- Yes
- No
General Info
The history of the A129 International began during the late stages of the cold war, once the first versions of the A129 Mangusta entered service inside of the Italian armed forces, they were well liked by the users so later down the line, Agusta had generated a lot of interest for this type of helicopter. Although some nations were interested in the base version of the A129, nothing really came out of it so Agusta developed a newer version of the A129 Mangusta in line with export market specifications and needs. This new version of the A129 would go under the designation A129 “International”, likely named that way to attract customers. The A129 International has been designed to meet a wide variety of missions under all-weather conditions, day or night. These ranged from armed scout and reconnaissance to high-intensity, and air to ground and air to air capability. One of the many great qualities of this variant according to Agusta employee’s was that the A129 International would be much more than just your regular light antitank helicopter, it would also be the most cost effective combat rotorcraft in its class. This was clearly a defining factor as unlike nations such as the US, Italy would target its military vehicles to also nations who might not have a big budget to spend on their militaries. That said, it also meant regular militiaries could buy more units of the aircraft if needed which would be able to do the same things vehicles of the era, such as the AH-64 Apache, at a much lower cost. The A129 International would prove this by begining to intergrate many different weapon systems that at the time, were the best if not one of the best in their class. Weapon systems such as Hellfire and TOW ATGM’s came standard with the helicopter, however what was more interesting was the intergration of air to air missiles, such as the stinger or mistral. During the development of the International, the aircraft would undergo several variations on usually the same air-frame, each version intergrating different armaments. Some other changes also included different types of thermal imaging sights, a .50 cal turret, an enclosed triple .50 cal turret, or what is now staple of the A129CBT, the 20 mm M197 three-barrel Gatling-type rotary cannon. All International variants had access to the LHTEC T800 engine, which was an improvement from the base variant of the Mangusta. It allowed the International to have a higher top speed and overall output to reach its surface ceilling quicker than the base variant.
A129 International prototype Armament Testbed. (early)
The A129 Armament Testbed is actually a helicopter we have in game already, however that being one of the many possible configurations which could be made. The story for this specific helicopter variant begins in 1987, its main purpose was for Agusta to just test multiple different types of armament and design features for the aircraft. This variant of the A129 International (serial number being 29002/EI 902) would be the first time that Italy would actually install and fly with the American made LHTEC T800 engine. It retained a lot of features from the previous base Mangusta’s, such as the 4 blades, however it also would install a new optics system that was manufactured by SAAB. In terms of armaments, this specific version had access to an enclosed triple .50 cal turret which would be a very similar weapon system that was installed unto some American helicopters at the time. On top of that as seen in the picture, it could mount up to x8 American made Hellfire ATGM’s, which if needed would also be able to be switched for TOW-2 ATGM’s. Other armaments also included the same basic loadouts such as; 12.7mm gun pods, various amount of unguided rockets such as the Italian made 81mm Medusa (which at the time of me writing this, we still haven’t gotten in game) or American Hydra, and lastly but not least Stinger or Matra Mistral air-to-air missiles. Another cool thing it would feature would be (unlike other Italian helicopters) a pretty unique grey/white camouflage, which really makes the helicopter stick out when compared to other A129’s made.
Specifications
Why it should be in game
More Mangusta’s that could be added as either events or more premiums for Italy, although if gaijin wanted to they could add them as TT researchable vehicles. They’re all very different from one another, and sporting unique armaments and camos that aren’t usually seen in other helicopters. Also since gaijin has already added 1 A129 international in game, it would be much easier to add more because they ideally wouldn’t start from scratch.
Sources
Spoiler
Various Jane books/Articles
Aviation Week & Space Technology 29 July 1996
Official Agusta A129 International Brochure
VOLANDO Mangusta 186
Mattioli Marco A 129 Mangusta Italian Attack Helicopter. Special 8. IBN Editore. 2004
Aviones y Helicopteros De Guerra n 35 A129-Mangusta
Aviolibri Special 8 A129 Mangusta, Italian attack helicopter
AW-129 Mangusta - Militarypedia
https://www.aviatorsdatabase.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/A129-INTERNATIONAL-MULTI-ROLE-COMBAT-HELICOPTER-ITALY.pdf
Indian Strategic Studies: “Rafael provides a complete solution of air and missile threats” - Oron Oriol
Agusta A129 variants | Page 2 | Secret Projects Forum
AgustaWestland AW129 - Wikipedia
https://www.army-technology.com/projects/agusta/
AgustaWestland A129 Mangusta & Airbus Helicopter Tiger
TM 197B
Agusta A-129 Mangusta
Spike (missile) - Wikipedia