Victory Point - Ed Darack [151]
CH-47 Chinook: With one of the most recognizable profiles of all the world’s helicopters, the twin-rotored Chinook was ideally suited for supporting troops in the mountains of the Kunar province with its powerful engines and thick rotor blades. While other helicopters reach their performance limitations well below the altitudes (as well as summer heat and hence density altitudes) required to fly throughout the Kunar, the Chinook handles such challenges easily—fully loaded.
MH-47 SOA Chinook: The Special Operations Aircraft (SOA) Chinook is a modified (hence the M designation) version of the conventional CH-47 designed for special operations applications. Modifications include: more powerful engines, larger fuel tanks, an in-flight refueling probe, enhanced night/adverse conditions imaging systems, armor, and weapons systems. The state-of-the-art night-vision capability of the MH-47, as well as other navigation and guidance systems, allow the Army Aviators (of the 160th SOAR[A]) to maneuver their craft in even the darkest of nights.
MQ-1 Predator: Capable of multihour loiters over an area of operation /area of interest while sending real-time video feed to ⅔’s combat operations center, the Predator proved to be a vital link in the command-control-imaging chain, particularly during Operation Whalers. Predator imagery was also used extensively to plan both Red Wings and Whalers, identifying possible targets, named areas of interest, and potential egress routes of enemy troops—as well as possible routes of attack for the Marines.
ENEMY WEAPON SYSTEMS
AK-47: The most prolifically manufactured gun in the world, the AK- 47 saw production in a variety of countries including China and Pakistan (from where many of the AKs found in Afghanistan today originated). A gas-operated, magazine-fed weapon, the AK-47 (and its many variants) can be fired either on semiautomatic single shot or fully automatic. Although the AK’s round (7.62 × 39 mm) is larger than that of the M16, its effective range is much shorter, and it is less reliably accurate.
SKS: A 7.62 × 39 mm semiautomatic carbine, originally made in the Soviet Union, but mass produced by other countries, including China and Pakistan. It is not as common as the AK-47.
SVD: The Dragunov Sniper Rifle was produced in the Soviet Union, China, and Iraq. A favorite of the well-trained Chechan snipers, this coveted 7.62 × 54 mm weapon is rare.
RPK: Best described as an AK-47 with a bipod, the RPK also has a longer muzzle than the AK-47, but fires the same type of ammunition (7.62 × 39 mm) and has an effective range of up to one thousand meters.
PK: The favored weapon of Ahmad Shah, the PK medium machine gun is a bipod-mounted, belt-fed machine gun that fires 7.62 × 54 mm rounds. The PK is relatively lightweight, and is fed through metal drums containing anywhere from 100 to 250 rounds.
RPG-7: Initially designed as an unguided, shoulder-launched, antitank weapon utilizing an armor-penetrating shaped charge; al-Qaeda fighters often use the RPG-7 as an integral part of a coordinated ambush with other weapons such as the PK and IED strikes. It has a maximum range of just over nine hundred meters, at which point, if it hasn’t struck a target, the warhead will self-detonate.
PP87 82 mm Mortar: Used frequently in nighttime ambushes of Camp Blessing, this Chinese-made mortar tube can launch a projectile out to 4,660 meters (2.8 miles). Because it breaks down quickly into three pieces, Ahmad Shah’s men used these mortar systems in both Red Wings and Whalers.
Type 63-2 107mm Rocket: A North Korean- and Chinese-manufactured unguided rocket containing eighteen pounds of TNT, the Type 63-2 was designed to be launched in twelve-tube multiple-launch vehicles or on single-tube launchers. Throughout