Boeing AH64A Apache

In 1972, the U.S. Army began seeking an Advanced Attack Helicopter to replace the AH-1 HueyCobra used during the later stages of the Vietnam War. The AAH was seen as a countermeasure to the main battle tank that would appear in the hypothetical European Theater of the Cold War. Although such a scenario has yet to materialize, the Apache has proven itself to be the ultimate modern attack helicopter in engagements in Panama, Iraq, and in the hands of the Israeli military.

Besides operations with the U.S. Army, the Apache has been exported to Egypt, Greece, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The U.S. operates some 827 Apaches as of 1986, with the total of all helicopters having been built reaching 1,048.

The helicopter has a crew of two. The pilot sits aft and above the copilot/gunner. The Apache is armed with a chin-mounted 30mm chain gun, as well as four pylons on the stub wings. Disposable stores cam include 16 Hellfire missiles, 77 70mm FFARs, or a mixture of the two. The AH-64 burns 227 gallons of jet fuel per hour of routine usage. A full tank of fuel and ammo (not including hardpoint ordnance) costs $6,697.

Subassemblies: Body +3, Top-and-tail rotor +0, two Stub Wings -1; three Fixed Wheels +0.

Powertrain: Two 1,890-kW Improved HP gas turbines; 3,780-kW TTR drivetrain, 2,300-kWs advanced battery.

Fuel: 393 gallons jet fuel (Fire 13) in standard self-sealing tank [Body] (fire -1).

Occupancy: 2 NCS.

Cargo: 0 lbs.

Armor F RL B T U

Crew: +0/+5 +0/+5 +0/+5 +0/+5 +0/+5

All Else: 4/45 4/45 4/45 4/45 4/45

Weaponry:

30mm Light Chain Gun/M230 [Body:F] (1,200 rounds HEDP).

1,700 lbs. disposable ordnance [Stub Wings:U], typically:

8x178mm SALH/Hellfire ATGM

2x70mm 19-shot Pod/M261 with Hydra 70 FFAR

Equipment:

Body: Basic IR cloaking, Combat Helicopter Package (advanced radar detector, autopilot, dedicated targeting computer with software, HUDWAC with pupil scanner, IFF, IR jammer (-2), 10x LLTV, navigation instruments, two long-range radios with scramblers (300 miles), two smoke/decoy dischargers, two reloads (flares), 10-mile thermograph), 2-man environmental control, backup driver, laser designator. Stub Wings: Two hardpoints each.

Statistics:

Size: 49'x17'x15' Payload: 1.5 tons Lwt.: 7.22 tons

Volume: 267 cf Maint.: 17 hours Price: $1,286,339

HT: 11. HPs: 297 Body, 132 Rotors, 43 each Stub Wing, 40 each Skid.

aSpeed: 227 aAccel: 4 aDecel: 17 aMR: 4.25 aSR: 2

Stall speed 0.

Design Notes:

Body is 245 cf; rotor is 4.9 cf; stub wings are 4.9 cf, wheels are 12.25 cf. Structure is medium, expensive with fair streamlining. Overall armor is advanced composite; armor for the crew stations is expensive composite. Crew station armor was purchased to cover the 92 sf required to house the crew stations. Mechanical controls. Fuel tank is standard, seal-sealing. Design weight was 3% over at 14,961 lbs.

The Apache's real-world take-off weight for its primary mission is 14,445 lbs. This value was used for performance calculations. Maximum real-world take-off weight is 21,000 lbs. Design cost was used for maintenance calculations. The real-world speed has been substituted; design aSpeed was 339 mph on one engine. The chin turret was subsumed in the body volume. The Combat Helicopter Package was used for this design for convenience, but the AH-64A lacks a GPS and camera. Unit price was approximately $18 million in 1996.

Variants:

The first 603 AH-64s featured 1,265-kW engines.

The AH-64B Apache Plus was an update that never passed the planning stages.

The AH-64D Longbow Apache (1997) features an advanced "fire-and-forget" targeting system for the AGM-114L Hellfire missile.

From the Aerodrome for GURPS