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99-550: In comparison to the SS.11, HOT has longer range, flies faster, and is semi-automatically guided instead of manually. It has become one of the most successful missiles of its class, with tens of thousands of missiles produced, used by no fewer than a dozen countries worldwide, and validated in combat in several wars. The missile system is also commonly mounted on light and medium armored vehicles, and attack helicopters . HOT entered limited production in 1976, with mass production of 800 missiles

198-462: A Marine experimental helicopter squadron. In the mid-1960s, the U.S. Army concluded that a purpose-built attack helicopter with more speed and firepower than current armed helicopters was required in the face of increasingly intense ground fire (often using heavy machine guns and anti-tank rockets) from Viet Cong and NVA troops. Based on this realization, and with the growing involvement in Vietnam,

297-730: A common light attack helicopter, other prospective manufacturing participants in the joint initiative included Fokker and Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA . In 1986, the governments of Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom signed a memorandum of understanding to investigate an improved version of the A129, alternatively called the Joint European Helicopter Tonal or Light Attack Helicopter (LAH). By 1988, feasibility studies for four different options had been conducted for

396-481: A conventional war ever, as well as the only confirmed helicopter dogfights in history; in particular, Iranian Army Aviation AH-1J SeaCobras engaged with Mi-24 Hind and Mi-8 Hip helicopters of the Iraqi Army Air Corps. The Iranian Cobras also attacked advancing Iraqi divisions in conjunction with fixed-wing F-4 Phantoms armed with Maverick missiles , destroying numerous armoured vehicles and impeded

495-578: A design and a mock-up were accepted. The prototype (no. 012) was first flown on 10 November 1982. In this same time frame, Kamov was also attempting to submit its own designs for a new helicopter to the military, which they had designed throughout the early and mid 1980s. In 1984, the Mi-28 completed the first stage of state trials, but in October 1984 the Soviet Air Force chose the more advanced Kamov Ka-50 as

594-531: A greater emphasis on the attack helicopter's anti-tank capabilities came about. Much of the project's organisational framework was rapidly redeveloped between 1987 and 1989; such as the installation of a Franco-German Helicopter Office to act as a program executive agency in May 1989. Due to the end of the Cold War and subsequent defence budgets decreases in the 1990s, financial pressures led to further questions regarding

693-419: A helicopter in flight. One of the larger 3.5 inch (90mm calibre) models of the bazooka was chosen, and was mounted ahead and to the right of the helicopter to allow the door to remain clear. The bazooka was successfully tested, although it was discovered that it would require shielding for the engine compartment, which was exposed in the model 47 and other early helicopters. The helicopter itself belonged to HMX-1,

792-461: A major threat even with the presence of organic air defenses. The helicopter gunship became a major tool against tank warfare, and most attack helicopters became more and more optimized for the antitank mission. Amid the opening months of the Korean War era, during August 1950, a joint US Navy and Marine Corps test used a newly acquired Bell HTL-4 helicopter to test if a bazooka could be fired from

891-519: A month reached in 1978. HOT initially became operational with the French and West German armies fitted to specialized armored antitank vehicles. In addition, Euromissile received large export orders from Middle East nations at the start of mass production. This was likely due to the situation in the late 1970s where many nations did not want to rely solely on arms purchases from the Soviet Union , combined with

990-556: A more ambitious helicopter design. In 1978, Agusta formally began the design process on what would become the Agusta A129 Mangusta . On 11 September 1983, the first of five A129 prototypes made the type's maiden flight ; the fifth prototype would first fly in March 1986. The Italian Army placed an order for 60 A129s. The A129 was the first European attack helicopter; as such it has several original aspects to its design, such as being

1089-623: A panel of high-level officers was selected to evaluate several prototype versions of armed and attack helicopters to determine which provided the most significant increase in capability to the UH-1B. The three highest-ranked aircraft, the Sikorsky S-61 , Kaman H-2 "Tomahawk" , and the Bell AH-1 Cobra , were selected to compete in flight trials conducted by the Army's Aviation Test Activity. Upon completion of

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1188-527: A pioneering example of taking on heavy enemy armor from a slow-flying aircraft. The Germans were also engaged in such ad hoc low-speed light aircraft platforms for ground attack very late in the war, with one subtype of the Bücker Bestmann trainer—the Bü 181C-3 —armed with four Panzerfaust 100 anti-tank grenade launchers, two under each of the low-winged monoplane's wing panels, for the concluding two months of

1287-500: A prototype began on 15 September 1969 with a tethered hover, and four days later the first free flight was conducted. A second prototype was built, followed by a test batch of ten helicopters. A number of other design changes were made until the production version Mi-24A entered production in 1970, obtaining its initial operating capability in 1971 and was officially accepted into the state arsenal in 1972. Numerous versions have been developed to this day. In 1972, following completion of

