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<p>Within days of a major failed strike by attack helicopters during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) analysts were  questioning the value of such platforms on the modern battlefield. As OIF moved from combat to stability operations, helicopter losses from enemy action actually increased seemingly strengthening the argument of those who see the helicopter  as unsuitable to some combat operations. Attack helicopter operations have diverged into two distinct categories, interdiction and close air support (CAS), since their inception. This thesis argues that attack helicopters are most suited to perform CAS while their employment in interdiction is problematic at best. Doctrine, tactics, and threat are studied as they applied in the Soviet-Afghan War, Desert  Storm, and OIF in order to examine the issue across a range of time and types of warfare.
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<br>Subjects: Attack helicopters; United States; Iraq War, 2003-; Persian Gulf War, 1991; Close air support; Air interdiction</div>
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Groenke, Andrew S.</div>
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