First US casualties....

[Wolverine]

According to reports just on tv it looks like the US and Britain have their first reported casualties. A helicopter went down killing 16. Not yet sure if it was shot down...........

[NateDogg]

So far reports are that it was mechanical failure.

:(

[RisingPhoenix]

Thats terrible..

For some reason that seems to happen alot.. :(

[howsertrading]

It was a CH46 US Marine helicopter,and latest is 8 British and 4 US troops killed.(figures changing all the time)

http://www.3dflags.com/assets/XV21AE/gif/2/u/3dflagsdotcom_uk_2faws.gifR.I.Phttp://www.3dflags.com/assets/XV21AE/gif/2/u/3dflagsdotcom_usa_2faws.gif

Let's remember that although it's sad to see troops die,it is always inevitable when there are so many troops involved,and so many vehicles.We are at war after all,and I hope the news channels dont dwell on this inevitable accident.

Here is something that would have made the british guys laugh

Just seen this, Some British peace protestors decided to sit on the rail track in front of a train today, but soon moved when they discovered it was full of Celtic fans treavelling to the Liverpool match!!!

[Celestial]

The death toll in past wars have been higher from things like mechanical failure etc etc and not from the enemy.

[iLUDEd]

Originally posted by Celestial
The death toll in past wars have been higher from things like mechanical failure etc etc and not from the enemy.

thats a joke, of cource the enemy shoot them down, u think an elite piece of machinery just stops workin, theyve had millions of $$ invested into them for them to do their job... its all a cover up so people dont think your army r getin shot down.. dam bush n his quest for oil, his takin it way too far, he shoudlnt have even started invading iraq in the 1st place, the fool's contradicting himself, 'bring peace to the world', yet his startin a war! :mad:

[RisingPhoenix]

thats a joke, of cource the enemy shoot them down, u think an elite piece of machinery just stops workin

It happens, more than you'd think. The chances of it happening in an Iraqi sandstorm are even greater.

[iLUDEd]

so a bit of sand goes in the engine, and it stops workin? .. i think a multi million $$ piece of machinery can withstand a bit of sand!

[RisingPhoenix]

This kinda stuff happened in Afghanistan and Pakistan several times, in fact more Coalition forces in Afganistan have died from crashes than actual terrorists.

It happens more than you think.
There are many things that could have gone wrong. Being in that kind of environment doesn't help their chances.

[Avatar]

I wouldn't rule out the possibility of them being shot down. Especially with the pressure on bush for everything to go smoothly.

[Wizard]

Originally posted by Avatar
I wouldn't rule out the possibility of them being shot down.

.. but we'll never know.

[GonePostal]

More people died of FF then of enemy fire in the Gulf war. Btw these are super complex mahcines with millions of parts and complex software. The more complex a machine the more chances it has to fail.

[Budiak]

In WW2 everybody had trouble with their tanks and equipment in the desert. **** broke all the time. Happens in any extreme.
Mechanical failures happen all the time. Helicopters crash, they are extremely fickle machines. Let alone in harsh environments. Two other choppers have reported 'rough landings' but were repaired to the speed where which they could return to base.
Also there is a person controlling these machines. Mechanical failure...maybe the guy was picking a boog when he was supposed to be flipping some sort of switch(there's like a million switches in those things).




Btw


dam bush n his quest for oil, his takin it way too far, he shoudlnt have even started invading iraq in the 1st place, the fool's contradicting himself, 'bring peace to the world', yet his startin a war!

This was a completely unneccessary in this thread.

[TommyLee]

Originally posted by iLUDEd


thats a joke, of cource the enemy shoot them down, u think an elite piece of machinery just stops workin, theyve had millions of $$ invested into them for them to do their job... its all a cover up so people dont think your army r getin shot down..

It happens all the time even in the U.S. during training missions. It doesn't take much of a mechanical glitch to bring a helo down because there is no glide ratio. I have a friend who is a pilot and crashed because of a $2 part. Incase you didn't hear the chopper went down in Kuwait. It wasn't even close enough to the border to be hit by enemy fire. Not that there is any resistance at the border.

[TommyLee]

Originally posted by iLUDEd
so a bit of sand goes in the engine, and it stops workin? .. i think a multi million $$ piece of machinery can withstand a bit of sand!
You obviously don't understand mechanics very well. It doesn't matter if has billions of dollars worth of R&D. Anything man made will break. That's like saying the Shuttle shouldn't have broken up because it was expensive. The Challenger blew up because of an o-ring for crying out loud. Or whas that just another U.S. cover up?

