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CNN Live At Daybreak

Black Hawk Helicopters Critical To U.S. Military Operations

Aired February 19, 2002 - 05:22   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Now we go to Afghanistan, where Black Hawk helicopters play a critical role in all phases of U.S. military operations. Most of the Black Hawks operate out of the U.S. base at the airport in Kandahar.

And that's where our Martin Sanjay joined a recent Black Hawk mission.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN Sanjay, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The U.S. Black Hawk helicopters at Kandahar Airport carry out a number of operations, ops they call them -- combat support ops, medical ops, special forces ops, today, media ops. It's chance to learn how the Comancheros, as the unit's called, do their job. It's also an opportunity to see Afghanistan from the air. The unit's chaplain says it has another purpose, to familiarize us with the only way out if the base is attacked. That's him handing out the airsick bags. He's a careful man.

Father Paul wants me to have a feel for what the helicopter crews have to put up with by dressing me in his flight gear. I have trouble with the body armor.

FATHER PAUL: I'll take care of it.

SAVIDGE: He offers another form of protection.

FATHER PAUL: One of the last things we do when we turn off the camera...

SAVIDGE: ... is pray, something the father didn't think appropriate to show. Then we're off. At the helicopter the crew tells us about everything that could go wrong, but seldom does.

UNIDENTIFIED SOLDIER: If we have to make an emergency landing, we're all going to stay on board the aircraft until the blades stop turning.

SAVIDGE: Finally, helmeted, belted and visored down, we're good to go. As we leave the base, the pilot orders the gunners to lock and load. This may be a photo shoot, but in Afghanistan you never know if someone's going to shoot back. As an extra security measure, we fly fast and low, over 120 miles an hour 80 feet off the ground. It makes the chopper a fleeting target as we roar over barren Afghan fields.

Soon, civilization.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For those of you on the headset, we're approaching Kandahar.

SAVIDGE: The birthplace of the Taliban spreads out beneath our feet. Next, off to the mountains that jut up like jagged teeth. Down below, the pilot says, is a former terrorist training camp. Much of the landscape looks tormented by drought. Irrigation ditches scar the earth. Occasionally you see patches of green in the distance. We roar over a shrunken river bordered by a majestic sea of sand the color of clay flowerpots. The dunes march on for miles.

The chopper crews give us a taste of what it's like to try to land in the Afghan dust. This is the view from inside. Here's how it looks from the air. Then we get a feel of what's called tactical flying. The helicopter goes even faster and lower, barely clearing mountain peeks before plunging down the other side. As we turn for home, the crew spies another local hazard. Nestled in the valley are hundreds of unexploded bombs left behind by the Soviet Army when they were here.

Minutes later we're back at the base and back on the ground, thanks to a good crew and a priest with good connections.

Martin Savidge, CNN, Kandahar.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Interesting story.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Great writing.

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: You know, you're saying it, too. Marty, he really can put a package together.

COSTELLO: Oh, yes. He can turn a phrase, can't he?

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