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special operators and art of war are the most boring series imo, your current news video (especially out of focus things like india/pakistan, south america etc.) are where your channel shines...all those "thoughest millitary units of the world" have been documented to death by now
I have to admit, the fact I've never heard of them and watch Military stuff all the time makes it so much cooler to stumble on this epic unit of a unit lol
These are "Fake News, western propaganda" News websites, to receive their propagandized is doing a disservice to you intelligence! You need unbiased accounts of any war correspondence, find someone who is more honest in their reporting!
Glad to see this. With so much infatuation of SEALs, Green Berets, SAS, etc, Spec Ops pilots like this get completely overlooked and are easily just as badass as their terrestrial and aquatic counterparts.
Most of these guys were Special forces, DELTA, or Rangers before becoming pilots for the Night stalkers. Trust me, they don't feel neglected by the people that matter.
Just don’t include SEALS in the same sentence as Delta Force and SAS, they’re not the same. SAS would only ever do operations with Delta, they’re our brothers best Tier 1 SOF. 🇬🇧✊🇺🇸
@@rocketfishx3474 You can use wild grape vines to siphon dirty water into clear water that only needs a quick boil to consume. And you can boil it with a hot stone plucked from a fire in a carved out piece of wood or using birch bark and pine sap to make a cup. Does that count? Learned that from a Green Beret.
My uncle was a mh-47 pilot in the 160th for 25yrs. Those guys are some of the most professional, intelligent, brave, and loyal men I've ever met. Not just the pilots, but the aircrews too. They write the book on what is possible in a helicopter.
Thr USAs combat doctorine is centered around owning the night. Why all soldiers are equipped with NVG. Most other armies opposition militaries have at most 1 per squad.
way more terrifying when youre a civilian and these guys wipe out your whole bloodline because of bad intel as happened numerous times. As reported by Human Rights Watch if you want a source
Compared to some of your other channels, I like how you keep a bit of formality on this channel, but when a sparky comment is warranted, you take it. I love it
If only the situation room had this editing, Simon's standard. The editor for that segment pretty much just uses the raw footage which, to some at least, wouldn't be up to Simon's standard.
A cousin of mine was a part of this unit. He said that when he passed the final test to join the unit and got his patch to sew to his uniform when he first went on base afterwards the base security gave him a deference that he was not used to. He said it felt really weird.
@@kananisha I'm sure I read somewhere that the Chinooks had to slow down for the Apaches during the Afghan war as they were supposed to be protecting them.
When I was station at Fort Campbell, I worked with a lot of the Intel guys at 160th. The pilots were chill but most people who operate at that level tend to be. Same thing w EOD techs along w all the SOF dudes too. The only time they seem to get serious is when there’s a job to be done.
I bet learning how to relax is a big part of making it in these roles. if they were “switched on” all the time, Im just guessing it wouldn’t be the best
I was enlisted, and also feel like I was pretty chill, lol. But ya, all the pilots were super chill, especially with their maintainers. ha, except for one asshole pilot that got kicked out for selling a bunch of big aluminum ramps we use to load aircraft onto larger aircraft, to a recycling center... like dude, wtf?? 160th is still a cross section of America, and some of that crazy does make it through. Anyway, teams don't work when team mates can't communicate on an equal footing, and that requires an extreme level of chill. But also, I'd say a lot of the chill comes from confidence. And that confidence comes from training. And that training comes from the hard lessons the unit has had to learn over the decades. Everyone from the pilots to the privates at the motor pool (yes, we have one of those, how else do you think we establish remote refueling points, or ya know, drive around?) are excellently trained, but at the time late 2000's the op temp was nuts, so we got plenty of OTJ learning, which in the end, usually makes you better at your job, thus more confident, thus more chill. Next Stop Dairy Queen!
Simon, i'm going to be very honest: you never ceased to amaze me with your extraordinary content and i'm glad you gave us a fully detailed explanation about the Night Stalkers because they don't get as much recognition as their compatriots of the Navy SEALs and Green Berets.
Not just that. A lot actually are training accidents. Special Forces tend to go by the "Train hard, fight easy" mentality. Make the training more difficult and the actual op tends to go smoother. Unfortunately, it also means more accidents and more injuries and deaths. But, since the training is usually built around specific missions, you can't release anything more than "Training accident".
That’s one of my pet peeves….using non context vehicles in the thumb nail…like come on now! All that work and amazing video about night stalkers but the first thing you see is a thumbnail of Russian mi-8 helicopters…it’s stupid.
My brother was a crew chief for a chinook in the 160th. Most of the missions he ran are so confidential the mere mention that he even took part in them would land him in serious trouble. These guys dont mess around.
