- Yes
- No
AH-1J carrying Zuni and Mighty Mouse rockets during Operation MARHUK (source- National Naval Aviation Museum)
The Bell AH-1J SeaCobra was the first Cobra variant developed for the US Marine Corps. It had a twin-engine for increased safety (although due to weight increases, flight performance wasn’t significantly improved) and a new 20 mm rotary cannon. Additionally, in Operation MARHUK, a small group of AH-1Js became the first Cobras to fire the powerful Zuni rockets. In War Thunder, it would be a small upgrade over the AH-1G, although its role would still primarily be limited to “heli-rushing”. With the addition of more Marine helicopters to the US tree, it could also serve as the starting vehicle for a separate Marine line.
History and design
After the success of the Army’s AH-1Gs in Vietnam, the Marines soon became very interested in the Cobra. However, they were concerned about the safety of the Cobra over water if the single-engine malfunctioned. The Department of Defense initially pressured the Marines to use the AH-1G in the interest of commonality, asserting that even in the event of a total engine failure, autorotation would still allow the helicopter to land safely. However, the Marines argued that while that would be fine on land, an autorotation landing out at sea would still result in the loss of the aircraft and possibly the crew. In the end, the Marines won out. Bell was awarded a contract for 48 twin-engine AH-1J SeaCobras in May 1968, and the initial flight was made in November 1969.
The AH-1J was powered by the P&W Canada T400-CP-400 Twin-Pac, which was essentially two 900-hp engines bundled together. Although capable of a maximum output of 1,800 hp, the drivetrain limited that to 1,530 hp (if one engine died, the remaining one could be run at the 900 hp maximum). It also received the 20 mm M197 autocannon, essentially a three-barrelled version of the M61.
In June 1972, the AH-1J began participating in its first formal combat operation: Operation MARHUK. The MARHUK acronym stands for MARine HUnter/Killer. The original idea was to have CH-46 Sea Knights designate targets as “hunters” and have AH-1J SeaCobras destroy the targets as “killers”. Although the CH-46 was later removed from the operation, the acronym stuck. For MARHUK, the AH-1Js of HMA-369 were cleared to use a new weapon for the Cobra: the 5-inch Zuni rocket. The Zuni was much more powerful than the 2.75-inch Mighty Mouse, but it was also heavier and produced severe efflux that damaged the airframe. Consequently, SeaCobras in MARHUK missions only carried two Zunis on each of the outer pylons. These were the first Cobras to carry the Zuni rocket.
In the 1970s, Bell used technology developed for the Model 309 to upgrade the SeaCobras to the AH-1T standard, which used a more powerful engine and better avionics, allowing the carriage of TOW missiles. Consequently, the AH-1J was gradually phased out.
Specifications
Crew: 2
Empty weight: 2,998 kg
MTOW: 4,536 kg
Max speed: 333 km/h
Climb rate: 5.5 m/s
Service ceiling: 3,200 m
Engine: 1x P&W Canada T400-CP-400 Twin-Pac, 1,800 hp, drive train limited to 1,530 hp
Armament:
- 1x 20 mm M197 in turret
- 4x LAU-68 (7 tubes) or LAU-69 (19 tubes) 2.75-inch FFAR launchers
- 5-inch Zuni rockets
- N.B. Operationally, the AH-1J only carried 2 Zunis on each outer pylon, totalling 4, citing weight and rocket blast concerns. However, the “weight” concern confuses me, since an LAU-10 launcher loaded with 4 Zunis isn’t significantly heavier than an LAU-69 loaded with 19 2.75-inch rockets. Additionally, Werrel’s article for the US Naval Institute speaks of a “stateside test firing of an entire load of Zunis as quickly as possible”, which seems to suggest that the AH-1J is capable of carrying a full load of 4 LAU-10 launchers. Addressing the second issue, even though rocket blast damage was a concern in real life, it wouldn’t be a problem in War Thunder. Therefore, I believe that the SeaCobra should at least be implemented with full 4-round LAU-10 launchers on the two outer pylons (instead of the half-filled launchers used IRL), and ideally with the full loadout of four LAU-10 launchers.
- Edit: After consulting the “AH-1 TACTICAL MANUAL”, I’m fairly certain that AH-1Js, or at least later version of it, were capable of mounting 4 LAU-10s, since it isn’t listed as a AH-1T specific loadout.
Sources
- “Bell AH-1 Cobra” by Mike Verier
- “Huey Cobra Gunships” by Chris Bishop
- “Bell AH-1 Cobra Variants” by Kenneth Peoples
- [1.0] First Generation Cobras
- AH-1J SeaCobra
- Marine Helicopters Against North Vietnam by Kenneth P. Werrell
- ZUNI 5.0-inch high-performance folding-fin aircraft rocket
Pictures:
