Another chopper down in Iraq. 2 dead.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

I particularly like the part where Pace brilliantly states that "..ground fire has been more effective" No shit, General Lapdog.

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2007/02/02/D8N1P4O81.html

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- A U.S. helicopter went down Friday in Iraq for the fourth time in two weeks, killing two soldiers on board, and America's top general acknowledged that its aircraft were increasingly in danger from ground fire. Witnesses and local police said two helicopters were flying together when gunmen opened fire, sending one of the aircraft crashing to the ground, smoke trailing behind it, near Taji, an air base just north of Baghdad.

The military, acknowledging the loss of the Army helicopter in a statement, did not identity the type of aircraft nor say what caused it to go down.

Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Friday that clearly, "ground fire ... has been more effective against our helicopters in the last couple weeks." The comments marked the first time a military official has publicly acknowledged the recent crashes were caused by ground fire.

"I've taken a hard look at that, don't know whether or not this is statistically what's going to happen over time, when you're flying at that level and people are shooting at you, or if this is some kind of new tactics or techniques that we need to adjust to."

Three other helicopters _ two military and one civilian __ have been lost in Iraq since Jan. 20. All three were believed to have been shot down.

[OregonBlue]

1. How many copters have been lost so far? Where are those statistics published?

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. The article goes on to say 54.

From the article:

Since May 2003, the U.S. military has lost 54 helicopters in Iraq, about half of them to hostile fire, according to figures compiled by the Brookings Institution.

[OregonBlue]

7. Wow, our tax dollars at work!!

[Hawkowl]

2. Surge

Surge in casualties. Surge in failure. Surge in bad leadership. Unfortunately, U.S. casulaties are only going to accelerate. Dumbya and his lapdog generals seem determined to outdo the failure of Vietnam.

[PATRICK]

4. Lot more ground fire

in open chaos. When Saddam use his helicopters he used more overwhelming force and more defined targets.
Isuspect our mercenary, diminishing resources in increased chaotic gunfire and less awe mean more losses to come.

It's statistical all right. These aren't surprised wedding parties that are automatically intimidated by a lone chopper.

[The_Casual_Observer]

5. Apparently those guys want their country back from george bush.

Somebody ought to listen!

[Rosemary2205]

6. Isn't the latest story that Iraqi military is shooting us down?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=99654&mesg_id=99654

[TahitiNut]

8. Amazing. I'm quicker than a 4-star General!

It's been clear to me that the 'hostiles' in Iraq have gotten quite good at ground-to-air targeting. I'm pretty damned sure they've gotten some shoulder-mounted weapons and the training to use them. Some arms-traders are making a bundle of moolah in Iraq and Afghanistan.