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Attack helicopters are strong, powerful, sophisticated, fast and lethal. Because they are a major asset for the commanders on the field of battle, they are equipped with the most advanced technologies and generally define the new state of the art during the time of their development.

13 attack helicopters

Considering the models without the derivatives and evolutions, 13 different aircraft are actual attack helicopters. There are domestic and international programs.

These aircraft are often the symbol of diplomatic relationships, today as well as during the Cold War.

Airframe and armaments are generally domestic productions, but engines and equipment often come from the international market, regulated by diplomatic and political decisions (e.g. ITAR).

They are generally the fastest helicopter in a manufacturer’s range of products.

The first attack helicopters were imagined in the mid 1960s in both Soviet Russia and America. Bell launched the Model 209, which first flew in 1965 and then produced the Cobra. AH-1G was fielded for the first time in Vietnam.
USSR’s Mil design offices imagined the Mi-24 Hind as a battle tank, capable of carrying troops as well as combatting. It was followed by Mi-25, Mi-35 and many variants.

 

One decade later, new attack helicopter programs were launched. They were developed from the scratch, unlike the Cobra and Hind: Cobra has an airframe based on UH-1 Huey and Hind is also a troop transport helicopter.

Kamov Ka-50 “Chernaya Akula” (Black Shark) was launched in 1977 and made its maiden flight in 1982. Boeing AH-64 Apache (Hughes Model 77) flew in 1975 and the program started with official support during 1976.

 

Another decade later, USA started RAH-66 Comanche programme, which was eventually cancelled due to budgets cuts. This aircraft should have been the best attack helicopter ever made, providing high performance and stealth technologies. This aircraft has never really entered active duty, but it defined the state of the art. Some say that its technologies were used to develop the stealth Black Hawk.

 

Russia started Mil Mi-28 “Night Hunter” (NATO reporting name “Havoc”) in 1980 and flew it in 1984. This project was competing against Ka-50. Years later, the Russian government decided to slow down Mi-28 and to push Ka-50. After unsuccessful results of Ka-50, Mi-28 was pushed forward again.

 

Tiger is a multi-domestic programme launched in 1984 by both France and Germany (later with Spain). MBB and Aerospatiale later merged to become Eurocopter. The helicopter war first designed to slow down Soviet tanks in case of an invasion during the Cold War. The first flight happened in 1991.

 

Italy also wanted its own attack helicopter, which resulted in the Agusta (later Agusta Westland) A129 Mangusta, flying for the first time in 1988. Turkey decided to integrate this aircraft to its armed forces too. Negotiations started in 2007 and the company TAI took the responsibility to adapt and modernize several systems.

 

After the lack of success of the Kamov Ka-50, the Ka-52 was launched with a wider consideration of the battefield, including missile systems and performing data links. Ka-50 and Ka-52 would operate together, for instance with a Ka-52 designating the target with a Laser beam and a Ka-50 launching the missile.

 

China decided to produce its domestic attack helicopters, which resulted in two parallel programmes : WZ-10 and WZ-19. WZ-19 is based on the airframe and mechanical parts of Eurocopter Dauphin, produced under licence in China (named Z-9).
The WZ-10 aircraft is a much more discreet programme: only few pictures and data have been released yet.

 

South African company Denel started the AH-2 Rooivalk in 1993 and flew it in 1997. Mechanical parts were originally based on Eurocopter Puma, produced under licence as Oryx.

 

The youngest attack helicoper LCH (light Combat Helicopter) is developed by HAL in India. The programme started in 2001 and the aircraft made its maiden flight in 2010. The programme encountered several difficulties to meet the target MTOW of 5,500 kg.

 

Bonus:

Kawasaki OH-1 Ninja

The Ninja is not a real attack helicopter because its principal armament is primarily dedicated to aerial suppression. It is a Japanese domestic development.

 

 

Characteristics

• All attack helicopters have air-to-air and air-to-ground combat capabilities.
• All have a turret or mobile cannon.
• All have rocket launchers.
• All have at least 4 weapon stations.
• All have TV and FLIR capabilities, as well as Laser designation and range finder.
• All have 2 engines.
• All have anti missile, chaff and flare protection, but not all have armoured ballistic protections.
• Not all have a radar.
• Not all are equipped with helmet mounted sight displays.

