Military helicopter

F-16 Fighting Falcon
First flown in 1974, it's the backbone of the U.S. Air Force. During the beginning of Solid Snake's infiltration mission of Shadow Moses, the U.S. military sends two F-16 fighters from Galena AFB to Shadow Moses Island as a diversionary tactic. The plan is to begin the infiltration while the terrorists have their eyes on the F-16's. In response, Liquid Snake departs to engage them with his Hind-D. Incredibly, he is able to shoot them down with the Hind-D. Apparently, the diversion seems to work.

F-117 Nighthawk
The world's first operational stealth warplane. Developed to evade Soviet air defenses with radar absorbant material, it has become the pioneer in aviation stealth technology. F-117s are deployed along with B-2 Spirit stealth bombers to destroy Shadow Moses Island and any incriminataing evidence concerning the development and deployment of Metal Gear Rex and the Genome Army, however, the airstrike is called off by Roy Campbell, who has the secretary of defense Jim Houseman arrested.

AWACS
AWACS stands for Airborne Warning and Control System. It's basically a flying Radar Platform that can be used to communicate with other airborne aircraft. Jim Houseman was on board one when he ordered the destruction of Shadow Moses by nuclear weapons.

AC-130H Spectre/MC-130 Combat Talon
There is some confusion over this aircraft as it's fully armed but it is called a combat talon when unarmed. The Combat Talon is based on the C-130 Hurcules transport aircraft. During the Virtuous Mission it is used to transport Naked Snake and his Fox support team to Tselinoyarsk. The aircraft is equipped with the Fulton Recovery System which allows personnel to be picked up by the plane using a balloon attached to them.

M-21
Mother ship that carried the D-21 the area where Naked Snake was going to be deployed in Operation Snake Eater. based in the A-12 'Oxcart' that would later become SR-71 'BlackBird'. the A-12 was designed by Lockheed Martin Skunkworks as a reconnaissance aircraft for the CIA. the A-12 can fly Mach 3+, much faster than any aircraft or missiles that may be used to intercept it.

For the purposes of Operation Snake Eater a D-21 reconnaissance drone was modified to insert Snake into Tselinoyarsk. This was necessary because of heightened security.

VVA-14 (WiG)
Ground effect vehicle that is used for transport. Snake and EVA use one to escape to Alaska from Tselinoyarsk



MIG-21 'fishbed'
Used to control the airspace over Tselinoyarsk. Snake avoids them with the D-21 and when him and EVA try to escape a couple of MiGs threaten to shoot them down but Nikita Khrushchev calls them off. In the battle with The Boss MiGs have been ordered to bomb the area giving Naked Snake and The Boss a time limit for their battle.

Sikorsky HH-60 Seahawk
This helicopter is used by the US Navy to transport the SEAL Teams to the Big Shell. Both helicopters however, were shot out of the sky by the Harrier controlled by the terrorists and 'in the bottom of the harbor", as the Colonel puts it.

Metal Gear Solid 4 Helicopters
At least four distinct helicopters are seen in MGS4; these include (what appear to be) Blackhawk helicopters with coaxial twin rotors, these are mainly used by the US military forces and at least one seems to be in possession of Philanthropy. The second is a smaller single rotor helicopter that can be seen in acts 4 & 5. The third, operated by Liquid Ocelot's PMC forces, appears to be another twin rotor version of a modern helicopter, resembling the Super Stallion.

The fourth type are hybrid fixed wing / helicopter aircraft used by the PMCs, which have a large two-blade rotor which is capable of being locked in place and used as a wing surface for high-speed flight. They are seen mostly in helicopter configuration, though a few in jet configuration are seen in Act 1. They are based on the Sikorsky S-72, the so-called 'X Wing' hybrid helicopter / jet design.

Hind D
For the full article, see Hind D.

While infiltrating Shadow Moses Island during the FOXHOUND Rebellion of 2005, Solid Snake did battle with a Hind D, piloted by his own brother, Liquid Snake, and a Genome Soldier. Earlier, Liquid Snake had used the Hind D to shoot down two F-16's. As usual, Snake was able to destroy the Hind and seemingly kill Liquid in the process, yet later, upon discovering a parachute hanging from a nearby tree, it was evident that Liquid had ejected and survived the crash.

Cypher
Reconnaissance drones that act as flying surveillance cameras in outside Areas. Can be disabled temporarily with a Chaff grenade or can be shot down with a rifle or handgun. There is also an armed version with a machine gun. An unlockable trophy describes the Cypher thusly: "An unmanned aerial surveillance vehicle used by the U.S. Army. It uses a fan in the center of its body to hover and a camera on its upper fuselage to monitor from the skies. It has a number of models, including the armed Gun Cypher and the remodeled Cypher II. Its small size and continuous flight ability make it extremely effective in guarding against intruders."
 * These are used to guard the Oil Fence and Raiden must use the PSG-1 to destroy them.
 * At one point in the game a cypher has a C4 sensor above it's camera. which must be shot out before Raiden can proceed.
 * Snake uses a cypher for vertical recovery in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

PMC Heli-Drone
In MGS4, PMC forces operate large, unmanned attack drones that are used for aerial reconaissance as well as close air support. Snake can destroy them, but he is best off avoiding them altogether. It is worth noting that the drone bears a slight resemblance to the Boeing X-50 UAV.

Flying Platform
Used in the Soviet Union, it is based off an American design but uses solid fuel, and is propelled by jet engines so advanced, they can catch up to a W.I.G. near take off. Guards use these in areas where it's difficult to get to such as the canyon, up in the mountains and in the jungle. Provides greater mobility to the guards and provides a shield for them to hide behind. It often comes with a light which can be used to blind intruders as they attempt to target the pilot. However, its main weakness lies in its design: as it is a flying platform, the body of the pilot is exposed and therefore vulnerable to gunfire. Also, as one hand is required to pilot the platform, the pilot can only use one-handed weapons.