A video of a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk circulating on social media shows Taliban fighters taxiing around the Kandahar Airport in Afghanistan.
“Reportedly a Taliban captured Afghanistan Air Force UH-60 Blackhawk at Kandahar. Important to note it is only shown taxiing not flying,” Joseph Dempsey, a defense analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, tweeted Wednesday.
ويډيو|کندهار ولايت
د کندهار هوايي ډګر الوتنو ته چمتو کيږي، دا بلېک هاک امريکايي چورلکه چې خرابه شوې وه جوړه او فعاليت ته چمتو شوې.@A_Jahid_Jalal pic.twitter.com/XJB1sqn4E6— Jahid Jalal -جاهد جلال (@A_Jahid_Jalal) August 25, 2021
The US-made helicopter, manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft, taxied around the runway for at least a minute. There was no word if the helicopter left the ground or the status of its airworthiness. It’s likely the Taliban lacks pilots.
Since the Taliban has taken over the country, Adam Andrzejewski, CEO of Open the Books, said the terror organization now “controls 75,000 military vehicles. This is about 50,000 tactical vehicles, 20,000 Humvees they control about 1,000 mine-resistant vehicles, and even about 150 armored personnel carriers.”
Multipurpose helicopters UH-60 Black Hawk and Mi-17 of the Afghan Air Force at the Kandahar airbase, captured by the Taliban.
#Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/b2mtSK6YPf— Ali Özkök (@Ozkok_A) August 14, 2021
“We built them a pretty amazing war chest and now all of it is in the hands of the Taliban,” said Andrzejewski. “We know that last month, as late as July, seven new helicopters were being delivered in the capital city of Kabul.”
Alexander Mikheev, the head of the Russian state exporter Rosoboronexport, said the Taliban have an extensive helicopter fleet of more than 100 Mi-17 helicopters of various types.
Video reportingly shows #Taliban captured Kunduz airport with #Afghanistan Air Force Mi-35 Hind attack helicopter pic.twitter.com/u7jZJdR800
— Joseph Dempsey (@JosephHDempsey) August 11, 2021
Earlier this week, Taliban fighters showed off their new US special forces weapons and gear left behind for the now-defunct Afghan Army.
“It is unconscionable that high-tech military equipment paid for by US taxpayers has fallen into the hands of the Taliban and their terrorist allies,” 25 senators told Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
For now, the Taliban are likely to seek helicopter pilots and other experienced operators for fixed-wing aircraft they’ve hijacked over the last few weeks.
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/video-shows-taliban-take-joyride-us-black-hawk-helicopter
I wonder if Biden will send someone over to show them how to fly it and operate all it’s systems ?
Or maybe that’s what we’re watching
🙂
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