U.S Navy had the first Special Operations Helicopter unit named the Seawolves aka HAL3 and to this day it's still the most decorated Sqaudron in Naval history
The whole "little planning" thing is no longer part of the 160th. My Bn in Afghanistan picked up several missions with SEALs and Rangers that 160th dropped because they "didn't have enough time to plan". At least in 2015 they were really big sticklers for the 72-hour planning process.
You picked up the mission because the mission didn’t require to abilities of the 160th. You were told the whole 72 hour thing to make you feel better. NSDQ!
@@williamwhitted2490 Speaking of making ones self feel better. Project harder my dude. The "we need 72 hours" came directly from the Regiment. If they felt the need to lie to save face, that's on them I guess.
Tbh during the height of GWOT everybody wanted to fly with 160th. Every SOF unit thought they deserved to be flown by SOAR. 160th is in multiple countries, multi training exercises, with multiple customers simultaneously, there just isn’t enough helos to support the want. There are priority units that when they request it happens, if they can accommodate others as well, great, if not then it goes to other aviation units to support.
Was stationed on Ft Campbell 06-08. I can attest to the true badassery of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. No matter what the conflict from a bar fight to WWIII, you want these guys on your side.
Not watched yet, just hope that there's a reference to what we called them at Ft. Campbell back in the day... Wifestalkers... always checking the training schedules...
Hey. My father was a Nightstalker from 1986 to 2010 and actually knew one of the crews in Mogadishu. There were NOT 80 US soldiers killed. Only 24 were INCLUDING MALAYSIA AND PAKISTANI TROOPS ALSO. He was in language school during Mogadishu and was on the back up list for it. Only reson he didn't go was because of language school. After that he would be sent back to Panama after assisting in it also as a Nightstalker. He was there until 1999 and also met my mom before being sent back to Savannah, Georgia with 3RD BATTALION . Then was sent into Iraq and Afghanistan. He also assisted in OPERATION DESERT STORM where he flew the famous ODA 525 with "Kenny Collier". But as 2010 rolled around and was stationed in Savannah with 3RD BATTALION. People started being really dumb with the helicopters him and all the Nightstalkers flew. So he went to test pilots and was there until 2013~. And then mostly the repair men and officers were rude to him (keep in mind his contract was finished im pretty sure after his 2nd year at a test pilot for SOAR). So one day during his 3RD year right before his 30th year mark in the army he was shitted on so badly he literally walked into his commanding officers office and told him he's retiring because of how stupid and rude everyone was to him. ALSO SOAR test pilots were being PAID MORE at FORT CAMBELL than at HUNTER ARMY AIRFIELD.
Thank you for the great coverage of a unit that is all to often overlooked and unknown. I was hoping to see you cover my old unit but honestly figured it would be missed. BTW we don't assassinate any target, they just don't surrender in time... Also, the expiration of critical sensitive information is usually 25-50ish years depending on the type and level.
Excellent episode Mr. Whistler! Very engaging. One might even be forgiven for thinking you rather admired these gentlemen, which is of course understandable. Thank you for this enlightening little journey.
Simon, it's pronounced Chi-Noo-k with a hard k at the end. Sincerely a former night stalker. Thank you for making one of the best videos on my former unit I've seen yet. N.S.D.Q.!
I have a friend who is a VET and was once inserted via the Night Stalker group. He had to jump from the back of a Chinook in motion. He guessed the height at less than a foot off the ground.
The 160th SOAR or the Night Stalkers are more than just Pilots, they are crew chiefs, Maintenance, ASLE, and so much more. Also they were Task Force 160 not Task force 158. That's why they are the 160th SOAR and not the 158th SOAR. They also have another motto, Night Stalkers Don't Quit. My dad is a former Night Stalker, and I'm going to be one.
If anyone's interested there is a series called Valor that portrays a fictional helicopter unit based on the Night Stalkers. it was canceled after one season but Its actually a great show.
My father was one of the commanding officers on Operation Credible Sport and trained to land a rocket powered C-130 and lead a group of commandos to rescue the hostages. But, the mission was canceled and the suicide mission never went forward. My dad lived on for decades after that.
There is an old saying I’ve heard from someone who was a crew chief in the 160th. They could be on fire and hear a distress call over the net and they will turn around and say “we’ll take care of the fire later”
I couldn't serve due to medical reasons when I was younger, but this and a few other air based combat squads are the reason I wanted to. I wanted to be a combat pilot so bad, and I even wanted to try and make it a career of service in the armed forces. The use of "little birds" in Mogadishu was also one of my inspirations to try and be a combat pilot.
Every few years the 160th does training in the city I live in. It's wild to see them cooking through downtown to do their stuff. They're a different breed, for sure.
