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| 4 | %% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Please add your example in the proper place. Thanks! |
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| 8 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1462216499076647400 |
| 9 | %% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 10 | %%seal |
| 11 | [[quoteright:320:[[WesternAnimation/SouthPark https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/black_helicopter_4.jpg]]]] |
| 12 | [[caption-width-right:320:[[BlatantLies "That was a pigeon."]]]] |
| 13 | |
| 14 | ->''"Unmarked helicopters\ |
| 15 | Hovering\ |
| 16 | They said it was a weather balloon."'' |
| 17 | -->-- '''Music/SoulCoughing''', "Unmarked Helicopters" |
| 18 | |
| 19 | The aliens are closing in, the terrorists are priming the warhead, the President's hijacked motorcade is arriving, or perhaps the loveable band of hackers is about to uncover the GovernmentConspiracy. Whatever the situation, TheMenInBlack are the first on the scene, and there's is only one way they can arrive: via a Black Helicopter. |
| 20 | |
| 21 | Half CoolPlane, half [[SilentRunningMode Silent Runner]], the Black Helicopter is to secret agents what the Batmobile is to Franchise/{{Batman}}. Fast, [[SurpriseVehicle quiet]] (in a way that real helicopters never are), stealthy, powerful, almost invisible and, of course, pitch-black, nothing screams cover-up quite like a black helicopter. [[VanInBlack Black Vans]] with radar dishes provide ground support, but aren't nearly as cool. |
| 22 | |
| 23 | A somewhat dubious TruthInTelevision, as Black Helicopters are an ingredient of many real-life [[ConspiracyTheorist conspiracy theories]]. Possibly influenced by dark painted helicopters that get mistaken for black in poor lighting conditions while performing disappointingly mundane operations. Though it should be obvious, helicopters are actually [[AwesomeButImpractical very, very terrible at stealth.]] There is simply no way to make them completely quiet, they have next to zero endurance, they are slow, vulnerable, ruinously expensive, and restricted to low altitudes[[note]]and all of these things are made worse by stealth modifications, which can add hundreds of pounds to the airframe, mess with aerodynamics, alter the lift of the blades, etc[[/note]]. Even the now-infamous super-secret SEAL Team Six choppers had slight noise reduction and were only cloaked ''to radar,'' and even that was imperfect. [[UsefulNotes/PlaneSpotting Military Plane-Spotters,]] take note. |
| 24 | |
| 25 | In RealLife, if a helicopter was involved in sinister operations, it would probably not be painted black -- to avoid the trope and avoid sticking out like a sore thumb. |
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| 27 | %% |
| 28 | %% RealLife isn't the focus here. |
| 29 | %% Let's keep the RealLife material a footnote, since we can't do the subject justice without being distracting and off-topic. |
| 30 | %% Consider UsefulNotes for material on RealLife stealth considerations for helicopters. |
| 31 | %% |
| 32 | ---- |
| 33 | !!Examples: |
| 34 | |
| 35 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 36 | |
| 37 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 38 | * Hypnos from ''Anime/DigimonTamers'' has black helicopters, though their effectiveness quickly fades against {{Mons}}. |
| 39 | * The Ministry of Defense uses these in ''Anime/GaReiZero'' to move their RedShirtArmy about. {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d by [[TheSquad the MOE countermeasure team]] (who've been using Humvees thus far), who comment they're probably trying to show off. Until the final episode, in which the team gets stuck in traffic [[spoiler:while moving to intercept Yomi]] and the SDF gives them a lift. |
| 40 | * In ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex'', [[BadassCrew Section 9]] use gray V-22 Type tiltrotors and smaller Hind-like helicopters, while the JSDF use transport helicopters and gunships, including A.I.-piloted Jigabachi AV helicopter (the most menacing in the series). They are designed to look like their namesakes -- Jigabachi is the Japanese name for a type of mud-dauber wasp -- the Jigabachi AV has a large gun pod that hangs beneath the rest of the helicopter and can swivel in any direction to unleash DeathFromAbove. The most sinister aspect is that the A.I. pilots have gone rogue.[[note]]It is only the Maritime SDF's Oniyama gunship/transports, that have a ''huge'' gatling and several smaller ones in the nose, and the Jigabachi AV prototype, that are painted black; the rest of the Ground SDA's rotorcraft are painted army green, including the baseline Jigabachi.[[/note]] |
