Underway with the USCG Mellon: helicopter units team with cutters in pursuit of drug smugglers.(Maritime Security)(United States Coast Guard)(Cover Story) From: National Defense | Date: March 1, 2005| Author: Pappalardo, Joe | COPYRIGHT 2005 National Defense Industrial Association. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

A helicopter gunner is blasting the engines from a smuggler's speedboat, leaving it dead in the water for a small boat crew to board. Catching only the endgame of this airborne interdiction belies the complexity of the operation. It is as incomplete an experience as only watching the last moves of an intricate chess game.

While helicopter operations are familiar to U.S. Coast Guard vessels, more than just guns are added to the equation when they are armed. A host of new ...