Come rain or shine...

摘要

Maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) experience from the Iraq and Afghan wars has led to numerous rotorcraft improvements over the past decade. The high pace of operations in both theatres has informed the US military's plans for future helicopters, requiring them to be able to perform in hot and high conditions. 'Afghanistan is a difficult environment,' explained CWO Don Washabaugh, the logistics officer for the US Army's Program Executive Office for Aviation. 'It is mountainous, it has valleys, it is not as dry as people anticipated, it is not all desert; but all of the aircraft have been designed for worldwide environments.' According to data provided jointly by the US government's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the USAF Combat Climatology Center, Afghanistan experiences environmental extremes. While classified as a desert climate, its winters are freezing, with a rain and snow season that runs from winter through early spring.