| 41 | * Team Rocket from ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' has several black helicopters, often used as [[BigBad Giovanni]]'s transportation of choice (although the trio have used them to attack Ash and company on a few occasions). |
| 42 | |
| 43 | [[/folder]] |
| 44 | |
| 45 | [[folder:Card Games]] |
| 46 | * ''[[{{Munchkin}} Munchkin Impossible]]'' has a 'In a black helicopter' monster enchantment. |
| 47 | [[/folder]] |
| 48 | |
| 49 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 50 | * In ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'', ComicBook/{{Batman}} has the Batcopter. It has the appropriate color scheme.[[note]]The action figure has been around for a while.[[/note]] |
| 51 | ** The last time Batman had a Batcopter in any other franchise or medium, it wasn't one of these, owing to Batman's comic book color schemes. |
| 52 | * In ''ComicBook/SinCity: Hell And Back'', the BigBad has a black military helicopter which factors heavily in the climax. |
| 53 | * Sheba, the black helicopter used to transport the ''ComicBook/SuicideSquad''. |
| 54 | * The 2010 ''[[Characters/MarvelComicsTaskmaster Taskmaster]]'' miniseries references this trope with the [[http://www.comicvine.com/black-choppers/4060-58886/images/ Black Choppers]], a [[BadassBiker motorcycle gang]] comprised exclusively of aliens doing the arcane bidding of an unrevealed conspiratorial organization. |
| 55 | [[/folder]] |
| 56 | |
| 57 | [[folder:Films -- Animated]] |
| 58 | * ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'': A black helicopter used by the Lemons is used to carry Finn [=McMissile=] away from the race in Italy with his magnet near the end as an attempt to prevent him from foiling their evil plans. The Lemon helicopter then flies [=McMissile=] to London and leaves him, Mater, and Holly Shiftwell to be crushed to death by the gears of a giant clock as the Lemons proceed to wreak havoc on the final race there. |
| 59 | * In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsonsMovie'', these are used by the EPA. |
| 60 | [[/folder]] |
| 61 | |
| 62 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 63 | * ''Film/AirForceOne'' begins with a black helicopter operation. |
| 64 | * In ''Film/BigGame'', incidentally, the helicopter Hazar and his mooks hijack is pitch black. [[spoiler:They're actually CIA operatives and part of a government conspiracy.]] |
| 65 | * An obscure '90s Russian war movie called ''Film/BlackShark'' features the Kamov KA-50. It is notable for giving the helicopter its now very common nickname. The movie is strange in way that the helicopter almost acts like a character itself, with its pilot never saying anything while flying it, blowing up Afghan drug dealer mercenaries, and it is painted completely black. |
| 66 | * Blade is carried to a meeting with a vampire lord in ''Film/BladeII'' by a black helicopter. |
| 67 | * The titular machine in ''Film/BlueThunder'' is a dark blue helicopter with stealth capabilities, advanced surveillance equipment, and a [[GatlingGood really big freaking gun]]. The movie involves a GovernmentConspiracy centered around its use, and the hero ends up stealing it for the climactic aerial showdown. |
| 68 | * ''Film/CapricornOne'' uses this to creepy effect. OK, they're actually olive drab, but a matched set of Army Loaches (LOH-6 Cayuses) hunt the astronaut crew as they're trying to escape through the desert. You don't actually see much of the search other than the helicopters and their [[FacelessGoons flight helmet-wearing pilots]], so they end up being an abstract representation of the conspiracy. They fly and maneuver in a way that makes them seem alive and predatorial (pointing and looking with their "noses") and at one point a delirious astronaut sees them as CirclingVultures. |
| 69 | * ''Film/ConspiracyTheory'' has Jerry paranoid about (among other things) undetectable, silent, black CIA helicopters. At the end of the movie, it's revealed that it's [[ProperlyParanoid one of his many paranoias that are true]]. |
| 70 | * In ''Film/{{Cypher}}'', the legendary spy Sebastian Rooks designs and pilots a black helicopter. |
| 71 | * In ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'', while Bane's minions cruise around in stolen and retooled Batmobiles, Batman zips around in a gunship prototype dubbed "The Bat". |
