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Stanford computer scientists have developed an artificial intelligence system that enables robotic helicopters to teach themselves to fly difficult stunts by watching other helicopters perform the same maneuvers. The result is an autonomous helicopter than can perform a complete airshow of complex tricks on its own. The stunts are "by far the most difficult aerobatic maneuvers flown by any computer controlled helicopter," said Andrew Ng, the professor directing the research of graduate students Pieter Abbeel, Adam Coates, Timothy Hunter and Morgan Quigley. The dazzling airshow is an important demonstration of "apprenticeship learning," in which robots learn by observing an expert,...

RIDLEY PARK, Pa.—Two military helicopters were vandalized on the production line at a Boeing factory near Philadelphia, the Defense Department said Thursday as it offered a reward in the case. Federal officials were handing out fliers to workers at the Boeing Rotorcraft Systems plant listing a $5,000 reward in the damaging of the two H-47 Chinook helicopters. "We have determined that this was a deliberate act and not an accident," said Ken Maupin, resident agent in charge of the Philadelphia area office of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, at a news conference outside the plant.

If I told you that improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were the leading cause of U.S. casualties in Iraq, you'd expect the Pentagon would have mounted a major R&D effort to defeat this threat. And you'd be right. If I told you that helicopter crashes and shoot-downs were the leading cause of U.S. casualties in Afghanistan, you'd expect the Pentagon would have mounted a major R&D to defeat that threat as well. But you'd be wrong. Helicopter losses are the No. 1 cause of U.S. casualties in high-altitude, mountainous Afghanistan and the third leading cause in Iraq. Yet Pentagon R&D spending...

Dorset man smuggling parts to Iran, says US By Patrick Sawer A British pensioner is at the centre of a worldwide police hunt after being accused by United States authorities of smuggling military parts to Iran. Brian Woodford, 77, who owns a 17th century manor house and 100-acre estate in Dorset, has been charged in his absence with selling millions of pounds worth of US military and civilian aircraft parts to the Islamic regime in Tehran. His wife Laura was arrested after arriving at San Francisco on a flight from Hong Kong with two catalogues from a Chinese company that...

This is incredible. Mike Huckabee accuses Sean Hannity, who has announced he will vote for Mitt Romney on Tuesday, of being influenced by Bain Capital, which Huckabee says owns Sean's network — Clear Channel. First, the facts. Bain is trying to buy Clear Channel, or parts of it. Clear Channel does own many radio stations. Sean appears on many of their stations, as do many of us. But Sean's syndication partner is ABC Radio Networks, which was recently acquired by Citadel Broadcasting. So, not only does Huckabee get his facts wrong, like most conspiracy kooks, he makes a scurrilous charge...

Venezuela to purchase attack helicopters from Russia The Venezuelan government placed an order with Russian weapons manufacturer Rostvertol for attack helicopters MI-28N. The firm's director Boris Sliusar said it was "premature to talk about deadlines and quantities," because "the agreement is yet to be initialed." However, he said the first units were likely to be delivered in the first half of 2009, news agency Ria Novosti said. Mi-28N choppers -known as "Night Hunter"- are last-generation attack helicopters with a major goal to provide air support to terrestrial troops, regardless of weather conditions. With an outstanding flight speed (186 m/h), it...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq, Dec. 19, 2007 – In today’s world of technologically advanced aviation, Army pilots alone cannot keep AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopters operational without ground crews. An AH-64 Apache Longbow crew chief conducts final pre-flight checks as he prepares a 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, helicopter gunship for a night mission Nov. 24, 2007. The 1-1 ARB Gunfighter air and ground crews work around the clock sustaining air operations, and are part of the Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, from Fort Riley, Kan., flying in support of Task Force Iron, 1st Armored Division,...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The Army is spending $2.6 billion on hundreds of European-designed helicopters for homeland security and disaster relief that turn out to have a crucial flaw: They aren't safe to fly on hot days, according to an internal report obtained by The Associated Press. While the Army scrambles to fix the problem — adding millions to the taxpayer cost — at least one high-ranking lawmaker is calling for the whole deal to be scrapped. During flight tests in Southern California in mild, 80-degree weather, cockpit temperatures in the UH-72A Lakota soared above 104, the point at which the...

