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The Soviet and later Russian Mil Mi-24 helicopter has been produced in many variants, as described below.
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(April 2008) |
The Soviet and later Russian Mil Mi-24 helicopter has been produced in many variants, as described below.
In 1966, Soviet aircraft designer Mikhail Mil created a mock-up design of a new helicopter (derived from the Mil Mi-8) which was made with the intent of fulfilling both the role of a close air support aircraft as well as being able to transport infantry into combat. [1] This prototype design was designated the V-24, and in 1968 a directive was given to proceed with the development of the helicopter.
The Mi-24 went from the drawing board to the first test-flights in less than eighteen months, with the first models being delivered to the Soviet Armed Forces for evaluation in 1971. As a result of the speedy development, the initial Mi-24 variants had a number of problems: lateral roll, weapon sighting issues, and a limited field of view for the pilot. A later redesign of the Mi-24's front section solved most of these problems. [2]
The Kamov Ka-50 "Black Shark", NATO reporting name Hokum A, is a Soviet/Russian single-seat attack helicopter with the distinctive coaxial rotor system of the Kamov design bureau. It was designed in the 1980s and adopted for service in the Russian army in 1995. The Ka-50 is manufactured by the Progress company in Arsenyev. It is used as a heavily armed scout helicopter and has a rescue ejection system, rare for helicopters.
The Mikoyan MiG-27 was a variable-sweep ground-attack aircraft, originally built by the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau in the Soviet Union and later licence-produced in India by Hindustan Aeronautics as the Bahadur ("Valiant"). It is based on the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 fighter aircraft, but optimised for air-to-ground attack. Unlike the MiG-23, the MiG-27 did not have widespread use outside Russia, as most countries opted for the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23BN and Sukhoi Su-22 instead. As of late 2023, all Russian, Indian, Sri Lankan, Ukrainian, and Kazakh MiG-27s have been retired, bringing the type's service to an end.
A gunship is a military aircraft armed with heavy aircraft guns, primarily intended for attacking ground targets either as airstrike or as close air support.
The Mil Mi-24 is a large helicopter gunship, attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for eight passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and was introduced by the Soviet Air Force in 1972. The helicopter is currently in use by 58 countries.
The Agusta A129 Mangusta is an attack helicopter originally designed and produced by Italian company Agusta. It is the first attack helicopter to be designed and produced wholly in Europe. It has continued to be developed by AgustaWestland, the successor company to Agusta. It has been exclusively operated by the Italian Army, which introduced the type to service during 1990.
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.
The Mil Mi-2 is a small, three rotor blade Soviet-designed multi-purpose helicopter developed by the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant, designed in the early 1960s and produced exclusively by WSK "PZL-Świdnik" in Poland. Nearly 5500 were made by the time production stopped in 1999, and it remains in service globally.
The Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23 is a twin-barreled 23 mm autocannon developed in the Soviet Union, primarily for military aircraft use. It entered service in 1965, replacing the earlier Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 and Rikhter R-23.
The Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-30-2 (ГШ-30-2) or GSh-2-30 is a Soviet dual-barrel autocannon developed for use on certain ground attack military aircraft and helicopters.
The S-8 is a rocket weapon developed by the Soviet Air Force for use by military aircraft. It remains in service with the Russian Aerospace Forces and various export customers.
The Mil Mi-28 is a Soviet all-weather, day-night, military tandem, two-seat anti-armor attack helicopter. It is an attack helicopter with no intended secondary transport capability, and is better optimized than the Mil Mi-24 gunship for the role. It carries a single gun in an undernose barbette, plus external loads carried on pylons beneath stub wings.
The Mil Mi-17 is a Soviet-designed Russian military helicopter family introduced in 1975 (Mi-8M), continuing in production as of 2024 at two factories, in Kazan and Ulan-Ude. It is known as the Mi-8M series in Russian service. The helicopter is mostly used as a medium twin-turbine transport helicopter, as well as an armed gunship version.
The 3M11Fleyta is a Soviet MCLOS radio command anti-tank missile. Various improved versions were designated 9M17Falanga.
9K114 Shturm – is a SACLOS radio guided anti-tank missile system of the Soviet Union. Its GRAU designation is 9K114. Its NATO reporting name is AT-6 Spiral. The missile itself is known as the 9M114 Kokon (Cocoon).
The 9M120 Ataka is an anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) originating from the Soviet Union. The NATO reporting name of the 9M120 missile is the AT-9 Spiral-2. It is the next major generation in the 9K114 Shturm family. The missile has radio command guidance and is also a beam riding SACLOS. This missile's primary variant was designed to defeat tanks with composite armour and explosive reactive armor. The 9M120 Ataka system is often confused with the 9K121 Vikhr system, despite being different weapons systems developed by different companies. The former was designed by the KBM machine-building design bureau and manufactured by the Degtyarev plant. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Russia exported the Ataka ATGM to Iran, Kazakhstan, and Slovenia.
The PZL W-3 Sokół is a medium-size, twin-engine, multipurpose helicopter developed and manufactured by Polish helicopter company PZL-Świdnik, now owned by Leonardo. It was the first helicopter entirely designed and produced in Poland.
The Yakushev-Borzov YakB-12.7 mm is a remotely controlled 12.7×108mm caliber four-barrel rotary heavy machine gun developed by the Soviet Union in 1973 for the Mil Mi-24 attack gunship and low-capacity troop transporter, with 1470 rounds, which can also be mounted in GUV-8700 machine-gun pods with 750 rounds. It has a high rate of fire and is also one of the few self-powered guns of the Gatling type.
The 23×115mm round is used in Soviet (USSR)/Russian/CIS aircraft autocannon. Although superseded by the 30×165mm round the Russian Air Force still uses it in the GSh-23L and the GSh-6-23. This round still serves in many countries and is widely available. The projectile weight is 175 grams.
No. 9 "Attack Helicopter" Squadron is a squadron of the Sri Lanka Air Force. It currently operates the air force's fleet of Attack Helicopter of Mil Mi-24s, Mil Mi-35s and Mi-17Sh s from SLAF Hingurakgoda for Close Air Support. The squadron is tasked with close air support/battlefield air interdiction, air interdiction, maritime air operations, armed escort missions and air defence operations.
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