OSPREY. COMBAT AIRCRAFT SERIES
6
AH-64Apache
BILL
~;UNSTOl\
COMBAT AIRCRMT SERIES
AH-64Apache BILL G "ISTO"l
. "...
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OSPREY. COMBAT AIRCRAFT SERIES
6
AH-64Apache
BILL
~;UNSTOl\
COMBAT AIRCRMT SERIES
AH-64Apache BILL G "ISTO"l
. "'. . -
1
OSPREY PUBLISHING LONDON
Published in 19l'l1; 1)\ ()sprcy Pllhlishin/-C I,ul ~Il"mh('r ClI1llpany "llllc {~'(lr1-{(' Philip (;nJup ]2~ J.I I.Ollg" . \tTl"
I ~lIIdon \\'(;2E 91.1'
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desigtKd armed helicopters were considcrcd. Thc firSI 10 be built was sm;lll, a development of thc Bdl 17 Sioux called the l'vlodel ~07 Sioux Scout. \Vith only ~60hp, it did well to larry a crew of two-for the first,ime in a slim tam]cm cockpit reminiscent of a fighter-ami a chin turret with two machine guns. Illdeed, small wings were fiued to help unload the rotor amI provide attachments for rockets or other wcapolls. Significantly, thc gUlluer was in the nose and the pilot I.>t:hilld and slightly higher. High-perfonnance requirement
\-Vith increasing involvement in Vietnam, and helafed recognition thal existing- armed hdio)ll\(TS were merely ordinary transpon11e1icoplers on to which a few weapons had been fastened, Ihe US Army spellt 1964-65 devising- a specification for a specially designed armed helicopler. R{joicillg in the tille of Advanc(.'"(1 Aerial Fire Support System (AAFSS), the requirement called for a machine of unprecedented performance and tcm 10 protect it from heat-seeking missiles. The AAH, with its night and advcl"SC-wcather Glpabilities, will greatly reduce the qualitative armor ildvillItagc !lOW el~oyed by the East:' Five-company competition The AAH promised to be a m~jor programme, and live comp..1.l\ies fought to win it: Bell Hdimpter, Boeing Venol, Hughes Hel.icopters, Lockheed and Sikorsky. The one firm that could nOl lose was General [Iearie, whose specially designed '1'700 turboshaft engine had aJready been picked nOt only for the AAH but also for the even more numerous UTTAS (Utility Tactical Trd all wiring for the mission avionics (though tbe vital scnsors had still not been selected). Completely new 3viollic; bays wcrc constructed, starting Ileal' Ihe nose and extending back under the wing. enclos.illg lhe upper p:.lrt 01" each main gear on the wa)'. Even more obvious W.IS continuing uncel1ainty O\'er the horizomaltail. The fixed T-tail was satisfactory in most conditions, btU at extremely 10\\' levelso-Gllk,,1 NOE (nap of the E.al1h) flying-it let the tail sink d()\\'n and the llOSC point skywards, demanding major forward stick movements at times when cockpit workload was high in any case. AV03 Aew with a low lailplane. but something close to the the new definitive tail was not seen Ullliithe first
or
pre-produClion prolotypes, AV04, flew on 31 October 1979. Here was yCt another new arrangement. with an all-moving "stabilator" mounted low down right at the back of the helicopter extending from just abo"e tJle vel)' tip of the tailhoom. 111is enlargl.."t! surf"ICe was dl;ven by a hydr.llllic 1>O\\'er unit linkc...d into the Aighl-IIuetc. This rotor has its IWO pairs or high-lift bhldcs set at the optimum angle for noise allentumiOll, whidl is alxnll 55°/125°. Like Ihe main-rotor blades the lail nllor has leading-edge dciccr slrips or the ele('1.ro-thcrmaltype, the supplier Ixing Sicrracln. which also provides the canopies and lrallSp;m.:nt blast shield betweell the cockpits. III May 19H~ Ilughes completed wind-tunnel test· iug of a dramatically diflerculilew tail rotor operating 011 the so-called Flexbeam primjple.:. Thc new tail rotor has a diameter 01" 112in (2.8'15111), compared with I lOin for Ihc normal rotor. Each omsists of two pairs of blades mounted at 90" to cadi other, hilt Ihe struClurc is wholly Ilovel. All major loads are Gtmcd
by a Flexheam, an elastically tailored glasstibre spar whit'h extends !"rom tip to tip along: the centre of each hbdc-pc"s. ,I' ,,""l''''~ lurn·l.
