military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) (02/06/91)
From: ihlpm!jfb (Joseph F Baugher +1 708 713 4548) Number 36 in the series--The British Army's Lynx antitank helicopter. Westland Lynx AH Mk 7 Engine: Two Rolls-Royce Gem Mk 41-1 turboshafts, 1120 shp each, mounted side-by-side in top of upper fuselage decking. The engines are separated from each other and from the rest of the structure by firewalls. The exhausts can be fitted with fairings which deflect the exhaust gases up into the rotor disk, using the prop downwash to dissipate and mask the infrared signature. Performance: Maximum cruising speed: 161 mph at sea level. Maximum inclined climb rate: 2480 ft/min. Hovering ceiling out of ground effect: 10,600 feet Maximum range: 400 miles. Weights: Empty weight: 5683 pounds Maximum takeoff weight: 10,750 pounds Armament: Two weapons pylons protruding from the fuselage sides behind the cabin doors. Can carry eight Hughes TOW antitank missiles mounted in groups of four launch boxes. One launch box on each pylon. In addition, eight reloads can be carried in the cabin. In the close support role, can carry two unguided rocket pods. Each pod carries 19 2.75-inch folding-fin aircraft rockets. Alternatively, a 12-pack of 80-mm SURA unguided rockets can be carried on each weapons pylon. In the armed excort role, can carry a pair of Oerlikon 20 or 25-mm cannon. Alternatively, each pylon can carry a 0.30 cal M134 Minigun six-barrel machine gun. Accommodations: Crew of 2 (pilot on right, copilot/weapons operator on left) Cabin can accommodate 10 fully-armed troops or up to 2000 lbs. of freight. If needed, a load of 3000 lbs can be slung below the Lynx on a freight hook. Electronics: Decca TANS navigation system with associated Decca 71 Doppler and Sperry GM9 Gyrosyn compass. GEC Avionics duplex three-axis automatic stability equipment. Remarks: The Westland WG-13 Lynx originated in a 1960's British Army requirement for an antitank helicopter. Two engines were deemed essential for battlefield survivability, in lieu of American experience in Vietnam. An important requirement was that the Lynx be air-transportable by the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. Prototype WG-13 Lynx flew for the first time in 1971. Four-blade main rotor of cambered aerofoil section. Manual rotor folding is available for stowage in confined areas. A particle separator is provided for each engine intake. The intakes can be electronically de-iced. Fitted with a ski landing gear. Lynx AH Mk 1 was initial production version with 900 shp Gem Mk 2 turboshafts. 113 built between 1977 and 1984. 9500 lb. maximum weight. Lynx AH Mk 1 initially deployed in 1978. Some were later retrofitted with a TOW sighting system. Lynx AH Mk 1/5 was designation given to an experimental version of the Mk 1 with an uprated transmission system. Lynx Mks 2,3,4 are naval versions (described separately). Lynx AH Mk 5X was a single trials aircraft with 1120 shp. Gem Mk 41-1 turboshafts and an uprated transmission system. Lynx AH Mk 5 was production variant of Mk 5X that was ordered in 1986. Nine were ordered, but only one was built. The remainder were transferred to the Mk 7 contract. 10,000 lb. maximum weight. Lynx AH Mk 6 was a proposed version for the Royal Marines with wheeled landing gear. Never built. Lynx AH Mk 7 was a variant of the Mk 5 with a reversed- direction tail rotor and improved systems. Maximum weight of 10,750 lbs. Eight were transferred from AH Mk 5 contract, plus 5 new ones were built. The reversed direction tail rotor supposedly reduced overall Roof-mounted Hughes-developed sight operated by the observer. Initial versions were capable of day-only operation, but later versions were augmented with a Rank-Pullen thermal imaging sub-system which enhanced capabilities at night or in poor daylight conditions. Laser ranging and laser target designation capability is available. The BGM-71 TOW (Tube-launched, Optically-tracked, Wire- guided) antitank missile weighs 46 pounds and has a warhead consisting of an 8.6 lb. shaped charge. The missile is launched from a tube. The boost charge pops the missile out of the tube, then the four wings and the four tail controls deploy. The guidance commands are generated by the optical sensor in the sight, which continually measures the position of a light source on the missile relative to the line of sight and sends steering commands along the wires that trail out behind the missile. The range of the missile is 500-3750 meters. The Lynx is not sufficiently well-armored to operate safely in close attacks against well-defended ground positions. So far as I am aware, the only foreign operator of the Army Lynx is the Qatar police force. A plan for license production of the Lynx in Egypt fell through. Sources: Various issues of Aviation Week Various issues of Defense Electronics The Observer's Book of Aircraft, William Green. Modern Air Combat, Bill Gunston, Mike Spick The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft Armament, Bill Gunston Joe Baugher ****************************************** AT&T Bell Laboratories * "Patch me through to McGarrett." * 200 Park Plaza ****************************************** Naperville, Illinois 60566-7050 (708) 713 4548 ihlpm!jfb jfb200@cbnewsd.att.com Who, me? Speak for AT&T? Surely you jest!