1386-501: A sealed container that was also a launcher. The HOT missile is tube-launched and optically tracked using the SACLOS guidance system with command link through trailing wires which steers the missile using thrust vectoring controls on the sustainer engine during missile flight. When the gunner fires the HOT missile, the missile activates a thermal battery, flares, and a small gas generator spins up

1485-750: A sight with X12 magnification and a laser rangefinder . The only known customer is Saudi Arabia. HOT missiles have also been mounted on wheeled vehicles such as the Panhard VCR/TH and the VAB VCAC with the Mephisto turret. Both the VCR and the VCAC carried four ready-to-launch missiles. The main advantage that the VAB Mephisto turret has over the TH turret is that both the operator and

1584-512: A single Euromissile K3S launcher and carried 20 HOT missiles, one of which was carried in the launcher. This tank destroyer was also used by Austria. France developed a variant of the AMX-10P that substituted an armored four-tube HOT missile launcher called the Lancelot for the vehicle's regular 20 mm cannon turret. The Lancelot turret carriers 20 HOT missiles, 4 mounted and 16 stored inside, and uses

1683-486: A suitable aircraft. The Atlas XH-1 Alpha was the first prototype to emerge from the program. It was developed from an Aérospatiale Alouette III airframe, retaining that helicopter's engine and dynamic components, but replacing the original cockpit with a stepped tandem one, adding a 20 mm cannon on the nose and converting the undercarriage to tail-dragger configuration. The XH-1 first flew on 3 February 1985. The results were ultimately good enough to convince Atlas and

1782-640: A total of 3 prototypes had completed over 400 hours of test flights by this time. By 2004, 3 more prototypes were built, for a total of 6, and a second stage of test flights were concluded on December 15, 2004. In one of the test flights the future commander-in-chief of the People's Liberation Army Ground Force Air Force (PLAGAF), Song Xiangsheng ( 宋湘生 ), was on board the prototype. A third stage of intensive test flights followed, taking place during both day and night. By January 2006 weaponry and sensor tests, including firing of live ammunition, had taken place. The helicopter

1881-569: A window from four miles [6.4 km] away at night." However, serious logistical problems limited operations, Apaches in the Iraqi theater flew only one-fifth of planned flight-hours. The "deep attack" role of independently operating attack helicopters came into question after a failed mission, during the 2003 Gulf War attack on the Karbala Gap . A second mission in the same area, four days later, but coordinated with artillery and fixed-wing aircraft,

1980-430: Is designed to protect an armoured vehicle (mostly tanks) against anti-tank munitions. The first stage of the weapon is typically a weak charge that either pierces the reactive armour of the target without detonating it, leaving a channel through the reactive armour so that the second warhead may pass unimpeded, or simply detonates the armour, causing the timing of the counter-explosion to fail. The second detonation from

2079-525: Is transitioning to Spike missiles to replace their HOT missile inventory. The HOT missile continues to be in widespread use in other areas of the world. Project studies by both firms began in 1964, at about the same time the US Army began a project that resulted in the BGM-71 TOW missile. Unlike TOW, which entered service in 1973, the development and testing phase for HOT took considerably longer. The design goal

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2178-602: The AGM-114 Hellfire . Some attack helicopters are also capable of carrying air-to-air missiles , though mostly for purposes of self-defense against other helicopters and low-flying light combat aircraft . A modern attack helicopter has two primary roles: first, to provide direct and accurate close air support for ground troops; and second, the anti-tank role to destroy grouped enemy armored vehicles . Attack helicopters are also used as protective escort for transport helicopters , or to supplement lighter helicopters in

2277-543: The BGM-71 TOW , FGM-148 Javelin and the Brimstone . Dual charges increase the effectiveness of warheads when used against structures (such as bunkers). Because the explosion of a unitary high explosive charge will follow the path of least resistance, much of the explosive power of a warhead will be lost to the air surrounding the target if detonated outside the structure. This effect can be countered by using heavily constructed gravity bombs with delay fuzes that penetrate

2376-663: The Battle of the Caucasus as exemplified by the Night Witches all-female Soviet air unit. Following Operation Overlord in 1944, the military version of the similarly slow-flying Piper J-3 Cub high-wing civilian monoplane, the L-4 Grasshopper, begun to be used in a light anti-armor role by a few U.S. Army artillery spotter units over France; these aircraft were field-outfitted with either two or four bazooka rocket launchers attached to

2475-606: The Bo-105 PAH-1 , which can carry six HOT missiles in two triple launchers. Subsequently, the HOT missile was qualified for launch from other helicopters, such as the German Tiger helicopter (carrying up to eight HOT's in two quad launchers) and the South African Rooivalk helicopter. By 1975, development was complete and evaluations had been performed by various ministries of defence. Mass production commenced in 1976 and

