Armed Black Hawk helicopter and its capabilities

 

      The advanced weapon system for Black Hawk helicopters allows pilots to identify and engage static or moving targets with forward firing guns, rockets and laser-designated air-to-ground missiles. Sikorsky qualified the weapon system to U.S. military airworthiness standards in 2017 after extensive live fire flight testing. The system is now operational with the UAE. The weapon system brings a cost-effective attack capability to third generation Black Hawk aircraft while fully retaining the platform’s multi-role utility. Ground crews can add or remove external wings and weapons of choice in three hours. Fully integrated with the aircraft’s digital flight controls, the weapon system calculates the range and the complex ballistics required for pilot gunners to hit targets with high accuracy and reliability from stand-off distances during day and night operations. Militaries can acquire the weapon system with new Black Hawk aircraft acquired direct from Sikorsky, or as a kit retrofitted onto already-fielded third generation aircraft by a Sikorsky-qualified modification centre.

      The helicopter can: suppress combatant ground threats with a high-rate of sustained firing from 70mm (2.75-inch) rockets and 0.50 caliber forward firing guns; terminate tanks and other armored vehicles from stand-off distances or on the move, up to 16 Hellfire missiles; protect ground convoys or coastal boat traffic with 70mm rockets and fixed-forward or crew-served 0.50 caliber and 7.62mm machine guns; employ the power of the EO/IR sensor during scout missions, armed with 70mm rockets and fixed-forward or crew-served 0.50 caliber and 7.62mm machine guns; fill the cabin with 11 troops and two gunners armed with 7.62mm machine guns, or remove all the seats and load the cabin with cargo and provide external sling-load operations on the move. Each station can carry any combination of fixed forward 50-cal (12.7mm) gun, 7- or 19-shot Hydra 70 rocket pods, or air-to-ground missiles. Pilots can view and track a target via the aircraft’s electro-optical/imaging infrared (EO/IIR) sensor/rangefinder. A helmet-mounted Display and Tracker System (pictured) presents pilots with a continuously computed impact point for gun and rockets rounds, as well as target designation for laser-guided missiles. Additionally, pilots can control two forward firing 7.62-mm mini-guns mounted to the cabin windows (when not crew served).