- Yes
- No
History and origins:
The tiger helicopter program was a joint multinational project by many nations, of which, germany and france were the two largest shareholders.
The company overseeing the tiger was eurocopter, also a multinational project.
From the onset the tiger faced many issues and difficulties since it was attempting to incorporate technologies way ahead of its time.
Most popular is the failure of the main armament of the tiger, the TRIGAT missile family which, despite being a state of the art missile was also not very effective purely because of its tremendous cost.
From the start of the 2000s and all the way up to 2013 when the Luftwaffe UH (support helicopter) Tiger (Tiger UHT in game) was redesignated as the KH (attack helicopter) Tiger (Tiger KHT in game), there was talk about upgrading the helicopter with various weapon systems that could increase its offensive and sometimes defensive potential.
Ranging from state-of-the-art self defense missiles such as the LFK-NG and extended weapons loadouts to weapons as simple as laser guided rockets and countermeasure options.
The full list can be found in the armaments and new systems section.
The helicopter I am suggesting today is the planned top end Tiger for the German military had it gone into production. Some of these upgrades saw service, some did not, some have only ever been tested and some planned. All items listed in the armaments and systems with images have already been trialled and or incorporated as well as the extra countermeasures systems.
Specifications
Max speed: 290kmph
Max altitude: 4000m
Engine: 2 х MTU Turbomeca Rolls-Royce MTR390-2C
Power: 1285hp
Take-off weight: 6t
Armaments and new systems
FZ275 LGR - 7km (SAL)
Weapon status: Tested and in mass production internationally
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: No integration needed, usable as is.
LFK-GILA - 8km (SAL + IOG?)
GILA is an adaptation of the GATR seeker onto 70mm rockets
Weapon status: GATR has been brought for by the US (functional status), and Diehl has bought a share of the program and offered it to Germany for the Tiger UHT/KHT. [1] [2]
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: No integration needed, usable as is.
LFK-NG - 10km (IIR)
Weapon status: Tested, fully functional but not in production
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: No modification needed as the launch tubes show, however no missile has been fired from the Tiger thus far.
Mistral AAM (IR)
Weapon status: Tested, in mass production
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: Capability maintained since early models
Extra PARS 3 Launchers
Weapon status: Tested, unknown production level
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: THOR capable UHT/KHT are cleared since outer pylons were only wired for A-G weapons on THOR upgraded Tigers
THOR
(Tiger helicopter outer rockets)
Upgrade status: Tested, upgraded enmass
TDA rockets
Weapon status: Tested, in mass production internationally
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: Capability maintained since early models
Nexter 20M621 20mm gunpod
Weapon status: Tested, in mass production internationally
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: Capability maintained since early models
RMK-30 30mm turret
Weapon status: Tested, in limited production in Germany only
Integration status on Tiger UHT/KHT: Unknown, some sources say WTD-61 has a few Tigers with the RMK-30 only for training etc. Reason for secrecy is unknown.
Due to the mast mounted Osiris sight of the Tiger UHT being on an elevated pole, it does not work well with the sharp vibrations caused by firing a normal under nose auto cannon. It is for this reason the RMK-30 recoilless autocannon was designed specifically for the Tiger UHT. Sadly it has not been mounted yet due to budgetary constraints.
More details, Courtesy of @NER055
Early in 1997, Mauser-Werke Oberndorf Waffensysteme released brief details of a new 30 mm cannon, designated the RMK 30, which it has developed under contract to the German BWB.
The first application of the Mauser RMK 30 mm cannon will be the Eurocopter Tiger UHT helicopter of the German Army, but as it is recoilless, it can be installed on very light platforms such as soft skin vehicles which in the past could not be fitted with a weapon of this calibre.
A recoilless weapon almost entirely compensates the recoil impulse by taking advantage of the gases streaming out backwards while firing. In the design of the RMK 30, this has been achieved by a moveable cartridge chamber and an attached nozzle.
As well as being a recoiiless design, the RMK 30 has a number of other features including a three chamber revolver type breech cylinder (similar to that used in other Mauser weapons), moveable cartridge chamber, linkless ammunition feeding from the front with left or right feed, telescoped ammunition with a compact charge, combustible case and inductive primer.
The RMK 30 is capable of accurate and sustained firing and according to Mauser, dispersion patterns of less than 50 per cent compared with conventional cannon have been achieved during the trials programme.
The RMK 30 has a cyclic rate of fire of 300 rds/min with the actual gun weighing 100 kg and having a barrel length of 1,700 mm. The first round being developed is of the armour piercing (AP) type with a calibre of 30 x 280 mm and a muzzle velocity of 1,200 m/s. An armour piercing fin stabilised discarding sabot round is also being developed.
The first prototype of the RMK 30 was completed in 1997 and underwent manned firing trials installed on a MaK Wiesel 1 light tracked armoured weapon carrier. Since then a second weapon has been built which has a small number of improvements.
According to Mauser, their RMK 30 is part of a complete integrated weapon system which, for example in a helicopter application, will also include a number of other subsystems including tracker, thermal imager, fire-control computer, stabilised mirror, laser range-finder and gyro.
The overall system configuration is now being optimised by Mauser and it is expected that series production will commence in the first decade of 2000 to support production of the Tiger UHT helicopter for the German Army.
Status
Prototype weapon. Not yet in production or service.
Specifications:
Property Value
Main weapon caliber (mm)
30
Length (mm)
2340
Weight (kg)
100
Rate of fire (rds/min)
300
Muzzle velocity (m/s)
1200
Images
Sources from reports and outstanding reports themselves
Tiger UHT using incorrect rocket type
Tiger UHT missing rockets on outer pylons
Tiger UHT missing PARS 3 LR launchers for outer pylons
Tiger UHT missing Mistral ATAM
Tiger UHT missing NC621 20mm Cannon Pod
Tiger UHT missing TDA 68 mm rocket launcher
Tiger UHT missing helmet mounted sight (AA missiles not slavable)
Tiger helicopters should get an option of 144 countermeasures.
PARS 3 LR incorrect maximum range
PARS 3 LR missing proximity fuse