| 72 | * The 1970 film ''Film/FiguresInALandscape'' sees hapless protagonists [=MacConnachie=] and Ansell pursued by a black Aérospatiale Alouette, the motivations of its [[FacelessGoons Faceless Goon]] occupants totally unknown. Similar to the later ''Film/CapricornOne'', the helicopter becomes an almost primal enemy for the heroes to overcome as they struggle to survive in the wilderness. This is especially true of [=MacConnachie=], whose desire to kill the helicopter's pilots becomes an obsession and part of his SanitySlippage. |
| 73 | -->'''[=MacConnachie=]:''' ''[as the helicopter appears]'' Great... black... ''bat''! |
| 74 | * ''Film/JamesBond'': |
| 75 | ** ''Film/GoldenEye'': A super-helicopter, immune to {{EMP}} effects, is [[GrandTheftPrototype hijacked]] and promptly used to steal the [=GoldenEye=]. |
| 76 | ** In ''Film/TomorrowNeverDies'', Bond is menaced by such a helicopter, and at one point he evades it by jumping over the spinning rotors [[{{Overcrank}} in slow-motion]] with a motorcycle. |
| 77 | * ''Film/MinorityReport'': The scary black future helicopters/jump-jets used by the police, bordering on all-out CoolPlane. |
| 78 | * Franchise/MonsterVerse: Zig-zagged. [[Characters/MonsterVerseMonarch Monarch]], the setting’s BenevolentConspiracy, tends to use black Osprey [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiltrotor tiltrotors]] instead, which have a higher max altitude and speed, lower fuel usage, and higher weight capacity than helicopters, making them much more practical. However, Monarch’s military attachments use fighter jets, and in the first film, Drs. Serizawa and Graham arrive at the mine in the Philippines via a small blue-and-white helicopter. Furthermore, HelicopterFlyswatter antics that would normally occur in a {{Kaiju}} film get played out with the Ospreys or fighter jets instead. There is the exception of ''Film/KongSkullIsland'', but those helicopters weren’t technically Monarch’s, they were on loan from the US military (and painted a sensible jungle green, as they were fresh from use in Vietnam). The only time aircraft that are both black and helicopters appear is a few during a scene in ''Film/Godzilla2014'', flying in the distance around the Janjira BlackSite. |
| 79 | * ''Series/MonarchLegacyOfMonsters'': Tim and Verdugo pull up to the American Southwest in a black helicopter. Notably, this series is the installment that paints Monarch as pretty dark gray morals-wise, while the others tend to have them as light grey or white. |
| 80 | * ''Film/{{Predator}}'' has Dutch and his team being inserted into the guerrillas' jungle hideout area by a genuine, CIA-owned UH-1N Huey, painted semigloss black. However, the two escorting Huey gunships, being owned by the local friendly government's army, are painted a more sensible jungle green. {{Averted|Trope}} in ''Film/Predator2'' when TheMenInBlack use an all-silver Alouette helicopter, perhaps a visual reference to the silver thermal suits they wear to hunt the alien Predator. |
| 81 | * The BatmanColdOpen of ''Film/TheSoldier'' has the HeroesRUs squad, all dressed in black uniforms and berets, being picked up by a black helicopter along with the [[CleanupCrew dead bodies of the terrorists]] they just killed. The whole scene runs on RuleOfCool, so no-one asks why a deniable government dirty tricks team are outfitted like HighlyVisibleNinja. |
| 82 | * ''Film/TheseAreTheDamned'' ends with a British army helicopter (though not painted black) hovering over the boat used by the protagonists, patiently waiting for them to [[YouAreAlreadyDead die of radiation poisoning]], whereupon the boat will be sunk to preserve the GovernmentConspiracy they stumbled across. |
| 83 | * Given [[ProperlyParanoid the premise]] of ''Film/TheyLive'', it would be almost more surprising if there weren't some of these. With fun bonus of [[ImportedAlienPhlebotinum alien]] ''helicopter sound silencers'', no less. |
| 84 | * Blackout from ''Film/Transformers2007'' transforms into a Sikorsky MH-53 helicopter. The [[TheMenInBlack Sector 7]] agency also has a few of these choppers, which are used to try and track down the Autobots and for prisoner transport. |
| 85 | * ''Film/ZeroDarkThirty'' recreates the stealth-variant Black Hawk helicopters for the Abottabad raid, though the models presumably had to be based off a little bit of guesswork, given that the actual design details are still classified. True to reality, they trade payload, performance, and armament in exchange for being nearly invisible on radar, [[spoiler:though it's nearly a moot point when one crashes and the conventional CSAR helicopter is sent in]]. |
| 86 | [[/folder]] |
| 87 | |
| 88 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 89 | * ''Literature/AmericanGods'': The valkyries manifest as black helicopters. |