2574-664: The Kargil War in 1999, the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army found that there was a need for helicopters that can operate at such high-altitude conditions with ease. Limitations in terms of both high payloads and maneuverability of the existing Mi-35 fleet reportedly contributed to India developing indigenous rotorcraft, such as the HAL Prachand and HAL Rudra , to perform multi-role high-altitude combat operations. The HAL Rudra

2673-651: The Soviet Air Forces . This "experimental" trend towards the development of dedicated attack helicopters continued into the 1960s with the deployment of armed Bell UH-1s and Mil Mi-8s during the Vietnam War , to this day the pair of most produced helicopter designs in aviation history. These helicopters proved to be moderately successful in these configurations, but due to a lack of armor protection and speed, they were ultimately ineffective platforms for mounting weapons in higher-threat ground combat environments. Since

2772-541: The U.S. Congress restrictions on the export sales of the TOW antitank guided missile. In Europe, the end of the service life of the HOT missile system is in sight with the French opting to purchase Hellfire II missiles for their Tiger -HAD attack helicopters and the Germans planning to transition to the PARS 3 LR . Austria has decommissioned its HOT-carrying tank destroyers, while Spain

2871-706: The Z-10 ( Chinese : 直-10 ; lit. 'helicopter-10'). The 602nd Research Institute was assigned as the chief designer, while Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (HAMC) of China Aviation Industry Corporation II (AVIC II) was assigned as the primary manufacturer. Nearly four dozen other establishments participated in the program. According to Chinese sources, the initial test flights were concluded on December 17, 2003, whereas according to other sources they were completed nine months earlier in March 2003. According to Jane's Information Group ,

2970-547: The lift struts , against German armored fighting vehicles. During the summer of 1944, U.S. Army Major Charles Carpenter managed to successfully take on an anti-armor role with his rocket-armed Piper L-4. His L-4, bearing US Army serial number 43-30426 and named Rosie the Rocketer , armed with six bazookas, had notable success in an engagement during the Battle of Arracourt on September 20, 1944, employing top attack tactics in knocking out at least four German armored vehicles, as

3069-504: The non-explosive reactive armor , since their inner liner is not explosive itself and thus not expended by the small forward warhead of tandem-charge attack. The PG-7VR warhead for the RPG-7 rocket launcher and the PG-29V warhead for the more modern RPG-29 rocket launcher are examples of tandem charges, but the technology is employed worldwide. Examples of missiles that use tandem charges include

HOT (missile) - Misplaced Pages Continue

3168-465: The 1960s, various countries around the world started to design and develop various types of helicopters with the purpose of providing a heavily armed and protected aerial vehicle that can perform a variety of combat roles, from reconnaissance to aerial assault missions. By the 1990s, the missile-armed attack helicopter evolved into a primary anti-tank weapon. Able to quickly move about the battlefield and launch fleeting "pop-up attacks", helicopters presented

3267-511: The 2011 military intervention was to protect civilians in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1973 . Within days of the Apaches deployment, it had completed a variety of tasks such as destroying tanks, checkpoints held by pro-Gaddafi forces and vehicles carrying ammunitions loyal to Muammar Gaddafi . Apache operations over Libya have been heavily influenced and supported by NATO reconnaissance flights and intelligence missions; information

3366-466: The A129 was derived from the A109 and incorporated to an entirely new forward section. The A129's fuselage is highly angular and armoured for ballistic protection; the composite rotor blades are also able to withstand hits from 23mm cannon fire. The two man crew, comprising a pilot and gunner, sit in a conventional tandem cockpit. During the 1980s, Agusta sought to partner with Westland Helicopters to develop

3465-697: The AH-56 increased substantially. By 1972, when the Cheyenne program was eventually cancelled to make way for the Advanced Attack Helicopter (AAH), the interim AH-1 "Snake" had built a solid reputation as an attack helicopter. In June 1972 the USMC began deploying AH-1J SeaCobra Attack Helicopters for combat operations in South Vietnam. During the late 1970s, the U.S. Army saw the need of more sophistication within

3564-573: The Agusta A129 Mangusta, and in 1988 secured an agreement with the US to purchase AH-1 Cobras and a license to produce BGM-71 TOW missiles; the latter was cancelled following the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 and the resulting arms embargo. The color revolutions prevented the purchase of attack helicopters from Eastern Europe in 1990 and 1991; Bulgaria and Russia rejected Chinese offers to purchase