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15. M~:~IA I (:Io;.. n (;un loami. 16. l·II",,-\;.~t· 'pnnsuu r.,iri"I!:' 17. A\'iom~-,; ,unling :ur C;1l. 28. Solll1\ Il.Ino."'-~_ 29. Sid,' (llllsok pand. 30.1·.11~ill(·I"",·,·r!l'H"'S. 31. A, IOnk,; l'lIUiptlWlll I",~'" I){lrt and ,1,ldKl;II'd, 32. A,';,,"i('~ hal ;[(n-", llIml ""~Ishpbte_
71. Ail' \Urbinc sl;U'!crl ;;ha')'\le:dialc ~'C':iIrbox.
134. '\\·..C5S h'[1,h. 135. II :., ,(1);rillslrn"i'""":lIlCc
00!" 13 . Ibtl;., a'iel dL~·lm'li,:>. bal" 137. Rc;\rfuc lank.
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138. RetkulalCd ['lam [ire suppn-ss.-Illl 13l1k 11C'kclS, 153. R'Kk"'cllllclllirc.: "eMIl 'IA ;"'li-I;II,k Illi"ik,. 154..\li.~sik·li1\m("h "ails, 155. FIlM'la.I.(I" '''1'''1 \S"" 'If! lairin);. 156. !\, 'an!inx Sl '"\,.
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I11crhal1iSIIl, 118. As.'ynlI'h.:r Strlll. 160. Il....mlill].: ~"·I>S. I ~ I. :\lain unc:lcrr.uTia].:c Iq;:
88. 11llah' p;\nkk sc.;palwor. 89. rngi".' ;!(H:.\Surv ct]Uipml'l1l/(l';[I'h"x', 90. Oil "'~,illlKlitM'. n I. UIlt' ;'l·rl;l.I. 132. AllF I.."p .lcr~,1. 133. AU"- sc,,·n.sc :,\·rc,1.
157. J'un lllamwlwd. 158. Mai" ulld('l"":lrri;,g-l' kog-
1>1'''' hsill);.
162_ Alllmullilit)[l fL....~I.Uld G1nridgc r.lSe ....' um chulcs. 163. (:"" ,,,,ht·lIill].: "M,u"li,,].:.
164. AOmUlh «MII... >I UMMII";"): fr.mle. This is much lighter. em be electrically signal, alld sends it to the control actuator. The Iauer checked for intq,'li.I}' before e,lCh flight. and gives responds to thc LVDT input. enabling the pilot to Ay perfenl)" smQOlh flight with a mllch higher lend of the helicoptcr. safel}' than JX>SSible with a um\'cntional flight control Fault detection and location s)"Su;m. All primal)' Hight comrols arc ac..1uated by the Parker Ilannilin (Benea Di\'i.~ion) dual hydraulic An equall}' complcx amI fundamcntal Oil-board syssystems operating at 3.000lblSlJ ill (:.1 11 kgkm~} The tem is the FDiLS (fault detection and location sysBees operates through the e1eclroIllL'(:hallicll vakes te'en Wc sensor.; on a production AU·64A Apache comprise dIe multisrnsor TAOS below and the': $impl.,r pilot'5 PNVS abo\·e':. All sensor.; a", complementary and the':"' is a degree of nodundancy.
Nap of the Earth flying
From the outset it was reco~ni%ed that the AAH had have a o'ew of t\\'o. Even with the \l"orklO sptel11 \\,jlh both the area weapon and Ihe ami-tank weapon, as desnibed in Ihe next chapler. )'reviously all that IHld been kno\\'n for ('crtain was that the new helicoptcr \\'oukl need a st;thili/. of fricndl)' laser dl.'Sign'llol"'S whi{:h Gill be aimed at target.'> by ground tnx)ps or other airu'lfl. It ;'lUtomilticall} dch_'CI.~ allli lo( ks-Oll to the emissioll from such dl..'Signatl..'1.l largeLlVS presentS Ih'" pil<x with:a dear bbckl..-hile mono
III Ihis t·'I$C. or course. only diR"(:! fin: is possible. but il is still possihle to lire St:\"t:ral lIli,~siks in rapid successioll. lIl(wing the laser designatioll SpOI from Ollt: largel 10 anuthe!' to providt: lhe rcquired g-Ilidam.t: during the vital terminal phase of flight. I tl all LOAL (lock-oil "fter launch) modes lhe missile is fired ill the direction of the targ-et. Ofl.Cll climbing to quite a higIT altilude provided it docs Hot cl1l.er cloud and GtlI always "see" the target. A laser designalOr then illuminates the target; the Hellfire inslallLlr delecls thc radiation scauered hum tile targel ami homes 011 it, normally plunging dowlI OIl a Sleep angle. I f there \\CI·C 16 laser designalOrs a"ailahle. ailllL"(! by friendly ground forces or other airclCrdp wilh a fighter, but could aquit itself well. As the fighter begins the attack by bringing ilS nose to bear, the Apacnc could be expected to spoil the shot by turning into the attack and gaining 150 to 200ft (45 to 60m) of height. This would increase the rate of closure, giving the fighter less time to line up his attack, and also would bring the helicopter's weapons to bear.
