hey guys/gals, i am looking at enlisting in the US Army, and i want to be a helicopter gunner. but everywhere i look on the army recruiting site dosent give any specific job title for what i want to do. the recruiter said that the Helo mechanics are the ones that fly with the choppers and man their guns. but under the description of the helicopter mechanic it says nothing about manning the guns. is what he says accurate or he just blowing smoke up my butt?

Can't vouch for what the Army does, but in the Marines it is normally a Helo Crew Chief that mans the door guns.

That's pretty much the way it is in the USMC, mechanics (who become crew chiefs) man the guns as well.

The Army used to use infantry machine gunners when they first started arming helicopters but switched to mechanics after a while and probably still uses them. Since infantry tactics are not important while flying, it would seem that knowing how to shoot is the only important thing a gunner needs to know. On some helicopters, the pilots fire the weapons.