3663-761: The BGM-71 TOW were inadequate, and favored an analogue to the AGM-114 Hellfire. The Gulf War highlighted the urgent need for attack helicopters, and revalidated the assessment that a purpose-built design was needed. (At the time, the Chinese military depended on armed utility helicopters such as the Changhe Z-11 and Harbin Z-9.) Also, it demonstrated that the new attack helicopter would need to be able to defend itself against other helicopters and aircraft. The military perceived that once

3762-589: The Block 1F standard by 2011. The upgrade involves improved targeting systems and other avionics which enable the helicopter to use guided missiles for the first time. The Mokopa ATGM was qualified as part of the upgrade process. Gearbox components were improved and cooling problems with the F2 20 mm cannon were also addressed. On 1 April 2011, the South African Air Force received the first five of eleven (one of

3861-874: The Democratic Republic of the Congo . This was the first combat deployment for the helicopter. Three helicopters from 16 Squadron SAAF were deployed to the region and since November 2013 it was involved in heavy fighting alongside the United Nations Force Intervention Brigade , against rebels operating in North Kivu , in particular the M23 militia , which consisted of hardened former government troops equipped with relatively heavy weaponry such as main battle tanks and anti-aircraft weaponry. During its first ever combat mission it proved to be instrumental in routing

3960-616: The French Army took place on 18 March 2005; the first official Tiger delivery to the Germany followed on 6 April 2005. Germany reduced its order to 57 in March 2013. In 2008 OCCAR estimated the project cost at € 7,300,000,000. France's FY2012 budget put their share of the project at €6.3bn (~US$ 8.5bn), implying a programme cost of €14.5bn (~US$ 19.5bn) to the three main partners. At FY2012 prices, their 40 HAP cost €27m/unit (~US$ 36m) and their 40 HAD €35.6m/unit (~US$ 48m), including development costs

4059-665: The French Tigers cost €78.8m (~US$ 106m) each. The Rooivalk project began in early 1984 under the auspices of the Atlas Aircraft Corporation , a predecessor of Denel Aviation . Faced with the increasingly conventional nature of the South African Border War , the South African Defence Force recognised the need for a dedicated attack helicopter and accordingly set along the process of developing

HOT (missile) - Misplaced Pages Continue

4158-809: The Gulf War of 1991 and in Lebanon in May 2007 against the Fatah al-Islam militants in the Nahr el-Bared camp north of Tripoli. Various reports state that the first combat use of the HOT was with the Iraqi Army during the Iran-Iraq War, launched from Panhard VCR/TH 6x6 wheeled armored vehicles fitted with the UTM-800 turret. Photos have also recorded captured examples of the VCR/TH in service with

4257-723: The Iranian Army. The 60 SA-342 M Gazelles of the French Division Daguet fired 187 HOTs during the Gulf War; 127 objectives destroyed (around twenty tanks and armored vehicles, more than forty troop transports, fifteen artillery pieces, and numerous support points) in 27 squadron attacks. And the Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé Mephisto around sixty. In June 2011, for the Opération Harmattan , French Gazelles helicopters fired 425 HOT missiles on various pro-Qaddafi targets as part of

4356-734: The Iraqi advance, albeit not completely halting it. The 1990s could be seen as the coming-of-age for the U.S. attack helicopter. The AH-64 Apache was used extensively during Operation Desert Storm with great success, being used to fire the first shots of the conflict, destroying Iraqi early warning radar and surface-to-air missile (SAM) sites with their Hellfire missiles . They were later used successfully in both of their operational roles, to direct attack against enemy armor and as aerial artillery in support of ground troops; both Hellfire missile and cannon attacks by Apaches destroyed numerous enemy tanks and armored cars. General Carl Stiner claimed that: "You could fire that Hellfire missile through

4455-416: The Jeep or Land Rover. The object was to field an antitank weapon that long-range patrols could use to engage heavy armor beyond the range of the tank's main cannon. The ATLAS is similar to the TOW mounted on various four-wheel-drive light vehicles. But, unlike the TOW light vehicle mount, there is a shield to protect the gunner against the HOT's booster and sustainer engines, which are both burning as they exit

4554-410: The LAH, these would have between 80 per cent and 20 per cent growth over the initial A129; both single-engine and twin-engine configurations were examined using various new powerplants, as well as a new rotor system, retractable landing gear, improved sensors and more powerful armament. However, the LAH project collapsed in 1990 following Britain and the Netherlands independently deciding to withdraw from

4653-440: The Mi-24, development began on a unique attack helicopter with transport capability. The new design had a reduced transport capability (3 troops instead of 8) and was called the Mil Mi-28 . In 1977, a preliminary design of the Mil Mi-28 was chosen, in a classic single-rotor layout. Its transport capability was removed and it lost its similarity to the Mi-24. Design work on the Mi-28 began under Marat Tishchenko in 1980. In 1981,

