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As for the features of the relationship between AAS use and somatoform and/or eating disorders, Pope and Katz [54] showed that 18.2% of 88 male weightlifters who abused AASs reported a history of muscle dysmorphia, compared to none of the 68 male weightlifters who did not use AASs (controls). Blouin and Goldfield [105] examined the relationship between body image disturbances, eating attitudes, and AAS use in 43 male bodybuilders vs. 48 runners and 48 martial artists of the same sex, all recruited from fitness centers. Bodybuilders showed significantly greater body dissatisfaction, with a high tendency to bulk and thinness, and increased inclinations towards bulimia than the other two groups. Additionally, they reported higher perfectionism and ineffectiveness, as well as lower self-esteem. They also consumed more AASs and had freer attitudes towards AAS use. The main reason for taking AASs, according to AAS users, was physical improvement: AAS users reported a stronger drive to put on muscle mass in the form of bulk, more maturity fears, and greater tendencies towards bulimia than AAS nonusers. Thus, male bodybuilders seem to be at risk for body image disturbances and the associated psychopathological characteristics that have been commonly observed in patients with eating disorders. These psycho-pathological characteristics also appear to predict AAS use in this group of men.
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Besides protecting helicopter troop assaults and supporting ground actions, the Mi-24 also protected convoys, using rockets with flechette warheads to drive off ambushes; performed strikes on predesignated targets; and engaged in "hunter-killer" sweeps. Hunter-killer Mi-24s operated at a minimum in pairs, but were more often in groups of four or eight, to provide mutual fire support. The Mujahideen learned to move mostly at night to avoid the gunships, and in response the Soviets trained their Mi-24 crews in night-fighting, dropping parachute flares to illuminate potential targets for attack. The Mujahideen quickly caught on and scattered as quickly as possible when Soviet target designation flares were lit nearby.
The rebels also quickly began to use Soviet-made and US shoulder-launched, man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) missiles such as the Strela and Redeye which had either been captured from the Soviets or their Afghan allies or were supplied from Western sources. Many of them came from stocks that the Israelis had captured during wars with Soviet backed states in the Middle East. Owing to a combination of the limited capabilities of these early types of missiles, poor training and poor material condition of the missiles, they were not particularly effective. Instead, the RPG-7, originally developed as an antitank weapon, was the first effective countermeasure to the Hind. The RPG-7, not designed for air defence, had inherent shortcomings in this role. When fired at the angles needed to hit aerial targets, the back-blast could easily wound the shooter, and the inevitable cloud of smoke and dust made it easy for gunners to spot the shooter's position.[citation needed]
Three Mi-24s were used by Mobutu's army and were later acquired by the new Air Force of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[48] These were supplied to Zaire in 1997 as part of a French-Serbian contract. At least one was flown by Serbian mercenaries. One hit a power line and crashed on 27 March 1997, killing the three crew and four passengers.[49] Zimbabwean Mi-24s were also operated in coordination with the Congolese Army.
In 2008 and 2009, the Czech Republic donated six Mi-24s under the ANA Equipment Donation Programme. As a result, the Afghan National Army Air Corps (ANAAC) gained the ability to escort its own helicopters with heavily armed attack helicopters. ANAAC operates nine Mi-35s. Major Caleb Nimmo, a United States Air Force Pilot, was the first American to fly the Mi-35 Hind, or any Russian helicopter, in combat.[54][55] On 13 September 2011, a Mi-35 of the Afghan Air Force was used to hold back an attack on ISAF and police buildings.[56]
The Polish Helicopter Detachment contributed Mi-24s to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). The Polish pilots trained in Germany before deploying to Afghanistan and train with U.S. service personnel. On 26 January 2011, one Mi-24 caught on fire during take-off from its base in Ghazni. One American and four Polish soldiers evacuated unharmed.[57]
The Ethiopian Air Force operated about three Mil Mi-35 and ten Mil Mi-24D helicopter gunships in the Somali theatre. One was shot down near Mogadishu International Airport on 30 March 2007 by Somali insurgents.[61] 041b061a72