AH-2 Rooivalk
A Rooivalk flying at the Ysterplaat air show in 2006
Type	Attack helicopter
Manufacturer	Denel Aerospace Systems
Maiden flight	1990
Introduced	1999
Status	Active service
Primary user	South African Air Force
Number built	12
Unit cost	Est. An attack helicopter, also known as a Helicopter Gunship, is a Military helicopter armed for attacking targets on the ground An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing building testing selling and maintaining Aircraft, Aircraft parts The maiden flight of an Aircraft is the first occasion on which an aircraft leaves the ground of its own accord Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) The South African Air Force (SAAF is the Air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. $40 million[1]
Developed from	Aerospatiale Puma

The Denel AH-2 Rooivalk (previously designated CSH-2) is a modern attack helicopter manufactured by Denel Aerospace Systems of South Africa. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout An attack helicopter, also known as a Helicopter Gunship, is a Military helicopter armed for attacking targets on the ground The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Rooivalk is Afrikaans for "Red Kestrel". Afrikaans is an Indo-European language, derived from 17th century Dutch and classified as Low Franconian Germanic, mainly spoken in The name kestrel is given to several different members of the Falcon genus Falco. ^[2]

The South African Air Force (SAAF) has ordered 12 Rooivalk AH-2As, the first of which entered service in July 1999. The South African Air Force (SAAF is the Air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) The helicopters are flown by 16 Squadron, which is based at AFB Bloemspruit near Bloemfontein. AFB Bloemspruit is an airbase of the South African Air Force. Bloemfontein (ˈbluːmfɒnteɪn Afrikaans and Dutch for "spring of Bloem (bloom"

Contents 1 Development 2 Design 3 Operational service 4 Operators 5 Specifications 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

Development

The Rooivalk project began in early 1984 under the auspices of the Atlas Aircraft Corporation, a predecessor of Denel Aviation. The Atlas Aircraft Corporation of South Africa (also known as Atlas Aviation) was established in 1965 to manufacture a number of sophisticated military aircraft and Denel (Pty Ltd is a South African government dominated military-industrial and technological conglomerate established in 1991. Faced with the increasingly conventional nature of the South African Border War, the South African Defence Force recognised the need for a dedicated attack helicopter and accordingly set along the process of developing a suitable aircraft. The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, refers to the conflict that took place from 1966 to 1989 in South-West

The Atlas XH-1 Alpha was the first prototype to emerge from the program. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout It was developed from an Alouette III airframe, retaining that helicopter's engine and dynamic components, but replacing the original cockpit with a stepped tandem one, adding a 20mm cannon on the nose and converting the undercarriage to tail-dragger configuration. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The XH-1 first flew on February 3 1985. Events 1112 - Ramon Berenguer III of Barcelona and Douce I of Provence marry uniting the fortunes of those two states This is a list of Aviation -related events from 1985: Events Ryanair founded initially as a full-service carrier The results were ultimately good enough to convince Atlas and the South African Air Force that the concept was feasible, opening the door for the development of the AH-2 Rooivalk. The South African Air Force (SAAF is the Air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria.

During the AH-2's development it was decided to base the aircraft on the dynamic components of the Aérospatiale Super Puma,^[3] a larger and more powerful helicopter. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout These components were already used on the Atlas Oryx, a local upgrade and modification of the Aérospatiale Puma. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout ^[1]

Design

Due to the SAAF's decades of helicopter experience in the harsh African environment, the Rooivalk has been designed to operate in very basic surroundings for prolonged periods without sophisticated support. All that is needed to keep the Rooivalk flying is a medium transport helicopter equipped with a basic spares supply plus four groundcrew.

The AH-2 carries a range of weapons depending on the mission profile. It is generally fitted with a nose mounted 20mm cannon and can also carry air-to-air missiles, anti-armour missiles and unguided rockets. The AH-2 has a fire control system for target acquisition and tracking as well as an advanced navigation system utilising doppler radar and GPS. Also incorporated is an electronic countermeasures suite coupled with chaff and flare dispensers.

Notable features include a tandem cockpit, starboard tail rotor with a port tail plane, a fixed wheeled undercarriage as well as wire cutters above and below the cockpit and on the undercarriage.