4752-433: The Mi-28N, like all-weather action ability, lower cost, and similarity to the Mi-24, have become more important. In 2003, the head of Russian Air Force stated that the Mi-28N and Ka-50 attack helicopters will become the standard Russian attack helicopter. The first serial Mi-28N was delivered to the Army on 5 June 2006. In 1979, the Chinese military studied the problem of countering large armor formations. It concluded that

4851-412: The Middle East, attack helicopters are being seen more in a multipurpose role. Tactics, such as tank plinking , showed that fixed-wing aircraft could be effective against tanks, but helicopters retained a unique low-altitude, low-speed capability for close air support. Other purpose-built helicopters were developed for special operations missions, including the MH-6 for extremely close support. During

4950-457: The Mil Mi-24. While attempting to import foreign designs failed, war games determined that attack helicopters had to be commanded by the army, rather than the air force. This led to the formation of the People's Liberation Army Ground Force Aircraft (PLAGFAF), with an initial strength of 9 Harbin Z-9s . The PLAGFAF conducted tactical experiments that would help define the future Z-10's requirements. Research also decided that anti-tank missiles like

5049-459: The NATO operations enforcing UN Resolution 1973 . The missile has been recently used by the Syrian Army during the Syrian civil war , particularly in the Palmyra offensive . MBDA has taken over Euromissile and now handles production of all current variants, and HOT development. Time to target at maximum range is 17.3 seconds with an average speed of 832 kilometres per hour (231 m/s). Data extracted from Jane's World Armies Issue 23 and

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5148-399: The SAAF that the concept was feasible, opening the door for the development of the Rooivalk. During the Rooivalk's development, it was decided to base the aircraft on the dynamic components of the Aérospatiale Super Puma , a larger and more powerful helicopter. These components were already used on the Atlas Oryx , a local upgrade and modification of the Aérospatiale Puma . Unfortunately,

5247-490: The SIPRI Arms Transfers Database. Attack helicopter An attack helicopter is an armed helicopter with the primary role of an attack aircraft , with the offensive capability of engaging ground targets such as enemy infantry , military vehicles and fortifications . Due to their heavy armament they are sometimes called helicopter gunships . Attack helicopters can use weapons including autocannons , machine guns , rockets , and anti-tank missiles such as

5346-417: The U.S. Army developed the requirements for a dedicated attack helicopter, the Advanced Aerial Fire Support System (AAFSS). The aircraft design selected for this program in 1965, was Lockheed's AH-56 Cheyenne . As the Army began its acquisition of a dedicated attack helicopter, it sought options to improve performance over the continued use of improvised interim aircraft (such as the UH-1B/C). In late 1965,

5445-426: The armed reconnaissance roles. In combat, an attack helicopter is projected to destroy targets worth around 17 times its own production cost before being destroyed. Low-speed, fixed wing Allied aircraft like the Soviet Polikarpov Po-2 training and utility biplane had been used as early as 1942 to provide night harassment attack capability against the Wehrmacht Heer on the Eastern Front , most effectively in

5544-409: The attack helicopter corps, allowing them to operate in all weather conditions. Although AH-1Gs served well, they proved vulnerable even in a mid-intensity environment. With that the Advanced Attack Helicopter (AAH) program started, aiming for a more durable, more advanced, longer range, stronger close air support helicopter, capable of destroying armored formations. It would be capable of carrying

5643-411: The best conventional solution was to use attack helicopters. Eight Aérospatiale Gazelle armed with Euromissile HOT were procured for evaluation. By the mid-1980s, the Chinese decided a dedicated attack helicopter was required. At the time, they used civilian helicopters converted for the military; these were no longer adequate in the attack role, and suitable only as scouts. Following this, China evaluated

5742-418: The container for about one second, giving the missile a high speed. The sustainer engine burns for 17 seconds, a flight time which path exceeds the length of the trailing wires which dictate the maximum range of the missile. Because of the more powerful booster and sustainer engine that burns during its full flight, the HOT missile had a much shorter flight time than any other wire guided antitank missiles when it

5841-447: The container. The vehicle mounting the ATLAS is expected to carry a mix of both HOT missiles with antitank warheads and the HOT with the multi-purpose warhead. Shortly after the introduction of HOT by Germany and France on ground vehicles, both nations introduced helicopters in the dedicated antitank role firing the HOT. The French used the Gazelle SA342M helicopter, which carries four HOT missiles in two dual launchers. Germany opted for

5940-400: The development of the Mil Mi-24 . After several mock-ups were produced, a directive was issued on 6 May 1968 to proceed with development of a twin-engine design of the helicopter. Work proceeded under Mil until his death in 1970. Detailed design work began in August 1968 under the codename Yellow 24. A full-scale mock-up of the design was reviewed and approved in February 1969. Flight tests with

