[Pro Patria] Does the attacking helicopter give enough bang for the buck?

[Oleander Ardens]

I don't think China would have much of a chance against the US (and/or EU/NATO since those groups would probably fight together against China if China did try to attack one or the other). Not only would China not have all that much of a population advantage, if it even had one. But I'm also not that impressed with their military materiel, for example their tanks, jets, and most importantly their navy. That and I have never heard of the Chinese military referred to a highly professional, well-trained fighting force, and if it isn't it wouldn't stand much of a chance because human-wave attacks and a generally discoordinated military don't work well at all against modern technology and fire support systems and modern military doctrines.

I too think that they are lagging behind in terms of technology even if they are great copy-cats - what actually means intellectual property in Chinese :). But I think that they might find it hardest to get tactically to the same level as some Nato members - this type of knowledge is far harder to copy.

That said, the sheer size - a round 1/5 of the entire world population - and overall resource base of the PRC alone would make it a somewhat daunting opponent. NATO would probably run out of money to pay for new smart bombs long before the Chinese ran out of reserves to send into the fray, but then again, if brought under considerable economic, political and military pressure and with its armed forces sort of preoccupied from maintaining internal security the whole state would probably implode. They've got enough tensions as is without hostile powers actively hammering wedges into the cracks. That'd of course result in a godawful mess and probably destabilize half Eurasia for a fair while, but...

1.3 billion vs. 800 million - an advantage, but not such a huge one. Far less $ pro capita, a far faster aging population, far worse infrastructure, huge social and environmental problems.... I don't China poses a conventional world wide military thread. Still in a regional conflict I wouldn't bet that the US Navy survives given the huge built-up of anti-ship rockets...

This seems to be rather straying from the topic of attack helos though.

Right

BTW, talking about gunships, what about the one like the AC-130 II Spooky ? I don't know exactly how much it costs but the concept is neat. Especially if modernized. Given the sheer size of the aircraft it might even be possible to install a active protection system as on a MBT and combine it with an array of other defensive measurements. A good gunner with a large AA gun and good sensor might wreck it though... So SH would you pick such a gunship over attack helicopters costing the same?



OA