The Loadout Room
Menu
  • Shooting
        • Pistol
        • Pistol Accessories
        • Rifle
        • Rifle Accessories
        • Shotgun
        • Machine Guns
        • Air Guns
        • Ammunition
        • Optics and Sights
        • Weapon Lights
        • Tips & How-To
        • Concealed Carry
        • Holsters
        • Suppressors
        • Precision Rifle Shooting
        • Firearms Training
        • 1A Gun to Ride the River With: The Smith & Wesson 686
        • The Tristar folding shotgun is ready for your wilderness adventuresThe Tristar folding shotgun is ready for your wilderness adventures
        • maxim defense cqb stock (8)The Maxim Defense CQB Stock: Short and Sweet
        • Perfecting your zero | A little help goes a LONG wayPerfecting your zero | A little help goes a LONG way
    • Close
  • Gear Reviews
      • Mission Gear
      • Camping Gear
      • Survival Gear
      • Medical Gear
      • Adventure & Travel
      • Knives & Tools
      • Overland
      • Disaster Preparedness
      • Footwear
      • Womens Gear & Clothing
        • RIP-MVehicle Preparedness: Fast access to essential items | Grey Man Tactical RIP-M
        • Midland radioOverland Essential | Midland Radio MXT275 | GXT1000
        • ppGrab your gear and go | Here’s everything you’d need to build an adventure go bag
        • Scrubba Washbag: Keep your clothes clean in the fieldScrubba Washbag: Keep your clothes clean in the field
    • Close
  • Men’s Lifestyle
      • Fitness
      • EDC
      • Eyewear
      • Watches
      • Electronics & Technology
      • Downtime
      • Mens Clothing & Accessories
      • Manly Skills
      • Style & Grooming
      • Gentleman Drinks
      • Crate Club
        • The Outdoor Edge ParaClaw: A concealed stingerThe Outdoor Edge ParaClaw: A concealed stinger
        • How to determine how long you have before the sun setsHow to determine how long you have before the sun sets
        • fireWilderness survival expert breaks down how to build a fire
        • 5.11 Tactical Expedition Long Sleeve Shirt5.11 Tactical Expedition Long Sleeve Shirt, SWAT Tested and Approved
    • Close
  • News
  • Video Demo
  • Shop

Watch: 360 degree video shows what it’s like to hitch a ride dangling under a Blackhawk

August 4, 2019 by Alex Hollings Leave a Comment

Special Patrol Insertion/Extraction (SPIE) flights offer a unique way to get troops into and out of terrain that a helicopter may not be able to land on. To the untrained observer, SPIE flights might look like a helicopter simply lowers a rope, warfighters clip on with carabiners, and then they get taken for one hell of a crazy ride, dangling beneath the aircraft… and this is one situation where the casual observer would actually be right.

SPIE flights, for all the skill required on behalf of the pilots at the stick of the helicopter, really are helicopter flights with a string of soldiers dangling beneath them on ropes that usually range in length from 120 to 150 feet long. As many as ten soldiers clip themselves to set spots on the rope at different lengths, then as the helicopter gains altitude, it lifts the soldiers one by one. The end result looks like this:

(USMC Photo)

The U.S. Military acknowledges that this method of insertion isn’t as advantageous to the warfighter as simply fast roping out of the same Blackhawk; however, there are some circumstances that simply don’t lend themselves to the traditional fast-roping methodology (wherein troops quickly descend from the helicopter via ropes, rather than hitch a ride tied to one). SPIE methodologies have proven particularly viable for certain kinds of extractions — like out of the water.

SPIE Extraction training (Flickr)

The SPIE method grew out of the Vietnam era STABO, or STAbilized BOdy, rig. The STABO rig was developed by Sergeant First Class Clifford L. Roberts, a Green Beret that witnessed one of his fellow Special Forces soldiers get injured when he fell from the McGuire extraction rigs utilized at the time. The STABO served as a load bearing rig for the operator but bore a strong resemblance to the setup used in parachutes. As a result, special operators could utilize quick extractions from the jungles of Vietnam simply by clipping their carabiners to a rope lowered by a helicopter floating above the tree tops. In the dense jungle warfare of that conflict, STABO rigs and the early iterations of SPIE extractions saved countless lives.

If you’ve ever wondered just what it might be like to dangle helplessly a hundred feet below the thunderous blades of a Blackhawk as it sailed through the skies — wonder no longer. The U.S. Army recently released a 360-degree video you can control yourself that offers the most realistic appreciation for SPIE flights anyone can have… short of roping up themselves.

Watch the video below:

Share This

Filed Under: Featured, Videos Tagged With: 360 degrees, Alex Hollings, blackhawk, extraction, Headlines, helicopter, insertion, Marines, soldiers, SPIE, stabo, Video, Vietnam, VIRTUAL REALITY, Watch, wet-spie

About the Author

Avatar

Alex Hollings Alex Hollings writes on a breadth of subjects ranging from fitness to foreign policy, all presented through the lens of his experiences as a U.S. Marine, athlete and scholar. A football player, rugby player and fighter, Hollings has spent the better part of his adult life competing in some of the most physically demanding sports on the planet. Hollings possesses a master's degree in communications from Southern New Hampshire University, as well as a bachelor's degree in Corporate and Organizational Communications from Framingham State University.

See All Alex Hollings Articles

More From The Loadout Room

Comments

What’s Hot

My current non-firearm everyday carry
EDC

My current non-firearm everyday carry

Top 8 upgrades every Kel-Tec Sub 2000 owner needs: MCARBO parts review
Featured

Top 8 upgrades every Kel-Tec Sub 2000 owner needs: MCARBO parts review

AR Build Kits under $300
Firearms Technology

Peak AR: Davidson Defense AR Build Kits under $300

Firearms

Covert Operations Case - Keep Your SMG Discreet

Emerson CQC-7 BW: Minimal maintenance and maximum self-defense
Featured

Emerson CQC-7 BW: Minimal maintenance and maximum self-defense

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive email updates daily and to hear what's going on with us!

In Case You Missed It

Firearms

Covert Operations Case – Keep Your SMG Discreet

February 26, 2021 Leave a Comment

Gear Reviews

KA-BAR LDK – Slash, Stab, and Escape

February 22, 2021 Leave a Comment

Firearms

The Flash 5 From Tactaload – Best Shotgun Stock

February 12, 2021 Leave a Comment

Firearms

The Romeo5XDR – Budget Blasting Red Dot

February 1, 2021 Leave a Comment

Get it on Google Play

© Copyright 2021 Crate Club Group · All Rights Reserved.

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Advertisers