- Yes
- No
- 9.3
- 9.7
- 10.0
- 10.3
- 10.7
- I said no
UH-1Y en route to Camp Schwab on Okinawa (source- Wikimedia Commons)
The Bell UH-1Y Venom is the latest member of the military Huey family. Its two powerful engines allow it to carry payloads and perform manoeuvres unthinkable to its predecessors. Its advanced sensor suite, rivalling that of its companion, the AH-1Z, allows effective threat detection and evasion. Sounds great, right? Well, the bad news is it only carries machine guns, rockets, and APKWS, which makes its role in War Thunder… interesting.
History
The first Huey with two engines was the UH-1N Twin Huey, a version of the UH-1 negotiated between the Canadian Armed Forces and Bell Helicopter that was powered by the Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6T Twin-Pac. The US military quickly became interested in the aircraft and adopted it themselves. The Twin Huey served the various branches well for more than two decades, but as the new millennium approached, it started to become increasingly overloaded with new avionics and weapons. While the Army had switched over to the UH-60 Black Hawk, the Department of Defense and the Marines Corps decided to upgrade their UH-1Ns along with their AH-1Ws, as it would be cheaper, both in acquisition costs and future maintenance due to part commonality.
The H-1 upgrade program was approved in 1995, and the new Huey was designated the UH-1Y in 1996 (along with the designation of the new Cobra as the AH-1Z). The main modifications were the use of a four-blade propellor, better engines, and newer avionics. While originally planning to upgrade them from existing UH-1N airframes, approval was later given to manufacture them as completely new airframes instead. The first new aircraft were delivered in 2008, and production was completed in 2019. In 2021, new UH-1Ys were produced for the Czech Republic.
Specifications
Crew: 4 (pilot, copilot, crew chief, gunner)
Passengers seats: 10 crashworthy seats; 8 additional passengers + crew chief and gunner
Airframe and flight performance:
N.B. Flight performance statistics were calculated for a “Troop Insertion mission at 3000 ft / 33˚C” and may not be representative of its absolute best performance.
Empty weight: 5,369 kg
MTOW: 8,390 kg
Cruise speed (maximum continuous power): 293 km/h
Max speed: 304 km/h
Dive speed (possibly equivalent to never exceed speed): 367 km/h
Climb rate: 12.8 m/s
Service ceiling: more than 6,100 m
Manoeuvrability: -0.5G to +2.8G
Engine: 2x General Electric T700-GE-401C, contingency power 1,828 hp each (2.5 min), intermediate power 1,695 hp each (30 min), continuous power 1,546 hp each
Hover Infrared Suppression System (HIRSS): Yes
Internal fuel capacity: 1,443 L
Avionics and armament:
Avionics:
- BRITE Star II Navigation Thermal Imaging System (N.B. Budget requests from 2010 indicate that the UH-1Y can use both Block I and II BRITE Star as well as the legacy Star Safire. This suggestion assumes the most advanced avionics available.)
- Thermal imager:
- Resolution: 640 x 480
- FOV: 30˚ to 0.31˚
- Max magnification: 97x
- Daylight camera:
- FOV and magnification same as thermals
- Laser rangefinder
- Thermal imager:
- Northrop Grumman APR-39B(V)2 radar warning receiver
- 360-degree threat detection, identification, and Angle of Arrival
- Bands: C-M
- Flight line reprogrammable Operational Flight Program and threat library (i.e. should be able to identify specific radar models)
- Detectable radar modes: Pulsed, Pulse Doppler, Continuous Wave, Single Pulse, Frequency Modulated, Phase Modulated, Scanning Emitters, Agile PRIs and RF, Low Probability of Intercept
- ATK AAR-47(V)2 missile warning and laser detection system
- BAE Systems Integrated Defense Solutions (formerly Tracor) ALE-47 countermeasures dispenser
- Thales Avionics TopOwl Helmet Mounted Sight and Display (same version as used on Tiger, NH90, Rooivalk)
- 2x Mission Computers
- 4x Multi-Function Displays
- 2x Dual Function Displays
Armament:
- 2x door mounts for 7.62 mm M240D, .50 GAU-16/A HMG, .50 GAU-21 HMG 7.62 GAU-17A Minigun
- 2x LAU-68 (7 tubes) or LAU-61 (19 tubes) launchers, additional software allows M261 (7 tubes) or M260 (19 tubes) launchers to be used for their remote set fusing function
- Available ammunition: Hydra 70 or APKWS
Place in game
Imagine Alexander the Great riding a donkey into battle, or William Wallace charging English lines with a butter knife. That’s the situation for the UH-1Y in War Thunder. Great flight performance and cutting-edge avionics, but abysmal weaponry (at least for the anti-armour missions prevalent in-game). Unless a HEAT-armed version of the APKWS becomes available in War Thunder (and honestly I think the addition of the Venom would be a great excuse to add such a version), the HE/SAP-HE-armed APKWS will only be effective against light vehicles.
In this role, though, the UH-1Y would be devastating. The extremely good optics, with thermals and 97x zoom (even the Tiger only has 92.1x zoom), coupled with the 5 km range of the APKWS, allow it to sit comfortably outside autocannon range. However, SACLOS/beam-riding SAMs should be able to take it down with relative ease, since even with advanced MAW, its proximity to the battlefield (due to the relatively short range of the APKWS) means that the pilot will have little time to duck out of sight. All in all, these capabilities pose a conundrum for balancing such a vehicle.
More pictures
UH-1Y cockpit (source- Bell)
UH-1Y carrying rocket pods deploys flares (source- DVIDS)
Close-up of countermeasure dispenser of the UH-1Y, USMC Lance Cpl. Jacob G. Brissett pictured (source- DVIDS)
USMC Sgt. Evan Stewart manning a GAU-21 on a UH-1Y (source- DVIDS)
Sources
- UH-1Y pocket guide
- Bell UH-1Y - The Ultimate Utility Helicopter
- UH-1Y Huey Utility Helicopter
- UH-1Y Huey Multipurpose Helicopter
- Marine helicopters deploy with laser-guided rocket
- H-1 Upgrades – U.S. Marine Corps Upgrade to AH-1Z Attack Helicopter and UH-1Y Utility Helicopter
- Latest Bell UH-1Y “Venom” Variant Of The Iconic Huey Finds An Export Customer
- “Back to the Future:” The UH-IY Utility Helicopter; A Multi-Role Solution for a Changing Security Environment (ADA491167)
- APKWS II Turning 2.75-Inch Rockets into Precision Guided Munitions
- BRITE Star II
- https://www.dacis.com/budget/budget_pdf/FY11/PROC/N/0532_37.pdf
- AN/APR-39E(V)2 Digital Radar Warning Receiver
- GAU-21 deploys with UH-1Y
Pictures:
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