Machine Gun fire from Military Helicopters over Florida

I've got it!

This "training excercise" was most likely filmed by all sorts of personnel within the ranks of those involved.
Those videos will be incorporated into the next round of enlistment commercials, to highlight the "New" military.
The backdrop would be worth thousands of potential new recruits, over the sandbox, that contains the current theatres and deployments.

I mean, wouldn't you rather join up to get to see Miami beach, instead of sweating your "insert bodily appendages here" off, in the armpit of the world?

reply to post by Grimpachi


Grim, don’t take it to personal. You have to remember that some here on ATS have served in the various branches in various positions. Some were REMFs (We do need them) and some were hard core (We need them too). Some were by the book guys, and some think outside the box.

And then you have your civilian populace who outnumber us Vets here and only know what they have been told or have read. Some think for themselves and some drink the Kool-Aid.

Remember; perspective is the individual’s reality.

Even though, this was a training exercise, the possibility of things going bad is very real. Apparently not everyone knew of this exercise even though it was published. Prior to this exercise I am sure a Risk Assessment was conducted. (I would love to see that one )

So in short, while I appluad you for your service and keeping civil, and I can actually see your points. We can only project our time in service to what was done during this exercise, based upon our own experiances.

The execution of this exercise was flawed as even the local TV news was caught off guard. They should have been notified. If they were and buried the story in the hopes for ratings, then they should be held culpable.

reply to post by Sly1one


It's really weird that no news outlets are mentioning it. It is something that should be addressed. The page in the miami herald you posted is now 404.

It's funny to me that some of the more ignorant people in this thread are acting like it's no big deal, but it has an effect. I mean, they are flying as if on attack/operation, and firing blanks. This is over a major city so we aren't talking about scaring a couple farmers, but this had potential to cause a major problem, and frighten thousands of people. It could have caused traffic accidents and a stampede of sorts.

So if it's all readl, anyone brushing it off is being completely foolish and doesn't understand what all it could entail.

reply to post by TDawgRex


Definitely there is potential for mass panic and traffic accidents. And for what? What is the purpose except for to give soldiers the feel for operating in American cities and maybe even desensitizing them to the feeling of firing over American cities.

Anyone that can't see how this is concerning is being very naive. You have a chopper crew that has gotten the feel for firing down on a major American city, only one variable to change, and something tells me they are looking for people that wouldn't have a problem with repeating the same operation with that one variable changed.

reply to post by GoOfYFoOt


We used to call MacDill, Tampastan.

Had a Major get assigned there for a year long tour, when I asked him what he did he told me that he made coffee and shredded documents. He was low on the totem pole there.

But he did enjoy the beaches and the weather. War is hell sometimes.

reply to post by GoOfYFoOt


This training exercise was all about getting soldiers used to firing over a major American city. I can't see any other excuse.

They said it's a join op with police (which is weird enough to start asking question) to prepare forces for urban environments overseas. If that doesn't sound like b.s. to you nothing will. First off we have lots of overseas urban environments under our control that are used to this type of thing and are much more similar to the environments they would be working in. Nothing about Miami is similar to what they will be doing overseas. Also I am sure they have recreated similar environments to work in that aren't home to hundreds of thousands of people.

This is just about desensitizing people to helicopters and soldiers for when operations go live, and to desensitize soldiers to the idea of operations in US cities.

Originally posted by Grimpachi
reply to post by roadgravel

 

There is just something about firing an M2 with blanks that makes you laugh. It is fun.

You have no idea the pranks we would pull. Have you ever water ballooned apposition from a helicopter. It’s hard but can be done. Try to remember these are mostly kids that would be in college most of them aren’t much older than 19 or 20 hell they can’t even buy beer yet.


I will admit the older we got the more ballsy we would get with pranks. I lost rank once over one

And here they want to take guns away from responsible gun owners in this country, while we have people who think being irresponsible and scaring innocent civilians with "drills" is funny, and fun.

reply to post by KawRider9


If you can’t tell the difference between live rounds and blanks then you shouldn’t fire at anything. Anyone can hit a stationary target like you were describing but your 308 will not have much of an effect regardless. Someone in the thread said something like that has already happened over a farm but there were no injuries. You guys sure have a lot of what if situations.

If you take it upon yourself to fire on a Blackhawk with a small caliber weapon then wind up in jail for it then it is your stupidity that got you there. Dont blame others for your inexperience or ignorance.

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


I have addressed the desensitizing issue in a previous post. I try to look at this from all angles and perspectives.

The desensitizing thing I can actually see. The Joes on the ground wouldn't even realize that is what they are being used for. To them, it's just another training exercise. The upper echelons though it's another story.

The uptick in the frequency of these types of training exercises though is making me wonder what else is up.

I'm thinking that the Intel coming in is pointing to something big coming down the pike. False Flag or not, still, something big.

Since they often use schools as the training sites...maybe another Breslan, but here in the US?

reply to post by Grimpachi


The danger isn't from people reacting with weapons, it's from people reacting with a flight response and wrecking vehicles, running each other over, and flooding 911 with emergency calls that keep others from receiving help.

It is flat out stupid and someone should lose their job. It is naive to think there isn't a reason, alternative to the official line, as to why they are doing this.

reply to post by TDawgRex


Oh you can bet it was surreal to those soldiers flying through the city and between American buildings and firing down (even blanks). What's scary is if they like it and it was exciting. I bet there were many conversations about how strange it felt.