The following types of missions are foreseen for the AH-2 Rooivalk: Reconnaissance, heliborne escort, close air support, deep penetration and anti-armour. Reconnaissance (also scouting) is a military and medical term denoting exploration conducted to gain information In Military tactics, close air support ( CAS) is defined as air action by fixed or rotary winged aircraft against hostile targets that are in close proximity to

Operational service

By April 2005, only six of the 12 aircraft were operational with the others in need of software upgrades. The South African Air Force Chief hoped that the helicopters would be ready around June 2007, indicating the "extremely worrying factor of time that the project was taking to reach maturity", attributing the delays to the exodus of personnel from Denel as well as its financial problems. This has forced the nation's air force to assess alternative defense development partners^[4].

On 17 May 2007, Denel group CEO Shaun Liebenberg announced a decision^[5] to cease development and funding for the Rooivalk following its failure to win the Turkey's attack helicopter tender^[6] against the Agusta A129 Mangusta. Events 1521 - Edward Stafford 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for Treason. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout

During November 2007, Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota announced in Parliament, that the South African Air Force is to invest R962 million (about $137 million in 2007 exchange rates) in the helicopter, over three years to 2010/2011, in order to bring it up to full operational status. Events in November All Saints' Day (formerly All Hallows Day a Christian holy day is celebrated on November 1, the day after Halloween Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Mosiuoa Gerard Patrick Lekota (born 13 August 1948) is a South African politician who was Minister of Defence from 17 June 1999 to 25 September TalkParliament#Screen-size. -->A  parliament is a Legislature, especially in those The South African Air Force (SAAF is the Air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. For the film see 2010 The Year We Make Contact. For the book see 2010 Odyssey Two. 2011 ( MMXI) will be a Common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ^[7]

The helicopter will be deployed on peace keeping duties as soon as initial operating capability is achieved.

Operators

 South Africa

• South African Air Force
  • 16 Squadron - AFB Bloemspruit

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: 2 (pilot & weapon systems officer)
• Length: 18,73 m (main rotor to tail rotor); 16. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The South African Air Force (SAAF is the Air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. AFB Bloemspruit is an airbase of the South African Air Force. 39 m fuselage ()
• Rotor diameter: 15. 58 m ()
• Height: 5. 19 m ()
• Empty weight: 5,190 kg ()
• Max takeoff weight: 8,750 kg (19,290 lb)

• Internal fuel capacity: 1,469 kg)

• Powerplant: 2× Turbomeca Makila 1K2 turboshafts, 1,716 kW (sea-level ISA) () each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 309 km/h (193 mph)
• Range: 700 km combat; 1,130 km ferry (440 mi / 700 mi)
• Service ceiling 6,000 m (20,000 ft)
• Rate of climb: 13. The Maximum Takeoff Weight or Maximum Takeoff Mass of an Aircraft is the maximum weight at which the pilot of the aircraft is allowed to attempt to take off The Turbomeca Makila is a family of Turboshaft engines for helicopter use first run in 1977. A turboshaft engine is a form of Gas turbine which is optimized to produce Shaft power, rather than Jet thrust. In Aviation, V-speeds or Velocity-speeds are standard terms used to define Airspeeds important or useful to the operation of Aircraft, such The maximal total range is the distance an Aircraft can fly between Takeoff and Landing, as limited by fuel capacity in powered aircraft or cross-country In Aeronautics, a ceiling is the maximum Density altitude an aircraft can reach under a set of conditions In Aerodynamics, the rate of climb RoC is the speed at which an Aircraft increases its Altitude. 3 m/s (2,105 ft/min)
• Disc loading: lb/ft² (kg/m²)
• Power/mass: hp/lb (kW/kg)

Armament

• 1 x F2 20 mm cannon, 700 rounds
• 8 or 16 x Mokopa ZT-6 long-range anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM),
• 4 x MBDA Mistral air-to-air missiles,
• 36 or 72 x 70 mm folding fin aerial rockets (FFAR)

See also

Related development

• Atlas XH-1 Alpha
• Aerospatiale Puma
  

Comparable aircraft

• AH-1 Cobra/AH-1 Super Cobra
• AH-64 Apache
• Agusta A129 Mangusta
• Eurocopter Tiger
• HAL Light Combat Helicopter
• Kamov Ka-50 Black Shark
• Mil Mi-24 Hind
• Mil Mi-28 Havoc
• WZ-10
  

Related lists

• List of attack aircraft
• List of helicopters
  

References

External links

• Denel Aviation Official Rooivalk Site
• Aircraft.co.za - The Complete Aviation Reference
• Air Force Technology - Rooivalk attack helicopter

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