That was my platoon name during basic training haha when we would cover and recover in formation, we would say “get in the van” 😅 didn’t know they actually are a hardcore thing
Somehow, that was my platoon name in basic as well. Then through sheer luck I ended up getting DA (department of the army) selected for the unit and made it through green platoon. This was back in the mid 2000's when they were expanding a lot and DA selecting a lot of people straight out of AIT. Never heard the "get in the van" motto but that's awesome! We were often times a highly armed taxi service. Next Stop Dairy Queen!
While the 160th (One Sixtieth) SOAR is quite capable of Combat Search and Rescue and has performed this mission, the mission role actually belongs to the USAF now with their HH-60W "Jolly Green". Their motto "These things we do, that others may live"
they're damn wizards. never late or early, arriving precisely when they mean to. i remember one day, air was red, which meant there was no air support. no apaches, no drones, no medevacs. the JTAC got hit, and my first thought was what would happen since nothing was flying. not long after a black chinook touched down on the LZ next to the aid station. the guy that came running out was a PA, normally a battalion-level medical asset. the JTAC made it. he might have made it if they kept him grounded, but he DEFINITELY made it because of the evac to higher care.
I wont lie, having watched The Fat Electrians video on the Night Stalkers and now this one, they're definitely one of my favorites. Particularly the Strategic Transfer of Equipment to Alternative Locations involving that Hind in Chad. All done up in less than a day. Thats insane
Best friend of mine from high school was a Night stalker pilot, flew every helicopter variant in their arsenal in numerous different deployments. Night stalker pilots are typically chosen from Special operations forces, basically the guys that are either getting on the "old" side or operators that were injured and are no longer fit for special operations on the ground. They were already the best of the best and now they continue to be a part of the best of the best. Oh... and they aren't commissioned officers, they're warrant officers. My friend retired 10 years ago as a CW4 after 30 years of service. First 15 as a Ranger and the last 15 as a Night stalker pilot. If you met him in person, you'd never know he was such a bad ass.
Flew every helicopter variant a Black Hawk, little bird are not variants. The word you are looking for is type. Because there is different variant of Black Hawks. Such as UH60 A, UH60 C etc.
I live near their base in Kentucky and I can tell u for a fact these guys practice daily and practice hard my house is right in the middle ofntheir night training path. Get to watch them all the time
Before Call of Duty, there was Black Hawk Down, a PC game in which the Night Stalkers prominately feature. You could ride around on helicopters, it was great.
Simon had me at that thing carries 50 troops and travels 195 mph! It gotta be real gangsta watching the troops jump out of there, spread out, and lay ish down 😏
Chinooks from the 160th fly over my house,35 minutes west of Nashville,several times a week while refueling overhead as they make their way towards Ft Campbell.A refueling probe being attached to the helo is supposedly the tail tell sign that it's a 160th helo.Whether this is true or not, I'm not sure, but it would make sense since they do require more fuel to do some of the OPs SEALS and other spec ops groups are tasked with doing.Maybe a poster here can either confirm or discount the fueling probe as being a dead giveaway that it's a 160th helo?? Thanks
It's not true, but I can see where your thoughts on the matter come from. Around Camp Lejeune, NC., numerous helos fly around with refueling probes. Of course, those guys generally make long flights to and from vessels hanging out in the deep blue.
Simon, I greatly enjoyed your video, and am grateful for your effort and that of your writers. That said, I live in transition zone between the Canadian prairies and the Rocky Mountain Foothills, and even knowing that there are multiple, valid pronunciations, every time you said "Chi-NoooK", my soul died a little. It's not your fault, but we southern Alberta softies live and die by the chinook winds all winter long, and the pronunciation made my bones itch, lol.
@@616CC There truly are a number of variations, from the american pacific northwest to southern BC, to the Prairies. To be entirely fair, Simon's pronunciation is likely not to far from one of the original First Nations' pronunciations, but in southern Alberta, where we all die a little inside waiting for them to arrive throughout the winters, the powerful winds known as Chinook are pronounced Shin- uhk. (One might also think of the Yiddish word "shnook")
It'd be cool to see one of these videos for Marsoc. They're a relatively new SOF, so i think it'd be an interesting perspective especially when contrasted by more established SOF's like SAS or Army SF.
I was just reading about the 160th! At this point I feel like simon whistler and team are just creeping my browser history for subject matter. Can't wait for the Angela White special!
I applied and got in the stalkers, unfortunately when my letter arrived i just got married and moved my ex wife in.should have gone,my avaiation career far out lasted my marriage.
