MD Helicopters MH-6 Little Bird

The MH-6 Little Bird is a light helicopter flown by the United States Army for special operations, with an armed sister version called the AH-6. It began as the modified OH-6A observation helicopter that grew out of the Hughes Model 369, and later aircraft were built on the MD 500E and the MD 530F, the latter giving the newest MH-6M a six-bladed main rotor and a four-bladed tail rotor. After the failure of Operation Eagle Claw in 1980 the Army chose the OH-6A for the unit that became the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, because it could land in the tightest places and be carried in Air Force transports. Its first combat use was in Grenada in 1983, and it went on to fly in the Persian Gulf in 1987, Panama in 1989, Mogadishu, Iraq and Somalia. The MH-6 carries operators on outboard benches, while the AH-6 carries guns, rockets and missiles.