Getting military helicopters into the air during a firestorm became a top priority for San Diego County leaders after the 2003 Cedar and Paradise fires. But when winds and flames blew into Southern California last week, the plan the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection had devised fell apart. As two fires raged out of control Oct. 21, at least six military helicopters waited on the ground in San Diego County. Several state and local aircraft were flying, but the military helicopters weren't because of a requirement that “spotters” be on board. It wasn't until the afternoon of Oct....

Pilots Take On California Blazes With Powerful Aircraft By MICHAEL MILSTEIN   Wayne Lannin, a pilot with Helicopter Transport Services Inc., readies for a firefighting flight. (Photo by Michael Milstein)     OTAY MESA, Calif. — On California's border with Mexico, the furnacelike Harris Fire hopscotches ridgetops and cinders anything, including homes, in its path.Helicopter teams from Oregon are the first line of defense, sucking water from a lake and dumping it in air-raid style sweeps at the fire linThese chopper teams lead in this risky kind of work, as successfully navigating forests with choppers derives from logging experience in...

SAN DIEGO – For four years San Diego County Supervisor Ron Roberts has been trying to make sure the red tape didn't keep the military aircraft from jumping into action during the next local disaster. During the 2003 Cedar fire, military aircraft at Miramar Marine Corps airfield sat idle while in full sight of the flames devastating nearby Scripps Ranch. Bureaucratic controversies kept military resources from at first joining the battle against what became the worst fire in state history. Now a full four days after the latest wildfires began, military helicopters will be flying to the rescue, officials announced...

Manufacturer says they were sold for use only in civilian craft. The U.S. State Department is investigating how aircraft engines made near Montreal ended up in attack helicopters in China. The maker, Pratt and Whitney Canada, says it did nothing illegal. It delivered 10 engines to Bejing in 2001 and 2002 on condition they be used only in civilian aircraft. The Liberal government of the day approved the deal, a decision the present Conservative government is supporting. But Washington is not happy. If the engines contain U.S. technology or parts, the company could be hit with big fines for violating...

Army's rocky road to RAH-66 replacement US Army efforts to put funding, freed by its cancellation of the Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche, to good use by purchasing off-the-shelf scout and utility helicopters have not gone entirely smoothly. Development and initial production costs of the Bell ARH-70A Arapaho have risen more than 50% as design changes have forced the armed reconnaissance helicopter further from its modest origins as a derivative of Bell's commercial Model 407. In March, the US Army ordered Bell to stop work on the programme, citing cost and schedule overruns. In May, the service accepted a recovery plan...

Deadly Chinese missile worries India, Israel August 14, 2007 08:45 IST Last Updated: August 14, 2007 09:25 IST India has proposed a collaboration with Israel in developing unmanned combat helicopters for the countries' navies, a media report said. The proposal was put forward by Chief of Naval Staff Sureesh Mehta during talks with Israel's Navy commander Maj Gen DanBashat in New Delhi last week, investigative publication 'DEBKAfile' reported. Mehta estimated that the Indian Navy would need 40-50 helicopters of this kind, the report said, adding the project would be a revolutionary step for the navies of both countries providing them...

PHOENIX — Federal investigators on Saturday began gathering debris from two news helicopters that collided while covering a police chase on live television and crashed, killing all four people aboard. The investigators plan to lay out the wreckage elsewhere to try to determine the point where the two aircraft collided Friday, National Transportation Safety Board investigator Howard Plagens said. "We're just mapping out the locations ... how things are scattered, that's our main focus," he said. Investigators said they'll need at least another day to finish going through the debris, which was sprayed across the ground and landed atop nearby...

News Choppers Collide in Phoenix; 3 Killed Both helicopters belonged to local television news stations and were covering a police pursuit.

Taiwan Chooses Boeing Over Bell In US$1.5 Billion Helicopter Deal July 10, 2007: 06:47 AM EST TAIPEI (AP)--Taiwan's army wants to buy 30 Boeing Co. (BA) Apache attack helicopters from the United States, an official said Tuesday, in a deal that will almost certainly roil rival China. Col. Dai Kuang-chao said the military opted for the Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow over Bell's AH-1Z Cobra because it better suited the army's needs. "This fits our military requirements," Dai said. "The Cobra may be a bit newer but it is still not battle proven." The deal, worth US$1.5 billion, still needs the...

