Smoke laying helo?

[thatguy96]

Originally Posted by PanzerBob

Try and imagine a HIP or a Slick laying 500m of smoke in front of trigger-happy troops.

Bob out

Actually, this was the plan in the dawn of airmobile tactics in the US Army. Helos with smoke gear would lay smoke screens to make by definition vulnerable LZs more isolated from immediate fire. While most of the Russian equipment was for chemical spraying, the majority of the helicopter systems used by the US were intended for operational use in both capacities.

This was the first link I could find using google.

[redcoat2]

Thanks for your replies.

I asked about the HIPs because I was wondering whether (a) many are even equipped to lay smoke and (b) whether they actually lay smoke in practice. When I’ve read Russian articles about the use of heliborne infantry they haven’t mentioned the use of smoke pots for the protection of LZs.

The VSM-1 was originally designed for another ‘wartime’ use - as a mine dispenser. The KDSh-2 is usually deployed with the mine dispensers (PKM and UWZ) used by ground troops (usually engineers). It is a nifty device that creates a screen - visual and infrared – 50 to 80 metres long.

Thanks for the link about the Huey in Vietnam. I haven’t seen a photo of a ‘Smokey’ in action before.