Comparing the AH-1S/F to the Mi-24/25/35 is utter nonsense. Yes, both are ‘attack’ helos, but that’s roughly where the comparison ends.

For what it’s worth, over a modern (or more or less modern, like country Ix vs country Px) battlefield the Cobra is still a very useful DEFENSIVE tool. Use it as a fast, mobile ATGM launcher and it will be very, very useful. But for offensive operations, any Cobra and in particulair the lightweight single-engine Army variants (AH-1G/S/E/F etc.) definately lacks the speed, armour and probably even payload to be of any value. It just hasn’t got what it takes – it barely had it above Vietnam against a relatively poorly equipped opponent, it definately lacks it against a country like India. In my humble opinion, most (if not all) attack helos lack the combination of speed, armour, sensors, crew/situation awareness, maneuvrability and even firepower to be truely ‘attack’ platforms.

On the other hand, i personally think the Hind’s characteristics make it better to be used in an offensive role, in stead of a defensive one. For one it’s just too big to be used hopping from defensive position to defensive position, plinking away enemy armour with it’s ATGMs. And while the Hind certainly is maneuvrable, it is not the most responsive helicopter around which makes fire-and-hide even more difficult. Finally, the Hind’s payload is by no means ideal for this role with only four ATGMs compared to four pylons with unguided weapons. To me, the Hind is far more the sort of helicopter to bring your firepower out to the enemy (Soviet-style), and as such you’d better do it in quantity. IMHO the Hind is an extremely valuable asset in helo assaulting: have your complete OVP (helo regiment) fly in, with 25-30 Hinds providing fire support for your 40-45 Hips dropping off troops. Swap roles: have two squads of Hinds strafe the area, with one squad at a distance plinking away with ATGMS, and then switch roles. And with the compartment in the back, if chances permit your Hinds can double up nicely as rescue vehicles for the crews of helos which undoubtedly went down during such an assault.

This is what the Hind was designed for. This is what it’s good at (if anyone ever saw goodie goodie Soviet drill footage with large scale helo assaults, you know what i mean). Can you use the Cobra in such a manner? I would not recommend it – no armour, and hardly the firepower to use in a strafing manner. And the only way to use the Hind effectively in an anti-armour (= defensive) role is IMHO by only fitting the ATGMs aboard, and use the cabin to drop off and move one or two ATGM infantry teams around.

You are comparing eggs here, one of them boiled for fifteen minutes for breakfast or on a salad, and the other one semi-raw poured over your delicious spaghetti carbonara for dinner. So please continue bickering between the two types, while i bake an omelet for those who know better :p

Slightly off-topic, but on a previous Cobra thread i asked Steve if he knew anything about the Hokum-X conversion of surplus USArmy Cobras to be used as target drones. Appearantly, the whole program has switched ownership a number of times and it seems to have ended up in the hands of Schreiner Target Services in Canada…. Schreiner, yes, that cute friendly little Dutch helo company 😎 The actual program itself seems to be stalled though, one should still be dumped somewhere at Ft. Bliss (TX), and i have no clue about any other ones.

Here is a pic of a Hokum-X conversion of an AH-1F, via a PDF i got from our very own Steve Touchdown. Ta!

Na, my mother works with mentally handicapped. I guess i’ve inherited some of her patience 😀

DAF 2300s are cool. The non-AWD variants still have double diflock, they can drive (and drive away) almost anywhere. Too bad they look awfully boring.

Thanks for the update, Sean. One more void filled.

Great pics Skythe! And an update as well – c/n 1788 was known to be delivered to Syria, but for some reasons there aren’t all that many logs from that country to keep track of them. Now at least one is know.

Do you know if these pics are from one helo, or two? The reason i ask is that on pic 2 and 3 the fenestron-tail is laying just next to the rotors, as is the case in pic 1. But the tail-only shot reads 1788 as it’s c/n, whereas on the nose it reads in Arab 1335. Now 1335 can’t be the c/n of that wreck (c/n 1335 does exist as a Gazelle, but it’s with the ALATin France), so do we have a serial and c/n-matchup?

And to comply with your request…

I think it’s time for the K-8 to get it’s M-designator in the ASCC system first. And the SH-5 should have gotten an M-designator long ago. And what about the C-designators for the Y-11 and Y-12? All four are perfectly operational, the K-8 and Y-12 are even considerable (military) export successes.

ASCC, wake up, and please stop this nonsensical name-giving by no-good bums. As for my suggestions (none of which to sound similar to any previous designators):

K-8 MILKBAR
SH-5 MESS
Y-11 CRAMP
Y-12 CLUB

I’ll be happy to join in the F-namegiving game if or when these have finally been labeled.

At most he will be Queen-elect of the Jungle by November… Or later, depends of course when the supreme court decides who won the elections 😉

Here is an operational Aurora