OK, you active military guys, what is this?

Munjibunga · #1 05-05-2011, 12:52 AM

They talked about the helicopters used in the bin Laden raid as having some type of technology to evade Pakistani radar. I have not heard of stealth helicopters. Nor have I seen anything that looks like this in our known arsenal. They sure did a pretty complete job of reducing that chopper to ashes.

Anybody know about this? I haven't even seen these at Groom Lake.

**jmattbassplaya** · #2 05-05-2011, 12:54 AM

These are not the droids you are looking for. I mean, uh....

Munjibunga · #3 05-05-2011, 12:57 AM

OK, it's hit the media. They are heretofore secret stealth helicopters, modified to reduce sound and evade radar.

warwick.hoy · #4 05-05-2011, 01:02 AM

It's a black helicopter. Relinquish your tinfoil hat please.

EdHunter · #5 05-05-2011, 01:07 AM

Comanche?

A helicopter with stealth technology, don't know how much it mathes up to the picture though.

Munjibunga · #6 05-05-2011, 01:14 AM

Well, they're saying it's a modified Blackhawk with stealthy skin, and you can see a funky tail rotor that's partially covered with some kind of disc. China is sure to get their hands on pieces of it. The rear of the fuselage is definitely a different shape than that picture, and it's got control surfaces attached to the rear fuselage.

Hawaii Islander · #7 05-05-2011, 01:15 AM

It is a remote operated stealth STOL aircraft for short alien psyops agents.

Edit: Minus the short alien psyops agents (they're still classified! Shhhh!)

KillerNeuron · #8 05-05-2011, 01:43 AM

I seriously doubt that is a "highly modified" 60. With those kind of mods and money, it's probably a new airframe. New Lockheed project or are their hands already too full with F-35? Definitely not a Comanche or anything even related. They wouldn't be so mum about yet another 60 airframe... Even if they don't want to share the technology they would have placated the general public, although us aviation types want more!

There are a lot of interesting things in those photos, but they did a good job destroying the damn thing and it's super hard to make out any major components. My knowledge base is mostly Apaches since that's what I work on but there's gotta be a hawk guy here that might have some input.

Hawaii Islander · #9 05-05-2011, 01:52 AM

It doesn't look like any Blackhawk that I ever saw. The local Army National Guard unit has a bunch of Blackhawks. The thing in the pic is too small to be a conventional piloted helicopter. I'll stick with the remote operated vehicle hypothesis for now (minus the short aliens of course).

MJ5150 · #10 05-05-2011, 02:23 AM

Maybe an AirWolf clone?

-Mike

Munjibunga · #11 05-05-2011, 02:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hawaii Islander

It doesn't look like any Blackhawk that I ever saw. The local Army National Guard unit has a bunch of Blackhawks. The thing in the pic is too small to be a conventional piloted helicopter. I'll stick with the remote operated vehicle hypothesis for now (minus the short aliens of course).

So you're saying the troops were transported in an aircraft piloted remotely? I doubt it. But I wouldn't be surprised if it's a completely new airframe. That's just the tail you're looking at in the picture. The rest was reduced to debris.

Munjibunga · #12 05-05-2011, 02:26 AM

Remember, the first time we saw the F-117 was when it was deployed against Manuel Noriega in Panama. You know the military has lots of stuff we don't know about. This is probably one of them.

Hawaii Islander · #13 05-05-2011, 04:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

So you're saying the troops were transported in an aircraft piloted remotely? I doubt it. But I wouldn't be surprised if it's a completely new airframe. That's just the tail you're looking at in the picture. The rest was reduced to debris.

Nope. That thing in the picture could carry you, your bass and maybe a combo amp, but that's about it. It didn't carry troops (hence the short aliens comment made previously). My guess, is it had video gear (day/night), infrared detection systems, communications gear and/or communications jamming equipment (or any combination of items listed). Definitely not a troop transport.

Edit: Even if that section is just the tail, how did they extract the team that was supposedly transported in it? Why would they destroy a damaged blackhawk to that extent? A fancy hightech command and control communications/jamming drone or lightly manned helicopter of that type would have sensitive gear that needed to be disabled/destroyed.

i_got_a_mohawk · #14 05-05-2011, 04:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hawaii Islander

Nope. That thing in the picture could carry you, your bass and maybe a combo amp, but that's about it. It didn't carry troops (hence the short aliens comment made previously). My guess, is it had video gear (day/night), infrared detection systems, communications gear and/or communications jamming equipment (or any combination of items listed). Definitely not a troop transport.

So is the bit in the picture meant to be the body of some helicopter?

I thought it was only the tail/rear blades? (Which would make the actual heli big enough to be a troop transport of some variety).

However, being a small surveillance job would explain the ease with which they 'self destructed' it.

Jim Nazium · #15 05-05-2011, 04:54 AM

Here's a pic of a "stock" SH-60 Seahawk. The pic from the Bin Laden compound looks to me like the tail section with a modified rotor. I assume the rest of the helicopter is on the other side of the wall.

Relic · #16 05-05-2011, 05:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim Nazium

Here's a pic of a "stock" SH-60 Seahawk. The pic from the Bin Laden compound looks to me like the tail section with a modified rotor. I assume the rest of the helicopter is on the other side of the wall.

hmmm..I dont think it's a seahawk or blackhawk.
The rear stabilizers on it are swept back.?? And seem to be set within the body of the vertical stabilizer and not towards the back of it.
It could just be that it was misshapen by the explosion but if not....why would you need the rear stabilizers swept back?? Unless this thing was built to be fast I guess? If that's the case, I go with a remotely piloted thing.
I'd bet $1000 that the Chinese are all over this thing right now.

EDIT - ABC News article on it:

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/top-se...ry?id=13530693

DigMe · #17 05-05-2011, 06:53 AM

Hawaii islander,

That's the tail rotor only. They were able to extract the extra guys because the US Military knows that two is one and one is none. Always have backup.

bc

Darth Handsome · #18 05-05-2011, 07:09 AM

Blue Thunder in Whisper Mode.

**Horny Toad** · #19 05-05-2011, 07:18 AM

Some discussion here:

http://defensetech.org/2011/05/04/se...60/#more-12757

And here:

David Cenciotti's weblog

Munjibunga · #20 05-06-2011, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hawaii Islander

Nope. That thing in the picture could carry you, your bass and maybe a combo amp, but that's about it. It didn't carry troops (hence the short aliens comment made previously). My guess, is it had video gear (day/night), infrared detection systems, communications gear and/or communications jamming equipment (or any combination of items listed). Definitely not a troop transport.

Edit: Even if that section is just the tail, how did they extract the team that was supposedly transported in it? Why would they destroy a damaged blackhawk to that extent? A fancy hightech command and control communications/jamming drone or lightly manned helicopter of that type would have sensitive gear that needed to be disabled/destroyed.

Check the media. It's the tail. There were other helicopters for the extraction. They destroyed the main fuselage, but didn't get the tail. They destroyed it to reduce the technology loss. From the pictures of the debis left from the main fuselage, it looks like the electronics and avionics are history, but the stealthy surface materials are probably already in the hands of the Chinese.

From the shape of the piece, it's clear that the profile of the fuselage has been changed significantly for stealth. The military is not going to tell you about an altogether new helicopter if they can pawn it off as a "modified Blackhawk." I mean, Blackhawk, my butt.