1.
United Arab Emirates
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In 2013, the UAEs population was 9.2 million, of which 1.4 million are Emirati citizens and 7.8 million are expatriates. The country is a federation of seven emirates, and was established on 2 December 1971, the constituent emirates are Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain. Each emirate is governed by a monarch, together, they jointly form the Federal Supreme Council. One of the monarchs is selected as the President of the United Arab Emirates, Islam is the official religion of the UAE and Arabic is the official language. The UAEs oil reserves are the seventh-largest in the world while its natural gas reserves are the worlds seventeenth-largest, Sheikh Zayed, ruler of Abu Dhabi and the first President of the UAE, oversaw the development of the Emirates and steered oil revenues into healthcare, education and infrastructure. The UAEs economy is the most diversified in the Gulf Cooperation Council, while its most populous city of Dubai is an important global city, nevertheless, the country remains principally reliant on its export of petroleum and natural gas. The UAE is criticised for its rights record, including the specific interpretations of Sharia used in its legal system. The UAEs rising international profile has led analysts to identify it as a regional. It appears the land of the Emirates has been occupied for thousands of years, there is no proof of contact with the outside world at that stage, although in time it developed with civilisations in Mesopotamia and Iran. This contact persisted and became wide-ranging, probably motivated by trade in copper from the Hajar Mountains, in ancient times, Al Hasa was part of Al Bahreyn and adjoined Greater Oman. Sassanid groups were present on the Batinah coast, in 637, Julfar was an important port that was used as a staging post for the Islamic invasion of the Sassanian Empire. The area of the Al Ain/Buraimi Oasis was known as Tuam and was an important trading post for camel routes between the coast and the Arabian interior. The earliest Christian site in the UAE was first discovered in the 1990s, a monastic complex on what is now known as Sir Bani Yas Island. Thought to be Nestorian and built in 600 AD, the church appears to have been abandoned peacefully in 750 AD and it forms a rare physical link to a legacy of Christianity which is thought to have spread across the peninsula from 50 to 350 AD following trade routes. Certainly, by the 5th century, Oman had a bishop named John – the last bishop of Oman being Etienne, in 676 AD. This led to a group of travelling to Medina, converting to Islam and subsequently driving a successful uprising against the unpopular Sassanids. Following the death of Prophet Muhammad, the new Islamic communities south of the Persian Gulf threatened to disintegrate, with insurrections against the Muslim leaders. The Caliph Abu Bakr sent an army from the capital Medina which completed its reconquest of the territory with the battle of Dibba in which 10,000 lives are thought to have been lost
2.
Military aviation
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Airpower includes the national means of conducting such warfare, including the intersection of transport and war craft. Military aircraft include bombers, fighters, transports, trainer aircraft, the first military uses of aviation involved lighter-than-air balloons. During the Battle of Fleurus in 1794, the French observation balloon lEntreprenant was used to monitor Austrian troop movements, the use of lighter-than-air aircraft in warfare became prevalent in the 19th century, including regular use in the American Civil War. Lighter-than-air military aviation persisted until shortly after World War II, gradually being withdrawn from various roles as heavier-than-air aircraft improved, heavier-than-air aircraft were recognized as having military applications early on, despite resistance from traditionalists and the severe limitations of early aircraft. The U. S. Army Signal Corps purchased a Wright Model A on 2 August 1909 which became the first military aircraft in history, in 1911, the Italians used a variety of aircraft types in reconnaissance, photo-reconnaissance, and bombing roles during the Italo-Turkish War. The Turks, lacking anti-aircraft weapons, were the first to shoot down an aeroplane by rifle fire, technological improvements were made at a frenzied pace, and the first all-metal cantilevered airplanes were going into service as the war ended. The Allies would later use rocket-equipped fighters in the role, immobilizing German armored divisions during the Battle of Normandy. This played a role in winning the Battle of the Atlantic. The introduction of the jet engine, radar, early missiles, helicopters, post World War II, the development of military aviation was spurred by the Cold War stand-off between the super-powers. In the early 1960s, missiles were expected to replace manned interceptors, missiles were also expensive, especially against low-value ground targets. The 1970s saw the return of the fighter, and a greater emphasis on maneuverability. The 1980s through to the present day were characterized by stealth technology, airborne Early Warning provides advance warning of enemy activities to reduce the chance of being surprised. Many also have functions that allow them to direct or vector friendly fighters onto incoming bogeys. Bombers are capable of carrying payloads of bombs and may sacrifice speed or maneuverability to maximize payload. Experimental aircraft are designed to test advanced aerodynamic, structural, avionic and these are usually well instrumented, with performance data telemetered on radio-frequency data links to ground stations located at the test ranges where they are flown. Fighters establish and maintain air superiority, speed and maneuverability are usually requirements and they carry a variety of weapons, including machine guns and guided missiles, to do this. Forward Air Control directs close air support aircraft to ensure that the targets are nullified. Ground-attack aircraft support ground troops by weakening or nullifying enemy defenses, helicopter gunships and specialized ground attack aircraft attack enemy armor or troops and provide close air support for ground troops
3.
