Buzzard Attack Chopper

"The Buzzard is a light, compact helicopter for military or millionaire use. With a 5-bladed main rotor and a top speed of 175mph, it's widely considered to be the best performing helicopter in its class. These hardly ever drop out of the sky like a stone. Helicopters are one of the safest ways to travel."

- Warstock Cache & Carry description.

The Buzzard Attack Chopper (formerly named "Buzzard") is a light attack helicopter featured in The Ballad of Gay Tony, Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online.

The Ballad of Gay Tony
"The ultimate party starter: light, maneuvrable and armed with rockets and a high-calibre machine gun"

- TBoGT Official Website.

Similarly armed with machine guns as the Annihilator, as well as additionally featuring rocket pods, the Buzzard is evidently an, an attack variant of the light observation helicopter, which in turn is a military version of the  and the. The Buzzard also features a pod under the cabin, similar to the real life. It is important to note that the Buzzard has the old-style tail stabilizer, characteristic of the MD-500C and its corresponding defender AH/MH-6 counterparts.

According to in-game speech, the Buzzard that Luis Fernando Lopez intended to steal for Yusuf Amir was a prototype, meaning there is possibly only a single one in existence. The same stolen one was later repainted gold, by Yusuf - this difference would be first recognized during the mission, "Not So Fast", where Luis must use it to land on the roof of the Libertonian. LCPD will call it a "black/gold helicopter", depending on which version Luis uses - the black Buzzard acquired by a cheat code or the gold Buzzard from Yusuf at the end of the game.

Grand Theft Auto V
Returning in Grand Theft Auto V, it retains the original design, only now featuring different badges, and is now classed as a legal vehicle, no longer being a prototype.

The Ballad of Gay Tony
Designed as a light exploration/attack helicopter, the Buzzard has an excellent maneuvrability, able to turn quickly and move with a reasonable top speed (though not as fast as the Annihilator). It holds two people, and is equipped with two high-powered miniguns and rockets. Miniguns on the Buzzard are much more effective than those on the Annihilator - they have a much faster rate of fire, a narrower spread, and are fired both simultaneously, unlike the Annihilator, which only fires one gun at a time. However, they do considerably less damage than the Annihilators guns. They also never overheat, which allows for continuous fire.

The Buzzard's weakness is its bubble canopy and low bullet protection, which can prove dangerous to the pilot and passenger when faced with heavy weapons like the M249 or Explosive Shotgun. Like all helicopters, one of the weak spots is the rear rotor, when destroyed, it will spin out of control. True to its real-life inspirations, the Buzzard is powered by a single located on the rear section of the vehicle, seen in the circular exhaust on the back, where the tail section starts. Said engine powers the 5-bladed rotor, delivering good engine output to ascend quickly.

TBoGT Overview
Buzzard=

Miniguns=

Rocket Launchers=

Grand Theft Auto V
The Buzzard handles similarly to how it did in TBoGT; the Buzzard Attack Chopper now features missiles which lock on to vehicles. Both the machine guns and rockets cannot be used at the same time, unlike in TBoGT. The missile can lock on any AI-controlled helicopter or plane, police vehicles during pursuits, and hostile persons. It is possibly one of the fastest helicopters in the game, even faster than some airplanes, this is maybe due to its small size and lightweight body, especially its weaponless variant.

In Grand Theft Auto Online, like in GTA V, it does not feature the lock-on ability on players, except if they are piloting a helicopter or an aircraft. A skilled pilot can easily kill players using the rockets. If a co-pilot is present in the passenger seat, they have the ability to aim the rockets from a mounted camera, which can make it deadly. One should be careful however, as the open cockpit makes the front occupants very vulnerable to gunfire.

GTA V Overview
Buzzard Attack=

Miniguns=

Rocket Launchers=

Searchlight=

The Ballad of Gay Tony

 * Abdul Amir
 * Frickie Van Hardenburg
 * Luis Lopez
 * Yusuf Amir

Grand Theft Auto V

 * International Affairs Agency
 * Federal Investigation Bureau
 * Merryweather Security
 * Military

The Ballad of Gay Tony

 * Sexy Time
 * Not So Fast
 * Departure Time

Grand Theft Auto V

 * Three's Company
 * Cargobob
 * The Merryweather Heist
 * The Bureau Raid (Roof Entry)
 * The Wrap Up
 * Legal Trouble - A Buzzard Attack Chopper can be seen taking off in the airport during the mission.
 * The Big Score (Obvious)

Grand Theft Auto Online

 * Standard
 * Mixed Up With Coke


 * Heists Update
 * The Prison Break
 * Humane Raid - Insurgents
 * Humane Raid - Valkyrie
 * The Humane Labs Raid


 * Import/Export
 * Breakdown Recovery
 * End of Transmission


 * Gunrunning
 * Severe Weather Patterns
 * Half-track Bully
 * Exit Strategy
 * Offshore Assets
 * Mole Hunt

The Ballad of Gay Tony

 * Singleplayer
 * Yusuf Amir gives his golden Buzzard Attack Chopper to the player as a gift after completing the game. It will be then available at the helipad beside the golf club on the West River. It replaces the Swift that was parked there.