6039-431: The development of the Rooivalk continued until after the conclusion of the South African Border War and defence budgets were slashed due to parliamentary changes to the requirements of the national air force. This resulted in an extensive development and production period beginning in 1990 until 2007, during which 12 aircraft were produced for use by the South African Air Force . These aircraft were subsequently upgraded to

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6138-447: The early 1950s, various countries around the world started to make increased use of helicopters in their operations in transport and liaison roles. Later on it was realised that these helicopters, successors to the World War II-era Sikorsky R-4, could be armed with weapons in order to provide them with limited combat capability. Early examples include armed Sikorsky H-34s in service with the US Air Force and armed Mil Mi-4 in service with

6237-427: The early 1960s, Soviet engineers started experimenting with various designs aimed at producing an aerial vehicle that could provide battlefield mobility for infantry and provide fire support to army forces on the ground. The first of these concepts was a mock-up unveiled in 1966 in the experimental shop of the Ministry of Aircraft's factory number 329, where Mikhail Leont'yevich Mil was head designer. The mock-up, which

6336-410: The earth, concrete, etc. of the target before exploding—thus containing the explosion inside the structure and significantly increasing its effect. Gravity bombs require aircraft to fly rather close to what may be a heavily defended target, which poses a significant risk to the launch aircraft. Cruise missiles equipped with large tandem-charge warheads can use the first charge to create a hole into which

6435-440: The first AH-1Gs were deployed to Vietnam, around the same time that the Cheyenne successfully completed its first flight and initial flight evaluations. And while the Cheyenne program suffered setbacks over the next few years due to technical problems, the Cobra was establishing itself as an effective aerial weapons platform, despite its performance shortcomings compared to the AH-56 and design issues of its own. The cost estimates of

6534-434: The first HOT missiles were fielded in 1978. A night-sight for firing from helicopters, the Viviane , was developed in the early 1980s. In 1985, the HOT-2 followed, with a multipurpose warhead variant called the HOT-2MP entering service in 1992. While less effective in terms of armor penetration, the HOT-2MP also produces fragmentation and incendiary effects. By 1987, 1,434 launchers and 70,350 missiles had been produced. HOT-3

6633-417: The first helicopter to make use of a fully computerised integrated management system to reduce crew workload. It was decided that much of the helicopter's functionality was to be automated; as such, parts of the flight and armament systems are monitored and directly controlled by onboard computers. The A129 shares considerable design similarities to Agusta's earlier A109 utility helicopter; the rear section of

6732-425: The flight evaluations, the Test Activity recommended Bell's Huey Cobra to be an interim armed helicopter until the Cheyenne was fielded. On 13 April 1966, the U.S. Army awarded Bell Helicopter Company a production contract for 110 AH-1G Cobras. The Cobra had a tandem cockpit seating arrangement (vs UH-1 side-by-side) to make the aircraft a smaller frontal target, increased armor protection, and greater speed. In 1967,

6831-458: The gyro. The same gases for the gyro pop the covers off both ends of the cylindrical container the HOT missile comes packed in. Moments later, both the sustainer engine and the booster are fired, ejecting the missile from the container. Unlike most antitank missiles, in which the booster burns fully before leaving the container, and then the missile coasts a safe distance before the sustainer engine ignites, HOT's booster burns both inside and outside

6930-432: The landing skid. These designs were proposed by Mil to the Soviet armed forces , and while he had the support of a number of strategists, he was opposed by several more senior members of the armed forces who believed that conventional weapons were a better use of resources. Despite the opposition, Mil managed to persuade the defence minister's first deputy, Marshal Andrey A. Grechko , to convene an expert panel to look into

7029-416: The matter. While the panel's opinions were mixed, supporters of the project eventually held sway and a request for design proposals for a battlefield support helicopter was issued. The development of gunships and attack helicopters by the US Army during the Vietnam War convinced the Soviets of the advantages of armed helicopter ground support doctrine, which had a positive influence on moving forward with

7128-509: The military customers the Tiger was being developed for. Both France and Germany reorganised the programme. Thomson-CSF also took over the majority of the Tiger's electronic development work, such as the visual systems and sensors. Despite the early development problems and the political uncertainty between 1984 and 1986, the program was formally relaunched in November 1987; it was at this point that

7227-410: The missile does not have to hit the tip of its nose to detonate the warhead. The HOT 1 and HOT 2 use the warhead fuzing system described above. The latest version of the HOT family, the HOT 3, uses tandem-charge feature to defeat tanks fitted with explosive reactive armor . A laser-proximity fuze located in the front half of the nose measures the range between target and missile. At the correct range,

