Posting this here as it will probably end up here anyway. There was one of these just hovering about a 100 yards from my house. http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2014/...-over-twin-cities-have-some-asking-questions/ MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A military training exercise has some in downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul looking to the skies and asking questions. It’s a scene that looks straight out of an action movie. This week, a handful of low-flying black helicopters are buzzing just over rooftops and in between buildings. They’re called Night Stalkers, or more formally, the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment out of Fort Campbell Kentucky. But what they’re training for here in Minnesota is as stealth as their choppers appear. The Department of Defense is in charge of the operation while Minneapolis and St. Paul police are playing a supportive role. But none of the departments will comment on the mysterious mission, only apologizing for “any alarm or inconvenience the training may cause,” according to statement by Minneapolis police. According the Night Stalkers website, secrecy is the name of their game. Their motto, to “guard my unit’s mission with secrecy, for my only true ally is the night and the element of surprise.” And the group boasts it’s “highly trained and ready to accomplish the very toughest missions in all environments, anywhere in the world, day or night, with unparalleled precision.” For a small gathering in Minneapolis Tuesday night, the exercise was an unwelcomed sight. “I think the scale of domestic military exercises is not a good idea,” said Daniel Feidt, a Minneapolis resident. “It’s a waste of taxpayer money. It’s inappropriate for Special Forces to be operating in American cities.” But Minneapolis police said the training has been months in the making and that it will continue through Thursday evening. Minneapolis police say exact times and locations cannot be released because of security concerns. They don’t want to attract attention and crowds of people which could create a public safety issue. Minneapolis police say this is a routine training that is conducted by military personnel in cities across the country. A former Navy SEAL told WCCO-TV the military prefers to put pilots in surroundings they’re not familiar with which, forces them to adapt quickly as if it were the real thing, on a mission in a place they’ve never been.
No it was very loud. I was watching TV and I could hear it and my house started shaking. It didn't have running lights on but it is partly cloudy and I could see it silhouetted against a cloud and it looked like a Blackhawk.
Oh, no. Now we're having a thread about the militarization of... the military? Really man, nonstory here. Around the San Antonio area we don't bat an eye when interesting things fly over our heads. It ain't gonna bite.
I'm not really worried, except for the fact that they are loud and shaking my house. Just thought it was an interesting story. Once you mention Black Helicopters though it's going to start a debate. In the last half hour they seem to be making passes around my house. Maybe I should've been more careful about what I post on CF.net D&D.
So they were using "conventional" military helicopters. Honestly, I fail to see the reasoning behind using a city, especially of that size, for an exercise of that nature. Seems like the potential for an accident is there (as always - the people in our professional military do dangerous things for a living, after all), and the possibility for far higher casualties, civilian casualties, than would typically accrue from an accident would be far greater.
And if you're worried about black helicopters, the police state, and "Marshall Law" as it's so often called here (who is this "Marshall" guy, anyway?), the 160th isn't a unit that's going to do that mission. They've got more specialized missions in mind and are in high demand in other places. Someone wlse will be buzzing your house with a Blackhawk, the 160th are the guys who go after people like Bin Laden and al-Baghdadi... They've gotta train somewhere, and the more realistic the better.
The m ore realistic the training the better. And I wouldn't worry about the 160th crashing any birds. They're the best there are.
Special Operations Command has special Blackhawks outfitted with anti - radar capabilities. They used them in Abadabad when they went after bin Laden. It's really just a tricked out Blackhawk, with new body panels and electronics. The attack helicopter they canceled, the Comanche, had special lo noise rotor blades that were fatter than normal blades, and about 75% of the way down the blade, it curved back about 45 degrees. IIRC. Noise reduction was 30% or 40%. Not sure what the tradeoff was, but there must have been one because they haven't been used since the helicopter was canceled. Personally, I get a little freaked out when I see Apache helicopters flying above Houston freeways. I see them alone or in pairs at least 2 times a week around rush hour on all of the freeways all over town.
They're with the 158th Aviation Regiment. They're not going to hurt you, they're just training. Take a pic and carry on.
I saw a coyote in Memorial Park once. It freaked me out too. Doesn't mean I thought it was going to kill me. It's just that coyotes and Memorial Park belong in separate places when I think of them.
And Apaches fly out of Conroe. It is what it is. It's a Guard unit. Not all of out assets can be out of sight, out of mind. Nor should they be.