 * Can be spawned via cheat code, by dialing the number: 359-555-2899 (FLY-555-BUZZ).
 * There is one way to obtain the black Buzzard without entering the cheat code stated above. After destroying the boats in "Sexy Time," land the black Buzzard Attack Chopper on a road. Get into a car or bike, and drive away from it but keep the camera fixed on the Buzzard Attack Chopper. After you have failed the mission, reverse and it will be there.

In multiplayer, there are multiple locations where Buzzards can be found:
 * Multiplayer
 * The first two can be found at Francis International Airport on the helipads.
 * One can be found at the heliport in southern Algonquin.
 * One can be found at the helipad on the West River where the golden Buzzard Attack Chopper is in single player.
 * One can be found at the yacht just south of Acter Industrial Park and east of Happiness Island.

Grand Theft Auto V

 * Can be bought from Warstock Cache & Carry for $2,500,000.
 * It may rarely spawn in a unique white paint scheme in story mode.
 * Can be found at Fort Zancudo.
 * Can be occasionally found patrolling around in the lower class parts of southern Los Santos.
 * On top of the NOOSE Headquarters on Sustancia Road in Palomino Highlands, Los Santos County. Despite its location, it can be obtained safely without triggering a wanted level.
 * Can be spawned by using the cheat code:
 * Xbox 360/One:
 * PlayStation 3/4:
 * PC: BUZZOFF

Grand Theft Auto Online

 * Spawns on numerous helipads at Rank 43 or higher.
 * Commonly parked at Los Santos Naval Port.
 * Can be bought on Warstock Cache & Carry for $1,750,000.
 * Prior to the Cunning Stunts: Special Vehicle Circuit update, the vehicle could only be purchased after reaching rank 43.
 * It can then be ordered after via Pegasus Lifestyle Management, where it will spawn on the nearest helipad.
 * Will also spawn on numerous helipads, such as in the Paleto Bay Police Station helipad.
 * Can be requested by a VIP (and any bodyguards of the organisation) for $25,000 (or for free if owned as a Pegasus vehicle) from the Interaction Menu > VIP Vehicles. It will always spawn in matte black and will spawn near the player where there is enough space.

General

 * The name "Buzzard" may be a reference to Buzzard 1, a named Police Maverick helicopter from the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas mission, "Reuniting the Families".
 * The name may also be a reference to the AH/MH-6 Little Bird Attack Helicopter, as a Buzzard is a type of bird.
 * The Buzzard Attack Chopper was named simply "Buzzard" in The Ballad of Gay Tony, but when returning to Grand Theft Auto V, it was renamed "Buzzard Attack Chopper", and the name "Buzzard" was given to an unarmed counterpart introduced into GTA V.

The Ballad of Gay Tony

 * During the mission Sexy Time, the Buzzard features a unique warning system that warns the pilot when an airborne rocket is detected and flying towards the helicopter.
 * Firing a rocket at a low altitude (lower than about a person's height) may cause the Buzzard that the player is in to be destroyed because of the rockets' firing system. Before a rocket takes flight, it is first dropped out of the container, then takes flight when the fuse lights itself. However, at ground level the fuse does not have enough time to ignite, thus making the rocket explode when it hits the ground.
 * The Buzzard's rockets are slightly slower than the Buzzard's top speed, meaning the player can sometimes fly into their own rocket, potentially killing them.
 * Like the Annihilator, the Buzzard's miniguns do not spin while being fired.
 * Oddly, bullet belts are placed onto the minigun's cannons, instead of being placed in the main body.

Grand Theft Auto V

 * Despite the description saying it "hardly falls like a stone from the sky", ironically in Grand Theft Auto V's story mode, it is destroyed numerous times, mostly in missions.
 * Similar to the P-996 LAZER and Savage, when controlled by NPCs, the Buzzard Attack Chopper can move its miniguns in any direction, both vertically and laterally.
 * In Grand Theft Auto V, the Buzzard Attack Chopper seems to fire RPG shells, rather than its rockets fitted in the pods.
 * The cheat code used to spawn the Buzzard Attack Chopper is the same cheat used to spawn the Rhino tank in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, with a few button modifications.
 * In the enhanced version of GTA V, the minigun barrels rotate when fired.
 * The player can actually change the sound of the machine guns being fired in GTA V. To do this, the player must find a cinematic camera and fire the machine guns, a specific cinematic view will make the sound higher pitched, the player must not let go of firing the guns, but release the cinematic camera, the guns now produce a higher pitched sound.
 * This can also be done with the Annihilator, P-996 Lazer, Savage and Hydra.