Helicopter dodges missile

Press, 7 January 1987, Page 8

Helicopter dodges missile

NZPA-AP Washington A U.S. navy helicopter flying a routine surveillance mission in the Gulf was fired upon unexpectedly yesterday as it approached a merchant ship, the Pentagon said. A single surface-to-air missile was fired at the helicopter as it flew to the north-west of the United Arab Emirates. The helicopter took evasive action upon spotting the missile with the result that the missile passed within about 200 metres, the Pentagon said. The aircraft immediately returned to its ship, the destroyer Obannon, without further incident. The SH-2 anti-sub-marine helicopter, had been dispatched from the Obannon to ascertain the identity of the merchant ship. The Pentagon said it did not know the identity of the merchant vessel. The helicopter was about skm from the vessel when the missile was fired and about 61km from the Obannon. The SH-2, also known as the Seasprite, normally carries a crew of three and is armed only with two torpedoes. As the toll on commercial shipping in the Gulf war between Iran and Iraq has mounted, there have been reports that commercial ships have taken to arming themselves with missiles.