T129 - Bernie C
BY DAILY SABAH
ISTANBUL DEFENSE MAR 15, 2021 3:27 PM
The T929 ATAK 2 helicopter model on display during the Teknofest aviation and technology festival held between Sept. 11-22, 2019 in the now-closed Atatürk Airport, Istanbul, Turkey. (Wikipedia Photo)
Turkey’s heavy class attack helicopter, ATAK 2 will use an engine purchased from Ukraine, announced the manufacturing company late Sunday.
Temel Kotil, chairperson of the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), which undertook the helicopter project said that they will acquire the engines to power the T929 helicopter, namely ATAK 2, from Ukraine during a live program on Turkish broadcaster HaberTürk.
He was discussing the helicopter projects of TAI, a leading aerospace industry company operating in Turkey and one of the two top local drone producers.
The helicopter in question is in the 11-ton class and can carry 1,500 kg of ammunition. The chopper will be equipped with 2,500 horsepower engines and will fly as of 2023, according to what Kotil said.
It is being developed under the Heavy Class Attack Helicopter Project contract signed between Defense Industries Presidency (SSB) and TAI, and is set to have approximately twice the take-off weight of current ATAK helicopters.
The project aims to meet the needs of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in terms of an effective and deterrent attack helicopter, which can carry a high amount of useful load, is resistant to challenging environmental factors, equipped with advanced technology target tracking and imaging systems, electronic warfare (EW) systems, navigation systems, communication systems and weapon systems. It is being designed and manufactured as a chopper with high maneuverability and performance.
The general features of the T929 helicopter include tandem cockpit, asymmetrical weapon loading capability, high ammo-carrying capacity, low infra-red (IR) and acoustic trace, digital cockpit design, high ballistic resistance, state-of-the-art avionics, compatibility with high altitude and temperature, resistance to environmental factors, advanced EW and countermeasure systems.
It can carry high-caliber cannons, new generation rockets, long-range anti-tank missiles and air-to-air missile systems.
The heavy class helicopter can be used for air-to-ground combat, air-to-air combat, armed reconnaissance and surveillance, close air support (CAS), armed escort or joint offensive operations.
The current T129 tactical reconnaissance and attack helicopters which were upgraded to Phase-2 level are in the inventories of the TSK, along with Turkey’s General Directorate of Security which most recently received the aircraft.
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