Why didn't they just use the air strikes in the first place?
I just saw Apocalypse Now for the first time and it was great. One question I have is about the airstrikes the captain told Chef to call for if he's not back in 8 hours. The captain gives Chef the coordinates to use.
I'm a bit confused. If the location could be bombed by air, why did they send the captain in to assassinate Kurtz? Was it because they'd prefer not have collateral damage? I find this hard to believe considering 1) through out the movie they didn't care what they destroyed 2) most of the people with Kurtz were Viet Cong.
Best Answer
They weren't exactly sure where he was, from IMDB emphasis mine...
Colonel Lucas: Your mission is to proceed up the Nung River in a Navy patrol boat. Pick up Colonel Kurtz's path at Nu Mung Ba, follow it and learn what you can along the way. When you find the Colonel, infiltrate his team by whatever means available and terminate the Colonel's command.
Without that information, an air strike is useless.
Also as mentioned in the comments. He wasn't in Vietnam, he was in Cambodia and his troops were Hmong, who were actively being courted by the CIA to fight the Viet Cong. So, the airstrike would have been technically illegal and would have killed troops that could have been used to fight along the USA.
Pictures about "Why didn't they just use the air strikes in the first place?"
When were air strikes first used?
Beginnings. On November 1, 1911, Italian aviator Second Lieutenant Giulio Gavotti dropped four bombs on two Turkish-held bases in Libya, carrying out the world's first air strike as part of the Italo-Turkish War. The use of air strikes was extended in World War I.Are airstrikes accurate?
By using precision-guided munitions (PGMs), airstrikes can be directed with incredible accuracy, hitting the target with little to no collateral damage.What is meant by air strikes?
Definition of air strike : an attack in which military airplanes drop bombs The strategy calls for air strikes on key targets.How much does an airstrike cost?
Each missile costs approximately $1.3m. This range implies that the aircraft may fire its payload while transitioning through friendly airspace, correlating to little or no threat to the aircrew.Why Didn't You Stop Me?
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