The aircraft carrier is 'THE Boat'.īogey - Unidentified and potentially hostile aircraft.īolt, Bolter - A carrier landing attempt in which the hook fails to engage any of the 4 arresting cables, requiring a 'go-around'īoola-Boola - Radio call made when a pilot shoots down a drone.īoresight - To line up the axis of a gun with its sights, but pilots use the term to describe concentrating on a small detail to the point of causing some detriment to the 'big picture'.īought the Farm – Pilot killed. Aircraft can fly and fight past bingo fuel in combat situations, but at considerable peril.īingo Field - Land-based runway to which carrier aircraft can be used as an alternate.īlue-Water Ops - Carrier flight operations beyond the reach of land bases or bingo fields.īoat - Any Navy ship regardless of size. A reference to the rapid 180-degree Batmobile maneuver in the old 'Batman' television series.īehind the Power Curve - Not keeping up with expectations.īingo ~ Minimum fuel for a safe return to base. Hostile aircraft.īarberpole – Gear unsafe warning or in transit indication – Not up or Downīasement - Hangar deck of the aircraft carrier.īat Decoder - A sheet of paper carried on all fight operations that is the key to current airborne communication codes.īat-turn - A tight, high-G change of heading. The “Meatball” Similar to a PAPI or VASIīandit - Dogfight adversary positively identified as a bad guy. The primary optical landing device on the carrier. He is the author of the graphic novels War Fix, War Is Boringand Machete Squad. This article is being republished due to reader interest.'Back to the Taxpayers' - Where you send a wrecked aircraft.īag Season - Cold weather or water conditions which require the wearing of anti-exposure gear which is very restrictive, uncomfortable and unpopularīall - An amber visual landing aid that the pilot uses to adjust aircaft relative position to a desired final approach glideslope. Those forces could include fixed-wing warplanes, or even enemy helicopters firing air-to-air missiles.ĭavid Axe was a defense editor for the National Interest. The escort role involves AH-1s flying alongside transport helicopters and tiltrotors in order to protect them from enemy forces. Daniel Kelly, an AH-1Z pilot with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 in Okinawa told AIN that the F-35 helps Marine forces to neutralize radar threats, making helicopters more survivable in the aerial escort role. One Marine recently said the AH-1’s air-to-air role could expand, thanks to the introduction of the F-35B stealth fighter.Ĭapt. “In order to be an effective platform, the AH-1 must be flown by aircrew that are knowledgeable and proficient in air combat maneuvers,” Brady wrote. Helicopter ACM training did not resume, although American AH-1s still can carry and fire Sidewinders and also could employ their guns and unguided rockets in the air-to-air role.īut absent specific training, it’s unclear how effective the ‘copters would be as dogfighters. “There must be a renewed emphasis within the Marine Corps and on the importance of conducting realistic training within the AH-1 community.” He argued for the tactical training to resume. Additionally, Iranian AH-1 and Iraqi fixed-wing aircraft engagements also occurred.”īrady noted that until the late 1980s the Marine Corps trained its AH-1 pilots in air-to-air tactics, but halted the practice after deciding that the training strained the helicopters’ airframes.

Unclassified sources report that the Iranian AH-1 pilots achieved a 10:1 kill ratio over the Iraqi helicopter pilots during these engagements.

“During this war, Iranian AH-1Js engaged Iraqi MI-8 Hip and MI-24 Hind helicopters. “The 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War witnessed numerous helicopter air-combat engagements,” Marine major R. And at least one country actually has deployed AH-1s in the air-to-air role during a major war.

Air combat maneuvers training