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111-695: During the mid-1960s, United States Army initiated the Advanced Aerial Fire Support System (AAFSS) program to develop the Lockheed AH-56 Cheyenne for the anti-tank gunship role. The U.S. Army pursued the AH-1G HueyCobra as an interim type for the "jungle fighting" role. However the Army's broader concern was the task of protecting Western Europe from the numerous Warsaw Pact tanks to the east. In 1972,

222-518: A 9K38 Igla (SA-18 Grouse) MANPADS; in the published video, the missile severed the tail section from the rest of the helicopter, causing it to spin, fragment in midair and crash, killing the two pilots on board. The Turkish government initially stated that it had descended due to technical failure, though it later became clear that the helicopter had been shot down. Amid the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt , Turkish Cobras were alleged to have fired upon several police vehicles. During April 2022, all of

333-614: A status quo antebellum. Two weeks after a treaty was signed (but not ratified), Andrew Jackson defeated the British in the Battle of New Orleans and siege of Fort St. Philip with an army dominated by militia and volunteers, and became a national hero. U.S. troops and sailors captured HMS Cyane , Levant and Penguin in the final engagements of the war. Per the treaty, both sides (the United States and Great Britain) returned to

444-468: A different engine arrangement. However, the Marines won out; thus, during May 1968, Bell received a contract for 49 twin-engine AH-1J SeaCobras. The AH-1J was also equipped with a more powerful gun turret in the form of the three-barrel 20 mm XM197 cannon, which was based on the six-barrel M61 Vulcan cannon. As an interim measure, the U.S. Army transferred 38 AH-1Gs to the Marines in 1969. During

555-651: A few months. The war remains the deadliest conflict in U.S. history, resulting in the deaths of 620,000 men on both sides. Based on 1860 census figures, 8% of all white males aged 13 to 43 died in the war, including 6.4% in the North and 18% in the South . Following the Civil War, the U.S. Army had the mission of containing western tribes of Native Americans on the Indian reservations . They set up many forts, and engaged in

666-483: A functional area. However, officers continue to wear the branch insignia of their former branch in most cases, as functional areas do not generally have discrete insignia. Some branches, such as Special Forces , operate similarly to functional areas in that individuals may not join their ranks until having served in another Army branch. Careers in the Army can extend into cross-functional areas for officers, warrant officers, enlisted, and civilian personnel. Before 1933,

777-726: A month – known as battle assemblies or unit training assemblies (UTAs) – and conduct two to three weeks of annual training each year. Both the Regular Army and the Army Reserve are organized under Title 10 of the United States Code , while the National Guard is organized under Title 32 . While the Army National Guard is organized, trained, and equipped as a component of the U.S. Army, when it

888-487: A new Army Command (ACOM) in 2018. The Army Futures Command (AFC), is a peer of FORSCOM, TRADOC, and AMC, the other ACOMs. AFC's mission is modernization reform: to design hardware, as well as to work within the acquisition process which defines materiel for AMC. TRADOC's mission is to define the architecture and organization of the Army, and to train and supply soldiers to FORSCOM. AFC's cross-functional teams (CFTs) are Futures Command's vehicle for sustainable reform of

999-568: A new experimental composite four-blade main rotor system. The new configuration offered better performance, reduced noise, and improved battle damage tolerance. Lacking a USMC contract, Bell developed this new design into the AH-1Z with its own funds. By 1996, the Marines were again prevented from ordering the AH-64. Developing a marine version of the Apache would have been expensive and it was likely that

1110-480: A predominantly combat support role. The army converted to an all-volunteer force with greater emphasis on training to specific performance standards driven by the reforms of General William E. DePuy , the first commander of United States Army Training and Doctrine Command . Following the Camp David Accords that was signed by Egypt, Israel that was brokered by president Jimmy Carter in 1978, as part of

1221-618: A role in the invasions of Grenada in 1983 ( Operation Urgent Fury ) and Panama in 1989 ( Operation Just Cause ). By 1989 Germany was nearing reunification and the Cold War was coming to a close. Army leadership reacted by starting to plan for a reduction in strength. By November 1989 Pentagon briefers were laying out plans to reduce army end strength by 23%, from 750,000 to 580,000. A number of incentives such as early retirement were used. In 1990, Iraq invaded its smaller neighbor, Kuwait , and U.S. land forces quickly deployed to assure

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1332-657: A single AH-1T to Iranian anti-aircraft fire. USMC Cobras from Saipan flew "top cover" during an evacuation of U.S. and other foreign citizens from Liberia in 1990. During the Gulf War , 78 Marine SuperCobras were deployed, flying a total of 1,273 sorties in Iraq. While no combat losses were reportedly incurred, three AH-1s were lost to accidents either during and after the combat operations. The AH-1W units were credited with destroying 97 tanks, 104 armored personnel carriers and vehicles, and two anti-aircraft artillery sites during

1443-631: A static test prototype was brought up to flight standard and, along with the second prototype (73-22247), entered the flyoff against the Hughes entry, the Model 77 (YAH-64). The Hughes YAH-64 was selected in December 1976 and was developed into the production AH-64 Apache version. The Army believed that the YAH-63's two-blade rotor was more vulnerable to damage than the Apache's four-bladed rotor. In addition

