![]() Being based on the Westland Lynx, the proposed design was internally designated WG 47 its configuration included a faceted fuselage with internally stored weapons, twin canted tail rotors and the routing of engine, environmental and cooling system exhausts into a side-exiting infrared suppressor. During the 1980s, British company Westland Helicopters undertook a top secret research programme towards developing a stealth attack helicopter. Various other nations have worked on stealth helicopter technology. Maloof’s claim, however, is not supported by any evidence. Michael Maloof, a former Pentagon senior policy analyst, identical stealthy UH-60s have been supplied to Israel and used for intelligence gathering missions inside Iran. All of these features appear to be designed to reduce its radar signature, especially from the critical forward hemisphere aspect. It also has a heavily modified rotor hub. The helicopter's most notable features are the extreme modifications to the nose, the "doghouse" where the engines and main gearbox are situated, as well as the engine intakes and exhausts. One of the UH-60s had crashed during the raid, leading to the remains being recovered and studied by various authorities, revealing the existence of this type to the public. Prior to the raid, the existence of such helicopters had been unknown. It is believed that one or multiple of the UH-60 Black Hawks used in the raid upon Osama bin Laden's compound on featured stealth technologies. It is known that a number of Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks have been outfitted with stealth technologies these features reportedly include the use of specialized materials, along with numerous harsh angles and flat surfaces across the exterior fuselage, techniques that had previously been employed upon other stealth aircraft. However, the Comanche programme was ultimately cancelled, both due to rising costs and the considerable technical issues which had been experienced. The United States Army sought to develop a stealth helicopter for aerial reconnaissance missions between 19, work on the Boeing/Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche entered the prototype stage with an eye towards production. Such helicopters were considered advantageous by several military planners. It was reportedly used in at least one operation by the CIA, to deploy a wiretap during the Vietnam War. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was one such party seeking such rotorcraft, during the early 1970s, a single modified Hughes 500P was produced for the agency it had a reduced noise operation capability, leading to its nickname of "The Quiet One". It was during this time that several different stealth helicopters would first emerge. Furthermore, various nations have stated their ambitions to introduce their own stealth helicopters.Īn OH-6 Cayuse, similar to the Hughes 500PĮfforts to develop helicopters which possessed low observability characteristics commenced during the Cold War period. The raid on the compound of Osama bin Laden in May 2011 utilized what appeared to be two Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks, heavily modified for quieter operations and employing stealth technology to be less visible to radar. Attack helicopters, such as the HAL Light Combat Helicopter and Eurocopter Tiger, have incorporated numerous presence reduction technologies into their design to increase their survivability. Various helicopters have been furnished with infrared exhaust suppressors to reduce their vulnerability to infrared homing weapons. It is known that some nations have used such rotorcraft operationally, albeit in a limited scope, since the 1970s a modified Hughes 500P was used by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) during the Vietnam War. ![]() Numerous helicopters have incorporated profiled fuselages to reduce their radar cross-section (RCS), constructing elements of the rotorcraft from of certain materials is another means of minimising radar visibility. ![]() However, blade designs have been developed that can significantly reduce noise, which has traditionally been a major issue for any operation involving the clandestine use of helicopters. In many ways, helicopters are less suitable for stealth technology than fixed-wing aircraft are one such area is their rotor blades, which not only generate copious noise levels but can also give off a strong radar signature. There are a diverse range of technologies used to achieve this decreased detectability these have largely involved the reduction of several different signatures typically generated by a rotorcraft, including those of noise, radar, and infrared. Stealth helicopters are helicopters that incorporate stealth technology to decrease an enemy's detection ability. A stealthy RAH-66 Comanche (foreground) flying in formation with a non-stealthy AH-64 Apache (background) ![]()
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