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slicks

longdeer338longdeer338 Member Posts: 20 ✭✭
edited September 2009 in US Military Veteran Forum
Can you tell me if all choppers where called slicks or just certin ones .Also why and how did this name get started . Thanks
Bill

Comments

  • PaddiegruntPaddiegrunt Member Posts: 20 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Slicks were a huey with a M-60 machine gun with door gunner on each side that carried troops as compaired to "gun ships" that had rocket pods and belt fed 40mm grenade launcher under the nose. They had slick sides and underbelly.
  • steamingutpilesteamingutpile Member Posts: 65 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Slicks and guns. Slicks ligthly armed for carrying troops Guns carried a mini gun on each side sometimes along with them 2.75"rocket pods. Cobras were a whole other animal two 2.75" roceket pods per side chin turret with a 40mm grenade launcher or a mini gun I saw em both ways.
  • River RatRiver Rat Member Posts: 9,022
    edited November -1
    I'm just an ex-swabbie and don't know much, but always understood the slicks were unarmed hueys at first. Later, they added some armament. But I could be way wrong, as in those days I wasn't paying much attention.
  • 11echo11echo Member Posts: 1,005 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    UH-1 were Hueys or "slicks", OH-6 were called "loch", and AH-1 cobras were called "snakes"
  • Jim RauJim Rau Member Posts: 3,550
    edited November -1
    Slicks were the 'D' and latter 'H' models with door guns, the haulers. The 'H' models had the L13B engines which gave them alot more 'lift'. About 200 more HP if I recall than then 'D' models. The 'guns' were 'C'(charlie) models. They did not have the room in side the 'D/H' models did and they had the lower powered turbins but they had the 540 rotor system (semi-rigid) which made them more manuverable than the larger 'D/H' models. The ones with only the 2.75 rockets (large pods) and no mini-guns were called 'hogs'. We put the L13B engins in the 'C' models and called them 'M' (mike) models. They were unbelievable with that much power!!![^]
  • krawiechkrawiech Member Posts: 135 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    i was a crew chief on a uh1a from sept 65 thru sept 66 the reason they were called slicks was because they had no outside armenment the only guns we had were two m60s one on each side fired by the crew chief and the door gunner hank krawiech
  • SubkultureSubkulture Member Posts: 1 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    was anyone in the army 174th airborne sharks and dolphins? i was not but am proud to say that my father served as part of 174th, shark #50. He served in 70-71, i have just been looking around to see if i can help him reconnect with any of his old mates.
  • 70-10170-101 Member Posts: 1,006
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by Subkulture
    was anyone in the army 174th airborne sharks and dolphins? i was not but am proud to say that my father served as part of 174th, shark #50. He served in 70-71, i have just been looking around to see if i can help him reconnect with any of his old mates.


    Perhaps you mean the 173rd airborne? I know of no 174th airborne, now or in 1970-71.
  • onepopperonepopper Member Posts: 1,825 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Krawiech is correct. I was in HAL3 71-72 and flew in the Lima and Mikes. We called them slicks because there wasn't any other armament other than the M60's firing out the port and starboard doors.
  • DeOpressoDeOpresso Member Posts: 6 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    All you "C" and "M" UH-1 jockeys have to remember what came first. The BRAVO mod UH-1. The older brother of the C mod, the father of the Cobra and the grand-father of the AH-64. The M-16 gun system was two flex mounted M60ds on each side and an M-158, seven shot pod of 2.75ffar under the gun mount. Then came the M-21 system with the flex mounted GAU2B mini-gun and the seven shot pod. There was also the M-5 40mm system in the nose (forget your radios after the first burst) and two M-159 18 shot rocket pods. And of course, the guys in back with the m-60s in their laps.
  • Rocky RaabRocky Raab Member Posts: 14,131 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    In Air Force Special Ops, we used "N" model Hueys. Twin engines, and armed with 7.62 GE miniguns in each door. The gunships had those plus rocket pods holding 16 a side.
    I may be a bit crazy - but I didn't drive myself.
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