MAMEWorld Forums - Welcome to the War Room - Military guys, please help me understand

OK, Hizz, I was trying to avoid answering this question just because I don't want to keep living in my military past, but since you have both 1. a unique internet moniker that is also 2. kewl, I will do this solid for you.

I've never been on the ground as a target, so I can only speculate what goes thru their minds... several things explain why the targets are just lollygagging despite what should be an obvious noisy helicopter or airplane overhead...

1. Depending on the scenario and location, helicopters are ever-present, and over time you just accept them as part of the landscape.

2. They often know the "rules of engagement" the basic NATO forces are constrained by, and they know how to not cross THAT line openly while being observed... not realizing that special forces have different rules of engagement, and many of the publicized videos you see come from them.

3. Some of the special forces helicopters are amazingly quiet when in "whisper" mode, having personally more than once hovered over a group of people out in the open and observed them for the better part of an hour without them ever realizing we were there. If they hear anything at all, the sound is effectively dissipated enough to sound as if it is off in the distance, and not a nearby threat. Couple that with night-vision in a new moon, and they have no idea you are basically directly overhead. Landing at a civilian base would no doubt not be in whisper mode. Nothing hollywood doesn't already display routinely in movies and TV.

4. Having fought side-by-side with some of the middle eastern soldiers, one thing that blew me away is their complete lack of concern for getting killed. Their blasé attitude about death, and this is my opinion and observation not a generalization of all people of the region, stems not from bravery per se, but maybe a mix of suicidal tendencies coupled with a sense that they are not in control of their destiny, and if they die it is God's will. I've seen a guy walk slowly across an open hail of gun fire and arrive at the cover on the other side like, "ok, where to now." And I was like "That was stupid, you could have been killed," and all he said was "That would have been God's will, not mine."

4. Many of those targets are used to blending with civilian populations for cover, and assume they are still "blending" not aware that they have been identified as other-than-peaceful.

5. Lastly, just to be balanced, if the target truly isn't an enemy combatant, but the pilot thinks they are, then they would have no reason to fear the "friendly" aircraft overhead until its too late.

Anyway, that's my guess. Does this fit with your observation?

Edited by Gatinho (06/19/12 05:29 AM)