1554-738: A strategy of seizing the coastline, blockading the ports, and taking control of the river systems. By 1863, the Confederacy was being strangled. Its eastern armies fought well, but the western armies were defeated one after another until the Union forces captured New Orleans in 1862 along with the Tennessee River. In the Vicksburg Campaign of 1862–1863, General Ulysses Grant seized the Mississippi River and cut off

1665-674: A total of two AH-1Ts were shot down and three crew members killed. That same year, Marine AH-1s were also deployed off the coast of Beirut , Lebanon , amid the Lebanese civil war in support of the Multinational Peacekeeping Force. In this theatre, the AH-1s were typically armed with Sidewinder missiles and guns, which were intended to be used as an emergency air defense measure to counter the threat of light civil aircraft being piloted by suicide bombers . During

1776-739: A wingtip station. During October 2020, the last AH-1Ws were phased out of service with the Marine Corps in favor of the AH-1Z. During the closing months of the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War , the Marine Corps embarked the AH-1J SeaCobra assigned to HMA-369 (now HMLA-369) aboard Denver , Cleveland , and later Dubuque , for sea-based interdiction of the Ho Chi Minh Trail in North Vietnam in

1887-533: Is not in federal service it is under the command of individual state and territorial governors. However, the District of Columbia National Guard reports to the U.S. president, not the district's mayor , even when not federalized. Any or all of the National Guard can be federalized by presidential order and against the governor's wishes. The U.S. Army is led by a civilian secretary of the Army , who has

1998-670: Is that each brigade will be modular, i.e., all brigades of the same type will be exactly the same and thus any brigade can be commanded by any division. As specified before the 2013 end-strength re-definitions, the three major types of brigade combat teams are: In addition, there are combat support and service support modular brigades. Combat support brigades include aviation (CAB) brigades, which will come in heavy and light varieties, fires (artillery) brigades (now transforms to division artillery) and expeditionary military intelligence brigades . Combat service support brigades include sustainment brigades and come in several varieties and serve

2109-630: Is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces . It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services , and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution . The Army is the oldest branch of the U.S. military and the most senior in order of precedence. It has its roots in the Continental Army , which was formed on 14 June 1775 to fight against the British for independence during

2220-820: The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). After the Revolutionary War, the Congress of the Confederation created the United States Army on 3 June 1784 to replace the disbanded Continental Army. The United States Army considers itself a continuation of the Continental Army, and thus considers its institutional inception to be the origin of that armed force in 1775. The U.S. Army is a uniformed service of

2331-949: The Army Strategy 2018 articulated an eight-point addendum to the Army Vision for 2028. While the Army Mission remains constant, the Army Strategy builds upon the Army's Brigade Modernization by adding focus to corps and division -level echelons. The Army Futures Command oversees reforms geared toward conventional warfare . The Army's current reorganization plan is due to be completed by 2028. The Army's five core competencies are prompt and sustained land combat, combined arms operations (to include combined arms maneuver and wide–area security, armored and mechanized operations and airborne and air assault operations ), special operations forces , to set and sustain

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2442-537: The Battle of 73 Easting were tank battles of historical significance. After Operation Desert Storm, the army did not see major combat operations for the remainder of the 1990s but did participate in a number of peacekeeping activities. In 1990 the Department of Defense issued guidance for "rebalancing" after a review of the Total Force Policy, but in 2004, USAF Air War College scholars concluded

2553-703: The Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter over a two-week period in September 1981, which included shipboard operation tests. Furthermore, various concepts were studied at this time. However, the service's request for funding to purchase the AH-64 was denied by Congress that same year. As an alternative option, the Marines procured a more powerful version of the AH-1T. Other changes included modified fire control systems to carry and fire AIM-9 Sidewinder and AGM-114 Hellfire missiles. The new version, which

2664-577: The Department of Defense , who were keen to promote commonality across the services, in May 1968, an order for an initial 49 twin-engine AH-1J SeaCobras was issued to Bell. The type entered service during the final months of the US's involvement in the Vietnam War , seeing limited action in the theatre as a result. The USMC promptly sought greater payload capacity than that provided by the original Sea Cobra; thus

2775-606: The Iran–Iraq War —which saw the most intensive use of helicopters in any conventional war. Iranian AH-1Js (particularly the TOW-capable ones) were "exceptionally effective" in anti-armor warfare, inflicting heavy losses on Iraqi armored and vehicle formations. In operations over the barren terrain in Khuzestan and later in southern Iraq, beside the standard tactics, Iranian pilots developed special, effective tactics, often in

2886-563: The MBB Bo 105 and MD 500 helicopters. The requirement resulted in an order for 42 AH-1W SuperCobras being placed during 1992. Deliveries of this batch ran from 1993 to 1997. During 1997, it was announced that an additional 21 AH-1Ws had been ordered. The Ministry of National Defense assigned the helicopters to the ROC Army Aviation Training Centre and a pair of Army Aviation attack helicopter brigades. During

2997-707: The Netherlands and the United Kingdom , until the 1990s in anticipation of a possible Soviet attack. During the Cold War, U.S. troops and their allies fought communist forces in Korea and Vietnam . The Korean War began in June 1950, when the Soviets walked out of a UN Security Council meeting, removing their possible veto. Under a United Nations umbrella, hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops fought to prevent

