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Helicopter Military Operations

Images of military helicopters in flight, emphasizing their roles in humanitarian operations, combat readiness, and air support missions.

A U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E prepares for landing.

A C-5M Super Galaxy assigned to Travis Air Force Base, California, delivers 36 pallets of medical supplies and equipment Aug. 26, 2022, to Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras, as part of the Denton Cargo Program. Joint Task Force-Bravo and the 612th Air Base Squadron support the Denton Cargo Program, which provides much needed supplies to our partners across Central America. Soto Cano Air Base has the only C-5 capable U.S.-operated runway in the region.

An Army UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter brings in Rangers for a demonstration at the 6th Ranger Training Battalions open house event May 7 at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The event was a chance for the public to learn how Rangers train and operate. The event displays showed equipment, weapons, a reptile zoo, face painting and weapon firing among others. The demonstrations showed off hand-to-hand combat, a parachute jump, snake show, and Rangers in action. (U.S. Air Force photo/Samuel King Jr.)

A UH-60 Black Hawk, operated by Soldiers with the Pennsylvania Army National Guards 28th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade, flies near Harrisburg, July 17, 2022.

A U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466 (HMH-466), prepares to conduct flight operations during Balikatan 22 in the Philippines, March 30, 2022. Balikatan is an annual exercise between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and U.S. military designed to strengthen bilateral interoperability, capabilities, trust, and cooperation built over decades of shared experiences. Balikatan, Tagalog for shoulder-to-shoulder, is a longstanding bilateral exercise between the Philippines and the United States highlighting the deep-rooted partnership between both countries. Balikatan 22 is the 37th iteration of the exercise and coincides with the 75th anniversary of U.S.-Philippine security cooperation.

A French Army Puma helicopter landing at RAF Fairford.

An AH-64D Apache” helicopter from the 1-149th Attack-Reconnaissance Battalion, 36th Combat Aviation Brigade, conducts aerial gunnery training at Fort Hood on April 17, 2015. The battalion, commanded by Maj. Scott Nicholas, is based in Houston, Texas and is part of the 36th Infantry Division. While most of the Soldiers are from the Texas Army National Guard, the 1-149th includes a company from the Mississippi Army National Guard. The aircrews fired both 30mm rounds and 2.75-inch rockets during the two-week exercise.

A U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion assigned to Air Combat Element, 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit extracts Royal Marine Commandos assigned to M Company, 42 Commando Royal Marines during a tactical recovery of aircraft and personnel exercise in support of Northern Viking 2022 on Keflavik Airbase, Iceland, April 8, 2022. Northern Viking 22 strengthens interoperability and force readiness between the U.S., Iceland and Allied nations, enabling multi-domain command and control of joint and coalition forces in the defense of Iceland and Sea Lines of Communication in the Greenland, Iceland, United Kingdom (GIUK) gap.

040726-A-1300H-036. Subject Operation/Series: ENDURING FREEDOM Country: Afghanistan (AFG)

DN-SC-85-07787. Base: San Diego State: California (CA) Country: United States Of America (USA)

U.S. Army AH-64D Apache helicopters prepare for takeoff at the Letzlingen Army Training Center, Germany, during Exercise Bora 2011 in preparation for Afghanistan deployment.

Airmen from the 54th Helicopter Squadron, 69th Bomb Squadron and U.S. Army Green Beret Joint Terminal Attack Controllers from Joint Base Lewis McChord, Washington, participate in a group exercise at Minot, North Dakota, Sept. 29, 2022. The exercise involved convoy operations and testing the interoperability of the participating forces.

A photographer aims his camera from the open door of a Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron 11 (HS-11) SH-3H Sea King helicopter. The SH-3H is stationed aboard the aircraft carrier USS AMERICA (CV-66). Country: Mediterranean Sea(MED)

Mi-35M attack helicopter of Kazakhstan Air Force during Exercise Aviadarts 2018.

Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field, Nevada - Two pararescuemen descend from an HH-60 Pave Hawk to rescue a downed pilot during a firepower demonstration.

West Virginia National Guards Company C, 2-104th General Support Aviation Battalion, Aeromedical Evacuation Company (MEDEVAC), received its first of six new HH-60M Mike model Black Hawk helicopters at the Army Aviation Support Facility 1, Wood County Airport (KPKB), Williamstown, West Virginia, April 12, 2022. Built by Sikorsky Aircraft for the US Army, the HH-60M-model is specifically designed to provide aerial medical support and ambulatory patient transport services under difficult weather conditions, during day and night.