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


Well, being from Florida, I can attest to the voracity of the Military's presence over and across our state, dating back to the '80's!
I live approximately 60 miles North of MacDill AFB, on the I-75 corridor, and since my High School years, I can remember seeing all sorts of military aircraft in our skies, as well as hundreds of convoys, passing through, over the decades.
It seems that our little town was a waypoint, as most of the F-16's that would fly over us, at only a few thousand feet of altitude, would do a turn and burn, and race off towards a different part of the state! The sounds of a few of these, would occasionally catch you off guard, as their speed would allow them to reach you before their engine roar, did. I remember feeling both awe and pride, whenever their presence was known. Some would complain, but I felt safer, knowing that our armed forces were keeping their skills sharp, and training more to do the same!

I'm not sure how I feel, about the excercise over Miami. One thing is for sure, though. I never heard a M2 sounding off, at any time, during all of those years...

I feel as though those who are laughing this off or shrugging it off as no big deal are the ones who have already been desensitized to it. Which is pretty much exactly what we have been discussing as the MO for this type of mission.

Desensitizing the public to it as well as the soldiers...so the next time this happens we don't question it and show concern but we all laugh about it and think of it all as a good time to pull pranks like shooting blanks over a populated metropolis...

The mentality of some is concerning for me because they seem so desensitized to this all they would be willing to throw a water balloon in my face as a prank when they come to my house to confiscate my guns with a smile on their face...

I'm sorry this may be perceived as "normal" to many but I see it as anything but...

training is normal ya sure I get that, Ive seen and heard training all my life on DoD land...never frightened me always thought it was cool. But when you start doing your drills and training in heavily populated cities I start to scratch my head because I know the risks and to subject a major city to a potential FUBAR situation seems completely unwarranted...

The major concerns were the purpose of the training as it doesn't make sense or seem necessary unless there is a very real and urgent threat regarding heavily populated cities that requires 50cal responses...

Terrorism? I would think they would be much more tactical and on point with surgical strikes than raining 50cals from the sky...

There are very few scenarios in my head that I can think of that a lil-bird spraying 50cal from the sky onto a major city seems like an appropriate response...Miami is NOT Fallujah...

Originally posted by GogoVicMorrow
reply to post by TDawgRex

 

Oh you can bet it was surreal to those soldiers flying through the city and between American buildings and firing down (even blanks). What's scary is if they like it and it was exciting. I bet there were many conversations about how strange it felt.

Oh yea, flying Nap of the Earth is pretty exciting.

But I'm sure that you are right. Those conversations after the exercise are called After Action Reports (AARs) were everything is questioned and dissected. I would love to be able to look at those reports as well.

It would make for some interesting reading.

I wonder if we could put forth a FOIA?

Originally posted by Grimpachi
reply to post by KawRider9

 

You guys sure have a lot of what if situations.

So does the military...and apparently that's why their flying choppers through downtown Miami...

reply to post by TDawgRex


I agree with everything you just said and thanks you never called my honor into question. One of the big problems I had in the military is that I would be brutally honest with higher ups when given the chance to speak my mind. Even though they would ask for it not many were actually ready to hear it. In AARs I would usually tear apart what had been done which probably held me back more than anything.

I am fairly certain this was ANG training with police and after some thought on it I think the police may have been there more to keep the public from over reacting.

Considering on national gun day here I had stray bullets landing on my roof from some idiots in the neighborhood firing into the air in celebration I am not concerned over someone firing blank rounds. Living near NASA I see Blackhawks all the time before launches for over 10 years I think there is a unit that secures the forests in that area before launches at least that is the rumor here.

I do not see soldiers as the enemy I know they are only human and not emotionless drones like others make them out to be. There are many people on here that portray our soldiers in an unfair unrealistic light that will immediately jump to conclusions about anything they hear about them. I try to laugh off those people nowadays and I realize you can’t get through to most of them.

reply to post by Grimpachi


The only hole I can possibly shoot in your previous posts is that these were not ANG/NG/Reserves aircraft. The rest I can and have seen.

They were AH-6/MH-6 Little Birds (though some call them the "Killer Egg"). The only guys I know who fly them in the US Military is the 160th SOAR...aka TF-160.

The were without a doubt in my mind Active Duty. And yes, they do train for as many contingencies as possible.

The frequency of these training exercises though is making my head itch.

reply to post by TDawgRex


From the video in the OP those are OH-58s and a Blackhawk which the ANG unit has here in Florida the video is grainy but that is what they look like to me and my first unite in the Army had them, I had gotten to the point where I could identify them from the Rotor wash miles away.

If there is other video it would be easier to identify.




That footage is from May 08 2012

Watch the video and they state it has been happening since 2011.

Something was fired that left a tracer trail in the air and some flash bangs. Remember there is a SF Guard unite in Florida those guys are pretty squared away I met a few years ago.

In Houston the fire department even dispatched an ambulance and then were told by police it was not real.

Originally posted by roadgravel
In Houston the fire department even dispatched an ambulance and then were told by police it was not real.

begs the question....incompetence or intentional? Surely they would THINK of informing at the very least emergency crews/workers and dispatch of the training...that's kind of a no-duh...which leads me to believe they intentionally kept this from officials and the community...Its hard for me to accept that people setting up and running these drills/exercises are THAT incompetent.