Helicopters (showcase)

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Take on Arma 3's rotor-wing flight. Transport a Quick Reaction Force to the scene of an attack on one of our facilities. Mission Description

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Helicopters
Time	02:15 PM
Date	06-07-2035
Location	Stratis Air Base, Stratis, Republic of Altis and Stratis

Helicopters is a playable showcase mission in ArmA 3.

Overview

The player controls Griffin Regiment aviator Corporal Yousuf, callsign Hydra. NATO forces, with the help of FIA insurgents, have launched a massive counterattack against the garrison on Stratis.

They have begun their ground assault upon the Kamino Firing Range and Air Station Mike-26. Cpl. Yousuf must take command of his helicopter to transport reinforcements to the front line and provide close air support.

Role/class:

• Air / Helicopter Pilot

Default loadout:

• Primary weapon: Sting (4× magazines)
  • ACO SMG (Green)
• Secondary weapon: None
• Equipment: NV Goggles (Black), Smoke Grenade (Orange) (1×), Smoke Grenade (Red) (1×), Smoke Grenade (Yellow) (1×), Chemlight (Red) (2×)
• Backpack: None

There are no alternate pieces of equipment to choose from.

Objectives

Primary

• (1) Take Off
• (2) Fly to Kamino base
• (3) Stop enemy vehicles
• (4) Destroy mortars
• (5) Deploy troops
• (6) Resupply
• (7) Defend Kamino base
• (8) Return to base

Optional

• (9) Resupply

Mandatory

• Avoid collateral damage/friendly fire
• Obey HQ's orders
• Your helicopter must not be immobilised
• Do not leave the AO

Walkthrough

NOTE:

• The flow of this showcase will differ depending on your actions throughout the early stages of the showcase:
  • If the mortars are spotted before they begin firing upon Mike-26, you will be ordered to attack them first instead of going after the MRAPs
  • If you have unloaded Viper-Red before finding the mortar, you will be ordered to attack them once the troops disembark
  • If the mortars have already been destroyed, then you will not be required to rearm at Camp Rogain and can head back to the Stratis Airbase
• For the sake of consistency, this walkthrough assumes a logical order based on the player following the "intended" route for each primary objective.

Primary 1: Take Off

Hop into the marked helicopter and get into the air as quickly as possible.

Primary 2: Fly to Kamino base

Once you are in the air, immediately start flying towards the marked waypoint at the Kamino Firing Range.

However, soon after you take off from the airbase, Griffin will retask you with the objective of intercepting a pair of MRAPs enroute to Air Station Mike-26.

Primary 3: Stop enemy vehicles

NOTE:

• This section assumes that the player has not spotted the mortars first.
• You may want to stick to targeting the vehicles in First Person View rather than Third Person as the markers on the Heads Up Display (HUD) will clearly display the lock-on cone on the DAGR's seeker.

Divert due south and switch to your heatseeking DAGR rockets.

You should spot your two targets racing towards the radar station. Once you get within one kilometre of either MRAP, face towards the vehicle and begin locking onto them (Default hotkey: T). As soon as you've acquired a lock-on, launch the rocket. Only one rocket is actually needed to destroy the vehicle, though you may need to fire more than one if the initial volley misses.

When locking on, keep in mind that the DAGR's seeker does not rely on the helicopter's own IR sensors (not that it has one to begin with). Try to avoid flying directly behind or above your targets as the DAGRs need a fair amount of room to adjust their trajectory after launch.

That being said, the DAGR's IR seeker may not be able to lock onto them properly if you're too far away, so try to maintain a steady distance from your targets without getting too close at the same time.

Lastly, bear in mind that even if you do not destroy the MRAPs before they arrive at the base, you will still have an opportunity to destroy them as they eventually come to a halt along the road north of Mike-26. Just be careful to not get shot down by the enemy infantry as they disembark (the autoriflemen can kill you if you aren't careful).