| 90 | * ''Literature/Area51'': Majic 12's covert ops, Nightscape, uses them when on their clandestine missions. It's {{justified|Trope}} as they do these at night ([[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin like their name implies]]). |
| 91 | * In ''Literature/DebtOfHonor'', the Comanche is depicted like this: a helicopter so stealthy it can be used to assassinate major corporate figures in central Tokyo and get away none the wiser. |
| 92 | * Late in ''Literature/DeceptionPoint'', the antagonists use an unmarked black Kiowa Warrior helicopter. |
| 93 | * In the ''[[DeadToBeginWith Heroes in Hell]]'' series, [[Literature/TheIliad Achilles]] had picked up pilot training and flew a stealthy black helicopter loaded with spy gear and a 30mm chain gun on covert operations for, among others, UsefulNotes/JuliusCaesar. |
| 94 | * ''Literature/FuturetrackFive'' features a special police force known as Paramils who fly around in black psycopters, named because of the psycho-radar they carry, which allows them to monitor the mental states of the population and detect people via the presence of human brain patterns. |
| 95 | * Played with in ''Literature/{{Jago}}'', with ''white'' helicopters seen hovering at various times, and are speculated to be surveillance by the government or some sinister conspiracy. [[spoiler:It turns out that they're part of a rock band's publicity stunt, and nothing to do with the supernatural goings-on.]] |
| 96 | [[/folder]] |
| 97 | |
| 98 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 99 | * ''Series/{{Airwolf}}'' was intended to be one of these, until its test pilot [[GrandTheftPrototype made off with it]] to become HeroesRUs. It's actually painted a very dark gray[[note]]Phantom Gray Metallic, to be exact.[[/note]] with a white belly. |
| 100 | * ''Series/{{Amerika}}'' has the [[DirtyCommunist United Nations Special Service Unit]] flying over the InvadedStatesOfAmerica in helicopters [[PropRecycling reused]] from the ''Film/BlueThunder'' TV series, except [[EvilWearsBlack they're no longer blue]]. |
| 101 | * ''Series/{{House}}'': House refuses to believe the guy who just asked for his services is really with the CIA until they step onto the roof and find a black helicopter waiting. |
| 102 | -->'''CIA guy:''' It helps when you have props. |
| 103 | * ''Series/{{JAG}}'': In the first-season episode "Sightings", [[TheCartel Colombian drug smugglers]] use a helicopter equipped with lights and low-frequency emitters, appearing as a UFO, to scare away the locals from an abandoned navy base in Texas where they have an underground processing facility. |
| 104 | * ''Series/TheMentalist'': {{Invoked|Trope}} in the "Black Helicopters" episode. While Jane is infiltrating an [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic anti-government homestead commune]], he has his UsefulNotes/{{FBI}} superiors fly an unmarked black helicopter over the commune to make the whole group paranoid as part of his plan sniff out a murderer that is hiding amongst them. |
| 105 | * {{Parodied|Trope}} in ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'', when one movie shows the hero being tailed by a private helicopter. |
| 106 | -->'''Crow:''' It's one of those UN black helicopters, except... white and orange.\ |
| 107 | '''Mike:''' Exactly what they ''would'' do! |
| 108 | * The ''Series/{{Nikita}}'' episode "Kill Jill" had the black helicopters turn out to be from a Division CleanupCrew [[spoiler:covering up the fact that the crashed airliner they were cleaning was running drugs]]. |
| 109 | * In ''Series/OliversTravels'', one of the signs that Oliver and Diane are on the trail of a real conspiracy is that a black helicopter appears and starts shooting at them. |
| 110 | * Martin Lloyd in the ''Series/StargateSG1'' episode "Point of No Return" believes in black helicopters, among other things. Ironically, this one of his conspiracy theories that is incorrect in the Franchise/StargateVerse -- everything else is true, including TheMenInBlack, aliens, and [[spoiler:even his belief that he is an alien]]. [[note]]Martin believes some nonsense as well: UsefulNotes/{{CIA}} microwave probes, various improbable things about [[WhoShotJFK the Kennedy assassination]], etc. Fictional settings play havoc with delusional characters![[/note]] |
| 111 | * Used on ''Series/TheXFiles'' in various episodes and in ''Film/TheXFilesFightTheFuture'', as is appropriate for a series full of mysterious conspiracies. |
| 112 | [[/folder]] |
| 113 | |
| 114 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 115 | * Canadian artist Matthew Good has a song called "Black Helicopter" on his 2007 album ''Hospital Music''. |