A U.S. Marine with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced), 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, pilots an AH-1Z Viper attack helicopter during a towed target exercise on Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan, July 13, 2022. The exercise was conducted to increase proficiency with the weapons systems of the aircraft. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps' only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premier crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region.

041209-M-5607G-014. Base: Starlight Training Site State: California (CA) Country: United States Of America (USA)

U.S. Army pilots from the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade conduct tactical combat maneuvers with UH-60 Black Hawks at Kasarna Manjaca, Dobrnja, Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 17, 2022. Guard members assigned to the State Medical Detachment and 1-169th Aviation Regiment, Maryland Army National Guard, trained alongside active duty Soldiers from the 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, and the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers in tactics, aviation, medical, and non-commissioned officer development. The Maryland National Guard will celebrate 20 years of partnership with the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina through the National Guard Bureaus State Partnership Program next year. (Maryland Army National Guard photo by 1st Lt. Jasmine Mathews).

KUBINKA, RUSSIA - May, 15, 2021: attack helicopters Mil Mi-28, STRIZHI Aerobatic Team 30TH Anniversary Event KUBINKA, RUSSIA - May, 15, 2021: attack helicopters Mil Mi-28, STRIZHI Aerobatic Team 30TH Anniversary Event. Copyright: xZoonar.com/AlexanderxStrelax 18318099

Washington National Guard Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation Regiment (GSAB), sling load retransmitting teams with Charlie Company, 898th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, and their equipment, on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., Feb. 4, 2023. The retrans teams set up long-range, mobile antenna systems at strategic locations.

Aviation Training Center - Mobile Aircrew - Aftermath and Rescue - 26-HK-278-175. Hurricane Katrina

U.S. Marines with Combat Logistics Battalion 31, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, observe a CH-53E Super Stallion with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 262 (Reinforced), 31st MEU, lift a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle off the ground during helicopter support team training at Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, June 29, 2022. The HST enables the setup of an expedient landing zone for aircraft, and are able to secure equipment such as JLTVs for pickup. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps only continuously forward-deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military operations as the premiere crisis response force in the Indo-Pacific region.

WTI 1-22:

2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment "Legion" conducted large scale air assault training with 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade. A total of 130 Soldiers were transported in UH-60M Blackhawk and CH-47F Chinook helicopters from Camp Humphreys to train on reacting to a chemical attack and safely seizing simulated WMD, Feb. 2, 2023.

A CH-53E Super Stallion assigned to Heavy Marine Helicopter Training Unit 302, Marine Corps Station New River, North Carolina, flies over Clearwater, Florida, during a training exercise, Oct. 25, 2022. The CH-53E can carry a 26,000 pound light armored vehicle or 16 tons of cargo for 100 miles. The helicopter is compact enough to deploy on amphibious assault ships and has the armament, speed and agility to qualify as much more than a heavy lifter. (U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Lauren Cobin)

DN-ST-87-06244. Base: Naval Station, Rota Country: Spain (ESP)

Air-to-air left side view of an AH-1S Cobra helicopter following an OH-58C Kiowa helicopter during exercise Gallant Eagle '86. Subject Operation/Series: GALLANT EAGLE '86 State: California (CA) Country: United States Of America (USA)

Royal Navy Black Cat Helicopter Display Team

Two VH-3D "Sea King" helicopters, either of which is known as "Marine One" when the President is aboard, lift off from the Pentagon in suburban Washington, D.C., on March 23, 2015, as the one in the background carries U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, and Afghan CEO Abdullah Abdullah en route to Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland, a series of U.S.-Afghan dialogues about security, regional outreach, and economic transition following U.S. military engagement in Afghanistan since 2001.

An Italian Army AB205A-1 helicopter at Camp Rajlovac in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Super Cobra Expends Flares Preparing to Attack

New Orleans - Louisiana National Guard UH-60 Black Hawks of the 1st Battalion, 244th Aviation Regiment drop Christmas trees into Bayou Savage National Wildlife Refuge to help rebuild the wetlands on Mar. 30. The Christmas trees help to rebuild the missing wetlands that have been washed away over time by breaking waves and collecting silt for new vegetation to take root.

