For some reason I don't feel more comfortable knowing this

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/kelly_nypd_can_take_down_planes_0LjFbzyfLD4iWLAvvpe0jK

Kelly: NYPD can blow planes out of sky

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly dropped a bombshell last night — the NYPD has weapons powerful enough to blow a rogue aircraft out of the sky. Kelly — answering questions about the department's state-of-the-art anti-terrorism system on CBS’s “60 Minutes’’ — admitted that the city is packing an arsenal on par with some militaries. “Do you mean to say that the NYPD has the means to take down an aircraft?” interviewer Scott Pelley pressed Kelly. “Yes. I prefer not to get into details, but obviously, this would be in a very extreme situation,” Kelly replied. Police sources told The Post that the weapon that Kelly was referring to involves a Barret .50 caliber rifle, which can be mounted on almost any police chopper. The weapon, which the department has had for four years, is stored in an NYPD safe and is deployed only for “special occasions,” such as when the president is in town, the sources added.

I have a few questions I love to see answered, like who in the city has the authority to shoot down a plane? Does the mayor decide, Maybe the mayor, police commisioned and head of sanitation have to each turn a key and say the secret code words. And once they decide a plane needs to be shot down where do they do it. There isn't much empty space here. Is it better to blow it up over a residential neighborhood in Brooklyn rather than take out a tall building in Manhattan? Or do hope it lands in Newark where it's someone else's problem.

I'd like to see someone try and take down a plane with the Barret. Could be a challenge on the next season of Top Shot. IE: It'd be one hell of a shot, and the reporter sure knows how to fluff up a story. Another LOL on the gun only being available to police and military...

I'll have to remember to never fly into NYC.

Powerful rifle, but still just a rifle, how could it shoot down an aircraft at 10,000ft.

They were talking about this on the Stern show today.

The thing that grabs me about shooting a plane down in NYC is that they're shooting a plane DOWN in NYC. It's not just going to fall neatly out of the sky into an unoccupied area--it's going to create quite a path of destruction--unless it's shot down over the water.

Either way, grizzly thought to be shooting a plane loaded with passengers down. That really wouldn't go over too well (like the proverbial lead zeppelin) (pun intended).

No one is shooting down an aircraft with a semi-auto rifle.

Will wrote: No one is shooting down an aircraft with a semi-auto rifle.

Much less anything bigger than a 172.

aussiesmg wrote: Powerful rifle, but still just a rifle, how could it shoot down an aircraft at 10,000ft.

It can't. The whole "shoots down planes" thing is horseE36 M3.

CA used it as part of their reasoning for banning it for civilian ownership, so Barret called them tards and stopped selling it in CA altogether.

If any suspected plane is carrying NaCL, it's AMF.....

It's for the children.

What does AMF stand for?

RexSeven wrote: What does AMF stand for?

WTF does NaCL stand for? I'm guessing it ain't sodium chloride...

gamby wrote: They were talking about this on the Stern show today.

I stopped reading after this...

RexSeven wrote: What does AMF stand for?

Adios, motherberkeleyer.

Least that's my guess. NaCL might be nonapproved cargo list. But I'm reaching there.

Wally wrote: I have a few questions I love to see answered, like who in the city has the authority to shoot down a plane? Does the mayor decide, Maybe the mayor, police commisioned and head of sanitation have to each turn a key and say the secret code words. And once they decide a plane needs to be shot down where do they do it. There isn't much empty space here. Is it better to blow it up over a residential neighborhood in Brooklyn rather than take out a tall building in Manhattan? Or do hope it lands in Newark where it's someone else's problem.

The answer to all of those questions is simple: John McClane

The reporters keep talking about the rifle because they've seen it, but the police commisioner talks about being able to shoot down a jet, but won't tell with what, suggesting something bigger. The way the city pisses away money on things it will never use I wouldn't be surprised if one St Paddy's day they had some kind of cannons being towed down 5th Ave like it was May Day in Red Square.

In reply to Wally:

Bragging rights may be one thing, saying they have the firepower to do that but does the NYPD actually have the authority to take down a jet? Seems to me anyway that would have to be handled way higher up the food chain.

aussiesmg wrote: Powerful rifle, but still just a rifle, how could it shoot down an aircraft at 10,000ft.

First of all, by "rogue aircraft", I am betting they mean one that is flying significantly lower than 10,000 feet.

Secondly, it is mounted on a helicopter...

Technically, .50 cal has been used to shoot down aircraft. Browning M2s used to be mounted in aircraft during WW2. That said, I'm still throwing the bullE36 M3 flag on that one.