7326-466: The missile's rear-facing flares, gather the missile into the gunner's sight, and send commands to steer the missile into the gunner's line of sight. About 50 meters after ejecting from the container, the safety system arms a high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) shaped charge warhead fuze and will detonate when the outer skin of the two-layer nose cone is crushed to contact with the inside skin, completing an electrical circuit. With this type of fuzing system,

7425-469: The missiles are both under armor and the Mephisto turret can be retracted flush with the vehicle's top for loading on either the C-130 or C-160 transport aircraft. In an unusual move, in 1986 Euromissile offered a single-round ground-launched system for HOT missiles called ATLAS (Affut de Tir Leger Au Sol - which translates roughly as light ground-firing mount ) for installing on smaller unarmored vehicles, like

7524-560: The necessity for the entire program. In 1992, Aérospatiale and MBB, among other companies, merged to form the Eurocopter Group; this led to considerable consolidation of the aerospace industry and the Tiger project itself. A major agreement was struck in December 1996 between France and Germany that cemented the Tiger's prospects and committed the development of supporting elements, such as a series of new generation missile designs for use by

7623-655: The new AGM-114 Hellfire and night fighting capabilities. From this program the Hughes YAH-64 came out as the winner. The prototype YAH-64 was first flown on 30 September 1975. The U.S. Army selected the YAH-64 over the Bell YAH-63 in 1976, and later approved full production in 1982. After purchasing Hughes Helicopters in 1984, McDonnell Douglas continued and turned it into the AH-64 Apache production and development. The helicopter

7722-580: The new anti-tank helicopter. The Mi-28 development was continued, but given lower priority. In December 1987 Mi-28 production in Rosvertol in Rostov-on-Don was approved. After several prototypes were built, production ceased in 1993 with additional development continuing into the 21st century. Changes in the military situation after the Cold War made specialized anti-tank helicopters less useful. The advantages of

7821-427: The new attack helicopter entered service, the existing helicopters would be used as scouts. The Armed Helicopter Developmental Work Team ( 武装直升机开发工作小组 ) was formed to develop a new medium helicopter design, as opposed to basing the new design on the light helicopters then in service. The 602nd and 608th Research Institutes started development of the 6-ton class China Medium Helicopter (CHM) program in 1994. The program

7920-405: The new combat helicopter. On 18 June 1999, both Germany and France publicly placed orders for an initial batch of 160 Tiger helicopters, 80 for each nation, valued at €3.3 billion. On 22 March 2002, the first production Tiger was rolled out in a large ceremony held at Eurocopter's Donauworth factory; although production models began initial acceptance trials in 2003, the first official delivery to

8019-571: The program and eventually procure the AH-64 Apache instead. Turkey had sought a new attack helicopter since the 1990s to replace their diminished Bell AH-1 Cobra and Bell AH-1 SuperCobra fleets. Following a highly protracted selection process, in September 2007, an order was issued for 51 TAI/AgustaWestland T129 ATAK helicopters, a variant of the A129 International. As a part of the deal with AgustaWestland, Turkish defense firm TAI acquired

8118-539: The rebels from their hilltop strongholds during an offensive by the United Nations Force Intervention Brigade and the Military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Tandem-charge A tandem-charge or dual-charge weapon is an explosive device or projectile that has two or more stages of detonation, assisting it to penetrate either reactive armour on an armoured vehicle or strong structures. Tandem charges are effective against reactive armour , which

8217-453: The rights for future manufacturing of the T129; TAI intends to produce the T129 for export customers. Various components and avionics systems are intended to be replaced with indigenously-produced systems as they are developed. In 1984, the French and West German governments issued a requirement for an advanced multirole battlefield helicopter . A joint venture consisting of Aérospatiale and MBB

8316-493: The same projectile (which defines it as a tandem charge) attacks the same location as the first detonation where the reactive armour has been compromised. Since the regular armour plating is often the only defence remaining, the main charge (second detonation) has an increased likelihood of penetrating the armour. An example of a tandem charge warhead is used by the 9M133M Kornet-M missile system However, tandem charges are more useful against explosive reactive armour, less so against

8415-570: The small nipple on the front nose containing a small HEAT warhead is ejected forward from the missile body to pre-detonate the reactive armor followed by the detonation of main HEAT warhead. HOT missiles have been deployed on both vehicles and helicopters. The Bundeswehr upgraded the Raketenjagdpanzer 2 tank destroyer to use the HOT missile in what was designated as the Jaguar 1 . The Jaguar 1 mounted

