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"US troops cause first British casualties"

A US CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter piloted by US troops and carrying eight British Royal Marines has crashed in an "accident". There were no survivors.

This is a tragedy.

Have they forgotten that
(a)Iraq is in the desert
(b)They were there 11 years ago
(c)Helicopter wash kicks up loads of crap at the best of times

Are you trying to say that the Americans don't have enough experience to be able to land a chopper in the desert?

Have you ever tried to land a helicopter in the desert? Have you any idea just how much sand they kick up when they do so? Many, many helicopters were lost in the Gulf War due to pilots being unable to see out of their windshields during landing and taking off, both British and American, and this won't be the last to be lost this time around. To say that it was down to a lack of American pilot competence is just unbelievable. All armed forces suffer accidents - during the Falklands war, someone tried to land a Harrier on top of another Harrier, resulting in the destruction of both aircraft. Was this due to British military incompetence, or just a mistake that was bound to happen when you're trying to land and park 40 aircraft on a football pitch?

Miserableman wrote:
> That's an astonishingly ignorant thing to say, even for you

Well then Einstein, you tell me what caused the helicopter to crash? Collision with pidgeons? Engine clogged with smoke from burning oil wells? Freak tear in the space time continuum causing the chopper to temporarilly enter a dimension with no oxygen, making its engine stall before returning to the real world without enough time to recover?

Insane Bartender wrote:
> Either through insufficient pilot training or poor maintenance of
> their helicopters.


That's an astonishingly ignorant thing to say, even for you

The Americans lost four guys in the crash too. I feel for them, their friends and family, as much as I do for our guys. Overall the level of American technology employed in this theatre of war, is going to prevent more British casulties than it causes. I'd rather have F-14s protecting my aircraft carrier than some crappy Tornados or Harriers. Plus the onslaught of American missles is no doubt eliminating many risks that our ground troops might well have had to face otherwise.

So much for a war which will be "like nothing ever seen before".

"We surrender Americans! We surrender! Please help us"
"Ah..we've just crashed into the sea"
"We surrender!"
"Roger that, and we'll come rescue you just as soon as we can...damn, another chopper just crashed. This goddamn sand"
"But Americans, didnt you realise Iraq was a desert?"
"...ah..."
"But you were here in '91, you know the terrain"
"Shuddup"
"We surrender to you!"
"Ah we're going home. This sucks"

Either through insufficient pilot training or poor maintenance of their helicopters.

The Iraqi troops are surrendering in droves, so as far as casualties are concerned, the allies are probably on the wrong end of the statistics at the moment.

Let us remember the words of Tony Blair "There are always casualties in war, it is unfortunate but unavoidable."