Mm. Always sounds good to say you can do things impressive. Would you expect a cop to say anything less?

Theoretically, anyone with even a .22 can knock down an aircraft. Just have to have the right conditions.

Fly near the "terrorist" airplane and shoot the pilot from behind. Most civilian pilots never look to see what is behind them. Also most civilian airplanes have poor visibility to the rear. I do not agree with this but it is how I would do it.

Maroon92 wrote:

aussiesmg wrote: Powerful rifle, but still just a rifle, how could it shoot down an aircraft at 10,000ft.

First of all, by "rogue aircraft", I am betting they mean one that is flying significantly lower than 10,000 feet. Secondly, it is mounted on a helicopter...

Regardless a Barrett M82 (which is what I'm guessing they have) is not really capable of taking down an airplane. If you shot the pilot, co-pilot and navigator, but from a helicopter at a moving airplane that shot is damn near impossible. This is stupid scary tactics (unless the NYPD has something like a Javelin).

One hit with an incendiary round in a gasoline tank would not be good. There are many types of .50 caliber ammo that would be deadly.

.History Soon after American servicemen deployed to Europe for World War One, it was recognized that an automatic weapon capable of firing a cartridge larger than those currently in service was sorely needed. In addition to being more powerful than the standard rifle cartridge, this new cartridge would also need an armor penetrating capability to serve as a against the recently introduced tank. Although America was not able to produce such a weapon before the end of the war, research and experimentation with a number of captured German anti-tank firearms eventually lead to the Browning M1921A1 .50 caliber machine gun. Introduced in 1922, the Browning M1921A1 machine gun fired a massive .50 caliber cartridge and had an effective range of over 1000 meters. The M1921A1 was later modified to improve barrel life and reliability, and was redesignated the M2HB (heavy barrel) machine gun in 1933. The M2HB is still in service with the U.S. military where it is used in a number of roles, ranging from infantry heavy machine gun to vehicle, helicopter, and small boat and craft armament.

Description

There are currently eleven .50 caliber cartridges in service.

M2/M33 .50 Caliber ball cartridge: The M2 is the original standard .50 caliber ball cartridge. The M33 is a redesigned, modern version of the M2, and is identical in all respects. The M2/M33 can be identified by its unpainted (copper) tip.

M1/M10/M17 .50 Caliber tracer cartridge: The M1/M10/M17 are tracer variants of the M2/M33 cartridge. They are essentially identical to one another in terms of ballistic performance and function. These M1 has a red painted tip, the M10 has a orange tip, and the M17 has a brown tip.

M1 .50 Caliber incendiary cartridge: The M1 incendiary cartridge is an incendiary cartridge primarily intended for use against aircraft and material. The M1 can be identified by its blue tip.

M23 .50 Caliber incendiary cartridge: The M23 incendiary cartridge is similar to the M1 incendiary cartridge and is used in the same capacity as the M1. The M23 cartridge has a blue tip with a light blue ring below it.

M2 .50 Caliber armor piercing cartridge: The M2 armor piercing cartridge was designed for use against soft skinned and lightly armored vehicles as well as for use against enemy built up defensive positions. It has no incendiary component. The M2 can be identified by its black tip.

M8 .50 Caliber armor piercing / incendiary cartridge: The M8 armor piercing / incendiary cartridge was designed for use against soft skinned and lightly armored vehicles as well as material destruction. It has an incendiary component. The M8 can be identified by its silver (aluminum) tip.

M20 .50 Caliber armor piercing / incendiary tracer cartridge: The M20 armor piercing / incendiary tracer cartridge is the tracer variant of the M8 API cartridge. The M20 can be identified by its red tip with a silver (aluminum) ring below that.

M1A1 .50 Caliber blank firing cartridge: Designed for use with training simulators, the M1A1 has no projectile and contains a reduced powder charge. The M1A1 can be identified by its crimped and sealed cartridge opening in place of a projectile.

But with a gun not currently mounted on the copter by the time they could mount it and then locate the plane on a relatively slow flying copter the plane would already have done it's thang.

I'm pretty sure they're talking something more mobile and rocket propelled.

carguy123 wrote: I'm pretty sure they're talking something more mobile and rocket propelled.

Or it all could be dis-information which is an intergral part of intelligence operations everywhere.

They're not planning on using a gun to take down a plane, that's just a story to throw terrorists off their real plan. They've actually issued laser pointers to all officers. When a rogue aircraft approaches, every officer turns on their laser pointer and aims it at the cockpit, blinding the pilot and causing him to crash into the East River. They're also converting the Statue of Liberty's torch into a giant laser pointer to help in the battle.