What would you do? Tactics....

[gav88888]

Hi,

Just interested to see how someone would handle this situation.

Your flying along at 130 or so with the controls all trimmed out and your looking around for enemy targets whilst on route to your next waypoint, then you spot 2 enemy vehicles approx 6km in front of you, they are on the outskirts of a forest so you didn't see them previously...

Do you try to slow down quickly to a hover to take them out, do you bank left or right and get some distance first, or do you keep going but slow down a bit, or something else?

Thanks

 

[Devrim]

At that speed, I'd break left and go low immediately, and fly away from the vehicles until a safe distance with hoping no "Missile! Missile!" warning, and then you know the rest.

Edited May 16, 2022 by Devrim

[dedlike.]

realy depens how invested i am in the situation atm, if im just flying around to get some kills and dont mindgetting shot down i would slow down and engage,

if i wanna play with a more realistic aproach i would bank away as soon as possible(after having them stored), if i didnt nothice those guys in the treeline up untill now, what else might be out there? so yeh, turn away, bank back in from far away and start a carefull scan of the area, if its safe, then attack

 

saying i like to go by is: biggest threat, is an unknow threat

Edited May 16, 2022 by dedlike.

[S. Low]

53 minutes ago, gav88888 said:

Hi,

Just interested to see how someone would handle this situation.

Your flying along at 130 or so with the controls all trimmed out and your looking around for enemy targets whilst on route to your next waypoint, then you spot 2 enemy vehicles approx 6km in front of you, they are on the outskirts of a forest so you didn't see them previously...

Do you try to slow down quickly to a hover to take them out, do you bank left or right and get some distance first, or do you keep going but slow down a bit, or something else?

Thanks

 

If you’re solo using George up front, just bank and fly away from the targets for a couple clicks then turn around and slow down and approach at a lower speed.

if you had a human CPG you’d want him to store the target first before breaking off 

[Oldahpilot]

There are a lot of factors to consider here.

First and foremost, what is your mission (often called commanders intent) ? 

If you're in transit between waypoints and straight lining at 130Kts, you're probably not flying in territory that intelligence has briefed any enemy activity. If enemy activity was briefed you would be flying as a team and using tactical bounds and much slower and lower to allow team manoeuvring.

Generally in transit to your objective and behind the FEBA you would Avoid....Evade....Threaten....Kill, in that order. The boss won't be too pleased if you get damaged or worse trying to take out an unbriefed low value pop up target. Just report what it is and where it is and carry on with your mission. Apaches are high value assets so roaming around the countryside on the off chance of finding something to shoot is fairly unrealistic in the first place.

[Bunny Clark]

If on my way to the mission area, I'd just fly around them. I may need those missiles for my mission, so why throw them at targets that aren't my mission. If on my way home from a mission and I have spare missiles still on the aircraft, sure, I'd take them out. 

Doesn't seem worth it to slow to a hover for two targets. Slow a bit down to 80 - 100knts, make running passes at both targets, then return to your route. If you've identified and targeted the vehicles already at 6km then go straight in for your first attack, then depending on the threat, peel off and come around for a second run on the other target. 

[Kharrn]

First i wanna expand on@Oldahpilotcomment, who stated it already perfectly:

What is your mission/objective?

If you are not in some kind of S&D or random "free fire zone" mission, the only thing i would do is: Mark (get grid), Report, Evade. 

 

Then IMHO there are another two factors missing in you scenario:

1) Height above ground 

2) Intelligence and Situational Awareness

It makes a big difference if i cruise at 130knots at tree top level or at 2500ft AGL. Can the enemy vehicles reach me with their gun? Am i in range of possible AAA and/or MANPADS?

Which leads to nr 2, Intel and SA: did i expect enemies on my way to the waypoint? where is the FEBA? what type of enemies do i have to expect to encounter? does the enemy have AAA and MANPADS? 

Example: your mission is to fly to the FLOT for a strike on enemy tanks. Your route will lead you along the "border" between 2 friendly batallion operation zones. Those borders are often landmarks. Enemy reconnaissance will try to utilise those "borders" to get behind enemy lines (so behind our "blue" lines). Those two enemy vics could be a two BRDMs recon team just coming out of the forest. This is a high value target.

As you can see there can be a lot to know about to give you good SA.

 

To get back on your question "what would you do":

Gunner, my line of sight, 2 vics forest outskirts, left of a small village (target helper), lase and store.

While i would gently pull up and right/left for a 270° turn. first till 90° and go a little straight and then slowing down the turn while killing speed to say 60-70 knots.

Hopefully the CPG was able to store the vics, but a rough grid is better then none. I would want to reaquire the target area rather quicky flying offset to it and not straight on again.

 

If im closer to the target in the beginning, i would immediately turn 180° and drop low. Get some distance, kill speed and turn on the target area.

Well i am no Pilot IRL so tbh i know <profanity> about real tactics. These are only my (current) ideas for that situation.

K

[durka-durka]

I have nothing to add, just want to thank Gav8888 for bringing up a tactics question in the forum.  

[gav88888]

Appreciate your thoughts guys, its given me some useful tactics and things to think about in these situations.