3108-549: The Sikorsky S-70 Black Hawk . The AAH would be armed with a 30 millimeter cannon and sixteen BGM-71 TOW anti-tank missiles. The missile armament specification was later modified to include an alternate load of sixteen laser-guided AGM-114 Hellfire anti-tank missiles. Hellfire was then in development and promised greater range and lethality than TOW. Bell , Boeing-Vertol (teamed with Grumman ), Hughes , Lockheed , and Sikorsky all submitted proposals for

3219-569: The Vietnam War . The Cobra shared the proven transmission, rotor system, and the Lycoming T53 turboshaft engine of the prolific UH-1 "Huey" utility helicopter. By June 1967, the first AH-1G HueyCobras had been delivered. Between 1967 and 1973, Bell manufactured 1,116 AH-1Gs for the U.S. Army; these Cobras chalked up in excess of one million operational hours in the Vietnam theatre. The U.S. Marine Corps became particularly interested in

3330-572: The fiscal year 2022, the projected end strength for the Regular Army (USA) was 480,893 soldiers; the Army National Guard (ARNG) had 336,129 soldiers and the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) had 188,703 soldiers; the combined-component strength of the U.S. Army was 1,005,725 soldiers. As a branch of the armed forces, the mission of the U.S. Army is "to fight and win our Nation's wars, by providing prompt, sustained land dominance, across

3441-562: The guerrilla hit and run tactics of the communist Viet Cong and the People's Army Of Vietnam (NVA) . During the 1960s, the Department of Defense continued to scrutinize the reserve forces and to question the number of divisions and brigades as well as the redundancy of maintaining two reserve components, the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve . In 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara decided that 15 combat divisions in

Bell YAH-63 - Misplaced Pages Continue

3552-489: The 100-hour ground campaign. USMC Cobras were also used in various other operations throughout the 1990s. The type provided support for the U.S. humanitarian intervention in Somalia, Operation Restore Hope , during 1992–1993. They were also employed during the U.S. invasion of Haiti during 1994. USMC Cobras were used in U.S. military interventions in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s; specifically, two AH-1Ws assisted in

3663-455: The 1970s, the Marine Corps requested greater load carrying capability in high temperatures for the Cobra. Bell used systems from its Model 309 to develop a new model, the AH-1T, that was provisioned with a lengthened tailboom and fuselage as well as the upgraded transmission and engines from the Model 309. Bell designed the AH-1T to be more reliable and easier to maintain in the field. The version

3774-442: The 1980s, Iranian Sea Cobras were intensely used, proving itself to be capable in both anti-armor and anti-aircraft warfare. Turkey , who operated numerous Cobras and Super Cobras, used the type on multiple occasions against Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) insurgents. On numerous occasions in the 1990s, USMC AH-1s were deployed during the Gulf War of the early 1990s, as well as for the United States invasion of Haiti in 1994, and

3885-519: The 2010s, Taiwan began supplementing its SuperCobras with 30 newly purchased AH-64Es. Into the 2020s, Taiwan continues to operate its SuperCobras; during January 2021, a NT$ 339.24 million (US$ 11.91 million) contract with the US was signed for the provision of technical support and spare parts the AH-1W fleet through to September 2027. During the early 1990s, Turkey bought ten AH-1W SuperCobras; these were supplemented by 32 ex-US Army AH-1 Cobras. The sale

3996-510: The AAH program. In June 1973, Bell and Hughes were selected as finalists, and each was awarded a contract for the construction of two prototype aircraft. The Bell entry, the Model 409 (YAH-63), was by no means "just another Cobra design" though it utilized Cobra technology where possible. Although it had what had become by then the typical configuration for a helicopter gunship, with a sharklike fuselage, tandem crew seating, and stub wings for armament,

4107-472: The AH-1G Cobra, but expressed its preference for a twin-engined configuration that would provide improved safety in over-water operations. Furthermore, the service also sought a more potent turret-mounted weapon. Initially, the Department of Defense had balked at providing the Marines with a twin-engine version of the Cobra in the belief that commonality with the Army's AH-1Gs outweighed the advantages of

4218-532: The AH-1Js were lost during the conflict to combat, accidents, and simple wear and tear. Ali Akbar Shiroodi and Ahmad Keshvari were two distinguished Iranian Cobra pilots during Iran-Iraq War and are considered wartime heroes in Iran. During 1988, two Soviet MiG-23s shot down a pair of Iranian AH-1Js that had strayed into western Afghan airspace. Into the twenty-first century, Iranian AH-1Js remain in service with

4329-602: The AH-1T, equipped with the dynamic systems of the Model 309 and a lengthened fuselage, was produced by Bell during the 1970s. In the following decade, in response to the denial of funding to procure the Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, the USMC opted to procure a more capable variant of the AH-1T; equipped with revised fire control systems compatible with new munitions, such as the AGM-114 Hellfire anti-tank missile,

4440-699: The AH-1W for multiple export customers. In May 1997, the company signed an agreement with the Romanian State Ownership Fund to buy the government's 70 percent stake in IAR Brașov. However, during November 1999, following protracted negotiations, Bell announced that it had abandoned its acquisition efforts, and thus the overseas production initiative, after the Romanian government had allegedly ceased responding to its proposals. The AH-1T+ demonstrator and AH-1W prototype were later tested with