FORT WORTH, Texas, July 9 (UPI) -- A new facility will speed up refurbishing of U.S. Black Hawk helicopters used by the Army in Iraq as well as the National Guard's domestic missions. The opening of the Black Hawk Retrofit Center in Fort Worth, Texas, will enable technicians to work on as many as 10 choppers simultaneously and ramp up the work flow as the Black Hawk racks up flight hours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Texas Aviation Services, which operates the Fort Worth facility, says it expects to get more UH-60 aircraft in shape faster as Army and National Guard...

First VH-71 presidential helicopter flies By Graham Warwick AgustaWestland has flown the first test aircraft built specifically for the Lockheed Martin VH-71 US presidential helicopter programme. The aircraft made a 40min flight on 3 July from the company's facility in Yeovil, UK. Under Increment 1 of the programme, three additional test aircraft will fly by early 2008 and five pilot-production VH-71s will be delivered by October 2009 to meet the urgent requirement for a new presidential helicopter. An improved version of the helicopter with increased performance will be developed for Increment 2. This will have uprated engines, a new transmission,...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/07/03/iraq.pilots.rescued/index.html he story A two-person Apache helicopter crew staged a dramatic rescue Monday, ferrying two of their comrades out of a combat zone south of Baghdad, military officials said Tuesday. The four of them flew away in a two-person Apache, with two in the cockpit and two others clinging to the outside of the chopper. Here is the account from the military, which provided some video of the rescue

The HH-47, the Air Force's choice for a new CSAR helicopter to replace the aging HH-60, has hit an obstacle that could lead to its untimely demise – the fury of a politician. Specifically, the fury of Senator John McCain, whose crusade against the KC-767 has delayed the process of replacing the Air Force's aging KC-135E tankers for over six years. This is a controversy that will delay the entry of a badly needed combat search-and-rescue helicopter – unless McCain succeeds in killing it. Worse, McCain's crusade ignores the fact that the HH-47 not only outclasses the present system in...

4/24/2007 - MOFFETT AIR FIELD, Calif. (AFNEWS) -- Air National Guardsmen here worked with an aircraft that was vastly different from the MC-130P Combat Shadow tankers, HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopters and other Air Force aircraft they are accustomed to. Airmen from the 129th Rescue Wing were deploying to Afghanistan and needed aircraft to transport HH-60G Pave Hawk rescue helicopters. Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom have kept C-17 Globemaster III and C-5 Galaxy aircraft extremely busy, and the high operations tempo of these aircraft led to the scheduling of contracted cargo airlift, said Senior Master Sgt. Anthony Przymus, the...

The two helicopters that crashed in Iraq on Sunday (local time) were British, Defence Secretary Des Browne said. Mr Browne says two troops were killed and one was very seriously injured. He says that the crash appeared to be an accident. The helicopters came down in the early hours of the morning in a rural area south-west of Taji, home to a huge American military base north of Baghdad. "Now that next of kin have been informed, I can confirm that the two helicopters reported this morning as having crashed north of Baghdad earlier today were, in fact, both UK...

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The U.S. military said Sunday it has no reports of a helicopter going down after witnesses reported an Apache had crashed north of Baghdad ... Lt. Col. Josslyn Aberle, a U.S. military spokeswoman, said initial reports did not find that a helicopter had gone down, but she said the military check again to be sure. ...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31, 2007 – Helicopters from Multinational Division Baghdad engaged insurgents preparing to emplace a roadside bomb south of the Iraqi capital today. Elsewhere in Iraq, U.S. and coalition troops found several weapons caches in recent days. Around 11:50 p.m. yesterday, U.S. air assets positively identified four insurgents digging on the shoulder of a road in Mahmudiyah and emplacing an improvised explosive device. Helicopters engaged the four-man insurgent team, killing two. In other news, Iraqi and U.S. troops have found several weapons caches in recent days. Iraqi troops and U.S. soldiers from Multinational Division Baghdad found a large...

Boeing [NYSE: BA] and the U.S. Army recently signed a $1.149 billion contract for the remanufacture of 96 AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopters for the U.S. Army and 30 AH-64Ds for the United Arab Emirates. "Signing this extended Block II contract is significant for many reasons," said David Almond, Boeing Apache Block II program manager. "The firm, fixed-price contract for 126 aircraft brings considerable work to the Mesa, Ariz., Apache production facility as well as to team Apache suppliers around the world." "It also ensures a 'warm' assembly line for the U.S. Army and our international customers as we move forward...