I personally know a handful of these guys and they're no joke. Insanely good pilots and they certainly know it. I know them in a work environment, and it's always a wild experience visiting them. Not your average office 😂
SOC specialized units in the Army, Air Force, Navy, or every single Marine Corps helicopter squadron. Not to take away from what the specialized units do in the other services, as everything we do is incredibly dangerous, but every Marine Corps helicopter squadron prior to going on deployment is SOC certified for VBSS, GOPLAT, MOUNT, TRAP, NEO, SPIE, freefall and static line parachute operations, soft duck, etc.. Due to the nature of the way the Marine Corps operates.we have to be completely self-sufficient. Former proud 6177 CH-46E WTI Crewchief. Phrogs Phorever
Jarheads always want to pretend like everyday Marines are equivalent to other branch's SOF units but then they spin up an also-ran like MARSOC to do stuff that other SOF units having been doing better for years. If you think your helicopter squadrons are equivalent to the 160th you're living in a dream world. Go eat your birthday cake and leave the real flying to the adults. Crayon eaters get real excited about their birthday parties.
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Are we going for a french special operators ? 🇫🇷
special operators and art of war are the most boring series imo, your current news video (especially out of focus things like india/pakistan, south america etc.) are where your channel shines...all those "thoughest millitary units of the world" have been documented to death by now
I have to admit, the fact I've never heard of them and watch Military stuff all the time makes it so much cooler to stumble on this epic unit of a unit lol
The Wagner Group are less choosy about who they will help and are probably cheaper.
These are "Fake News, western propaganda" News websites, to receive their propagandized is doing a disservice to you intelligence! You need unbiased accounts of any war correspondence, find someone who is more honest in their reporting!
Former member of the 5th SOG and these guys helped us out on numerous occasions and have saved my ass a few times. They are scary.
Glad to see this. With so much infatuation of SEALs, Green Berets, SAS, etc, Spec Ops pilots like this get completely overlooked and are easily just as badass as their terrestrial and aquatic counterparts.
I'm waiting for PJ's and JTAC to get the credit they're due!
Most of these guys were Special forces, DELTA, or Rangers before becoming pilots for the Night stalkers. Trust me, they don't feel neglected by the people that matter.
@@mr.z3664 I never suggested otherwise. And I know why they have been happy to let others take the spotlight. 😉
Just don’t include SEALS in the same sentence as Delta Force and SAS, they’re not the same. SAS would only ever do operations with Delta, they’re our brothers best Tier 1 SOF. 🇬🇧✊🇺🇸
@@616CC I never said they are the same. Regardless, thank you for your service. 👍
I had a professor in college that was a night stalker. He taught me so much info that I will use for the rest of my life. RIP Frank Cox.
Would you please share something of his wisdom?
@@rocketfishx3474 You can use wild grape vines to siphon dirty water into clear water that only needs a quick boil to consume. And you can boil it with a hot stone plucked from a fire in a carved out piece of wood or using birch bark and pine sap to make a cup.
Does that count? Learned that from a Green Beret.
@@Phearsum yes that counts. Good info. Thanks for sharing 👍
@@rocketfishx3474You can turn cocaine and crack into “Crack Cocaine” 😄
My uncle was a mh-47 pilot in the 160th for 25yrs. Those guys are some of the most professional, intelligent, brave, and loyal men I've ever met. Not just the pilots, but the aircrews too. They write the book on what is possible in a helicopter.
That motto goes hard. I imagine its particularly haunting if you're a military without much NVGs or thermals to speak of.
Thr USAs combat doctorine is centered around owning the night. Why all soldiers are equipped with NVG. Most other armies opposition militaries have at most 1 per squad.
@feartheamish9183 we own the night
@@desperado8605 other countries are gaining parody.
@@DubhghlasMacDubhghlasNot entirely, definitely not in both quantity and quality.
way more terrifying when youre a civilian and these guys wipe out your whole bloodline because of bad intel as happened numerous times. As reported by Human Rights Watch if you want a source
Compared to some of your other channels, I like how you keep a bit of formality on this channel, but when a sparky comment is warranted, you take it. I love it
If only the situation room had this editing, Simon's standard. The editor for that segment pretty much just uses the raw footage which, to some at least, wouldn't be up to Simon's standard.
A cousin of mine was a part of this unit. He said that when he passed the final test to join the unit and got his patch to sew to his uniform when he first went on base afterwards the base security gave him a deference that he was not used to. He said it felt really weird.
Did they suck his .....?
He still had a lot of tests after that test. That was just Green Platoon. Depending on what he was he also had more stuff to do.
The best damn helicopter pilots in the world. Also, I think that's got to be one of the best unit mottos I've ever heard of
The Chinooks top speed is classified but I know it's the fastest whirlybird we have. I've heard Whispers of 250 mph
@@kananisha I'm sure I read somewhere that the Chinooks had to slow down for the Apaches during the Afghan war as they were supposed to be protecting them.