After the MRAPs are eliminated, resume heading towards Air Station Mike-26. Once you get low enough, the airbase will get pelted with mortar fire, preventing you from landing and cancelling the objective for the moment.

Primary 4: Destroy mortars

NOTE: This section assumes that the player has not already destroyed the mortars prior to unloading Viper-Red.

A battery of enemy mortars have set up a position at grid 039-035 (south of Mike-26) and must be destroyed before you can drop off your cargo.

Switch to your 6.5 mm Gatling gun and begin flying in their direction. As before, face towards either of the mortars and begin firing the Gatling gun until one of them is destroyed. You don't have to worry about the second as it will automatically blow up alongside the first once you destroy it.

Primary 5: Deploy troops

NOTE: This section assumes that the player has not dropped off Viper-Red prior to the mortars being destroyed.

Land at the marked helipad inside the facility and wait for Viper-Red's men to disembark.

Primary 6: Resupply

Head straight to Camp Rogain for a resupply. A short cutscene will play before your helicopter's ordnance is fully replenished.

Primary 7: Defend Kamino base

NOTE: This section assumes that the player has not already destroyed the mortars on the islet.

Take off and head back towards the Kamino Firing Range. Your next target is a pair of enemy mortars set up on the islet of Pythos (east of Kamino).

You can either spray their position using the 6.5 mm Gatling gun or bombard them with DAGR rockets (keep in mind that you cannot lock-on to infantry targets). As before, the instant either one of turrets gets destroyed, there will be a secondary explosion that will automatically destroy the other.

Primary 8: Return to base

After the mortar turrets are destroyed, you will be free to return to the airbase. Land at your starting point near the hangars where Chimera and Dragon's helicopters are. The showcase will end in victory shortly afterwards.

Optional 9: Resupply

If you run low or deplete your entire reserve of ordnance at any point during or prior to Air Station Mike-26's defence, you will have the option of landing at Camp Rogain to rearm.

Tips

• Try to avoid landing your helicopter using the auto-hover function. It's a crutch at best and shouldn't be used in favour of learning how to land helicopters without its assistance.
• Your cockpit's windows are not bulletproof. Avoid flying too low or hovering in a static position for too long while enemies are nearby. The weapons wielded by grenadiers and marksmen can pierce the plexiglass and instantly kill you.
• If you happen to be flying with the Advanced Flight Model (AFM) toggled on, remember to be careful whenever you land or hover in place to avoid inducing a Vortex Ring State (VRS).
  • You first warning sign will always be a series of continuous vibrations that noticeably shake the helicopter's hull more than usual. Pay close attention to this, as if you do not start reducing collective pitch and increasing forward airspeed (by pitching the cyclic forward), you will eventually get locked into an uncontrollable dive and crash.
  • This especially applies to the PO-30 Orca as unlike most conventional helicopters, it torques to the left and requires the RIGHT pedal for power application. Additionally, the Orca's high torque and tail rotor forces mean that you will need to utilise the pedal often to keep it from translating too much.
• If AFM is activated, be careful of the Orca's tail wheel configuration. While there aren't any real opportunities for you to perform a rolling landing throughout the showcase (save for perhaps dropping off the squad at Mike-26), attempting to taxi at any speed greater than ~ 6 km/h is extremely risky. As such, you should (ideally) stick to 5 km/h or less to avoid inducing a tailstrike.

Trivia

• As with the allied recon squad in Gunships, the Viper SF team in Helicopters should not be confused with the actual Viper SOF faction as the showcase predates the Apex expansion pack's release.
• Prior to the introduction of Sensors added with the Jets DLC's platform update, locking onto the enemy MRAPs was easier due to the simplistic weapon locking system inherited from ArmA 2.
  • This is because the platform update refactored the DAGR's locking capabilities (alongside all other guided ordnance). This change, combined with the Orca's lack of an integral Infrared Search and Track sensor, forces the player to lock-on with the DAGR's seeker rather than through the Orca's avionics.