An air raid on a madrassa in Pakistan's remote Bajaur Agency has left scores dead and many injured. "According to our local sources, up to 80 deaths have been confirmed," Pakistan's army spokesman, Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan said, adding that no prominent militant was believed to be in the compound at the time. Pakistani army helicopters are said to have carried out the raid on the village, near the town of Khar, the main centre in the Bajaur tribal region around 5 am. Some sources suggested that the raid had been carried out by NATO aircraft from across the border...

Sikorsky Black Hawk choppers to be made in Poland The PZL Aviation Company in Mielec is to become the production and assembly center for the American Black Hawk helicopter. Story by Slawek Szefs 21.09.06 An agreement on this has just been signed by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation and Poland's Industrial Development Agency, the owner of PZL. The PZL plant in Mielec is one of the most experienced aviation works in Poland. However, ruthless mechanisms of economic transformations and lack of profitable contracts have undermined its financial standings. Now, the ailing company could receive Sikorsky investments to the tune of several...

UPDATE 1-Sikorsky targets buyout of Polish aircraft maker Wed Sep 20, 2006 11:27am ET By Ewa Krukowska WARSAW, Sept 20 (Reuters) - U.S. aircraft maker Sikorsky on Wednesday announced plans to set up a Polish assembly plant for its Black Hawk helicopters with a view eventually to buying out state-owned Polish firm PZL Mielec. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. President Jeffrey Pino said the company, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (UTX.N: Quote, Profile, Research), was considering a "substantial" deal to buy Mielec, but declined to give details. Under a preliminary memorandum signed on Wednesday, Sikorsky will fund Mielec's investment in the...

Brian Steidle's only weapons against mass killing were his pen, paper, and camera. The former Marine captain catalogs what they caught in Darfur, Sudan, with quick-fire urgency: toddlers with their faces smashed in, men castrated and left to bleed to death, charred bodies of villagers locked in huts later burned down. Charged only with monitoring ceasefire violations in the war-wracked region, he soon grew weary of playing spectator to genocide. So after six months, the 28-year-old Mr. Steidle returned to the United States a month ago and launched his own offensive to stop the killing. In mid-March he criss-crossed Washington,...

AL ASAD, Iraq (July 13, 2006) -- The Marine Corps is comprised of Marines from all over the United States, but one particular squadron has 12 percent of its warriors coming from the one place where the towers are tall, the farmlands are vast and the spirits are strong -- New York. The Empire State is home to 16 of the Marines with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463, Marine Aircraft Group 16 (Reinforced), 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. "It was surprising to find out that there are a lot of New Yorkers in the squadron," said Sgt. Michael Walton Jr., ordnance...

In 1956 Kazan Helicopters started exporting internationally and its helicopter products are now operated by customers in more than 80 countries of the world. In total the company has delivered more than 3800 aircraft overseas. Total flying time of helicopters manufactured exceeds an extraordinary 50 million flying hours. Export figures up to 2005 are as follows: South America - 299 Africa - 657 Europe - 859 Asia - 1940 FeedBack: Comments from participants of Afghan War The Mi-17 is easy to control and highly manoeuvrable in flight. It features unparalleled protection and is reliable in operation. I think it has...

LEGAL action might be launched against US suppliers of Australia's troubled Super Seasprite helicopter now grounded with technical problems, the Government said today. The Australian navy bought 11 of the helicopters from US defence contractor Kaman Aerospace for $1 billion in 1997, but the Seasprites have been plagued by technical problems and have never been fully operational. Defence Minister Brendan Nelson said today he had banned the Seasprites from flying because of the latest difficulties, software and technical problems. "I have asked the Department of Defence to consider all options including, if appropriate, legal action against the contractors who have...

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - U.S. helicopter gunships wounded at least three Pakistani laborers in a missile strike against suspected Taliban fighters in the South Waziristan tribal region on Monday, according to security officials. The three were brought to the Pakistani bordertown of Angoor Adda from a nearby mountain where they had been mining for minerals, but another eight men were unaccounted for... Security officials said the attack was launched during the early afternoon on the slopes of a mountain called Khawaja Khizer. Military and government spokesmen could not be immediately contacted, and it was unknown whether the U.S. side had consulted...