A U.S. Army CH-47F Chinook helicopter from 1-214th General Support Aviation Battalion,12th Combat Aviation Brigade, prepares to land at the Wiesbaden Army Airfield, Germany, Sept. 29, 2022. 12 CAB leaders consolidated on Wiesbaden Army Airfield for the Brigade "Winning Matters" Leader Professional Development (LPD) event. Commanders and First Sergeants participated in an LPD followed by the fiscal year 2023 annual training guidance back briefs and long-range training calendar review. This event will help create shared understanding throughout the unit and ultimately foster predictability for both Soldiers and families.

030329-A-XXXXX-351. Base: Udairi Air Field Country: Kuwait (KWT) Scene Major Command Shown: Northeast

The 1-228 Aviation Regiment Sugar Bears assigned to Joint Task Force-Bravo conduct a multi-ship CH-47 Chinook launch Sept. 15, 2022, as part of a training exercise at Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras. This exercise builds readiness and postures JTF-Bravo to provide the best support to our Central American partners whenever and wherever help is needed.

Marine Corps MV-22 Ospreys with Marine Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 161, Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward), fly over the Arabian Sea Sept. 6, 2012. VMM-161 was transferring their aircraft to VMM-261, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, U.S.S. Iwo Jima.

Photos from Aviation Training Center, Mobile - 26-HK-422-12. Hurricane Katrina

221003-N-OC394-1102 SAN FRANCISCO (Oct. 3, 2022) Local first responders board a UH-1Y Huey during a fly out from the United States Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco in support of San Francisco Fleet Week (SFFW) 2022. SFFW is an opportunity for the American public to meet their Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard teams and experience America's sea services. During Fleet Week, service members participate in various community service events, showcase capabilities and equipment to the community, and enjoy the hospitality of the city and its surrounding areas. (U.S Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd class Aranza Valdez)

DF-ST-85-03827. Subject Operation/Series: BRIGHT STAR '83 Country: Southwest Asia

030907-F-9627P-010. Base: Hurlburt Field State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA) Scene Major Command Shown: AFSOC

U.S. Marines assigned to Combat Logistics Battalion 24, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, and a CH-53E Super Stallion assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 366, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, prepares to conduct an external lift as part of Hide and Seek Exercise on Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, July 27, 2022. Hide and Seek Exercise is a field exercise hosted by 10th Marines, 2nd Marine Division that trains participants on signature management, communication, electronic warfare, cyberspace operations and intelligence collection, processing and dissemination in order to enable future operations in a multi-domain contested environment.

A Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) UH-60JA Black Hawk Helicopter, with the 15thth Helicopter Unit, 15th Brigade, prepares to land on a Forward Arming and Refueling Point during Jungle Warfare Training Exercise 23.1 (JWX) Feb. 16, 2023 on Okinawa, Japan. JWX 23.1 is a large scale field training exercise focused on leveraging the integrated capabilities of joint and allied partners to strengthen all-domains awareness, maneuver, and fires across a distributed maritime environment.

030904-F-2869F-753. Base: Graf Ignatievo Air Base Country: Bulgaria (BGR) Scene Major Command Shown: AMC

U.S. Marines with 3d Battalion, 2d Marines install battle training apparatus systems on a UH-1Y Venom with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron (HMLA) 369 during Exercise Shinka 22.1 at the Combined Arms Training Center, Camp Fuji, Japan, June 11, 2022. Shinka exemplifies a shared commitment to realistic training that produces lethal, ready, and adaptable forces capable of decentralized operations across a wide range of missions, 3/2 is forward-deployed in the Indo-Pacific under 4th Marines, 3d Marine Division as part of the Unit Deployment Program.

A HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter from the 26th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron executes a mission at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, Feb. 5, 2012. The 26th ERQS compliments their traditional personnel recovery mission with medical evacuation operations in Afghanistans Regional Command Southwest.

French Navy AS565 Panther helicopter at Hyeres Naval Base, France.

Left side view of a CH-54 Skycrane helicopter picking up a C-141 Starlifter aircraft fuselage. Base: Charleston Air Force Base State: South Carolina (SC) Country: United States Of America (USA)

221003-N-OC394-1103 SAN FRANCISCO (Oct. 3, 2022) Local first responders board a UH-1Y Huey during a fly out from the United States Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco in support of San Francisco Fleet Week (SFFW) 2022. SFFW is an opportunity for the American public to meet their Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard teams and experience America's sea services. During Fleet Week, service members participate in various community service events, showcase capabilities and equipment to the community, and enjoy the hospitality of the city and its surrounding areas. (U.S Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd class Aranza Valdez)

000701-N-0252D-002. Base: Naval Air Facility, Atsugi Country: Japan (JPN)

DF-ST-86-12077. Country: Colombia (COL)

Bundeswehr helicopter with fire extinguishing tank 5000 litres, during water extraction, Aepfingen, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany, Europe

A CH47F Chinook, from Bravo Co., 2-227th General Support Aviation Battalion, takes off from the Port of Corpus Christi for Fort Hood, Texas.

