Army Plans To Scrap Kiowa Helo Fleet

bruno said:

http://www.armytimes.com/article/20131209/NEWS04/312090006/Army-Plans-Scrap-Kiowa-Helo-Fleet

This plan seems like a very shortsighted "fix" to me- I believe that the AH64 is a heck of a lot more expensive to maintain. So yes they will shrink the number of airframes but the benefit will be pretty short lived. The Army has been screwing around with this for so long, with so many false starts that I have to wonder about their requirements. You have to love the politics that go along with any Army decision that impacts the National Guard force structure though. The UH60 is a far more utilitarian airframe for the National Guard- you would think that the States would welcome a conversion of Apache units to Blackhawk units- but they aren't as sexy - hence the howling will commence (see the quote from the Idaho NG.). Never mind that there really isn't a lot of use for a gunship in Idaho unless they are really concerned about Wyoming spilling over their borders, while there are demonstrably always uses for troop/ cargo carriers in its state mission.

Click to expand...

bruno said:

http://www.armytimes.com/article/20131209/NEWS04/312090006/Army-Plans-Scrap-Kiowa-Helo-Fleet

This plan seems like a very shortsighted "fix" to me- I believe that the AH64 is a heck of a lot more expensive to maintain. So yes they will shrink the number of airframes but the benefit will be pretty short lived. The Army has been screwing around with this for so long, with so many false starts that I have to wonder about their requirements. You have to love the politics that go along with any Army decision that impacts the National Guard force structure though. The UH60 is a far more utilitarian airframe for the National Guard- you would think that the States would welcome a conversion of Apache units to Blackhawk units- but they aren't as sexy - hence the howling will commence (see the quote from the Idaho NG.). Never mind that there really isn't a lot of use for a gunship in Idaho unless they are really concerned about Wyoming spilling over their borders, while there are demonstrably always uses for troop/ cargo carriers in its state mission.

Click to expand...

Jcleppe said:

My son just relayed this unwelcome news, he said all the pilots are now wondering what or if they will be flying in the future. I can imagine a lot of Branch transfers in the future as well. What wonderful times.

If they transition to Apache for recon, I certainly hope nobody will need them on quick notice.

Click to expand...