4551-460: The Army (HQDA): See Structure of the United States Army for a detailed treatment of the history , components , administrative and operational structure and the branches and functional areas of the Army. The U.S. Army is made up of three components: the active component, the Regular Army; and two reserve components, the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve. Both reserve components are primarily composed of part-time soldiers who train once

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4662-472: The Army National Guard members were considered state militia until they were mobilized into the U.S. Army, typically at the onset of war. Since the 1933 amendment to the National Defense Act of 1916 , all Army National Guard soldiers have held dual status. They serve as National Guardsmen under the authority of the governor of their state or territory and as reserve members of the U.S. Army under

4773-411: The Army National Guard were unnecessary and cut the number to eight divisions (one mechanized infantry, two armored, and five infantry), but increased the number of brigades from seven to 18 (one airborne, one armored, two mechanized infantry and 14 infantry). The loss of the divisions did not sit well with the states. Their objections included the inadequate maneuver element mix for those that remained and

4884-816: The Army conducted an evaluation between the Bell 309 KingCobra , the Lockheed Cheyenne, and the Sikorsky S-67 in a competitive fly-off. The fly-off began in the spring 1972 and was completed in July. In August, somewhat to everyone's shock, the Army rejected all three competitors. Difficulties delayed the AH-56 Cheyenne development. The Army canceled the Cheyenne program in August 1972. Controversy over

4995-402: The British were weakest to wear down their forces. Washington led victories against the British at Trenton and Princeton , but lost a series of battles in the New York and New Jersey campaign in 1776 and the Philadelphia campaign in 1777. With a decisive victory at Yorktown and the help of the French, the Continental Army prevailed against the British. After the war, the Continental Army

5106-405: The Canadian province of Upper Canada, British troops who had dubbed the U.S. Army "Regulars, by God!", were able to capture and burn Washington , which was defended by militia, in 1814. The regular army, however, proved they were professional and capable of defeating the British army during the invasions of Plattsburgh and Baltimore , prompting British agreement on the previously rejected terms of

5217-413: The Cheyenne's role in combat and the political climate regarding military acquisition programs caused the Army to amend the service's attack helicopter requirements in favor of a simpler and more survivable conventional helicopter. The Army sought an aircraft to fill an anti-armor attack role. The Army wanted an aircraft better than the AH-1 Cobra in firepower, performance and range. The aircraft would have

5328-482: The Iran–Iraq War. The results of these engagements are disputed. One document cited that Iranian AH-1Js took on Iraqi Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters. Sources report that the Iranian AH-1 pilots achieved a 10:1 kill ratio over the Iraqi helicopter pilots during these engagements (1:5). Additionally, one source states that ten Iranian AH-1Js were lost in the war, compared to six Iraqi Mi-24s lost. The skirmishes are described as fairly evenly matched in another source. The Mi-24

5439-483: The Islamic Republic of Iran Army Aviation and have undergone indigenous upgrade programs . By the 2020s, there was an increasing expectation that, amid a combination of factors such as accumulated fatigue , increasingly outdated capabilities, and a shortage of spare components, Iran will probably seek to replace its AH-1Js before too long, possibly with Russian-sourced Mi-24s. During 1984, Taiwan announced its requirement for attack helicopters; it subsequently evaluated

5550-526: The Marine Corps would be its only customer. Instead, the service signed a contract for the upgrading of AH-1Ws into AH-1Zs. The Bell AH-1Z Viper retained much of the AH-1W's design, but also features several major changes. The AH-1Z's two redesigned wing stubs are longer with each adding a wingtip station for a missile such as the AIM-9 Sidewinder . Each wing has two other stations for 70 mm (2.75 in) Hydra rocket pods, or AGM-114 Hellfire quad missile launcher. The Longbow radar can be mounted on

5661-545: The National Guard, while all states maintain regulations for state militias . State militias are both "organized", meaning that they are armed forces usually part of the state defense forces, or "unorganized" simply meaning that all able-bodied males may be eligible to be called into military service. The U.S. Army is also divided into several branches and functional areas . Branches include officers, warrant officers, and enlisted Soldiers while functional areas consist of officers who are reclassified from their former branch into

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5772-399: The ORC and ERC were combined into the United States Army Reserve . The Army of the United States was re-established for the Korean War and Vietnam War and was demobilized upon the suspension of the draft . Currently, the Army is divided into the Regular Army , the Army Reserve, and the Army National Guard . Some states further maintain state defense forces , as a type of reserve to

5883-458: The Revolutionary War progressed, French aid, resources, and military thinking helped shape the new army. A number of European soldiers came on their own to help, such as Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben , who taught Prussian Army tactics and organizational skills. The Army fought numerous pitched battles, and sometimes used Fabian strategy and hit-and-run tactics in the South in 1780 and 1781; under Major General Nathanael Greene , it hit where

5994-441: The Southwest. Grant took command of Union forces in 1864 and after a series of battles with very heavy casualties, he had General Robert E. Lee under siege in Richmond as General William T. Sherman captured Atlanta and marched through Georgia and the Carolinas . The Confederate capital was abandoned in April 1865 and Lee subsequently surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House. All other Confederate armies surrendered within

6105-402: The US intervention in the Yugoslav Wars in the late 1990s. In the twenty-first century, the type also saw action in the multi-decade War in Afghanistan , and the 2003 invasion of Iraq . During October 2020, the USMC withdrew the last of its AH-1Ws in favor of exclusively operating the AH-1Z. The AH-1 Cobra was developed in the mid-1960s as an interim gunship for the U.S. Army for use during

