TR The Fate of Helicopters In War Zones.

Merzifonlu

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
DefenceHub Diplomat
Messages
718
Reactions
25 2,155
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
The fate of helicopters will be like tanks. Almost every soldier is given MANPADS these days. Then let's think about what could be the solution to the problem.

The helicopter has 3 main missions at the front. 1) Close air support. 2) Urgent transport of unarmed personnel (wounded etc.) and valuable cargo. 3) Transport of armed personnel, ie rapid response teams.

I think we can transfer missions 1 and 2 to drones. On the other hand, we will give a lot of thought to active/passive protection measures and environmental awareness for helicopter platforms that will fulfill their number 3 function.

What do you think about this?
 

Afif

Experienced member
Moderator
Bangladesh Correspondent
DefenceHub Diplomat
Bangladesh Moderator
Messages
4,754
Reactions
94 9,092
Nation of residence
Bangladesh
Nation of origin
Bangladesh
No, helos are here to stay as well as tanks.
And we indeed have solution to the manpad problem!
And this

But do they actually work???

Yes sir! They do actually work.
 
Last edited:

Heartbang

Experienced member
Messages
2,557
Reactions
8 3,981
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
No, helos are here to stay as well as tanks.
And we indeed have solution to the manpad problem!
And this
And this

But do they actually work???

Yes sir! They do actually work.
My question is: how effective are these against imaging IR seekers?
 

Philip the Arab

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
Messages
1,344
Reactions
4 2,247
Nation of residence
United States of America
Nation of origin
Jordan
Or? HELICOPTER DRONES 😖

1679524008915.jpeg
 

Afif

Experienced member
Moderator
Bangladesh Correspondent
DefenceHub Diplomat
Bangladesh Moderator
Messages
4,754
Reactions
94 9,092
Nation of residence
Bangladesh
Nation of origin
Bangladesh

Philip the Arab

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
Messages
1,344
Reactions
4 2,247
Nation of residence
United States of America
Nation of origin
Jordan
2) Urgent transport of unarmed personnel (wounded etc.) and valuable cargo.
You raise a good point, UAE is trying to do that with drone helicopters.

Apparently it will be able to carry a rescue pod as well.

1679524285282.jpeg
 

Afif

Experienced member
Moderator
Bangladesh Correspondent
DefenceHub Diplomat
Bangladesh Moderator
Messages
4,754
Reactions
94 9,092
Nation of residence
Bangladesh
Nation of origin
Bangladesh
From what I've seen in the footage, there's no feed from seeker in that video
VSHORAD manpads doesn't have seeker feed like ATGM or WVR IIR missiles.

Anyway, this is more than enough to prove the point. ( I guess, now you are just arguing for the shake of arguing. )
 

Merzifonlu

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
DefenceHub Diplomat
Messages
718
Reactions
25 2,155
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
You raise a good point, UAE is trying to do that with drone helicopters.

Apparently it will be able to carry a rescue pod as well.

View attachment 55279
+1
Transporting cargo with swarms of drones may be even more vital on the battlefield of the future than we currently think. The miserable situation of Russian logistics in the Ukrainian war should be a lesson to everyone. The Russians lost an incredible number of military trucks.
 

Ryder

Experienced member
Messages
10,857
Reactions
6 18,707
Nation of residence
Australia
Nation of origin
Turkey
In the Ukraine war nothing has come under bigger scrutiny which is the Tank and Helicopter seeing how both sides have suffered pretty big losses when it comes to tanks and helicopters have pushed the debate that they are obsolete.

I feel tanks and helicopters still have a place in the modern battlefield if they come with advanced countermeasures the problem is the price how much it costs to fit every tank and heli with the proper measures.

Will just have to see really what is in store for the future because a lot of armies are not giving up their tanks and helicopters.
 
Last edited:

Philip the Arab

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
Messages
1,344
Reactions
4 2,247
Nation of residence
United States of America
Nation of origin
Jordan
Which company made this prototype?
Heliotech based in the UAE, could’ve been developed elsewhere but not sure.

Some info below

The Phenom is planned to be produced under HelioTech's non-civilian segment, in its plant at Al Bateen Executive Airport Free Zone by the end of 2026.

Phenom concept, Al Kaabi noted, is designed to carry payloads up to 800kg with various configurations with elite level performance and endurance of 4 hours in its standard configuration, and above 8 hours with auxiliary fuel tanks.

“This flagship UAV will be designed, developed, and manufactured by HelioTech in the UAE with the support of our international partners and we believe it will contribute significantly to the UAE’s defence industry capabilities.”
 

UkroTurk

Experienced member
Land Warfare Specialist
Professional
Messages
2,684
Reactions
55 4,801
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
There are MANPADS but Ukrainian army still attack on Russian position from Helis.

You can't avoid the speed and maneuver of Helis.
 

Gary

Experienced member
Messages
8,361
Reactions
22 12,853
Nation of residence
Indonesia
Nation of origin
Indonesia
When Azerbaijan drones defeated Armenian armor people are getting crazy for the drone apocalypse. Happily predicting that armor is just bad expensive investment that could be defeated by "cheap" drones.

Yet today the Ukrainians are begging for tanks, the very same tanks that people predicted to disappear from the battlefield, just because the Armenians are having a bad time.

Just because the Russians and Ukrainians are getting heavy losses with their toys doesn't mean one type of equipment is obsolete.

For every measures there's countermeasures and for every countermeasures there's a counter-countermeasures. It continuously evolves.

The latest U.S helicopters like the bell Invictus will out survive and outperform any attack drones out there... especially in the hands of the U.S military.
 

Sanchez

Experienced member
Moderator
Think Tank Analyst
DefenceHub Diplomat
Messages
2,347
Reactions
79 10,746
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
The fate of helicopters will be like tanks.
Do you mean, more important than ever?

Tanks are still inherently important for a combined arms army. You literally cannot march on without them. They are the tip of the spear. This is what we're seeing in Ukraine.
 

Merzifonlu

Contributor
Think Tank Analyst
DefenceHub Diplomat
Messages
718
Reactions
25 2,155
Nation of residence
Turkey
Nation of origin
Turkey
Do you mean, more important than ever?

Tanks are still inherently important for a combined arms army. You literally cannot march on without them. They are the tip of the spear. This is what we're seeing in Ukraine.
Helicopters will always be important. Whether they are flown by human pilots or in drone form.

What I mean by tank-like is this: The variety and intensity of threats helicopters have to face on the battlefield has increased. For example, even STM's Alpagu-style kamikaze drones pose a threat to helicopters.
 

Mehmed Ali

Contributor
Messages
496
Reactions
1 905
Nation of residence
England(UK)
Nation of origin
Bosnia & Herzegovina
Transport helicopters will be around for some time and maybe light attack helicopters in support for the special operations . Heavy attack choppers have no future. Too slow , not manoeuvrable enough and manpads will get better and cheaper over time.
Tanks are something else as they can be supported by the various means. This has been clear for sometime.
 

Follow us on social media

Top Bottom