- 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some nations were interested in the base version of the A129, nothing really came out of it so Agusta developed a newer version of the A129 Mangusta in line with export market specifications and needs.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 (late)
This is one of the many final versions of the A129 International, as a last ditch effort to get other countries to buy the helicopter, It would be upgraded in very minor ways, such as the addition of non enclosed 20mm turret. This variant also differed from previous versions due to the new sand filters added to the LHTEC T800 engines to improve its operational capabilities in sandy environments. (likely done to push the vehicle to the Italian army after their use of the first A129’s for their peace-keeping missions in Somalia) Lastly it also featured an improvement to the overall avionics of the vehicle. Armament remained the same as the previous base International variants, so ATGM’s, unguided rockets and air to air missiles were kept. Countermeasures also included an ICRM and Flare/Chaff dispenser. For day and night target acquisition the same thermal and night vision devices would also be kept from the previous version. The International was no longer offered to any countries. What was used from the A129 International however would be re-used for a special upgrade to the Italian A129’s, which brought them to the ‘‘CBT’’ or ‘Combat’’ standard. The CBT’s would incorporate the majority of the new advancements from the International into the Italian army Mangusta’s. With only minor differences such as Italy option for a Rolls Royce engine instead of the LHTEC one.
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
http://strategicstudyindia.blogspot.com/2015/02/rafael-provides-complete-solution-of.html
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