The crew at Wings and Rotors Air Museum in Murrieta think it's high time Vietnam veterans get their due. Museum volunteers and military veterans have restored two Vietnam War-vintage helicopters and are working to return an F-4 Phantom jet to the skies. Those helicopters will fly and be on display today and Sunday at the March Field Airfest at March Air Reserve Base. "The Vietnam era is not well-represented at air shows," said Shayne Meder, an Air Force veteran, who paints and restores aircraft and works at Wings and Rotors. "People see World War II airplanes and modern airplanes. But...

Army National Guard helicopters join Marine aviation element Submitted by: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing Story Identification #: 20064642612 Story by Cpl. Jonathan K. Teslevich AL ASAD, Iraq (April 6, 2006) -- Joint operations in the U.S. military are evolving as each service's capabilities are integrated together, forming a partnership to accomplish missions in all operational environments. The ongoing combat operations being conducted by the armed forces in Afghanistan and Iraq reinforce the importance of this wave of change. Riding the wave's crest are the soldiers with the Virginia Army National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment, who officially began operations...

Chavez gets Russian helicopters Chavez is looking to boost Venezuela's armed forces Venezuela has taken delivery of three Russian-built military helicopters - the first of a total of 15 it has so far ordered from Moscow. President Hugo Chavez said they would help to protect Venezuela if the US ever mounted an invasion. Mr Chavez also repeated that he was ready to buy Russian fighter jets. Washington has dismissed claims of a possible invasion as ridiculous and says Mr Chavez's military purchases pose a threat to regional stability. A crowd of Russian and Venezuelan generals and diplomats was treated to...

Hassan Abbasi has a dream -- a helicopter doing an arabesque in cloudy skies to avoid being shot at from the ground. On board are the last of the "fleeing Americans," forced out of the Dar al-Islam (The Abode of Islam) by "the Army of Muhammad." Presented by his friends as "The Dr. Kissinger of Islam," Mr. Abbasi is "professor of strategy" at the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Guard Corps University and, according to Tehran sources, the principal foreign policy voice in President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's new radical administration. For the past several weeks Mr. Abbasi has been addressing crowds of Guard...

Fed chairman says a steep decline in greenback wouldn't necessarily disrupt financial markets. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chronic U.S. trade gap need not fuel a "precipitous" decline in the dollar, but the economy could handle it if it did, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Tuesday. "Although U.S. trade deficits cannot continue to widen forever, these deficits need not engender a precipitous decline in the dollar, nor should such a decline, were it to occur, necessarily disrupt financial markets, production or employment," Bernanke said in a letter to Rep. Brad Sherman, a California Democrat. The letter, which was released by...

eDefense Online notes that EADS subsidiary American Eurocopter received an order from the US Department of Homeland Security Customs and Border Protection for 10 Light Sign Cutter EC120 helicopters. This acquisition is the first order under a DHS contract that could involve as many as 55 helicopters, with a potential total value of up to $75 million. The EADS release explains that their Light Sign Cutter designation refers to the lightweight class of rotary-wing aircraft earmarked for this mission and is a recognition of the expert trackers known as sign cutters. The EC120s have a number of characteristics useful for...

US helicopters in Iraq face menace of 'aerial bombs' By Francis Harris in Washington (Filed: 18/01/2006) American helicopters in Iraq are facing a new threat from so-called aerial bombs, which are fired into the air from the ground and explode close to passing aircraft. The new home-made weapons, known to the Americans as "aerial improvised explosive devices" have been used on numerous occasions. US troops clear up after an unexplained helicopter crash "The enemy is adaptive. They makes changes in the way they fight, they respond to new flying tactics," Brig Edward Sinclair, a US army aviation commander, told Defense...

AL ASAD AIRFIELD, Iraq (Dec. 26, 2005) -- Marines and sailors poured from the back of assault helicopters to a familiar place last week as Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 261 (Reinforced) returned to western Iraq prepared to assist in Operation Iraqi Freedom. For many of the “Raging Bull” aircrew and maintainers, the airfield at Al Asad is quite familiar. Nearly half of the squadron’s Marines operated at the sprawling Iraqi air base for nearly seven months last year. The composite squadron is currently deployed as the aviation combat element of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable). While in...

