Mon, Mar 01, 2010
Move To Complex Combat Helo Would Take The Royal Back To The
Front Lines
The UK Army Air Corps recently indicated that Prince Harry,
now in training to fly the Lynx helo, may be moved to Apache
training based on stellar performance. The Corps use the Lynx
AH7 and AH9 for troop transport and convoy protection while the
AgustaWestland-built Apache AH1 is the primary attack helo.
According to the Corps, the Apache utilizes a Day TV system,
Thermal Imaging sight and Direct View Optics and carries a mix of
weapons including rockets, Hellfire missiles and a 30mm chain
gun. Pilots use a heads-up display to integrate the vast
amount of data generated by the helo.
"The Apache can disorientate a lot of pilots because of its
technical demands" a military source told the UK's Daily Mail. "For
instance the pilot receives his information through a monocle that
covers one eye. You have so much information coming in all
the time, it is very demanding. They are hard work."
The 25-year-old Prince was deployed as a Forward Air Controller
to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, in 2008. The Prince had
previously professed a desire to fly the Apache, but stated he was
concerned over "brain capacity - I don't know if I've got it for
the Apache."
There may have been general agreement with the royal's
self-assessment: he has been in training at Middle Wallop in
Hampshire, England, learning to fly the older Westland Lynx.
According to the Daily Mail, one of the Prince's superiors
stated "Harry has done better on his course than we were expecting
and that is why the Apache is now being considered for him."
Prince Harry was the first member of the British Royal Family to
have served in a war zone since his uncle, Prince Andrew, Duke of
York, flew helicopters during the Falklands War in 1982. His
older brother, Prince William, is in training with the RAF but will
not be allowed in active combat as he is in direct line of
ascension to the throne.
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