Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!bu.edu!att!cbnews!cbnews!military From: dnwiebe@cis.ohio-state.edu (Dan N Wiebe) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Soviet helicopters Message-ID: <1991Feb4.054604.16777@cbnews.att.com> Date: 4 Feb 91 05:46:04 GMT Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories Lines: 36 Approved: military@att.att.com From: dnwiebe@cis.ohio-state.edu (Dan N Wiebe) Mike DeMetz writes: >You info about counter rotating blates sounds good but the fastest >copters are all of conventional design. Dono 'bout that. Seems I've heard just the opposite, although I must admit that the most authoritative source I can come up with at the moment is the user's manual to LHX Attack Chopper for the PC. Most of the information in this program is probably just educated guesswork, because the Soviets probably aren't talking much about the Hokum, and anyway the LHX doesn't even exist yet. But here are the numbers they give for various Soviet and US helicopters for top speed at sea level: MIL Mi-8 Hip-C Assault Transport 250 km/hr Sikorsky UH-60A Blackhawk Transport 296 km/hr MIL Mi-28 Havoc Attack Helicopter (Apache copy) 300 km/hr MIL Mi-24 Hind-D Armed Assault Helicopter 310 km/hr McDonnell-Douglas AH-64A Apache Attack Helicopter 330 km/hr LHX (Light Helicopter Experimental) 365 km/hr Kamov Ka-34 Hokum Attack Helicopter 374 km/hr Bell/Boeing V-22 Osprey multi-mission VTOL Aircraft 645 km/hr The first five are all standard single-rotor, conventional helicopters. LHX has a single main rotor, but replaces the tail rotor with an in-fuselage ducted fan (air is blown out to one side from the end of the tail). The Ka-34 has twin counter-rotating main rotors and no tail rotor. The V-22 has twin counter-rotating tilt rotors, mounted side-by-side rather than coaxially. So, if we are to take the manual at its word, after about 350 kph, you have to start getting fancy with the technology to go any faster. Dan Wiebe dnw@rsch.oclc.or