LASER·GUlDED MlSSILEATIACKON ARMOUR
./
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j -----./---
ITIllotc designation is expected 10 be extremely importalll ill future, the Apaches being teamed with Bell OH-58U AHIP (Anny hdimptcr improvement programme) scouL IldicopllTS, which ,Ire expected to stand ofl from the battlefield and designate targets with their lasers. They Gill do this llllH.:h more safely than can the Apaches, because the OH-5l:lD laser is in an Ml'vlS OIl a pillar high above the rotor. All the euemy might see is lile sphericalt()p (If the M\IS, not much bigger than a beach ball. the hdicopter remaining hidden. Of course. the seoul's laser beam must be exacliy COOl-xi for compatihility with the Hellfire selected by the Apache CPG, or the missile will fail to recognise the vital emission coming from the rellective surfaces of the tal-get and will fall aimlessly to one side.. rhere must also be insta_ntaneous. yet secure, communication between the two helicopters, which must throughout the engagement know each other's exact position. Thus, the timing must be so accurate that the Apache can fire a Hell/ire a few seconds before the partner scout helicopter aims its laser exactly on target.
This diagram shows Apache doing what it knows best. Hiding in COver it has eng-.tged heavy armOur using laser-guided Hellfire missiles. One missile has homed on to a tank desJgnatcd by a laser aimed by a US Army Bell OH58D scout helicopter. The other has homed on a tank de.•ignatcd by a laser aimed by a friendly ground unit. If there were 16 laser designators available, the Apache could launch 16 Hellfires.
The vital feature of this technique is that the Apache, the costly and fully armed attack member of the teaIll, Gill relllaiu in what Ihe Troops call a "defilade" position. which means it call slay hidr!
Hood, join their combat unit and begin battalionlevel training.. This is administered by a special Apache Training Brigade, and a satellit.e Apache Program Offke was established to mi.llIage all auivi!}' at Fan Hood, including: Gray and I-Iood Arm}" Airfields. Today every Ap1'\f1 :\.Ii" (17.7hm). lleif{ln O\'t'rall: over fin. 111'1 (J.:iin (:\.f,211l): olTr lail ""101' Ilfi b.(iin (4.2H2",); 0\'1·" ai""!;lIa ..,.1\';01' nil Ill,ti" 1'OIOr. I!ill 2,~Jin (4,G4:im). Fuselage "'idth 011 J"II:clk~. ~Ift IHii" (2.7~1'\,t1). 'r-,ill'l;ltlc
'l>:tt'.
(slabiJalor) span, I Il't 1,7>1 in CI.:\~17 Ill). WinS 17 rt 1.Hin (:;.~27 Ill). T '-;Kk. 6ft I'\i n (2.03m). Whl'dh;IS (-1.1'\1'\.\ kg). 1"1"",;,1 f"d, 2.+i2Ih (1,I,9Hkg). I~'(tel'llal :'l111 (lj.~~2k:oc): (It ,axinllllll.
ferr)') 21.uOOIL:. ('J..'J2(lk~).
"
Performance (primary mission gross weighl, in1t:nnediate rolled power), Vertical rale of climb, h (m)/min
Maximum "'~IC of climb. h (m)/min Maximum le~,t:1 speed, kl (mph. k",II,) Cruise speed, rna:" (0111 la (mph. kill/h)
\'' '1'. Di\'espeed iimil, L;,l ("'1'" km/h)
Max range inll'l'llill fill' . ,ml (mill'S, km) Endu..." na:. im"no;,lllId Ih) Ho\'cr in gr'O:und effect. n (IU) effect., fi (III)
1-10\'& out of goulld
Servia: ailing, '2o(.'lll(, Ii (III) I""ng, Ii (Ill)
·18
SL standard day
:Ur.o (7!i1l) :\.2()O(~17.'J1
l(,tl(ISI.2'17) 100(13