The Apache AH 64-D Longbow:Edging Ahead

 A Seamless data linking facility provides near realtime situational awareness


An Apache AH 64-D:armed with HELLFIRES

The Apache AH 64-D:Advancements diagrammatic
For High Res. Pics Visit:Defense Review

     The AH-64D Longbow Apache is a remanufactured and upgraded version of the AH-64A Apache attack helicopter. The primary modifications to the Apache are the addition of a millimeter-wave Fire Control Radar (FCR) target acquisition system, the fire-and-forget Longbow Hellfire air-to-ground missile, updated T700-GE-701C engines, and a fully-integrated cockpit. In addition, the aircraft receives improved survivability, communications, and navigation capabilities.
     The US Army aimed to achieve several objectives with the digital Apache:
i)significantly reduced crew workload in night and adverse weather high threat environments
ii)significantly improved survivability in the face of pulse Doppler equipped SPAAGs and radar guided SAMs, as well as late generation heatseeking and laser guided MANPADS.
iii)significantly improved situational awareness in a highly dynamic, high threat battlefield environment
iv)significantly improved weapons reach and countermeasures immunity, much shorter engagement times, while allowing for much higher aggregate rates of missile fire.
     The objectives were to reduce vehicle exposure, while increasing lethality and speed of engagement, the latter essential to disrupting an opponent's manoeuvre force and breaking up his cohesion at a tactical, operational and force level.
     The AH-64D is being fielded in two configurations. The full-up AH-64D includes all of the improvements listed above. In addition, a version of the AH-64D without the FCR will be fielded. This version will not receive the new Radar Frequency Interferometer (RFI) or the improved engines, but will retain the other Longbow modifications. The AH-64D without FCR is capable of launching the Longbow Hellfire missile.
     McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Systems is under contract for the first 18 Longbow Apaches and delivered the first remanufactured Longbow Apache in March 1997. The Army and McDonnell Douglas agreed to a five-year, multi-year agreement that will give the Army 232 Longbow Apaches in the first five years of production. The multi-year purchase increases the Longbow Apache production rate in the first year to 24 aircraft and 232 for the five-year period. Under the multi-year contract, the Army will field two additional combat-ready Longbow Apache battalions. The contract also includes funding for McDonnell Douglas to train pilots and maintenance personnel for the first two equipped units, development of interactive electronic technical manuals, development of training devices, first article testing of the production aircraft, initial spares, and a variety of program support tasks for the first production lot. The U.S. Army plans to remanufacture its entire AH-64A Apache fleet of more than 750 aircraft over the next decade.

During Army operational testing in 1995, all six Longbow Apache prototypes competed against standard AH-64A Apaches. The threat array developed to test the combat capabilities of the two Apache designs was a postulated 2004 lethal and digitized force consisting of heavy armor, air defense and countermeasures. The tests clearly demonstrated that Longbow Apaches:
Are 400 percent more lethal (hitting more targets) than the AH-64A, already then the most capable and advanced armed helicopter in the world to enter service.

Are 720 percent more survivable than the AH-64A.

Meet or exceed Army requirements for both target engagement range and for probability of acquiring a seleted target. The specific requirements and results are classified.

Easily can hit moving and stationary tanks on an obscured, dirty battlefield from a range of more than 7 kilometers, when optical systems are rendered ineffective.

Can use either its Target Acquisition Designation Sight or fire control radar as a targeting sight, offering increased battlefield flexibility.

Have the ability to initiate the radar scan, detect and classify more than 128 targets, prioritize the 16 most dangerous targets, transmit the information to other aircraft, and initiate a precision attack -- all in 30 seconds or less.

Require one third less maintenance man hours (3.4) per flight hour than the requirement.

Are able to fly 91 percent of the time -- 11 percent more than the requirement.

     While the crew now see a revised cockpit with HOTAS controls, a pair of colour LCD menu driven displays and keypad, the capabilities hidden within the system run much deeper. All aircraft vital functions are monitored by software with extensive BIT support embedded. A dual RLG INS/GPS navigation system, supplemented by Doppler nav for accurate velocities, provides for extremely accurate navigation. An enhanced autopilot with attitude, altitude and position hold in hover takes the effort out of NOE "masked" hover behind covering terrain.
The Improved Data Modem (IDM) is employed to datalink threat and target information between AH-64D in a unit, or to allow uplinking or downlinking of such data to other aircraft. A JSTARS, satellite, UAV or manned SAR/GMTI recce asset can provide the AH-64D with target sets via the IDM, or upload recce from the Apache.

     The datalinking facility is seamlessly integrated into the software, allowing the pilot or gunner to use mouselike screen click and drag operations to "segment" a target set and with a click of a button pass the targets to another AH-64D.Software provides the ability to fuse data from the aircraft's sensors, and to fuse offboard and onboard sources. Any weapon can be targeted by any sensor, and sensors may be slaved to other sensors.
     The weapon system is vastly more flexible than that in the AH-64A via the provision of Mil-Std-1760 "smart" digital station adaptors for all six wing stations. Any 1760 capable munition can be accommodated via a clearance test and software modification.