| 116 | * The music video for ''Music/{{Gorillaz}}''' "Feel Good Inc." features a couple of helicopters chasing Noodle's [[FloatingContinent floating island]]. In the video for "El Mañana" they catch up and bomb it to pieces, sending Noodle with a cloud of debris hurtling into a ravine. |
| 117 | * Non-Phixion "Black Helicopters": |
| 118 | -->''"Open up your third eye, Black Helicopters in the sky"'' |
| 119 | * The band Music/SoulCoughing has a song called "Unmarked Helicopters" all about this trope. Appropriately enough, it first appeared on a soundtrack CD for ''Series/TheXFiles''. |
| 120 | * Mentioned in "Foil" by Music/WeirdAlYankovic, along with such other conspiracy staples as TheIlluminati, the New World Order, and the MoonLandingHoax. |
| 121 | [[/folder]] |
| 122 | |
| 123 | [[folder:Podcasts]] |
| 124 | * ''Podcast/WelcomeToNightVale'' features them as (probably) helicopters of the World Government, which are "not safe" for children to play around, for unspecified reasons. On the other hand, the Night Vale Sheriff's SecretPolice have ''Blue'' helicopters, which "only occasionally" take children. Then there are the helicopters painted with murals of diving birds of prey. Nobody knows who owns these helicopters, and the Sheriff's Secret Police advises parents who see these helicopters to take their children home immediately and lock themselves in until a Secret Policeman leaves a carnation at the door. [[FantasyKitchenSink These helicopters — black, blue, and diving-bird-of-prey-painted — are probably the most "normal" thing in Night Vale]]. |
| 125 | ** And it turns out that the real threat comes from ''yellow'' helicopters... owned by [[spoiler:[[MegaCorp Strexcorp]] [[EvilInc Synernists, Inc.]]]]. |
| 126 | ** Incidentally, the people with the diving-bird-of-prey-painted helicopters eventually ''did'' take all of Night Vale's children... but brought them back, essentially unharmed. When the owners of the yellow helicopters were accused of something nefarious, the (still unidentified) owners of the diving-bird-of-prey helicopters [[EvenEvilHasStandards evinced disgust]], and pointed out that ''they'' at least had returned the children. |
| 127 | [[/folder]] |
| 128 | |
| 129 | [[folder:Radio]] |
| 130 | * L.O.U.G.H.B.O.R.O.U.G.H. from ''Radio/{{Nebulous}}'' maintain a fleet of black copters. |
| 131 | [[/folder]] |
| 132 | |
| 133 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 134 | * ''TabletopGame/ConspiracyX'': The [[NoSuchAgency National Defense Directorate AKA the Black Book]] has two types of black helicopter, their standard transport, the Raven Stealth Helicopter and the Ghost Surveillance Helicopter which handle their spying needs. Not only can they both fly silently, they have [[CloakingDevice biomimetic sheaths that allow them to blend into the surroundings]]. |
| 135 | * ''TabletopGame/D20Modern'': One of the villainous organizations that appear on the "Menace Manual" has a bunch of these as transportation, coated with a radar-spoofing super-tech alloy that can change shape as necessary to become more aerodynamic or harden to provide better armor protection. When it's necessary to use less distinct choppers, they also have access to various Black Hawk helicopters. |
| 136 | * ''TabletopGame/DeltaGreen'': Operated by the [[TheMenInBlack NRO Delta]], appears in the end of the scenario ''Convergence''. |
| 137 | * In the ''TabletopGame/GURPSTechnomancer'' setting, the American government has mysterious, stealth black ''[[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]]''. |
| 138 | * In ''TabletopGame/MageTheAscension'', the black helicopters belong to [[AncientConspiracy the Technocracy]]. Many of them are magic, which explains how a helicopter can have stealth capabilities. |
| 139 | * ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' has the [[https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Corvus_Blackstar Corvus Blackstar]] of the Deathwatch Space Marines, a militant arm of the [[StateSec Inquisiton's]] Ordo Xenos. Like many examples of this trope, it's stated to be both uncharacteristically agile and stealthy owing to its superior construction and small size. Unlike most examples however, it's armed to the teeth and capable of functioning both as an air superiority and air-to-ground support platform on top of being a troop transport for a full squad of some of the most [[ElitesAreMoreGlamorous elite]] of the [[SuperSoldier Adeptus Astartes]]. |
| 140 | [[/folder]] |
| 141 | |
| 142 | [[folder:Theater]] |
