Why does the army sometimes call helicopters "airplanes"?

[Yamer]

I prefer sexy ass death machine

[whoknows idont]

I like the English language because you can get really descriptive if you want to but you can also just get close and be able to use great variety just for variety sake.

 

Spot-on! I love it!

[viz]

"Jet," "plane," and "helicopter" are very specific terms. "Aircraft" is a very general word that refers to anything that flies. Aircraft are: B-1, C-5A, FH-227, F-15 Eagle, F-16 Falcon, MiG-29, Tu-154, Boeing 737-800, Airbus A380, Apollo 10, AH-64 Apache, CH-47 Chinook and UH-60 Black Hawk.

[Francis Meyrick]

 

I like the English language because you can get really descriptive if you want to but you can also just get close and be able to use great variety just for variety sake.

Ummm....

Our German brothers call it a "VERDAMMTE HUBSCHRAUBER". If you say it out loud, it sounds blasphemous. Or wildly obscene. I can't decide which.

 

The Chinese call it a "ZSU-SIN-CHEE". Which, I'll admit, doesn't roll of the tongue quite like "Choppah". Then again, the Chinese, wishing to indicate their displeasure to me, (frequently) would say "POOH HOW!" which I think sounds pretty expressive.

 

The Dutch, being boring, too many dykes and fingers stuck in them, I guess, call it a "HELIKOPTER". Wow.

 

But you can always rely on the Irish to save the day. They call it (in between Guinness and Bailey's) an "EGGBEATER". Some pretty humongous eggs, I guess. But then, you've got to make allowance for the Irish.

 

Uh-huh.