smart use of helicopters

[wonderdog4]

I use helicopters to accomplish the following tactical goals.

1. Find and destroy subs and transports.
2. Find and kill settlers, engineers, caravans, freight, diplomats and spies -- especially in remote areas.
3. Exterminate unwalled cities (always attack from over land squares to do this) which could later be used as airbases or ports.
4. Prevent establishment of new cities.
5. Eliminate huts I have no hope of getting to.
6. Harass distant, isolated cities in order to divert resources away from the area I really intend to attack.
7. Find and destoy explorers and scouts.

Helicopters are very useful in games in which opposition cities are not yet walled --which frequently happens in those games where the opposing civs develop late. But they are certainly not useful in all games.

Once a helicopter leaves a city, I never expect it to return. I think of them more as missles, than as regular units.

[Sieve Too]

I'm no big fan of Helicopters. They're expensive, slow, have a lousy defense, lose hit points just by sitting around, always cause unhappiness in Democracy, can only attack once per turn, can be attacked by any unit, and you have to research a dead-end advance to get them. That's a big list of negatives.

In general, Stealth Fighters, Bombers or AEGIS can do the same things as Helicopters, but better. Stealth Fighters don't cause unhappiness in Dem and can attack multiple times. Bombers can only be attacked by fighters and have more punch than Helicopters. AEGIS can patrol the seas indefinitely without losing hps and are mostly immune to air attacks.

[wonderdog4]

Everything you say is true, but the question, I believe, was about how to use helicopters "smartly".

Frankly, I get sick of stealth. It's too easy. Helicopters are a fun diversion -- a way to vary your forces and break the monotony of stealth, steath, stealth, howizter, howizter, howitzer, boom, boom, boom, die, die, die. And they sound cool to boot.

[don Don]

Regarding the question of transporting groud units on Helos:

First, you get Helos with CA, so think of them as combined gunships and troop transports. That's why Helos can occupy a city. There wouldn't be enough troops to constitute a whole Rifles unit, and they're only effective when used with air cavalry tactics.

Secondly it's a matter of sheer capacity. For airlift you can pack hundreds of soldiers into an airplane that is making many trips between cities with large airports. The really big helicopter transports like the Chinook might carry 30 men (about half a platoon); the UH1G carries 6-8 (about half a squad).
[This message has been edited by don Don (edited January 13, 2000).]

[Sieve Too]

wd4: Alright then, I would say that the "smartest" way to use Helicopters is: a) fly them to one of your cities, b) disband them and use the shields to build something better!

[wonderdog4]

Now that's what I call smart.