| 143 | * In ''Theatre/PokemonLive'' Giovanni carries Professor Oak and Delia away by dangling them in cages from an (offscreen) helicopter. |
| 144 | [[/folder]] |
| 145 | |
| 146 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 147 | * The ''Comanche'' series of games by Creator/NovaLogic put you in the cockpit of one such helicopter - namely the now defunct US Army RAH-66 Comanche stealth attack helicopter. That said, the actual number of missions where you hover and reconnoiter locations to collect intelligence on them are very few. Most of the missions have you fly the Comanche on attack missions. |
| 148 | * The protagonist of the Creator/DouglasAdams text adventure ''[[Creator/{{Infocom}} Bureaucracy]]'' doesn't encounter any black helicopters, but they're the topic of one of the CopyProtection questions you may be asked. |
| 149 | * The Soviet army in ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert3'' fields Twinblades, ''[[ThePoliticalOfficer commissar]] helicopters'' (used in the backstory to find and execute deserters) with self-reloading rocket barrages and machine guns. One of them tries to assassinate [[spoiler:Premier Cherdenko, although he faked it to frame Krukov]] in a cutscene. |
| 150 | * ''Franchise/DeusExUniverse'': |
| 151 | ** The protagonist of ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' gets ferried around in one, and there are references to others throughout the game. Amusingly, the stealth aspect does not work -- an in-game newspaper article mentions sightings. Naturally, UNATCO use this as a reason for why they aren't real: |
| 152 | --->'''Manderley:''' If black helicopters were really being used for "covert operations", then those responsible are doing a poor job of it. |
| 153 | ** ''VideoGame/DeusExInvisibleWar'' gives the player the choice of being ferried around in either an AI controlled black helicopter or a conventionally piloted, black Harrier jump jet. While the Harrier pilot is OnlyInItForTheMoney, the AI in command of the chopper is on her own quest to find a mysterious "passenger" -- [[spoiler:JC Denton, the protagonist of the original game]]. |
| 154 | * The villains in ''VideoGame/FarCry1'' use black V-22 Ospreys. |
| 155 | * The Turks in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' and its spinoffs travel around in black helicopters. |
| 156 | * ''VideoGame/{{Geist}}'': No aliens or (conventional) terrorists are involved, but the Volks Corporation drew the attention of the US Government due to reports suggesting what seems to be paranormal activity, so a group of high-ranked soldiers (among them the protagonist John Raimi) arrives the corporation's building via black helicopters to storm it and investigate. They learn the hard way that, yes, there ''is'' paranormal activity inside. |
| 157 | * Appropriately, the Black Ops teams from ''VideoGame/HalfLifeOpposingForce'' use black AH-64 Apache helicopters. [[WhatCouldHaveBeen Cut content]] also shows a V-22 Osprey transport in black as well. |
| 158 | * The Combine's Hunter-Choppers from ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'' are also black (really a variety of shades of grey) helicopters, except they are not stealthy and are dedicated attack helicopters. |
| 159 | * In ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'', several black helicopters are used by TheMenInBlack in "Interdiction" to destroy the helicopter that transports Toreno's package. |
| 160 | * Max is attacked by an unmarked black helicopter gunship during the final stages of ''VideoGame/MaxPayne1'', which the BigBad, Nicole Horne, tries to use to make her getaway. Max sends an antenna crashing down right on top of it, killing everyone inside. |
| 161 | * The [[TheMafiya Russian Mafia]] in ''VideoGame/{{Mercenaries}}'' have an exceedingly rare helicopter that may show up once or twice, and is obviously a Ka-50 or Ka-52, much like the page image. You have to steal it from them/steal one back for them (after the NK seized it) for one mission. |
| 162 | * The R-Shobu from the ''VideoGame/MetalSlug'' games. Modeled after the AH-64 Apache Chopper, it is the main attack helicopter of the Rebel Army. It attacks by dropping bombs at ground targets and deploying missiles against aerial targets. A red variant exist, called R Shobu MK II or R.R. Shobu, which is faster ([[RedOnesGoFaster naturally]]) and more powerful. |
| 163 | * The black helicopters in ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdge'' serve the purpose of deploying [[spoiler:Pirandello Krueger]]'s EliteMooks (which is as close as it gets to TheMenInBlack in the game) to wherever they are most likely to gun Faith down. Oh, and there's a GovernmentConspiracy, alright. |
