16-05-2013, 22:31
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חבר מתאריך: 13.11.04
הודעות: 16,823
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אשכול חדשות וכתבות צבא ארה"ב
ה OH-58F ביצע את טיסתו הראשונה, מדובר בשדרוג המקיף הראשון של דגם ה D אחרי שנכנס לשימוש באווירית הצבא לפני 20 שנה.
Kiowa Warrior upgrades alter aircraft profile
http://www.army.mil/article/102288/...rcraft_profile/
שימו לב שכדור החיישנים שהיה מותקן על הרוטור נעלם לטובת מתקון קונבציונלי יותר בחרטום המסוק
Perhaps the biggest change to the aircraft is that the familiar sensor ball, which is mast-mounted above the rotor in older models, has been moved down to the front of the aircraft. The nose-mounted common sensor payload includes improved optics, an infra-red sensor, laser pointer and laser spot tracker. Col. John Lynch, Training and Doctrine Command capability manager for the Kiowa Warrior, said mounting the sensor package on the nose of the aircraft was a decision made after considering operations over the last 12 years in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"We are really doing a lot more maneuvering flight both in urban and non-urban environments, and the sight quickly reaches the stop limits and it is very difficult to track targets when you are flying in an environment where you are getting much closer to the enemy than we ever envisioned with the mast-mounted sensor in the Cold War-era," Lynch said. Lynch did say the aircraft will be "a little more exposed" by using the nose-mounted sight instead of the mast-mounted sight. But other factors in the battle space mitigate that exposure.
קצב האספקה הצפוי
Right now, the Prototype Integration Facility at Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is building the "Prototype Qualification 1" OH-58F aircraft. In the fall, production will transition to Corpus Christi Army Depot, Corpus Christi, Texas, to build PQ2, PQ3, and PQ4, as the Army prepares for milestone C decision. In the fall of 2014, it's expected the Army will conduct a limited user test of the aircraft, and by March 2015, the Army will make a low-rate initial production decision. The LRIP Lot 1 set includes 27 aircraft and LRIP Lot 2 includes 33 aircraft. The decision to go into full-rate production will yield a total of 368 OH-58F Kiowa Warriors, to be built between 2017-2025.
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