Ebbtide Helicopters: Apache, Viper, Chinook and Little Bird

Ebbtide, the zombie survival RTS by ProjectAlive, treats helicopters as part of your combined-arms toolkit on the Los Angeles operations map and in the seamless street battles described in the gameplay overview. Official store copy and dated posts on ProjectAliveDev on X show attack, insertion, resupply, and heavy-lift roles—not a full roster with stats.

Image: official Steam store screenshot © ProjectAlive. Early development footage — details may change before release.

What helicopters does the Steam page promise?

The Ebbtide Steam page lists Apache and Viper attack helicopters, fast roping from Black Hawks, and landing on rooftops to drop squads. It also warns that zombies can grab helicopters hovering low, which ties air movement to the Nexus hive-mind pressure on convoys and bases. Release timing, pricing, and per-airframe loadouts beyond those lines are not announced as of 2026-10-22.

Helicopter roles at a glance

Unit statistics are not published as of 2026-10-22.

Insertion: rappelling and rooftop drops

In a Sep 16, 2026 post on X, the developer showed helicopter rappelling: squads land directly on rooftops, with special-forces troops moving down the rope faster than other soldiers. That aligns with the Steam page’s fast-rope and rooftop squad delivery wording. Whether every map building is landable is not announced as of 2026-10-22.

Image: official Steam store screenshot © ProjectAlive. Early development footage — details may change before release.

Helicopter resupply ties into forward bases: after you build and defend an FOB, the developer noted on Sep 29, 2026 that helicopters can sling-load supplies—shown in the same development period as “The FOB is built. Now it needs supplies.”

Attack helicopters: Apache and Viper

In an Oct 4, 2026 post on X, the developer wrote that Apache and Viper helicopters are commandable units, showed a new Apache model, and fired Hydra rockets and Hellfire missiles. Clips also showed pilots moving into position or setting an orbit to guard an area. Ammunition counts, damage values, and unlock progression are not announced as of 2026-10-22.

CH-47 Chinook heavy lift

In an Oct 6, 2026 post on X, the developer introduced the CH-47 Chinook with rear-ramp boarding, flight over the city, and unload at the destination. The post described payload options shown in that footage: two Humvees; one Humvee plus three to four squads; or five to six infantry squads, depending on load. Those descriptions come from the developer post, not from a published stat sheet. Chinook speed, armor, and build cost are not announced as of 2026-10-22. Ground vehicles themselves are covered on the ground forces and vehicles page.

Little Bird gunships and shipborne MH-6M

In an Oct 15, 2026 post on X, the developer showed the AH-6M Little Bird engaging hordes with machine guns and rockets, and the MH-6M carrying troops from a carrier flight deck for a landing. Carrier deck workflow overlaps with fire support, naval, and carrier air coverage. Little Bird production limits are not announced as of 2026-10-22.

Formations and the “Scaling Up Helicopter Operations” video

In an Oct 19, 2026 post on X, the developer showed helicopter formations with adjustable spacing, including large transport formations flying over Los Angeles before dropping squads. The same theme appears in the official YouTube upload “Scaling Up Helicopter Operations | Ebbtide”:

Scaling Up Helicopter Operations | Ebbtide (official) — YouTube

Scaling Up Helicopter Operations | Ebbtide (official)

For a dated list of these posts alongside naval and map milestones, see the development timeline.

Visual and boarding polish

In an Oct 14, 2026 post on X, the developer highlighted rotor visuals, rotor wash and dust, nearby trees moving in the wind, and refined embark and disembark animations. These are presentation updates on top of earlier mechanical posts; they do not by themselves confirm final release features.

Image: official Steam store screenshot © ProjectAlive. Early development footage — details may change before release.

Air-to-ground strikes from fixed-wing assets appear in separate Steam imagery and developer clips; they are summarized on the fire support and naval page rather than duplicated here.

Sources

• Ebbtide on Steam — observed 2026-10-22
• ProjectAliveDev on X — observed 2026-10-22
• Scaling Up Helicopter Operations | Ebbtide — observed 2026-10-22