[MACVSOG68]

This one is "Puff" on steroids, for those of you who know what eureka is talking about!

[eureka!]

"This one is "Puff" on steroids..."

Yes it is. Come back to this thread later as I am sure some pictures/stats will appear. I'd definitely rather be fer us than agin' us....

[seams2me]

"a dragon lives forever, but not so little boys"

[Twodees]

Yep, this one is a huge improvement over the Vietnam era Puff. This one can loiter in one spot and do some serious hosing down, while the old one had to keep going forward. That's the big difference between a helo and a fixed wing as an infantry support weapons platform.

[thucydides]

It is kind of comical to listen to the ignorant media folks try to describe this weapon. Just now on Fox News, we were told the gunship "can fire 1800 rounds per minute." This is actually the rate of fire of one of the two 20mm Gatling gun cannons. It does not mention the 40mm Bofors, nor the 105mm cannon that can fire 6 - 10 high explosive shells per minute. Note that the explosive force of artillery is as much due to projectile velocity as it is to explosive charge. Now realize that the 105mm is firing downward at about a 45 degree angle, in effect, point blank straight line fire at the target. All fire is separately targeted by computers based on radar and infrared, with first round accuracy. This is an unbelievably destructive weapon, far beyond the realization of the media folks, and probably far beyond the realization of the people on the ground.