POLAND-- Soldiers from 1-6 ACS, Task Force Saber conduct scheduled maintenance on an Apache Helicopter. This detailed preventative maintenance service is conducted every 14 days or 25 flight hours to ensure the aircraft is ready to fly.

120207-N-DR144-915ARABIAN SEA (Feb. 7, 2012) An SH-60F Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron (HS) 15 launches from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70). Carl Vinson and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 are deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

050609-F-9712C-147. Base: Taji Country: Iraq (IRQ)

Soldiers from Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 168th Aviation, Alaska National Guard, load UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters onto a C-17 Globemaster Feb. 4, 2021 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, bound for Fort Hood, Texas. Approximately 60 Soldiers from A Company are mobilizing to Fort Hood for eight weeks of training in preparation for a nine-month deployment rotation to Kuwait where they will be supporting Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve.

Aviation Training Center - Mobile Aircrew - Aftermath and Rescue - 26-HK-279-9. Hurricane Katrina

Visit of Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to Pima County, Arizona's border area with Mexico, where he joined U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel for meetings, tours, flights, inspections

A North Dakota Air National Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter drops several one-ton sandbags onto the spillway of the Clausen Springs Dam near Kathryn, N.D., April 15, 2009. The sandbags will help divert water away from an area of the dam that is being eroded by rising water, which also threatens to flood a local creek.

A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter assigned to 2-158 Assault Helicopter Battalion, 16th Combat Aviation Brigade, departs Hillsboro, Ore. on May 20, 2022. The four woman crew was on hand to represent the U.S. Army at the all-woman Oregon International Airshow.

DF-SC-89-11391. Country: Unknown

Romanian Air Force IAR 330 at Campia Turzii Air Base, Romania.

U.S. Marines with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469 refuel an AH-1Z Viper at a forward arming and refueling point prior to conducting aerial dive-fire drills during Resolute Dragon 22 at Yausubetsu Maneuver Area, Hokkaido, Japan, Oct. 7, 2022. Resolute Dragon 22 is an annual bilateral exercise designed to strengthen the defensive capabilities of the U.S.-Japan Alliance by exercising integrated command and control, targeting, combined arms, and maneuver across multiple domains.

970318-M-0364S-001. Subject Operation/Series: SILVER WAKE Base: Tirana Country: Albania (ALB)

Saigon, Vietnam - June 15: Museum of war on June 15, 2011 in Saigon Ho Chi Minh City Saigon, Vietnam - June 15: Museum of war on June 15, 2011 in Saigon Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh is the biggest city in Southern of Vietnam. Copyright: xZoonar.com/ThomasxJahnx 5685184

A second wave of Apaches arrives at Rinas Airport on April 25, 1999, in support of NATO Operation Allied Force. Subject Operation/Series: ALLIED FORCE Base: Rinas State: Tirana Country: Albania (ALB)

A scene of Equipment Park is shown Jan. 11, 2024, at Fort McCoy, Wis. Equipment Park is inside the installations historic Commemorative Area. The Equipment Park is an outdoor display of historic and present-day equipment representative of the types used on the installation. The design of the park allows for display of 70 pieces of equipment, ranging from helicopters and howitzers to trucks and trailers. The Commemorative Area also consists of five World War II-era buildings set aside to help tell Fort McCoys unique story. These facilities are representative of the types found in the cantonment area when it was constructed in 1942.

A U.S. Navy CH-53 Sea Stallion from Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron 14 at Naval Air Station Norfolk, Va., performs an aerial demonstration over the Ohio River in downtown Louisville, Ky., April 23, 2022 as part of the Thunder Over Louisville air show. This years event celebrated the 75th anniversary of the United States Air Force.

Visit of Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to Pima County, Arizona's border area with Mexico, where he joined U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel for meetings, tours, flights, inspections

N-221 NFAC 40x80x120ft wind tunnel aerial with Army UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopter

Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 - 26-HK-334-38. Hurricane Katrina

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