Freak Afghan hailstorm grounded scores of Nato helicopters
A freak hailstorm over one of the biggest Nato airbases in Afghanistan grounded more than 80 helicopters, putting several of them out of action for more than three weeks, it has emerged.
The half-hour storm in late April split rotor blades, cracked windows, ruptured the choppers' metal skin and damaged other parts. The hail was so intense that after an intensive repair programme eight of the choppers were still inoperable more than three weeks later, according to a Nato spokesman.
Videos show hailstones the size of golf balls pelting down on the airbase, which is at the edge of a desert and in summer endures temperatures that can climb above 50C.
The storm killed three Afghans in Kandahar, according to a local military blogger who posted pictures of picnic tables with holes punched through.
Replacement parts for the helicopters, mostly blades, had to be rushed to Kandahar from across Afghanistan, Kuwait and even from the US.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/27/freak-afghan-hailstorm-helicopters