Army Helicopters

The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the U.S military, founded June 14, 1775. The primary mission of the Army today is to support national security by providing necessary ground forces and capabilities. Some of these capabilities consist of advanced computer systems, state of the art weaponry, and superior combat vehicles. The vehicles that are found in the Army’s inventory are very diverse in design and the missions that they are used for. Although, the Army is known for their massive influence during ground warfare, they also perform many aerial operations that impact the mission just as heavily. Many of these aerial operations are performed or supported by the Aviation corp.

Following the transformation and separation of the U.S. Army Air Corp into the U.S. Air Force, the Army was left with a single fixed aviation unit. During the Vietnam and Korean War, there was an increase in aerial operations that were not covered by the Air Force. In order to support ground efforts, the Aviation branch was created April 12, 1983. This new branch influenced the development of innovative mission capable rotary wing aircrafts.

Army helicopters fall into three categories embodied by the functions in which they perform. These functions are assault, transport, and observation. Assault helicopters are used to engage targets and enemies. They usually have a smaller fuselage and can carry more armament. Wings can also be found on some Assault helicopters for additional maneuverability and weapon capacity. Transport helicopters tend to be the larger helicopters, allowing the

of troops, equipment, and vehicles. These helicopters are also used to perform sling-load, and medical evacuation missions. The smallest rotary wing aircrafts in the Army’s inventory are the observation helicopters. The main missions of these helicopters are reconnaissance-based operations.

The AH-47A Apache is the Army’s primary assault helicopter. It was designed to bring...