Air assault is the movement of ground-based military forces by vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, such as helicopters, to seize and hold key terrain that has not been fully secured, and to directly engage enemy forces behind enemy lines. In addition to regular infantry training, air-assault units usually receive training in rappelling, fast-roping techniques, and air transportation. Their equipment is sometimes designed or field-modified to allow better transportation and/or carrying within aircraft.
UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters transporting troops for an air assault exercise
Royal Marines Commandos preparing to abseil down from a Royal Marines Lynx helicopter from 847 Naval Air Squadron (NAS), used in utility support of 3 Commando Brigade. They can also act as attack helicopters with the addition of two pods of four TOW wire-guided anti-tank missiles.
Extraction of troops after an airmobile assault during the Vietnam War.
Troops dismounting a UH-1 during the Vietnam War.
A military, also known collectively as an armed forces, are a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a distinct military uniform. They may consist of one or more military branches such as an army, navy, air force, space force, marines, or coast guard. The main task of a military is usually defined as defence of their state and its interests against external armed threats.
NATO military ceremony in Pabrade, Lithuania, November 2014
Relief scene of Roman legionaries marching, from the Column of Marcus Aurelius, Rome, Italy, 2nd century AD
Depiction of ancient Egyptian military formation
Finnish and American soldiers training together in arctic conditions in Lapland, Finland, January 6–16, 2015