@@aking-plums6985 that checks out. I was in the unit they were attached too. Chinooks are the fastest helicopter
@@jaymerchant5396 Cheers for the info mate.
a CH47 Chinook? Or MH47 Chinook? Because Apaches aren't protecting the Night Stalkers (MH47 Chinook)
Thanks!
"They arrive on metal beasts, meant to sow destruction and leave no resistance in their wake. The are, the Brotherhood of Steal."
They did in fact steal a helicopter once. Packed it up and carried it away with a Chinook.
@@sethb3090 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Mount_Hope_III to be exact.
When I was station at Fort Campbell, I worked with a lot of the Intel guys at 160th. The pilots were chill but most people who operate at that level tend to be. Same thing w EOD techs along w all the SOF dudes too. The only time they seem to get serious is when there’s a job to be done.
I bet learning how to relax is a big part of making it in these roles. if they were “switched on” all the time, Im just guessing it wouldn’t be the best
I was enlisted, and also feel like I was pretty chill, lol. But ya, all the pilots were super chill, especially with their maintainers. ha, except for one asshole pilot that got kicked out for selling a bunch of big aluminum ramps we use to load aircraft onto larger aircraft, to a recycling center... like dude, wtf?? 160th is still a cross section of America, and some of that crazy does make it through.
Anyway, teams don't work when team mates can't communicate on an equal footing, and that requires an extreme level of chill. But also, I'd say a lot of the chill comes from confidence. And that confidence comes from training. And that training comes from the hard lessons the unit has had to learn over the decades. Everyone from the pilots to the privates at the motor pool (yes, we have one of those, how else do you think we establish remote refueling points, or ya know, drive around?) are excellently trained, but at the time late 2000's the op temp was nuts, so we got plenty of OTJ learning, which in the end, usually makes you better at your job, thus more confident, thus more chill.
Next Stop Dairy Queen!
Simon, i'm going to be very honest: you never ceased to amaze me with your extraordinary content and i'm glad you gave us a fully detailed explanation about the Night Stalkers because they don't get as much recognition as their compatriots of the Navy SEALs and Green Berets.
Don’t know how you can produce so much content but I admire and appreciate it. The second syllable of Chinook is pronounced the same as “hook”.
As a Brit I’ve only ever heard it as an ‘uck’ sound, maybe a transatlantic difference?
My dad was in 'BCO 6/158th AVN Co'. Nick named the "Geronimo's" . He operated on the Chinooks.
I've been at Fort Campbell for the last three years. 160th guys are just another breed
They lose a lot of people to "training accidents". That's code for "we can't tell you where or how or what they were doing, but we lost them"
Not just that. A lot actually are training accidents. Special Forces tend to go by the "Train hard, fight easy" mentality. Make the training more difficult and the actual op tends to go smoother.
Unfortunately, it also means more accidents and more injuries and deaths.
But, since the training is usually built around specific missions, you can't release anything more than "Training accident".
Sweat more in training
Bleed less in war
Love how the thumbnail has Soviet helicopters 😂
That’s one of my pet peeves….using non context vehicles in the thumb nail…like come on now! All that work and amazing video about night stalkers but the first thing you see is a thumbnail of Russian mi-8 helicopters…it’s stupid.
Maybe it is a picture of a nightstalker stalking a russian MI-8 helicopter?@@youngstunna1594
Maybe because the night stalkers stole a Soviet helicopter
@@seangowen9325 I wish I could laugh react because that would be on brand lol
Yeah for a moment I thought Russia had Nightstalkers too
My brother was a crew chief for a chinook in the 160th. Most of the missions he ran are so confidential the mere mention that he even took part in them would land him in serious trouble. These guys dont mess around.
I live right down the road from JBLM where we have the helicopter bay that we fix and repair them at
U.S Navy had the first Special Operations Helicopter unit named the Seawolves aka HAL3 and to this day it's still the most decorated Sqaudron in Naval history
Does the AH-6 Little Bird still keep the title of Killer Egg?
It's arguable of being the most decorated naval unit.
@@aking-plums6985looks like it
The whole "little planning" thing is no longer part of the 160th. My Bn in Afghanistan picked up several missions with SEALs and Rangers that 160th dropped because they "didn't have enough time to plan". At least in 2015 they were really big sticklers for the 72-hour planning process.
You picked up the mission because the mission didn’t require to abilities of the 160th. You were told the whole 72 hour thing to make you feel better. NSDQ!
@@williamwhitted2490 Speaking of making ones self feel better. Project harder my dude. The "we need 72 hours" came directly from the Regiment. If they felt the need to lie to save face, that's on them I guess.
Tbh during the height of GWOT everybody wanted to fly with 160th. Every SOF unit thought they deserved to be flown by SOAR. 160th is in multiple countries, multi training exercises, with multiple customers simultaneously, there just isn’t enough helos to support the want.