In the presence of the Chinese Prime Minister, Mr. Wen Jiabao, and the French Prime Minister, Mr. Dominique de Villepin, a cooperation agreement covering the development of a new helicopter, the EC175, was signed by the President of AVIC II, Mr. Zhang Hongbiao, and the President of Eurocopter, Mr. Fabrice Brégier. The signing of the Cooperation Contract concluded a year of intense negotiations to detail and develop the general principles laid down in the Agreement signed in October 2004 during President Chirac's official visit to China. The five-year development phase will be kicked off early in 2006. The new civil...

Representatives from the Marine Corps accepted the first production Block-B MV-22 Osprey for the government in a ceremony at Bell Helicopter in Amarillo, Texas, Dec. 8. “With the progression from Block A into Block B, we see for the first time the baseline configuration that the warfighter will take into combat after we reach IOC – our initial operational capability – in 2007,” said Col. Bill Taylor, program manager for the V-22 Joint Program Office. Marine Corps leadership turned out in force to witness the Osprey production line graduate from turning out aircraft for test and training to supplying operational...

AUSTRALIAN helicopters may be sent to Iraq for the first time to support Diggers as British troops withdraw, the Federal Government has said. Prime Minister John Howard said yesterday it was likely Australian troops' mission in southern Iraq would be extended beyond May. Mr Howard said Japan was keeping its military reconstruction team there for another year and Australian troops would protect them while they stayed. "They will certainly stay to May and could well stay beyond May," he said. "This will depend a great deal on how things unfold, that we will be there for a longer period." Defence...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2005 – Initial reports indicate that hostile fire caused two CH-47 Chinook helicopters to make hard landings Dec. 4 in southern Afghanistan, officials reported today. Officials initially reported Dec. 4 that one heavily damaged helicopter made a hard landing north of Kandahar, wounding five American soldiers. The other Chinook made a hard landing at a forward operating base south of Tarin Kowt, in Uruzgan province, wounding an Afghan National Army soldier, officials noted. The Afghan soldier is in stable condition at a nearby U.S. military treatment facility. The five U.S. soldiers are also reported in stable condition...

MOSCOW, November 28 (RIA Novosti) - Spanish company Helisureste will purchase two fire fighting helicopters from Russia's Kamov producer under a contract signed late last week, the Russian company said Monday. "Considering Helisureste's last contract, the Kamov will supply four Ka-32 helicopters in 2006," the company said. The Spanish company has been operating Ka-32 helicopters since 1995. In 2004 and 2004, the company received four Ka-32 helicopters and has successfully employed them since then to put out fires in Europe, the company said. Helisureste's technical director said the 2005 fire-fighting season proved the Ka-32 helicopters to be the best...

How journalists spread rumors during Katrina.On September 1, 72 hours after Hurricane Katrina ripped through New Orleans, the Associated Press news wire flashed a nightmare of a story: “Katrina Evacuation Halted Amid Gunfire…Shots Are Fired at Military Helicopter.” The article flew across the globe via at least 150 news outlets, from India to Turkey to Spain. Within 24 hours commentators on every major American television news network had helped turn the helicopter sniper image into the disaster’s enduring symbol of dysfunctional urbanites too depraved to be saved. Golfer Tiger Woods spoke for many of us on September 2 when he...

AL QAIM, Iraq (Nov. 24, 2005) -- Marines flying AH-1W Super Cobras, soaring through the skies of Iraq, are growing accustomed to using precision guided ordnance, maximizing the damage to their targets while minimizing collateral damage. Since arriving in western Iraq during September, the Gunfighters of Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 369 have continuously dropped precision guided ordnance on the enemy in support of ongoing operations. The Gunfighters, from Al Qaim, Iraq, dropped their 100th precision-guided AGM-114 Hellfire missile, Nov. 17. “We are destroying target after target in support of ground combat brethren,” said Maj. John Barranco, the officer-in-charge of...

CAMP AL QAIM, Iraq (Nov. 15, 2005) -- It’s the middle of the day at Camp Gannon, Iraq, a small forward operating base on the Syrian border, when mortar rounds begin raining down on the small outpost. In the nearby city of Husaybah, an insurgent is at the window of the top story of a three-story building, calmly placing rounds into a mortar tube, lobbing them at a Marine base. Those observing him would later comment on his apparent comfort while attacking the Marines. He fires a round, calmly fetches another one, fires it and repeats the process. There are...