The addition of a suite of low-light and poor weather sensors enables flight in night and adverse weather conditions as well. And without having to be overly burdened with thoughts of aerodynamic efficiency, designers can do interesting things like putting the gun on a swivel and adding an extra seat to carry a dedicated gunner. Not only can a helicopter utilize its hovering and slow flight capabilities to loiter behind low cover and quickly emerge to take a shot when needed, it also acts as a far more stable aiming platform. Armed with a 30mm chain gun similar to the immensely powerful gun that adds incredible destructive power to the Air Force’s A-10 Thunderbolt II (better known by its sobriquet “Warthog”), the Apache carries the same destructive force as its fixed-wing cousin but enhances that capability with unique abilities that could only be realized by the vastly different flying qualities of a helicopter. The predominant force in this new type of battle is the Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter. It has been replaced by an asymmetric battle of armored helicopters against ground-borne men and machines. Gone, in fact, is any kind of parity in the air at all. Gone are the dogfights that pitted man against man, thousands of feet above the earth. Gone are the iconic waves of heavy bombers chaperoned by hordes of protective fighters.
As the wide open battlefields of the past shift to urban and mountainous terrain, and the idea of total, all out war shifts to a far more restrictive set of rules of engagement designed to prevent the loss of innocent civilian life at all costs, the weaponry used has also changed, particularly when it comes to the air war. A sea change like this alters more than mere geography, or course. Even the venerable Call of Duty series has shifted to a more modern type of warfare in the eponymously named Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.
Even the most casual observer has seen a change in the nature of war themed video games over the past couple of years as the stranglehold that World War II had over the entire genre begins to loosen.
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