There are priority units that when they request it happens, if they can accommodate others as well, great, if not then it goes to other aviation units to support.
Got to work with these guys in Afghanistan. Badass dudes. They get a job, they get it done. Massive respect to them.
As someone from Tacoma, idk why is was so weird hearing Simon say the cities name
Same! + my brother inlaw was a Nightstalker 10 years ago! So happy to see this
You should do a video like this on the Air Force’s PJs
PJs are Angels with guns. Very, very pissed off Angels.
Absolutely.
PJs and the SOARs soggy cousins, SWCC
The PJs are the most badass medics in the world
Defoe do one on ps💯💥💥
Pedro 🫡🇺🇸 USAF SF
Was stationed on Ft Campbell 06-08. I can attest to the true badassery of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. No matter what the conflict from a bar fight to WWIII, you want these guys on your side.
I remember seeing these guys as a kid when my dad was at Campbell, not many schools had soldiers parachuting onto the campus
thats it, that patch is single-handedly the most badass military patch ive ever seen
Remember the 96 that lost their lives. They are not forgotten in this household. 160th SOAR NSDQ
Kris Kristofferson was an army ranger and later a helicopter pilot in Vietnam. Badass dude, and great song writer.
He was also a Rhodes scholar. Guy fires on all cylinders.
I did not know about his mil background...ty
1:05 - Mid roll ads
2:45 - Chapter 1 - Formations & qualities
12:00 - Chapter 2 - Recruitment & training
15:50 - Chapter 3 - History & operations
Not watched yet, just hope that there's a reference to what we called them at Ft. Campbell back in the day... Wifestalkers... always checking the training schedules...
They realky know how raise that esprit de corps eh? Lmao
hm... was hoping no one would remember that...
Hey. My father was a Nightstalker from 1986 to 2010 and actually knew one of the crews in Mogadishu. There were NOT 80 US soldiers killed. Only 24 were INCLUDING MALAYSIA AND PAKISTANI TROOPS ALSO. He was in language school during Mogadishu and was on the back up list for it. Only reson he didn't go was because of language school. After that he would be sent back to Panama after assisting in it also as a Nightstalker. He was there until 1999 and also met my mom before being sent back to Savannah, Georgia with 3RD BATTALION . Then was sent into Iraq and Afghanistan. He also assisted in OPERATION DESERT STORM where he flew the famous ODA 525 with "Kenny Collier". But as 2010 rolled around and was stationed in Savannah with 3RD BATTALION. People started being really dumb with the helicopters him and all the Nightstalkers flew. So he went to test pilots and was there until 2013~. And then mostly the repair men and officers were rude to him (keep in mind his contract was finished im pretty sure after his 2nd year at a test pilot for SOAR). So one day during his 3RD year right before his 30th year mark in the army he was shitted on so badly he literally walked into his commanding officers office and told him he's retiring because of how stupid and rude everyone was to him. ALSO SOAR test pilots were being PAID MORE at FORT CAMBELL than at HUNTER ARMY AIRFIELD.
Thank you for the great coverage of a unit that is all to often overlooked and unknown. I was hoping to see you cover my old unit but honestly figured it would be missed. BTW we don't assassinate any target, they just don't surrender in time...
Also, the expiration of critical sensitive information is usually 25-50ish years depending on the type and level.
NSDQ is sort of the official motto, but "Quiet Professional" is the motto we fully internalized, because there is security in obscurity.
Excellent episode Mr. Whistler! Very engaging. One might even be forgiven for thinking you rather admired these gentlemen, which is of course understandable. Thank you for this enlightening little journey.
Awesome crew, great respect.
Simon, it's pronounced Chi-Noo-k with a hard k at the end. Sincerely a former night stalker.
Thank you for making one of the best videos on my former unit I've seen yet.
N.S.D.Q.!
I never knew what the Night Stalkers did. I never heard of them as well.
If you ever saw Black Hawk Down, you'd have seen what they do with the MH-60s and MH-6s
I have a friend who is a VET and was once inserted via the Night Stalker group. He had to jump from the back of a Chinook in motion. He guessed the height at less than a foot off the ground.
160th SOAR and NAVY SWCC are the backbone of special operations. That’s just a fact, without them these missions don’t happen.
The Killer Egg. Love that little guy
These guys were up the street from me while I was in the Army. They’re barracks are much nicer than mine.
The 160th SOAR or the Night Stalkers are more than just Pilots, they are crew chiefs, Maintenance, ASLE, and so much more. Also they were Task Force 160 not Task force 158. That's why they are the 160th SOAR and not the 158th SOAR. They also have another motto, Night Stalkers Don't Quit. My dad is a former Night Stalker, and I'm going to be one.
