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Nap-of-the-earth Flight
Nap-of-the-earth (NOE) is a type of very low-altitude flight course used by military aircraft to avoid enemy detection and attack in a high-threat environment. Other, mostly older terms include "contour flying", "ground-hugging", "terrain masking", "flying under the radar" and "hedgehopping". During NOE flight, geographical features are used as cover, exploiting valleys and folds in the terrain by flying in, rather than over, them. This keeps the aircraft below enemy air defence radar coverage, avoiding being silhouetted against the sky. Purpose NOE is used to minimize detection by hostile aircraft, airborne early warning and control surveillance and control systems, ground-based radar, or attack targets. A high-flying aircraft can be detected by defense systems at long range, giving an air defense system time to react, alerting surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft systems and fighter aircraft. Using NOE flight, the approach may be undetected; the aircraft "pops up" to at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
OH-58D Kiowa Treetop
The Bell OH-58 Kiowa is a family of single-engine single-Helicopter rotor, rotor military helicopters used for observation, utility, and direct fire support. It was produced by the American manufacturer Bell Helicopter and is closely related to the Bell 206, Model 206A JetRanger civilian helicopter. The OH-58 was originally developed during the early 1960s as the ''D-250'' for the Light Observation Helicopter (LOH). While the rival Hughes OH-6 Cayuse was picked over Bell's submission in May 1965, the company refined its design to create the Model 206A, a variant of which it successfully submitted to the reopened LOH competition two years later. The initial model, designated by the service as the ''OH-58A'', was introduced in May 1969. Successive models followed, often with uprated engines, enhanced protection systems, and other improvements, culminating in the ''OH-58F''. Additional improvements, such as the ''OH-58X'', were proposed but not pursued. During the 1970s, the US A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
