the Dragonfly XH-1 Attack Copter
The Dragonfly XH-1 Assault Copter is the Joes' first, and easily most recognizable assault helicopter. This flying arsenal is equipped to carry a pilot, a gunman, and all kinds of firepower into battle. Though it's usually flown by Wild Bill and Airborne, just about any helicopter pilot and gunner team can take this thing into a firefight and do some damage with it. The Dragonfly has these characteristics:
| Handling RV 20 |
Velocity RV 30 |
Durability RV 20 |
Protection RV 10 |
160mm Cannon Pod: mounted on the Dragonfly's left pylon, this deadly cannon is equipped with 1200 rounds with which to annihilate any foe. Guided by a laser targeter beam (for a +1 RS to hit), this cannon fires bursts of shells that inflict rank value 30 Piercing damage per deadly rain of lead. The only disadvantage to this gun is that it can only hit whatever is directly in front of the Dragonfly.
317-A High Resolution Radar System: mounted on the nose cone of the Dragonfly Attack Copter, this high quality radar imaging system allows the pilot of this vehicle to acquire a decent idea concerning what's in the air around him or her, what's on the ground before them, and also provides a targeting mechanism for the Dragonfly's air-to-air missiles. This radar unit functions at rank value 30.
Armor Plating: while it's not invulnerable to assault, the Dragonfly helicopter nonetheless offers its pilots (and its internal mechanisms) some protection against injury, usually originating from some opponent or another that wishes Wild Bill no good. The Dragonfly is equipped to offer its pilot and gunner rank value 10 protection from attack, which breaks down as follows:
RV 10 / RV 4 / RV 0 / RV 0 / RV 0
Flight: when fully manned and armed, the Dragonfly can achieve flight speeds of approximately 220 miles per hour (rank value 40). Furthermore, when fully fueled, the Dragonfly can attain a total range of about 510 miles, giving it the ability to control a very large portion of real estate around a base, body of troops, mission in progress, or whatever.
M-32 Grenade Launcher: one of the two weapons mounted on the Dragonfly's chin turret, this large gun is used to lob explosive devices at an opponent, said opponents usually being heavily armored vehicles and such. These grenades inflict rank value 30 Armor Piercing Slashing damage to everything within the sector they strike, unless people and objects in said sector are under cover from the grenade blasts.
Rescue Hook / Winch: not just built to inflict carnage and mayhem on the forces of Cobra, the Dragonfly is also equipped to serve in a cargo hauling / rescue capacity. It is equipped with a powerful winch mechanism that can tow two tons of cargo to and fro, though the Dragonfly's total range is reduced somewhat when hauling the fully listed amount of weight along for the ride.
Sidewinder Air to Air Missiles: these two fire-and-forget missiles are targeted with the Dragonfly's Radome, and then will fly along on their merry way without having to be steered at their quarry. These two missiles will inflict considerable damage upon whatever airborne target they strike, and are possessed of these vehicular statistics:
| Handling RV 20 |
Velocity RV 40 |
Durability RV 20 |
Damage RV 40 Slashing (fragmentary) |
Sidewinder Air to Ground Missiles: these four wire guided missiles are aimed, fired, and controlled exclusively by the gunner of the Dragonfly helicopter. As such, the pilot needs to help him or her generally keep the target of these air to ground dealers of doom in sight, else the missiles be wasted. They strike to inflict considerable damage to their targets, and have these vehicular statistics:
| Handling RV 10 |
Velocity RV 40 |
Durability RV 20 |
Damage RV 40 Slashing (fragmentary) |
Vulcan 20mm Gatling Cannon: the other weapon mounted on the Dragonfly's chin turret, this rotating 20mm cannon can be used to inflict all kinds of damage to enemy personnel, aircraft, etc. It inflicts rank value 20 Piercing damage in a short, controlled burst, +1 RS in a fully automatic, lawn-mower style spread of ammunition. This device is armed with a 2500 round ammo drum.
1988 Variations
the Tiger Fly
From time to time, GI Joe fields a special unit known as its Tiger Force, which uses a large array of confiscated and/or refurbished vehicles with which to fight the forces of Cobra. A large portion of Tiger Force's air power came in the form of the Tiger Fly, a recolored version of the Dragonfly XH-1 Attack Copter, refitted for use in heavily tropical climates.
2000 Variations
the Locust XH-1 Attack Copter
Upon his return to the Joe team, Wild Bill found that he had no more Dragonfly Copters available for his immediate use. However, he did locate the new Locust, a modified Dragonfly that is outfitted for desert operations, with a color scheme to match. Knowing that this was essentially the same vehicle he'd come to know and love over the years, he seized the item for his own use on the Joe team immediately!
2012 Variations
the Oktober Guard Attack Helicopter
About a decade after the GI Joe team last fielded a new model of Dragonfly, the Russian Federation premiered its clearly-stolen Attack Helicopter. Used exclusively by the Oktober Guard, this attack helicopter curiously has the same name, armaments, and general appearance of the original Dragonfly. Though it features upgraded avionics and targeting systems, the Attack Helicopter functions the same as its predecessor.
Extra Goodies:
GI Joe directories featuring a version of the Dragonfly XH-1 Attack Copter:
| 1983 | 1988 | 2000 |
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Return to the Tiger Force main page!
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