.Apaches Forever
"The Boeing AH-64 Apache had a rough decade beginning in the late 1990s. The twin-engine attack chopper, in U.S. Army service since the mid ’80s, was slated to join the NATO air campaign in the Balkans a decade ago, but never saw combat due to problems with maintenance and training. And in 2003, several dozen Apaches were heavily damaged during a large-scale raid that ran into an insurgent small-arms ambush.
But the Army shifted tactics, improved maintenance and ordered up new versions of the venerable bird. Today the Apache is back on top as one of the best close air support aircraft around. And with the 2004 cancellation of the RAH-66 Comanche stealth attack chopper, the Apache is the only game in town for the Army. The land service has been buying small batches of new Apaches to keep its battalions up to strength despite losses in Iraq and training accidents. There are around 700 U.S. Apaches, plus a couple hundred in service with other militaries.
This week the Army announced plans for an improved version of its Block III AH-64D. The new model, which enters testing in November, will have an upgraded cockpit allowing the Apache crew to control aerial drones such as the Army’s Warrior, and view their video live in the cockpit. So-called “manned-unmanned” teaming promises to revolutionize helicopter tactics. A drone can spot targets for the Apache — or even attack them using small missiles. The area that a chopper can search and “hold at risk” expands exponentially under this method.
U.S. Apaches are also getting new rotors and engine controls to make them faster and easier to fix. Speed is vital in the face of small arms, rockets and heat-seeking missiles. U.S. Army pilots now train for “swooping” attacks that minimize the time an Apache is within range of enemy fire. Israeli Apaches fighting over Gaza use similar tactics, orbiting high over the battlefield until they spot a target — or have a target spotted for them by ground forces — then diving down to attack.
The new Apache cockpit with the drone controls has such promise that Boeing is using it for their new AH-6S scout chopper, being proposed for the Army’s reboot of its Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter program, which aims to buy around 500 scouts to replace the ancient OH-58D."
War is Boring
But the Army shifted tactics, improved maintenance and ordered up new versions of the venerable bird. Today the Apache is back on top as one of the best close air support aircraft around. And with the 2004 cancellation of the RAH-66 Comanche stealth attack chopper, the Apache is the only game in town for the Army. The land service has been buying small batches of new Apaches to keep its battalions up to strength despite losses in Iraq and training accidents. There are around 700 U.S. Apaches, plus a couple hundred in service with other militaries.
This week the Army announced plans for an improved version of its Block III AH-64D. The new model, which enters testing in November, will have an upgraded cockpit allowing the Apache crew to control aerial drones such as the Army’s Warrior, and view their video live in the cockpit. So-called “manned-unmanned” teaming promises to revolutionize helicopter tactics. A drone can spot targets for the Apache — or even attack them using small missiles. The area that a chopper can search and “hold at risk” expands exponentially under this method.
U.S. Apaches are also getting new rotors and engine controls to make them faster and easier to fix. Speed is vital in the face of small arms, rockets and heat-seeking missiles. U.S. Army pilots now train for “swooping” attacks that minimize the time an Apache is within range of enemy fire. Israeli Apaches fighting over Gaza use similar tactics, orbiting high over the battlefield until they spot a target — or have a target spotted for them by ground forces — then diving down to attack.
The new Apache cockpit with the drone controls has such promise that Boeing is using it for their new AH-6S scout chopper, being proposed for the Army’s reboot of its Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter program, which aims to buy around 500 scouts to replace the ancient OH-58D."
War is Boring
posted by madtom at 9:49 PM
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