Home
Latest images
Register
Log in
Would add that the video in post 108 posted by Ben talks about mast mounted radar and why some fanboys complain that nose mounted radar exposes the helicopter to the enemy while the mast mounted radar keeps them safe at about the 7 to 8 minute mark.
Fitting radar above the main rotor causes all sorts of problems and it is not as amazing as you might think because even with a tiny radar sticking up the radar signal from the radar is what will bring the attention of everything in the area... so whether you have your nose poking up or the mast mounted radar only you are broad casting to every enemy present with a powerful radar scan that you are there, which is going to put them on serious alert either way.
Poking a radar mast up from behind some trees is not safe... cannon fire will travel right through trees.
Equally if a Russian tank sees you it can lase the tree you are hovering behind... add 10m and then fire a HE Frag shell to detonate above your main rotor... he might not see you but he can kill you.
With a nose mounted radar it can be much much bigger and therefore much more powerful and precise and so you can look from further away which is rather more of an advantage.
Another issue is that on a battlefield the enemy forces could be all over the place and hovering behind a tree or a building sounds like a good idea but generally such things will only hide you from one direction.
Enemy troops on either side of your position could actually use your position to kill you... if you are hovering behind a large building hitting the building with a HE shell or rocket will shower your aircraft with fragments... they could aim for you but so that if they miss it will hit the object you are taking cover behind so it should still damage you even if they miss.
Another problem of course is a helicopter hovering anywhere is horribly vulnerable to ATGMs for which most helicopters have no real defence.
Fitting radar above the main rotor causes all sorts of problems and it is not as amazing as you might think because even with a tiny radar sticking up the radar signal from the radar is what will bring the attention of everything in the area... so whether you have your nose poking up or the mast mounted radar only you are broad casting to every enemy present with a powerful radar scan that you are there, which is going to put them on serious alert either way.
Poking a radar mast up from behind some trees is not safe... cannon fire will travel right through trees.
Equally if a Russian tank sees you it can lase the tree you are hovering behind... add 10m and then fire a HE Frag shell to detonate above your main rotor... he might not see you but he can kill you.
With a nose mounted radar it can be much much bigger and therefore much more powerful and precise and so you can look from further away which is rather more of an advantage.
Another issue is that on a battlefield the enemy forces could be all over the place and hovering behind a tree or a building sounds like a good idea but generally such things will only hide you from one direction.
Enemy troops on either side of your position could actually use your position to kill you... if you are hovering behind a large building hitting the building with a HE shell or rocket will shower your aircraft with fragments... they could aim for you but so that if they miss it will hit the object you are taking cover behind so it should still damage you even if they miss.
Another problem of course is a helicopter hovering anywhere is horribly vulnerable to ATGMs for which most helicopters have no real defence.