They were originally called 158th but 160th sounded cooler. So they changed it
If anyone's interested there is a series called Valor that portrays a fictional helicopter unit based on the Night Stalkers. it was canceled after one season but Its actually a great show.
My father was one of the commanding officers on Operation Credible Sport and trained to land a rocket powered C-130 and lead a group of commandos to rescue the hostages. But, the mission was canceled and the suicide mission never went forward. My dad lived on for decades after that.
There is an old saying I’ve heard from someone who was a crew chief in the 160th. They could be on fire and hear a distress call over the net and they will turn around and say “we’ll take care of the fire later”
Thank goodness they're on our side
I couldn't serve due to medical reasons when I was younger, but this and a few other air based combat squads are the reason I wanted to. I wanted to be a combat pilot so bad, and I even wanted to try and make it a career of service in the armed forces. The use of "little birds" in Mogadishu was also one of my inspirations to try and be a combat pilot.
Sending freedom 24/7 anytime anywhere. Hoorah 'murica!
Every few years the 160th does training in the city I live in. It's wild to see them cooking through downtown to do their stuff. They're a different breed, for sure.
That was my platoon name during basic training haha when we would cover and recover in formation, we would say “get in the van” 😅 didn’t know they actually are a hardcore thing
Somehow, that was my platoon name in basic as well. Then through sheer luck I ended up getting DA (department of the army) selected for the unit and made it through green platoon. This was back in the mid 2000's when they were expanding a lot and DA selecting a lot of people straight out of AIT. Never heard the "get in the van" motto but that's awesome! We were often times a highly armed taxi service. Next Stop Dairy Queen!
While the 160th (One Sixtieth) SOAR is quite capable of Combat Search and Rescue and has performed this mission, the mission role actually belongs to the USAF now with their HH-60W "Jolly Green". Their motto "These things we do, that others may live"
So happy you've covered the Nightstalkers. Absolute flying badassery of the highest calibre
they're damn wizards. never late or early, arriving precisely when they mean to.
i remember one day, air was red, which meant there was no air support. no apaches, no drones, no medevacs. the JTAC got hit, and my first thought was what would happen since nothing was flying. not long after a black chinook touched down on the LZ next to the aid station. the guy that came running out was a PA, normally a battalion-level medical asset.
the JTAC made it. he might have made it if they kept him grounded, but he DEFINITELY made it because of the evac to higher care.
Their standard is time on target plus or minus 30 seconds.
The Night Stalkers are in a league of their own
'F*ck your day' 🤣🤣
Such a good episode. Gotta love Simon Whistler and he's crew.
NSDQ! Glad to be apart of this unit when I was in
10:10 "Up to 11 'seated' operators" ... you're not likely to see seating of operators in the MH-60.
Friend of mine when he was stationed at Bragg he was in the base sky diving club one of the pilots went on to be a nightstalker.
I wont lie, having watched The Fat Electrians video on the Night Stalkers and now this one, they're definitely one of my favorites. Particularly the Strategic Transfer of Equipment to Alternative Locations involving that Hind in Chad.
All done up in less than a day. Thats insane
I was with F Co 160th from 87-89 and worked with some incredible people.
Best friend of mine from high school was a Night stalker pilot, flew every helicopter variant in their arsenal in numerous different deployments. Night stalker pilots are typically chosen from Special operations forces, basically the guys that are either getting on the "old" side or operators that were injured and are no longer fit for special operations on the ground. They were already the best of the best and now they continue to be a part of the best of the best. Oh... and they aren't commissioned officers, they're warrant officers. My friend retired 10 years ago as a CW4 after 30 years of service. First 15 as a Ranger and the last 15 as a Night stalker pilot. If you met him in person, you'd never know he was such a bad ass.
Flew every helicopter variant a Black Hawk, little bird are not variants. The word you are looking for is type. Because there is different variant of Black Hawks. Such as UH60 A, UH60 C etc.
They do have commissioned officer pilots but the majority of them are gonna be warrants
@ mr.z3664 Some bad information in that post
I’m not very far into this yet, but I’m hooked
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”
"And when the impossible has been accomplished the only reward is another mission that no one else will try."
I live near their base in Kentucky and I can tell u for a fact these guys practice daily and practice hard my house is right in the middle ofntheir night training path. Get to watch them all the time
When you care enough to send very best... .
My dad was one of USN officers who was part of Eagle Claw.
I love that thumbnail graphic are of Soviet Mi-17s lmao
SEAR - the E is for EVASION not ERASION
Before Call of Duty, there was Black Hawk Down, a PC game in which the Night Stalkers prominately feature. You could ride around on helicopters, it was great.