6216-420: The United States and is part of the Department of the Army , which is one of the three military departments of the Department of Defense . The U.S. Army is headed by a civilian senior appointed civil servant, the secretary of the Army (SECARMY), and by a chief military officer , the chief of staff of the Army (CSA) who is also a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . It is the largest military branch, and in

6327-482: The United States (the "Union" or "the North") formed the Union Army , consisting of a small body of regular army units and a large body of volunteer units raised from every state, north and south, except South Carolina . For the first two years, Confederate forces did well in set battles but lost control of the border states. The Confederates had the advantage of defending a large territory in an area where disease caused twice as many deaths as combat. The Union pursued

6438-405: The United States Army was maintained as a small peacetime force to man permanent forts and perform other non-wartime duties such as engineering and construction works. During times of war, the U.S. Army was augmented by the much larger United States Volunteers which were raised independently by various state governments. States also maintained full-time militias which could also be called into

6549-440: The United States. This model featured improvements such as the uprated P&WC T400-WV-402 engine and a strengthened drivetrain. Furthermore, recoil damping gear was fitted to the 20 mm M197 gun turret, while the gunner was provided with a stabilized sight along with a stabilized seat. Of the AH-1Js operated by the Imperial Iranian Army Aviation , 62 were capable of using the TOW missile . Iranian AH-1Js participated in

6660-399: The YAH-63 was largely a new machine. Distinctive features included wheeled tricycle landing gear , flat canopy window plates, an unusual "tee" tail, a large ventral fin, and a three-barreled General Electric XM-188 30 mm (1.18 in) cannon. The YAH-63's rotor mast could be lowered and the landing gear could kneel to reduce its height for transport. One less noticeable feature was that

6771-423: The acquisition process for the future. In order to support the Army's modernization priorities, its FY2020 budget allocated $ 30 billion for the top six modernization priorities over the next five years. The $ 30 billion came from $ 8 billion in cost avoidance and $ 22 billion in terminations. The task of organizing the U.S. Army commenced in 1775. In the first one hundred years of its existence,

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6882-491: The agreement, both the United States and Egypt agreed that there would be a joint military training led by both countries that would usually take place every 2 years, that exercise is known as Exercise Bright Star . The 1980s was mostly a decade of reorganization. The Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986 created unified combatant commands bringing the army together with the other four military services under unified, geographically organized command structures. The army also played

6993-474: The army began acquiring fixed-wing aircraft . In 1910, during the Mexican Revolution , the army was deployed to U.S. towns near the border to ensure the safety of lives and property. In 1916, Pancho Villa , a major rebel leader, attacked Columbus, New Mexico , prompting a U.S. intervention in Mexico until 7 February 1917. They fought the rebels and the Mexican federal troops until 1918. The United States joined World War I as an "Associated Power" in 1917 on

7104-452: The authority of the president, in the Army National Guard of the United States. Since the adoption of the total force policy, in the aftermath of the Vietnam War, reserve component soldiers have taken a more active role in U.S. military operations. For example, Reserve and Guard units took part in the Gulf War , peacekeeping in Kosovo , Afghanistan, and the 2003 invasion of Iraq . [REDACTED] Headquarters, United States Department of

7215-439: The building, as part of the September 11 attacks . In response to the 11 September attacks and as part of the Global War on Terror , U.S. and NATO forces invaded Afghanistan in October 2001, displacing the Taliban government. The U.S. Army also led the combined U.S. and allied invasion of Iraq in 2003; it served as the primary source for ground forces with its ability to sustain short and long-term deployment operations. In

7326-466: The combatant commanders for use as directed by the secretary of defense. By 2013, the army shifted to six geographical commands that align with the six geographical unified combatant commands (CCMD): The army also transformed its base unit from divisions to brigades . Division lineage will be retained, but the divisional headquarters will be able to command any brigade, not just brigades that carry their divisional lineage. The central part of this plan

7437-559: The end of FY2017. From 2016 to 2017, the Army retired hundreds of OH-58 Kiowa Warrior observation helicopters, while retaining its Apache gunships. The 2015 expenditure for Army research, development and acquisition changed from $ 32 billion projected in 2012 for FY15 to $ 21 billion for FY15 expected in 2014. By 2017, a task force was formed to address Army modernization, which triggered shifts of units: CCDC , and ARCIC , from within Army Materiel Command (AMC), and Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), respectively, to

7548-439: The end to the practice of rotating divisional commands among the states that supported them. Under the proposal, the remaining division commanders were to reside in the state of the division base. However, no reduction in total Army National Guard strength was to take place, which convinced the governors to accept the plan. The states reorganized their forces accordingly between 1 December 1967 and 1 May 1968. The Total Force Policy

7659-457: The following years, the mission changed from conflict between regular militaries to counterinsurgency , resulting in the deaths of more than 4,000 U.S. service members (as of March 2008) and injuries to thousands more. 23,813 insurgents were killed in Iraq between 2003 and 2011. Until 2009, the army's chief modernization plan, its most ambitious since World War II, was the Future Combat Systems program. In 2009, many systems were canceled, and