8514-536: The twelve aircraft originally delivered to the SAAF was written off after an accident) Block 1F upgraded Rooivalk. The ninth and tenth Rooivalk attack helicopters were delivered in September 2012 following their upgrade to the Block 1F initial operating standard. The eleventh and final Rooivalk was delivered on 13 March 2013. The Indian Army deploys the Mil Mi-35 (export variant of Mi-24V) and HAL Rudra as of 2014. During

8613-502: The war in Europe. This sort of role, being undertaken by low-speed fixed-wing light aircraft was something that was also likely to be achievable after World War II, from the increasing numbers of post-war military helicopter designs. The only American helicopter in use during the war years, the Sikorsky R-4 , was only being used for rescue and were still very much experimental in nature. In

8712-515: Was a modified version of HAL Dhruv , free of any major modifications to the airframe to quickly create an armed variant for the Indian Army. The HAL Prachand is a purpose-built attack helicopter, expressly designed to overcome several operational shortcomings of prior attack rotorcraft. By 2010, the Indian Air Force was reportedly set to acquire 65 LCHs while the Indian Army's Aviation Corps

8811-476: Was brought into service in 1998. It has a tandem shaped charge high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warhead able to breach explosive reactive armor, and improved anti-jamming abilities. HOT-3 was selected to be the missile armament of the Tiger attack helicopter for Germany at least until the PARS 3 LR becomes available. HOT has been used in combat in several wars, including the Iran-Iraq War, Lebanon, Chad, Western Sahara,

8910-639: Was continually relayed to update target information, assess the threat of Surface to Air missiles (SAM), and the presence of civilians, enabling real time changes to missions. In 2013, the South African National Defence Force announced that it would deploy Denel Rooivalk attack helicopters to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to support the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in

9009-445: Was designated V-24, was based on another project, the V-22 utility helicopter , which itself never entered production. The V-24 had an infantry transport compartment that could hold eight troops sitting back to back, and a set of small wings positioned to the top rear of the passenger cabin, capable of holding up to six missiles or rocket pods, along with a twin-barrel GSh-23L cannon fixed to

9108-594: Was introduced to U.S. Army service in April 1986. Today, the US attack helicopter has been further refined, and the AH-64D Apache Longbow demonstrates many of the advanced technologies being considered for deployment on future gunships. The US Marine Corps also continued to employ attack helicopters in the direct fire support role, in the form of the AH-1 Super Cobra . While helicopters were effective tank-killers in

9207-458: Was introduced to the general public in December 2010 and subsequently entered service with the People's Liberation Army . In 1972, the Italian Army began forming a requirement for a light observation and anti-tank helicopter. Agusta had initially studied the development of a combat-orientated derivative of their existing A109 helicopter, however they decided to proceed with the development of

9306-409: Was introduced. The booster's four nozzles are located at the roots of the four spring out fins. The sustainer engine's single exhaust is located in the rear of the missile body, where a vane controls the missile through thrust vector control as it rotates in flight. After the missile is fired, all the gunner has to do is keep the target in the sight's cross hairs, and the system will automatically track

9405-512: Was more successful with minimal losses. In October 2014, U.S. Army AH-64s and Air Force fighters participated in four air strikes on Islamic State units northeast of Fallujah. In June 2016, Apaches were used in support of the Iraqi Army's Mosul offensive and provided support during the Battle of Mosul , sometimes flying night missions supporting Iraqi operations. In 2011, France and Britain sent Eurocopter Tiger and AgustaWestland Apache attack helicopters to Libya. The primary objective of

9504-403: Was promoted as a civilian project, and was able to secure significant Western technical assistance, such as from Eurocopter (rotor installation design consultancy), Pratt & Whitney Canada (PT6C turboshaft engine) and Agusta Westland (transmission). The Chinese concentrated on areas where it could not obtain foreign help. The 602nd Research Institute's called its proposed armed helicopter design

9603-501: Was subsequently chosen as the preferred supplier. According to statements by the French Defence Minister André Giraud in April 1986, the collaborative effort had become more expensive than an individual national programme and was forecast to take longer to complete as well. In July 1986, a government report into the project alleged that the development had become distanced from the requirements and preferences of

9702-609: Was to also procure 114 LCHs for its own purposes. During February 2020, the LCH was declared ready for production, the final assembly line has been established at HAL's Helicopter Division in Bangalore. Prime minister Narendra Modi conducted the handover ceremony of HAL Prachand to the Indian Armed forces in Jhansi. The Iran–Iraq War of the 1980s saw "the most intensive use of the helicopters" in

9801-419: Was to produce an antitank missile that could be fired from ground vehicles and helicopters; that employed the semi-automatic command to line of sight (SACLOS) guidance system instead of the less reliable manual command to line of sight (MCLOS) system used by the SS.11; had a longer range combined with a better minimum engagement range; had a higher flight speed than the SS.11 reducing flight time; and packed in

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