Wow. Interesting Video

Note, not G rated, this is a video from 2010, is violent. But is amazing how high tech war can be. Has language as well, so view at your discretion.

http://www.military.com/video/opera...apaches-engage-taliban-platoon/1741618611001/

 

I saw this very same video a few weeks ago,since them I've watched it about 4 times,watching military video's like this is one of my past times however macabre people think that is:-D

I come away from this video with a strange feeling because it isn't really a war or a fight,it's just finding where the enemy is then exterminating them all.

I also thought about the cost and what it takes to make a war machine like that.

Each Apache cost's 35 million dollars disregarding research and devolopement,parts,maintenance or fuel,they carry eight hellfire missile's per chopper which cost $70,000 each and they fired all eight in that video costing $560,000 and fired all 300 rounds rounds of 30mm ammo cost $2000.

So that one engagement cost about $600,000 including fuel ect.ect.

Roughly a human will earn around $30-40,000 or £15,000 £20,000 per year in the US or UK over about 45 years,1.8 million per lifetime so that's roughly 20 people's entire life's work in that one machine controlled by two men.

To pay for that one engagement someone will have to work for 15 years.:-D

I guess the moral is that modern warfare in very expensive and when you put those kind of resources into a machine that takes life it does it incredibly well.

 

Plus the cost of training the pilot, all the fuel for training, and all the ammo shot on the target range... Is very expensive. And they were helping Special Forces if I am right, so you add in the cost of a regular Army recruit's training, plus the extra those guys had, and it gets even more expensive.

There were at least 2 helicopters in the video. Think of all that times the years we have been in the Middle East, and we are talking about a ton of $.

 

Of course I saw a doco once that said it cost's Two million dollars to train a pilot,that made me think maybe ejector seats and parachutes are a good idea then:confused

But then I thought since the jet they're flying probably cost 50 million if if I were government I'd remove them all and force them to try and land it:-D

 

Sigh. If someone could come up with a workable solution to world peace, I wonder how much of a tax cut it would equal. rolleyes

 

With what we have spent over the last 10 years, would be one heck of a tax cut. I don't see one answer to world peace, as there are so many views, but it would be nice.

 

About the only thing that could cause world peace is an alien first contact, leading us to realise that, as a planet, we are not alone. This would cause such unification that a world government would be established in short order and we would find new people to fight in space.

World peace != no war - what you want is universal peace.

 

I heard a quote recently -

"It is well that war is so terrible -- lest we should grow too fond of it." Robert E. Lee

The biggest success of the western world is sterilising war.

War isn't so horrible any more it's practically come a legitimate way of doing business for example in the whole 11 year invasion of Afghanistan the US and UK casualties number 3113 but during the the taking of Omaha beach on D-day we lost 3,000 men in one day taking one beach,I've heard statistics that quote the death toll of army personnel is actually lower than the number that would be killed in road accidents in civilian life although I have nothing to back that up and won't defend the point.

It's a dangerous situation when war is such an easy thing to contemplate or should I say "The use of force" is such an easy thing to contemplate,the word 'war' puts voters on a downer.:-D

 

Unless of course, the first contact is a laser, or some other alien form of attack.... :-D

 

The saying is "Mess with the best,....."

 

Funny you should mention this just a few days after I watched Mars Attacks! for the first time in years.

Maybe I should download some Slim Whitman songs from Amazon - just in case...:-D

 

The sides were a lot more even then.