7770-409: The forces that landed in French North Africa and took Tunisia and then moved on to Sicily and later fought in Italy . In the June 1944 landings in northern France and in the subsequent liberation of Europe and defeat of Nazi Germany , millions of U.S. Army troops played a central role. In 1947, the number of soldiers in the US Army had decreased from eight million in 1945 to 684,000 soldiers and

7881-420: The full range of military operations and the spectrum of conflict, in support of combatant commanders ". The branch participates in conflicts worldwide and is the major ground-based offensive and defensive force of the United States of America.‌ The United States Army serves as the land-based branch of the U.S. Armed Forces . Section 7062 of Title 10, U.S. Code defines the purpose of the army as: In 2018,

7992-685: The geographical status quo. Both navies kept the warships they had seized during the conflict. The army's major campaign against the Indians was fought in Florida against Seminoles . It took long wars (1818–1858) to finally defeat the Seminoles and move them to Oklahoma. The usual strategy in Indian wars was to seize control of the Indians' winter food supply, but that was no use in Florida where there

8103-471: The guidance would reverse the Total Force Policy which is an "essential ingredient to the successful application of military force". On 11 September 2001, 53 Army civilians (47 employees and six contractors) and 22 soldiers were among the 125 victims killed in the Pentagon in a terrorist attack when American Airlines Flight 77 commandeered by five Al-Qaeda hijackers slammed into the western side of

8214-667: The larger Huey family , includes the AH-1J SeaCobra , the AH-1T Improved SeaCobra , and the AH-1W SuperCobra . The Super Cobra was derived from the single-engined AH-1 Cobra , which had been developed during the mid-1960s as an interim gunship for the U.S. Army. The USMC had quickly taken an interest in the type, but sought a twin-engined arrangement for greater operational safety at sea, along with more capable armaments. While initially opposed by

8325-771: The last of the American Indian Wars . U.S. Army troops also occupied several Southern states during the Reconstruction Era to protect freedmen . The key battles of the Spanish–American War of 1898 were fought by the Navy. Using mostly new volunteers , the U.S. forces defeated Spain in land campaigns in Cuba and played the central role in the Philippine–American War . Starting in 1910,

8436-497: The maneuverability to fly nap-of-the-earth (NoE) missions. To this end, the U.S. Army issued a request for proposals (RFP) for an Advanced Attack Helicopter (AAH) in 1972. The Army specified that the AAH was to be powered by twin General Electric T700 turboshaft engines with 1,500 shp (1,120 kW) each. This was the same powerplant fit specified for a new Army utility helicopter competition that would be won by

8547-552: The mid-1980s, the AH-1W variant entered service with the USMC. Between, 1986 to 1999, the service took delivery of 179 Super Cobras. In the late 1980s, in response to the Tanker War of the wider Iran–Iraq War , USMC Cobras were dispatched for Operation Earnest Will in the Persian Gulf to escort shipping and deter attacks upon them. It was during these missions that Cobras sank three Iranian patrol boats while losing

8658-409: The new model, designated AH-1W, commenced delivery in 1986. Seeking to further develop the type, Bell opted to develop the extensively redesigned and modernised Bell AH-1Z Viper during the 1990s and 2000s. The Sea Cobra was involved in multiple major operations during the latter half of the twentieth century, such as during the United States invasion of Grenada in 1983. During the Iran–Iraq War of

8769-602: The operation, AH-1Ws flew combat missions from the deck of USS  San Antonio after that ship replaced Wasp in October 2016. In October 2020, the U.S. Marine Corps retired the last of its AH-1Ws after 34 years of service, having replacing the type with the Bell AH-1Z Viper . By the time of their retirement, the model had collectively accumulated 933,614 flight hours. In 1971, Iran purchased 202 examples of an improved AH-1J, named "AH-1J International", from

8880-494: The pilot occupied the front seat instead of the rear, the reverse of the AH-1's arrangement. This was believed to be more prudent since the YAH-63 was intended to fly "in the treetops" during " nap-of-the-earth " (NoE) operations, and the pilot needed to have a clear view of the aircraft's surroundings. The first prototype of the YAH-63 (serial 73-22246) made its initial flight on 1 October 1975. This rotorcraft crashed in June 1976 but

8991-545: The protection of Saudi Arabia . In January 1991 Operation Desert Storm commenced, a U.S.-led coalition which deployed over 500,000 troops, the bulk of them from U.S. Army formations, to drive out Iraqi forces . The campaign ended in total victory, as Western coalition forces routed the Iraqi Army . Some of the largest tank battles in history were fought during the Gulf war. The Battle of Medina Ridge , Battle of Norfolk and

9102-698: The remaining were swept into the BCT modernization program . By 2017, the Brigade Modernization project was completed and its headquarters, the Brigade Modernization Command, was renamed the Joint Modernization Command, or JMC. In response to Budget sequestration in 2013 , Army plans were to shrink to 1940 levels, although actual Active-Army end-strengths were projected to fall to some 450,000 troops by

9213-677: The rescue of USAF Captain Scott O'Grady , after his F-16 was shot down by a SAM in June 1995. During the twenty-first century, USMC Cobras participated in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and in Operation Iraqi Freedom in the conflict in Iraq . While new replacement aircraft were considered as an alternative to major upgrades of the AH-1 fleet, Marine Corps studies showed that an upgrade