Heaviest: Mi-24, Mi-28 => 12 t
Lightest: Ninja OH-1  => 4 t
Max range (without auxiliary fuel tanks): Cobra, Tiger  => 750-800 km
Max endurance (without auxiliary fuel tanks): Rooivalk  => 04 hours
Max power/mass ratio: Comanche  => 0,4
Min power/mass ratio: Ka-52  => 0,2

The map below displays the countries with a national (and in cooperation) attack helicopter programme.

Cockpits of the modern helicopters proposed in the frame of the Armed Scout competition are all mainly composed of screen displays. The era of traditional airspeed indicators, compass or artificial horizon is almost over.

Boeing AH-6i

Equipped with the probably most impressive interface in this competition, Boeing provides a cockpit highly similar to the oncoming Block III of AH-64D Apache.

Boeing says “These displays can be used to present to either crew member the electro-optic/infrared sensor video, engine data, moving map display, armament and identification friend or foe transponder control”

Nothing less than a small Apache! This argument is hard to beat… Nevertheless, we can hope for an improvement of the helmet mounted sight. Ed Macy’s book “Apache” describes the monocle on the pilot’s left eye as causing “terrible headaches as the left and right eye competed for dominance.” He needed “two years to learn how to ‘see’ properly”.
This is clearly not an optimised interface.

The displays provide all information necessary to the pilots in flight and on a mission; a complementary helmet mounted sight with flight (and combat?) data may simply be the cherry on the cake.

 

Eurocopter AAS-72X

Unfortunately, no cockpit picture of the military aircraft has been released yet. We can have a look at the EC-145 instead:

With a sufficient number of screens to display every information needed for a mission flight, the panel looks interesting.

The AAS-72X features a Helionix glass cockpit, accommodating two crew members. The cockpit is equipped with liquid crystal displays, avionics suite and a four-axis autopilot system. The modern avionics include vehicle and engine management display (VEMD). (source)

Helionix is the most modern state of the art of the Eurocopter cockpit. It is fair to expect the best.

However, helmet equipment does not look ready to show off for now. The mount lets expect installation of at least night vision goggles. Standard NVG? Well, it might only be due to current demonstration limitations. In fact, the brand new EC635 is equipped with a Helmet Mounted-Sight Display (HMSD). (source)

It seems very realistic to expect state of the art pilot and gunner helmets with flight and combat symbology. (here the Tiger)

 

MD540F

Garmin G500 and Elbit Helmet HDTS should be the core of the pilot’s interface. Dealing with equipments off the shelf, MD is ensured to get an aircraft flying well enough, but probably not providing the state of the art of military Human-Machine Interfaces.

Agusta Westland AW139M

No interesting cockpit photo of AW139M were released until today. We can compare the civil (above) and  military (below) versions, but unfortunately, no hint is given concerning the mission systems.

It feels like flying a big passenger airplane. In fact, it’s not wrong, the aircraft is first dedicated to passenger transport. Weapons are optional; this helicopter does not look like being optimized for reconnaissance and scouting missions.

 

Bell OH-58 F (Block II)

Two models and one cockpit are displayed on http://www.scoutsout.com. The only difference will actually be in the engine performance, much greater for the Block II.

So what do we have? A “digital cockpit”!

• Single pilot operable
• 2 5×7 Color displays
• 1 6×8 Color display
• Dual, independent map channels
• Control and Display Subsystem version 5 (CDS5)
• SWB 4 and Beyond
• Improved MCPU
• Emergency Standby Attitude Indicator (ESIS)

All information are available to the copilot, even if the helicopter can be flown by a single pilot. Wide displays, safety analog dials, everything’s here but not much more. Furthermore if we believe the picture below, no high-end helmet is available for the pilots.

Conclusion

The most convincing proposals are obviously Boeing and Eurocopter. If you want the best for your troops during the next decades, you will not just afford simple off the shelf equipments. You want modern and highly performing equipments.