[Bam Bam]

Originally posted by iLUDEd


thats a joke, of cource the enemy shoot them down, u think an elite piece of machinery just stops workin, theyve had millions of $$ invested into them for them to do their job... its all a cover up so people dont think your army r getin shot down.. dam bush n his quest for oil, his takin it way too far, he shoudlnt have even started invading iraq in the 1st place, the fool's contradicting himself, 'bring peace to the world', yet his startin a war! :mad:


when this war is over the iraqis will have free speech just like you do. They will also have the right not to have their women raped and beaten by sadaams sons and henchmen

[Fightin Irish]

Sometimes War is the only way to bring peace. If you're talking about peace in the world, it sure as hell isn't in Iraq. But I guess that's just not part of the world, right?

unfortunately things like this happen, but it's all for the greater good.

this sucks (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,81764,00.html)

[TommyLee]

That is sad that the Marine was killed. It is expected but it breaks my heart to hear about it. The helo crash is sad as well. They trained so hard and barely made it off the ground before the war was over for them. I've changed my Avatar to commemorate the Soldiers who have died and the soldiers that will die in this war. Both American and British. It is an awesome pic of a 60 gunner.

[kAiXuan]

Originally posted by iLUDEd


thats a joke, of cource the enemy shoot them down, u think an elite piece of machinery just stops workin, theyve had millions of $$ invested into them for them to do their job... its all a cover up so people dont think your army r getin shot down.. dam bush n his quest for oil, his takin it way too far, he shoudlnt have even started invading iraq in the 1st place, the fool's contradicting himself, 'bring peace to the world', yet his startin a war! :mad:


ok, so your saying the enemy is responsible for all our space shuttle mishaps?
theres alot more $$ in those, and sh!t goes wrong pretty frequently.................

[BadKarma]

TRYING TO HELP- By Dennis Miller
All the rhetoric on whether or not we should go to war against Iraq has got my insane little brain spinning like a roulette wheel. I enjoy reading opinions from both sides, but I have detected a hint of confusion from some of you.

As I was reading the paper recently, I was reminded of the best advice someone ever gave me. He told me about the KISS method ("Keep it Simple, Stupid"). So, with this as a theme, I'd like to apply this theory for those who don't quite get it. My hope is that we can simplify things a bit and recognize a few important facts.

Here are 10 things to consider when voicing an opinion on this important issue:

1) President Bush and Saddam Hussein.....Hussein is the bad guy.

2) If you have faith in the United Nations to do the right thing, keep this in mind. They have Libya heading the Committee on Human Rights and Iraq heading the Global Disarmament Committee. Do your own math here.

3) If you use Google Search and type in "French Military Victories," your reply will be "Did you mean French Military Defeats?"

4) If your only anti-war slogan is "No war for oil," sue your school district for allowing you to slip through the cracks and robbing you of the education you deserve.

5) Saddam and Bin Laden will not seek United Nations approval before they try to kill us.

6) Despite what some seem to believe, Martin Sheen is NOT the President. He plays one on T.V.

7) Even if you are anti-war, you are still an "Infidel" and Bin Laden wants you dead, too.

8) If you believe in a "vast right-wing conspiracy," but not in the danger that Hussein poses, quit hanging out with the Dell computer dude.

9) We are not trying to liberate them.

10) Whether you are for military action, or against it, our young men and women overseas are fighting for us to defend our right to speak out. We all need to support them without reservation.

I hope this helps

[howsertrading]

Two Royal Navy Seaking helicopters have collided in the Gulf,seven crew members missing.

[2massive]

at the end of the day, iraq will say they shot the helicopters down, and usa will say it wasn't. War revolves around a lot of propaganda, in order to try and getr as much public support as possible

[Reinier]

Americans died in iraq by enemy fire and many, many more will die this way. seeing as no other media is allowed there they can nicely say its much less.

[Rock]

Yes, we get to see another story, they showed that the helicopter was hit by an explosive fireunit, but ofcourse they might have shot it after it crashed, so...what to believe, I dont know.

[Wizard]

Sky News crowl bar: 3 Iraqi soldiers killed in Basora battles.

AlJazeera crowl bar: 50 Iraqis killed in Basora.

[iLUDEd]

looks like i shouldnt bring my opinions to this forum, since all yous r americans.. bleh

[iLUDEd]

Originally posted by TommyLee

That's like saying the Shuttle shouldn't have broken up because it was expensive. The Challenger blew up because of an o-ring for crying out loud. Or whas that just another U.S. cover up?

anythings possible, was america really the 1st country to land a man on the moon?

[Reinier]

who cares if they landed a man on the moon?

thing is no matter what happens us news will be saying their military is having a peace of cake no matter what. desert storm was alot more bloody than reported at the time too, just coming out now.