CREW: Three or four (pilot and co-pilot, one or two loadmasters)
CAPACITY: 55 troops, or 10 tonnes of kit and equipment
WEIGHT: 10,185kg
TOP SPEED: 183mph
MAX ALTITUDE: 15,000ft
POWER: 7,500 horsepower (over seven Formula One racing cars, or 11 Ferrari supercars).
Nothing can move troops as quickly as the mighty Chinook
When soldiers need to hitch a lift in Iran or Afghanistan, it’s more than likely that their taxi will be a Chinook helicopter.
This colossal cab’s main job is to move troops around the most rugged and dangerous battlefields on earth. It can carry 55 fully kitted soldiers at a top speed of 183mph, thanks to two massive engines and a pair of huge rotors.
Alternatively, two Land Rovers can drive straight inside while up to 10 tonnes of kit – anything from vehicles to big guns – can be hooked underneath the helicopter and flown wherever it is needed.
The Chinook is operated by the RAF (there are currently 48 in service) and soldiers have been launched into battle from them in the Falklands, Balkans, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Iraq.
