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U.S. ARMY APACHE
commander praises Apache’s combat effectiveness
By Lisa Dunbar
Gary Parker Photo
LTC Kenneth "Todd" Royar and Boeing operations analysis specialist Scott Small
Back from commanding a squadron in Iraq that included 24 AH-64D Apache Longbows, LTC Kenneth "Todd" Royar praised the aircraft and its effectiveness in battle.
"When the bad guys see an Apache, they stop doing bad stuff. The Apache is by far the finest aircraft in the world," Royar told employees during a briefing at the Rotorcraft Systems site in Mesa, Ariz., on Aug. 13, 2009. "You produce the best there is, and it can't be done without all of you building and supporting it. Thanks for your support and what you do."
Boeing Photo
"You can't replace human thought with an unmanned vehicle," Royar said. However, UAVs were useful in helping Apaches patrol the border between Iraq and Iran, he said. "Manned aircraft continue to be a critical component to the fight and we achieve the best results when manned and unmanned aircraft work together – not just one or the other."
As a squadron commander of the 4/3 Armored Cavalry Regiment and a master aviator rated in AH-64D Apache Longbow, Royar shared his experiences in combat for 15 months from 2007 to 2009 during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Apaches battled insurgents in and around Sadr City, a dense urban area of nearly two million people, Royar said. With an increase in violence and hundreds of rocket attacks on soldiers on the ground, Apaches had their mission requirements doubled.
Pilots were flying 5-to 6-hour missions and Apaches were involved in hundreds of engagements. Often 18 Apaches were out flying several missions a day, Royar said.
Royar showed video footage of Apaches using Hellfire missiles to blow up insurgents firing rockets and setting up Improvised Explosive Devices.
"Our squadron alone flew over 3,000 hours in one month despite the sand storms," he said. "This is a testament to the Apache airframe and system and what the Apache can do."
"The only damage we had was one aircraft with a bullet hole in the starboard panel," he said.
Royar stressed the importance of manned aircraft like Apaches in battle because pilots can make decisions that Unmanned Aerial Vehicles cannot make. He told the story of a man who raised suspicion that he might be an insurgent because he was burying something along the side of the road at 4 a.m. Soldiers decided to hold fire until they got a better look and found out he was an Iraqi farmer repairing his irrigation system.
"You can't replace human thought with an unmanned vehicle," Royar said. However, UAVs were useful in helping Apaches patrol the border between Iraq and Iran, he said. "Manned aircraft continue to be a critical component to the fight and we achieve the best results when manned and unmanned aircraft work together – not just one or the other."
The Apache Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensors helped pilots identify and take out the home of a man manufacturing explosives; and the precision of the aircraft allowed pilots to destroy his home without impacting the rest of the homes in the neighborhood, Royar said.
"We bought the neighbors some new windows, but that was the only impact on the rest of the neighborhood," he said.
"Everything we do is to protect the soldiers on the ground," Royar said. "They love it when they see the Apache. When the ground soldiers re-enlist, everyone wants to stand in front of an Apache. It's a magnificent machine."