| 164 | * In ''VideoGame/ThePKGirl'', [[GovernmentConspiracy ROSA]] utilizes Black Helicopters for all of their cute-girl-with-superpowers-kidnapping plots. (Of which it is suggested there are many.) |
| 165 | * Done with some twists in ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}''. |
| 166 | ** What these helicopters lack in silence, they make up for with [[MoreDakka firepower]]; starting out with one Blackhawk that deploys a squad of [[FastRoping fast-roping]] Marines every now and then, and eventually working up to three Black Apaches determined to send you to [[BulletHell Missile Hell]]. However, they still evoke that cool paranoia factor whenever they show up. |
| 167 | ** A player can actually tell apart the [[SemperFi Marine]] and [[ArmiesAreEvil Blackwatch]] vehicles (the latter of which are actually slightly tougher) from each other. Marine vehicles have a typical military tan-color, while Blackwatch's stuff is... well, ''black''. So not only are there Black Helicopters, but also [[TankGoodness Black Tanks]] as well. |
| 168 | * Conspiracy nut Boyd Cooper's level on ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'' is packed with black helicopters. |
| 169 | * The DemonicSpiders of ''VideoGame/SpyHunter''. |
| 170 | * ''VideoGame/StarCraftII'': Fluff suggests that this was the idea behind the Banshee gunship, a fast, [[InvisibilityCloak cloak-capable]] turbofan gunship built by TheEmpire to terrorize colonies who got funny ideas. |
| 171 | * A black Apache helicopter, aptly named "Black Thunder", is a recurring MidBoss in the first ''VideoGame/ViewtifulJoe'' game. |
| 172 | [[/folder]] |
| 173 | |
| 174 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 175 | * Inquisition in ''Webcomic/ExterminatusNow'', naturally, does ''[[http://exterminatusnow.co.uk/2010-12-06/comic/non-storyline/randoms/boy-did-you-pick-the-wrong-table/ not]]'' have such ludicrous things as "black helicopters with [[ArtisticLicensePhysics silenced counter-rotating blades and light-absorbing paint]]". Now, [[DistinctionWithoutADifference VTOL aircraft with active noise cancellation, on the other hand]]... |
| 176 | * The Llewellyn clan in ''WebComic/OzyAndMillie'' have a few of these, being conspirators of various quality; when Ozy tells Isolde her "babysitter conspiracy" isn't too hot, she retorts with "I don't see YOU riding around in a black helicopter." Of course, none are really seen (unless you count Orbital Windmill I). |
| 177 | * Mentioned in [[http://www.sandraandwoo.com/2014/05/26/0584-law-abiding-citizen/ this]] ''Webcomic/SandraAndWoo'' strip. |
| 178 | * ''Webcomic/SkinHorse'': How about a ''{{sapient|Steed}}'' black helicopter with dual tilting rotors? Nick ''loves'' being this trope; his CharacterBlog used to have the subtitle "They said I was a weather balloon". |
| 179 | -->'''Tip:''' We've got a black helicopter! You know what that makes us? [[TheMenInBlack An officially intimidating secret organization]]! |
| 180 | * ''WebComic/SluggyFreelance'': Choppers are among the equipment used by the [[http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=000903 Black Ops Christmas Elves]]. |
| 181 | [[/folder]] |
| 182 | |
| 183 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 184 | * In ''WebVideo/Lonelygirl15'', black helicopters are used by the Order. Helicopters -- not always black -- also fly overhead in a number of episodes, often {{foreshadowing}} danger. |
| 185 | * ''The Last Stage'' by WebVideo/NatOneProductions has a squad of Operatives arrive on scene at Seattle in silent helicopters after things go horribly wrong. |
| 186 | * The Register made a regular feature of looking for black helicopters on Google Earth. |
| 187 | * [[http://zapatopi.net/blackhelicopters/ The TRUTH About Black Helicopters]] |
| 188 | * Usenet has featured the newsgroup alt.conspiracy.black.helicopters for years now. |
| 189 | [[/folder]] |
| 190 | |
| 191 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 192 | * ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'': In "G-String Circus", when Deputy CIA Director Bullock finds out they need to spend their remaining budget immediately or face cutbacks, Stan's whole department immediately rolls out in [[VanInBlack black vans]] and black helicopters to the nearest strip club, [=XanaBoobs=]. |
| 193 | * Their frequent use is {{lampshade|Hanging}}d in ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'': |
| 194 | -->'''Ron:''' So, what are the chances that they're not after us?\ |
| 195 | '''Kim:''' They're black helicopters, Ron. They're always after us. |