9324-410: The same manner as the Soviets did with their Mi-24s . Due to the post-Revolution weapons sanctions, Iranians had to make do with what was at hand: they equipped the AH-1Js with AGM-65 Maverick missiles and used them with some success in several operations. Starting from October 1980, the AH-1Js engaged in air-to-air combat with Iraqi Mil Mi-24 helicopters on several, separate occasions during

9435-605: The service chiefs from each of the four military services belonging to the Department of Defense who advise the president of the United States , the secretary of defense and the National Security Council on operational military matters, under the guidance of the chairman and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . In 1986, the Goldwater–Nichols Act mandated that operational control of

9546-744: The service did not like the YAH-63's tricycle landing gear scheme, believing it was less stable than the Apache's " taildragger " configuration. Some observers also suspected that the Army did not want to divert Bell from AH-1 production. Bell would use its experience with the T700 engine to develop the AH-1T+ design and later AH-1W . Data from International Directory of Military Aircraft, 2002-2003 General characteristics Performance Armament Related development Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists United States Army The United States Army ( USA )

9657-489: The service of the army. By the twentieth century, the U.S. Army had mobilized the U.S. Volunteers on four occasions during each of the major wars of the nineteenth century. During World War I, the " National Army " was organized to fight the conflict, replacing the concept of U.S. Volunteers. It was demobilized at the end of World War I and was replaced by the Regular Army, the Organized Reserve Corps, and

9768-456: The services follows a chain of command from the president to the secretary of defense directly to the unified combatant commanders , who have control of all armed forces units in their geographic or function area of responsibility, thus the secretaries of the military departments (and their respective service chiefs underneath them) only have the responsibility to organize, train and equip their service components. The army provides trained forces to

9879-533: The side of Britain , France , Russia , Italy and the other Allies . U.S. troops were sent to the Western Front and were involved in the last offensives that ended the war. With the armistice in November 1918, the army once again decreased its forces. In 1939, estimates of the Army's strength ranged between 174,000 and 200,000 soldiers, smaller than that of Portugal 's, which ranked it 17th or 19th in

9990-556: The standard support role in an army. The U.S. Army's conventional combat capability currently consists of 11 active divisions and 1 deployable division headquarters (7th Infantry Division) as well as several independent maneuver units. Bell AH-1 SuperCobra The Bell AH-1 SuperCobra is a twin-engined attack helicopter that was developed on behalf of, and primarily operated by, the United States Marine Corps (USMC). The twin Cobra family, itself part of

10101-443: The state militias. In the 1920s and 1930s, the "career" soldiers were known as the " Regular Army " with the "Enlisted Reserve Corps" and "Officer Reserve Corps" augmented to fill vacancies when needed. In 1941, the " Army of the United States " was founded to fight World War II. The Regular Army, Army of the United States, the National Guard, and Officer/Enlisted Reserve Corps (ORC and ERC) existed simultaneously. After World War II,

10212-545: The states of California , Nevada , Utah , Colorado , Arizona , Wyoming and New Mexico . The American Civil War was the costliest war for the U.S. in terms of casualties. After most slave states , located in the southern U.S., formed the Confederate States , the Confederate States Army , led by former U.S. Army officers, mobilized a large fraction of Southern white manpower. Forces of

10323-472: The statutory authority to conduct all the affairs of the army under the authority, direction, and control of the secretary of defense . The chief of staff of the Army , who is the highest-ranked military officer in the army, serves as the principal military adviser and executive agent for the secretary of the Army, i.e., its service chief; and as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , a body composed of

10434-543: The takeover of South Korea by North Korea and later to invade the northern nation. After repeated advances and retreats by both sides and the Chinese People's Volunteer Army 's entry into the war, the Korean Armistice Agreement returned the peninsula to the status quo in July 1953. The Vietnam War is often regarded as a low point for the U.S. Army due to the use of drafted personnel ,

10545-603: The theater for the joint force, and to integrate national, multinational, and joint power on land. The Continental Army was created on 14 June 1775 by the Second Continental Congress as a unified army for the colonies to fight Great Britain , with George Washington appointed as its commander. The army was initially led by men who had served in the British Army or colonial militias and who brought much of British military heritage with them. As

10656-590: The total number of active divisions had dropped from 89 to 12. The leaders of the Army saw this demobilization as a success. In the Pacific War , U.S. Army soldiers participated alongside the United States Marine Corps in capturing the Pacific Islands from Japanese control. Following the Axis surrenders in May (Germany) and August (Japan) of 1945, army troops were deployed to Japan and Germany to occupy

10767-1148: The two defeated nations. Two years after World War II, the Army Air Forces separated from the army to become the United States Air Force in September 1947. In 1948, the army was desegregated by order 9981 of President Harry S. Truman . The end of World War II set the stage for the East–West confrontation known as the Cold War . With the outbreak of the Korean War , concerns over the defense of Western Europe rose. Two corps, V and VII , were reactivated under Seventh United States Army in 1950 and U.S. strength in Europe rose from one division to four. Hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops remained stationed in West Germany, with others in Belgium ,

10878-620: The unpopularity of the war with the U.S. public and frustrating restrictions placed on the military by U.S. political leaders. While U.S. forces had been stationed in South Vietnam since 1959, in intelligence and advising/training roles, they were not deployed in large numbers until 1965, after the Gulf of Tonkin Incident . U.S. forces effectively established and maintained control of the "traditional" battlefield, but they struggled to counter

