to cost someone a city.
At least have the decency to create a pretense for India to nuke them back further in the Stone Age.
It is a shame that technology is headed to China.
It was likely pilot error rather than engine problems. Most likely the helo entered a power settling situation, and there wasn’t sufficient altitude to recover. The only option was to nose over and look for a soft spot to crash.
The photos of the tail indicate a high vertical sink rate as would be expected in this situation.
I KNEW IT !!
I, too, am of the opinion that it is likely the most sensitive equipment in the tail of that chopper was destroyed or removed by the SEALS before they ex-filtrated. If the SEALS took the time to blow up the chopper, they likely wouldn’t have left anything behind of any real value.
So.. we still mailing them checks?
That’s true. Even Bubba had the balls to bomb the Chinese embassy in Bosnia (or one of those places there) when the Chinese got a hold of some stealth fighter parts.
As with the new technology fighers, it is the computer avionics that stabalize the bird in flight, e.g., computers and thrust with wind-speed that keep them flying - the actual ability to "fly" has long ago been factored out of the design of the new birds. Imagine a plane that needs power to keep it from spining in circles but at the same time utilizes other angles of pupulsion to force the craft into yet other direction(s). It is complex but once you force the craft into the air and force it to move up/down/forward/backwards you have a high performance A/C platform, whether helo's, jumpjets, or the new fighters.
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