text: Chapter 4
  increase in desert operations: 100 meters between aircraft, 100-meter-diameter landing points. In daylight
  hours, ground-crew members mark the touchdown points. They paint sandbags a bright color or mark them
  using some other quick method. Ideally, they use signalmen.
  4-108. When establishing a landing site, the pathfinder leader considers taxi procedures. When an aircraft
  must taxi, the pilot moves it into a vertical position as quickly as possible to reduce the amount of sand
  (dust) the engine sucks in as well as to avoid a brownout. Pilots should avoid taxiing over the same area
  repeatedly.
  LIFTOFFS
  4-109. Pilots will not try a normal liftoff in a sandstorm. Helicopters with wheels and airplanes should
  make a running-type takeoff. Helicopters with skids should make a maximum performance liftoff.
  LANDINGS
  4-110. When they can, pilots should use a running-type landing to reduce sand intake. If a pilot can make
  a running landing, he keeps the touchdown roll to a minimum to keep from overloading the landing gear. If
  the terrain does not permit a running landing, the pilot lands at a greater-than-normal angle. He should
  never land from a hover.
  SAFETY
  4-111. Ground crew personnel should wear clothing that will protect them against the sand blown around
  by the rotor wash. Each person on the ground should take special care to keep the sand out of his eyes,
  ears, nose, and mouth. Goggles, earplugs, and cloth masks provide adequate protection for facial areas.
  Other ground crew procedures resemble those for cold weather operations.
  MOUNTAINS
  4-112. Mountains have rugged, divided terrain with steep slopes and few natural or man-made lines of
  communication. Weather fluctuates seasonally from extreme cold, with ice and snow, to extreme heat.
  Also, it can switch between the two extremes very quickly. This unpredictability greatly affects operations.
  COMMUNICATIONS
  4-113. Mountainous terrain often limits or restricts communications. To maintain communications within
  the AO, aircraft might have to limit operations to the vicinity of the unit. Other aircraft can serve as radio
  relay stations. Pathfinder units might also have to set up radio relays at the RP, CCP, or both.
  4-114. Mountain conditions challenge aviators in pathfinder operations more than any other conditions.
  For precise flying in mountainous areas, pilots need large-scale terrain maps.
  4-115. Since intervening terrain degrades GTA communications, providing navigational aid and control
  over extended ranges might prove difficult.
  WIND
  4-116. The main weather hazard in the mountains is wind. Even moderate winds (11 to 20 knots) can
  produce significant turbulence over mountain ridges. Predicting wind conditions is difficult. The windward
  side of a mountain maintains a steady direction of airflow, though the strength of the wind might vary. The
  leeward side has turbulent winds with strong vertical currents. This turbulence might prevent assault
  landings and require pilots to fly at higher altitudes. This naturally increases the risk of detection and
  destruction.