Why are we having so many Helicopter crashes in Iraq?

Question

These Blackhawks are very high tech machines. Is this a matter of driver error..or equipment failure? Are they being shot down or what the heck is going on?

Answer 1

I have been a passenger on a Blackhawk in Iraq on several occasions. Those helicopters fly low and fast. If anything goes wrong there is no time to recover.

Wartime flying is done with razor-thin safety margins. Those helicopters are being flown at the limits of their designs and the pilot's skill.

Answer 2

The Blackhawk is a old. It was selected by the Army back in the Mid- 70's. It won the Army's competition because it was the cheapest replacement for the Bell Huey. And like anything else, you get what you pay for.....
A great example is the B-52 Bomber....cost a heck of a lot of money. Even more then the B-2 Bomber cost, in relative dollars. However, although it is more the fifty years old?, it will be in service for another twenty plus.

Answer 3

Did you know that men in the Army jokingly refer to Blackhawks as "Crashhawks"? Do you watch the news at all? Helicopters crash all of the time, even on our own soil during training. That's not to suggest that it's good or should be accepted as normal, but pay attention to the over-all flight record of these military helicopters.

I don't know what makes helicopters crash so often, other than the media loves to report every failure of the military with a gleam in their eye and doesn't miss an opportunity to make them look incompetent.

Even if they are being 'shot' down, this is a war, and our brave men and women risk their lives in more ways than one when it comes to doing their jobs. We should be proud that they accept this risk to defend us, and show our gratitude.

Answer 4

There are as many answers to this question as there are helicopters in Iraq or elsewhere. War is an especially ugly, yet at times necessary business. I hate to sound cavalier about this, but these events are to be expected. The military does as much as they can with the resources they're given. They are some of the most dedicated people in any walk of life, but they are human. We should, as a nation, praise them and pray for them always, rejoice at their victories and mourn with them their losses.

Disclaimer: I am a veteran of the US Navy & Naval Reserves and current member of the Civil Air Patrol. I have a nephew currently serving as a door gunner on a helicopter in Iraq. It's getting difficult for the family to watch the news of these crashes.

Answer 5

it is just a problem of medialisation of each individual crash. noone in the media cares how many hmvws are blown up, it is th helicopter or preferably airplane that attracts attention to the evening news.
the helicopters are operated in war, haven't you noticed? Plus the omnipresent sand and dust, abbrasion, corrosion, keeping the momentum of operations all these attribute to the high attrition rates of the helicopters. Why aren't they flying something newer? it would be even more expensive.

Me personallz I still would prefer to move along that battlefield in a helicopter rather than in the rhino humvee

btw during the Bosnian crisis our (CZ) peacekeeping(!) asset lost two helicopters - one due to the human error -controlled flight into terrain, another due to the attrition - screwed the tailboom transmission shaft during lift off, lost control of the yaw, crashlanded from 20meters.

accidents happen, these are typical ones for helicopters.

"helicopters don't glide.." b*llsh*t ...the gliding helicopter is the autorotating one.

Answer 6

Rotary wing aircraft have historically been more susceptible to accidents than fixed-wing aircraft. Helicopter crashes have plagued the military in peacetime, too. (see links)

The inherent flight characteristics where power is absolutely necessary for maintaining flight means that if the engine goes, so does the craft - they cannot glide like a plane.

Second, because they typically operate at significantly lower altitudes, there generally is much less time to recover from mechanical failures or poor decisions.

And when at low altitude and high speed you run into a vertical windshear, the craft will plummet precipitously.

Answer 7

Yeah everytime they crash in AZ or CA and kill 17 Marines no one gives a dam.n. Now that it can be used to further a political agenda- Front Page News!
If you had paid attention to previous crash/fatality records for these types, you might see that there is very little difference between training casualties and war casualties- in as far as Helicopters are concerned.

The life of a Soldier/Sailor/Airman is freakin DANGEROUS even without anyone shooting at you.
You "Heat and Sand" theorists have very obviously never deployed to the desert or worked on any type aircraft. Just so's you knows- YOUR FULL OF IT!

Ret. USAF SNCO

Answer 8

Helicopters crash - it's what they do best. Not just in Iraq, either........those are just the ones that count the most right now. Usually when one crashes it only makes the news where it went down or where the pilot lived.

Answer 9

My Opinion is that the Sand has taken its tool on the turbine engines and it was grossly over weight. Under normal conditions the Blackhawk can haul 10 troops plus crew. But the weight had a play in this crash.

Answer 10

Well, my husband was a Marine for 20 years and we lived on a bunch of different bases over the years. When we lived on MCBH, Kaneohe, HI, we lived next door to a helicopter mechanic. He spent most of his time scrounging parts for the OLD helicopters he serviced. I don't know about the blackhawks, but some of the equipment is getting pretty old.