Simon had me at that thing carries 50 troops and travels 195 mph! It gotta be real gangsta watching the troops jump out of there, spread out, and lay ish down 😏
Chinooks from the 160th fly over my house,35 minutes west of Nashville,several times a week while refueling overhead as they make their way towards Ft Campbell.A refueling probe being attached to the helo is supposedly the tail tell sign that it's a 160th helo.Whether this is true or not, I'm not sure, but it would make sense since they do require more fuel to do some of the OPs SEALS and other spec ops groups are tasked with doing.Maybe a poster here can either confirm or discount the fueling probe as being a dead giveaway that it's a 160th helo?? Thanks
It's not true, but I can see where your thoughts on the matter come from. Around Camp Lejeune, NC., numerous helos fly around with refueling probes. Of course, those guys generally make long flights to and from vessels hanging out in the deep blue.
Simon, I greatly enjoyed your video, and am grateful for your effort and that of your writers. That said, I live in transition zone between the Canadian prairies and the Rocky Mountain Foothills, and even knowing that there are multiple, valid pronunciations, every time you said "Chi-NoooK", my soul died a little. It's not your fault, but we southern Alberta softies live and die by the chinook winds all winter long, and the pronunciation made my bones itch, lol.
That’s how we pronounce it in the the UK, it’s the only way
I’ve heard it been spoken, what’s the pronunciation?
Chi-nuk ?
@@616CC There truly are a number of variations, from the american pacific northwest to southern BC, to the Prairies. To be entirely fair, Simon's pronunciation is likely not to far from one of the original First Nations' pronunciations, but in southern Alberta, where we all die a little inside waiting for them to arrive throughout the winters, the powerful winds known as Chinook are pronounced Shin- uhk. (One might also think of the Yiddish word "shnook")
I came here to see this comment!
@@chrisforsyth8323 oh I like that
It'd be cool to see one of these videos for Marsoc. They're a relatively new SOF, so i think it'd be an interesting perspective especially when contrasted by more established SOF's like SAS or Army SF.
I’ve never heard of the night stalkers before. I never knew what they did either.
Does it occur to anyone that there might be advantages to buying a house under high voltage power lines? I has never put those together.
Please do an episode about WW1 Canadian Stormtroopers. :)
I was just reading about the 160th! At this point I feel like simon whistler and team are just creeping my browser history for subject matter. Can't wait for the Angela White special!
Also known as Spicy Ubers, some of my favorites birds to see flying in
8:54 ha shithook
I’m surprised that the Apache wasn’t mentioned
The 160th doesn't get enough love. Total Badasses.
Wow, where you get your info? Crew Chiefs go through a hell of a lot more.
I heard something like, "you can keep the day because we own the night"...
Badass dudes no doubt. (Please start using chapters for your videos.)
thank you for your video. Some of the best years of my life. NSDQ!
NSDQ If you know you know - 1990-96 Airborne Platoon TF160 ABN
don’t forget about the MC-130s that help with in air refueling or ground fueling behind enemy lines 💪
Aggregating garbage doesn't mean you are ingesting less garbage. - Ground News
There are enlisted aircraft operators that fly the army's pred-like model, the MQ-1C Gray Eagle.
I'm looking forward to what the Night Stalkers can do with the Bell V-280 Valor. I'm also hoping the Army will change the name Valor to Comanche.
I applied and got in the stalkers, unfortunately when my letter arrived i just got married and moved my ex wife in.should have gone,my avaiation career far out lasted my marriage.
Bro that intro was goosebumps.
I personally know a handful of these guys and they're no joke. Insanely good pilots and they certainly know it. I know them in a work environment, and it's always a wild experience visiting them. Not your average office 😂
You got to do the US Air Force Pararescue at some point.
After this, you've got to do an episode on the Damn Busters, the OGs.
SOC specialized units in the Army, Air Force, Navy, or every single Marine Corps helicopter squadron. Not to take away from what the specialized units do in the other services, as everything we do is incredibly dangerous, but every Marine Corps helicopter squadron prior to going on deployment is SOC certified for VBSS, GOPLAT, MOUNT, TRAP, NEO, SPIE, freefall and static line parachute operations, soft duck, etc.. Due to the nature of the way the Marine Corps operates.we have to be completely self-sufficient. Former proud 6177 CH-46E WTI Crewchief. Phrogs Phorever
Jarheads always want to pretend like everyday Marines are equivalent to other branch's SOF units but then they spin up an also-ran like MARSOC to do stuff that other SOF units having been doing better for years. If you think your helicopter squadrons are equivalent to the 160th you're living in a dream world. Go eat your birthday cake and leave the real flying to the adults. Crayon eaters get real excited about their birthday parties.
It would be awesome to see one about the PJ'S...
The way you pronounce chinook tho 😂
This was a good one 😎
That was an amazing video @warographics643 Thank you!