10989-637: The vicinity of Hon La (Tiger) Island. These were termed Marine Hunter-Killer (MARHUK) Operations and lasted from June to December 1972. As such, the type participated in the final American combat operations in Vietnam. Several AH-1Js were present to cover the evacuation of the US Embassy in Saigon in April 1975. During 1983, Marine Cobras took part in the invasion of Grenada . They were typically used to perform close air support and helicopter escort missions;

11100-527: The world in size. General George C. Marshall became Army chief of staff in September 1939 and set about expanding and modernizing the Army in preparation for war. The United States joined World War II in December 1941 after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor . Some 11 million Americans were to serve in various Army operations. On the European front , U.S. Army troops formed a significant portion of

11211-583: Was adopted by Chief of Staff of the Army General Creighton Abrams in the aftermath of the Vietnam War and involved treating the three components of the army – the Regular Army , the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve as a single force. General Abrams' intertwining of the three components of the army effectively made extended operations impossible without the involvement of both the Army National Guard and Army Reserve in

11322-876: Was at first very small and after General St. Clair's defeat at the Battle of the Wabash, where more than 800 soldiers were killed, the Regular Army was reorganized as the Legion of the United States , established in 1791 and renamed the United States Army in 1796. In 1798, during the Quasi-War with France, the U.S. Congress established a three-year " Provisional Army " of 10,000 men, consisting of twelve regiments of infantry and six troops of light dragoons . In March 1799, Congress created an "Eventual Army" of 30,000 men, including three regiments of cavalry . Both "armies" existed only on paper, but equipment for 3,000 men and horses

11433-554: Was faster and more powerful, but the AH-1J was more agile. There were even engagements between Iranian AH-1Js and Iraqi fixed-wing aircraft. The AH-1Js scored three confirmed kills against MiG-21s , claimed a Su-20 , and shared in the destruction of a MiG-23 —all using their 20 mm M197 cannon . During early 1984, an Iranian AH-1J Sea Cobra was shot down by an Iraqi Pilatus PC-7 during Operation Kheibar (Iranian pilots Reza Moghadam and Mohammad Yazdi were rescued). About half of

11544-529: Was funded by Congress, received the AH-1W designation. During March 1986, deliveries of the AH-1W SuperCobra commenced, eventually totaling 179 new-built helicopters along with the upgrading of 43 existing AH-1Ts. During the late 1990s, Bell was negotiating to acquire the Romanian state-managed helicopter manufacturer IAR Brașov with the intention of establishing an overseas production line for

11655-491: Was given full TOW missile capability with targeting system and other sensors. An advanced version, known as the AH-1T+, that was equipped with more powerful T700-GE-700 engines and advanced avionics, was proposed to Iran in the late 1970s, but the overthrow of the Shah of Iran in the late 1970s resulted in the sale being canceled. In the early 1980s, the Marine Corps sought a new navalized helicopter; accordingly, it evaluated

11766-581: Was mostly from infantry-type weapons. AH-1Ws were involved in the rescue of Private First Class Jessica Lynch from an Iraqi hospital. In late August 2016, Marine AH-1W Cobras flying from USS  Wasp started flying combat missions over Sirte, Libya against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Libya , providing close air support for friendly militias on the ground. In the later stages of

11877-498: Was no winter. The second strategy was to form alliances with other Indian tribes, but that too was useless because the Seminoles had destroyed all the other Indians when they entered Florida in the late eighteenth century. The U.S. Army fought and won the Mexican–American War (1846–1848), which was a defining event for both countries. The U.S. victory resulted in acquisition of territory that eventually became all or parts of

11988-488: Was politically controversial in the United States; in April 1996, the purchase of ten additional AH-1Ws by Turkey was blocked by the Clinton administration . During late 2011, Turkey requested the purchase of three AH-1Ws from the USMC inventory. The AH-1s have been repeatedly used in combat against Kurdistan Workers' Party ( PKK ) insurgents. On 13 May 2016, PKK militants shot down a Turkish Army AH-1W SuperCobra using

12099-590: Was procured and stored. The War of 1812 , the second and last war between the United States and Great Britain, had mixed results. The U.S. Army did not conquer Canada but it did destroy Native American resistance to expansion in the Old Northwest and stopped two major British invasions in 1814 and 1815. After taking control of Lake Erie in 1813, the U.S. Army seized parts of western Upper Canada, burned York and defeated Tecumseh , which caused his Western Confederacy to collapse. Following U.S. victories in

12210-505: Was quickly given land certificates and disbanded in a reflection of the republican distrust of standing armies. State militias became the new nation's sole ground army, except a regiment to guard the Western Frontier and one battery of artillery guarding West Point 's arsenal. However, because of continuing conflict with Native Americans , it was soon considered necessary to field a trained standing army. The Regular Army

12321-418: Was the most affordable, most supportable and most effective solution for the Marine Corps light attack helicopter mission. During the opening phase of the 2003 invasion of Iraq , SuperCobras were deployed on the front lines, often flying in hunter-killer teams with Bell UH-1 Iroquois utility helicopters and other coalition aircraft. Reportedly, 46 of the 58 USMC AH-1s deployed sustained battle damage, which

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