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Ukrainian Attack Helicopters Take Turns Hammering Russian Positions at Max Range
Published 2 years ago
Four Ukrainian Mi-8 attack helicopters utilize the canopy technique to extend the range of their rocket pods to their maximum range against Russian positions in an unknown area inside of Ukraine.
We've spoken about the canopy technique at length. This technique is utilized when there is an extreme threat of surface-to-air missiles taking out aircraft. In order to conduct the technique properly, an attack heading is calculated against the maximum range of the weapon systems being fired, and the angle of attack is increased just prior to expending rockets in order to push those weapon systems to their maximum range. The impact area of the rockets, while not precise, will land the munitions in the general area of enemy forces.
Since these rocket pods out-range a majority of surface-to-air threats that currently exist, this is an effective tactic for safeguarding rotary wing aircraft which are especially vulnerable to these threats. While ideally these aircraft would be used in a close air support capacity, their safeguard takes precedence for both Ukrainian and Russian forces at the moment due to the extreme cost of these machines and the training time required to produce replacement pilots should they be killed in a shoot-down.