| 196 | * [[ConspiracyTheorist Naturally]], Dale Gribble in ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' makes a mention of these after hearing a suspicious noise. |
| 197 | -->'''Dale Gribble:''' Must be one of those new silent UN black helicopters. As you can hear, they're still working out the bugs. |
| 198 | * The ''WesternAnimation/{{Metalocalypse}}'' black helicopter is sinister for other reasons. |
| 199 | * ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': Black helicopters appear in the background throughout the conspiracy-themed episode "[[Recap/SouthParkS1E1CartmanGetsAnAnalProbe Cartman Gets an Anal Probe]]". |
| 200 | -->'''Rancher:''' What the hell was that?\ |
| 201 | '''Officer Barbrady:''' That... that was just a pigeon. |
| 202 | * In the third season of ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003'', the turtles manage to acquire a government helicopter belonging to a secret government agency and make it their own. |
| 203 | * Franchise/{{Transformers}}: |
| 204 | ** Megatron in ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'' transforms into a futuristic dual-rotor helicopter with black detailing after he's repaired. |
| 205 | ** [[FauxAffablyEvil Airachnid]] from ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' has a Black Helicopter as her alt form. |
| 206 | * The dictatorial regime in ''WesternAnimation/TronUprising'' has those. [[CaptainCrash Paige crashes hers every time she pilots it]]. |
| 207 | [[/folder]] |
| 208 | |
| 209 | [[folder:Real Life]] |
| 210 | * The man in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_xIUOLYYRg this video]] is under the firm belief that a "rogue" helicopter is following him for reasons that are unclear but have something to do with the government... probably. Subverted in that this one is white for some reason. |
| 211 | * Helicopters are said to routinely patrol the border of the fabled {{Area 51}} military facility in the Nevada desert. Given that the area is one of the most fortified in the world, and home to some of the most secretive branches of the American military, it makes sense to have choppers patrolling the area to scare off anyone intent on snooping around on foot. Some claim the helicopters more or less harass you by flying low and stirring up dust. |
| 212 | * The [[ElitesAreMoreGlamorous US Navy SEALs]] who took out UsefulNotes/OsamaBinLaden apparently operated helicopters that while not exactly black, were designed with stealth capability, the tail section of one being shown ad nauseam on international news when the chopper crashed and the [=SEALs=] had to blow the rest of it up to keep it secret. The helicopter was apparently a heavily modified version of the UH-60 Blackhawk that was not known to exist outside of high-level military and government circles. |
| 213 | * The US Department of Homeland Security operates black-painted helicopters. They are not very mysterious, being [[https://www.dhs.gov/medialibrary-assets/assets-temp/070716-h-cbpxx999-0001.jpg gloss black with a gold band, large Homeland Security markings, and a blue flashing light.]] They also have ones [[https://theintercept.imgix.net/wp-uploads/sites/1/2021/06/line3-chopper2-e1623162913261.jpeg?auto=compress%2Cformat&q=90&fit=crop&w=1200&h=800 white]] and, of course, the [[https://i.ytimg.com/vi/nEA2ImDM3bo/maxresdefault.jpg Coast Guard]]. |
| 214 | * The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hughes_OH-6_Cayuse#.22The_Quiet_One.22 Quiet One]], a "Hughes 500 Penetrator". Built in the 1970s with experimental noise reduction technology, these were used for at least one intelligence gathering mission in Vietnam. Of course they were not black but looked exactly like other civilian machines used by the cover company. |
| 215 | * 23 such helicopters (identified as Boeing CH-47 Chinooks) were said to have surrounded a mysterious object that irradiated three civilians, in the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash-Landrum_incident Cash-Landrum Incident.]] Conspiracy theories about the sighting claim it was either an alien spaceship or a top-secret nuclear-powered aircraft. |
| 216 | * In reality covert helicopters used domestically are simply unmarked with civilian paint jobs as having no markings would make it extremely distinctive. The NYPD is known to operate one. |
| 217 | * Many aircraft used by the Russian Navy ([=VTOLs=] and helicopters, mostly) are painted matte black. |
| 218 | |
| 219 | [[/folder]] |
| 220 | ---- |
| 221 | [[Music/RideOfTheValkyries Dun-dudu-DUHN-Dun, Dun-dudu-DUHHN-DUN...]] |
| 222 | ----''They said it was a weather balloon'' |
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