The AH-64 Apache Helicopter was originally designed by Hughes in the 1970s to meet an Army requirement for an advanced attack helicopter. Production was not authorized until 1982. The first Apache helicopter deployed in 1986. The AH-64A became the Army’s primary attack helicopter and a total of 824 were put into Army service.
The Apache helicopter can react quickly to engage in close combat to destroy, disrupt or hold up enemy forces. The primary weapon on the helicopter is the AGM-114A Hellfire anti-armor laser-guided missile of which 16 can be carried. The Apache can also carry unguided 2.75 inch rockets for use against softer targets and is equipeed with a 30mm M230 Chain Gun for self-protection. Some versions can launch air-to-air missiles. The helicopter can be transported in the C-5, C-141, and C-17 airplanes.
The Apache Helicopter was deployed in substantial numbers during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Critics claimed that the performance of the helicopter would be unacceptably low were proven wrong. Instead, it achieved a readiness rate about 90 percent. Such was the effectiveness of the Apache that, as soon as the Iraqis realized that they were being targeted, most of them hurriedly exited their tanks and armored personnel carriers and surrendered. The Iraqis named the Apaches the “Black Death.”
Read More at HoveringHelicopter.com
No comments:
Post a Comment