We used to shoot these down by the dozen.
Afghans had Stingers but in most cases hinds used to rain hell on mujahids,
After a nasty learning curve at the hands of the Mujahedin, Hind pilots learned to be dangerous and cruel themselves, and the Mujahedin called the Hind the "Shaitan-Arba (Satan's Chariot)". In one case, a Hind pilot managed to rescue a company of infantry even when he was out of ammunition simply by maneuvering aggressively at the Mujahedin and scaring them off. Ground troops really liked the Crocodile, since it could stay on the battlefield and provide fire as needed, while "fast mover" strike jets could only stay for a short time before they would have to head back to base to refuel.
The Hind's favored munition was the 80 millimeter rocket, the 57 millimeter rocket having proven too light to be effective. As mentioned, the 23 millimeter gun pod was also popular. The Hind could carry ten 100 kilogram (220 pound) iron bombs for attacks on strongpoints, while harder targets could be dealt with using a load of four 250 kilogram (550 pound) or two 500 kilogram (1,100 pound) iron bombs. Some Hind crews became expert "snipers" in dropping or tossing bombs precisely on targets. Fuel-air explosive bombs were also used in a few instances, though initially crews underestimated the sheer blast force of such weapons and were caught by shockwaves that rattled their teeth.
Combat experience quickly demonstrated that carrying a squad of troops in a Hind wasn't a good idea. The gunship crews found the soldiers a worry and a distraction while being shot at, and preferred to fly lightly loaded anyway, all the more so because they operated from high ground altitudes in Afghanistan. Hind troop compartment armor was often deleted to reduce weight. Troops were carried in Hip helicopters, with the Hinds providing fire support.
It did prove useful to carry a technician in the Hind's crew compartment, handling a light machine gun in a window port. That gave the Hind some ability to "cover its ***" while exiting a target area. In some cases a light machine gun was fitted on both sides to allow the technician to move from one side to the other without having to take the machine gun with him. Trying to shift a machine gun from one side of a helicopter to another while maneuvering under fire was not merely clumsy and inconvenient, it was an invitation to lethal accidents.
This weapons fit still left the gunship blind to the direct rear, and the OKB experimented with fitting a machine gun in the back of the fuselage, with the gunner reaching the gun through a narrow crawlway. The experiment was very unsuccessful, since the space was full of engine exhaust fumes and otherwise unbearable, and during a demonstration an overweight Soviet general got stuck in the crawlway. Operational Hinds were retrofitted with rear-view mirrors to help the pilot spot threats and take evasive action.
* The Hinds not only protected helicopter troop assaults and supported ground actions, they also protected convoys, using rockets with flechette warheads to drive off Mujahedin ambushes; performed strikes on predesignated targets; and engaged in "hunter-killer" sweeps. The hunter-killers operated in pairs at minimum, more often groups of four or eight, to provide mutual fire support. They used tactics developed during the Great Patriotic War against Hitler, such as the "Wheel of Death", with the gunships turning in a wide circle to ensure that one was always chewing up the target area. The Mujahedin learned to move mostly at night to avoid the gunships, and in response the Soviets trained their Hind crews in night-fighting, dropping parachute flares to illuminate suspicious targets for attack.
https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&r...0oGQCQ&usg=AFQjCNHilEZsV1zFW-Haq5n1slaC3tJs8Q