Armed Forces of UAE
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The Union Defence Force is the armed forces of the United Arab Emirates and has primary responsibility for the defence of all seven emirates. It consists of 65,000 personnel, and is headquartered in Abu Dhabi, UAE. The Trucial Oman Scouts, long the symbol of order on the coast. France opened the Abu Dhabi Base in May 2009, in March 2011, the UAE agreed to join the enforcement of the no-fly-zone over Libya by sending six F-16 and six Mirage 2000 multi-role fighter aircraft. During the Gulf war, the US had troops and equipment stationed in the UAE as well as parts of the Persian Gulf. There are two distinct military organizations in the UAE, the military force is called the Union Defence Force. As part of the military of the United Arab Emirates Ground Force is responsible for land operations, the United Arab Emirates Air Force has about 4,000 personnel. The air force agreed in 1999 to purchase 80 US F-16 multirole fighter aircraft, other equipment includes 60 Mirage 2000s, British Hawk aircraft, and French helicopters. The air defense has a Hawk missile program for which the United States has been training, the UAE has taken delivery of two of five Triad I-Hawk batteries. United Arab Emirates Air Defence Force Responsible for aircraft, the United Arab Emirates Navy is growing, with more than 2,000 personnel and 72 vessels. United Arab Emirates Marines – The UAE maintains a battalion sized marine force called the UAE Marines. Federal Police Force Four Emirates maintained their own prior to the unification of the defence forces. Three were theoretically merged into the Union Defence Force in 1976, the officer corps were mainly British and Jordanian. The ADDF became the Western Command of the UDF in 1976, dubai Defence Force – Formed in 1971, by 1975 the DDF had 3,000 men with Ferret and Saladin armoured cars. It later expanded to 20,000 men in one infantry brigade group, Aermacchi MB-326 ground attack aircraft, the DDF became the Central Command of the UDF in 1996. Ras al-Khaimah Mobile Force – Formed in 1969, it initially had 300 men with Ferret and Saladin armoured cars, organised into one armored squadron and it eventually expanded to 9,000 men. It became the Northern Command of the UDF in 1996, in addition, the Sharjah National Guard was formed in 1972. It was essentially a paramilitary force of 500–600 men with Shorland armoured cars and it merged with the Federal Police in 1976
4.
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
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Code-named Operation Decisive Storm, the intervention initially consisted of a bombing campaign on Houthi Rebels and later saw a naval blockade and the deployment of ground forces into Yemen. Fighter jets and ground forces from Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, Djibouti, Eritrea and Somalia made their airspace, territorial waters and military bases available to the coalition. The United States provided intelligence and logistical support, including aerial refueling and it also accelerated the sale of weapons to coalition states. US and Britain have deployed their military personnel in the command and control centre responsible for Saudi-led air strikes on Yemen, Pakistan was called on by Saudi Arabia to join the coalition, but its parliament voted to maintain neutrality. On 21 April 2015, the Saudi-led military coalition announced an end to Operation Decisive Storm, the kingdom and its coalition partners said they would be launching political and peace efforts, which they called Operation Restoring Hope. However, the coalition did not rule out using force, saying it would respond to threats, the war has received widespread criticism and had a dramatic worsening effect on the humanitarian situation, that reached the level of a humanitarian disaster or humanitarian catastrophe. On 1 July UN declared for Yemen a level-three emergency – the highest UN emergency level – for a period of six months, Human rights groups repeatedly blamed the Saudi-led military coalition for killing civilians and destroying health centers and other infrastructure with airstrikes. The de facto blockade left 78% of the Yemeni population in urgent need of food, water, aid ships are allowed, but the bulk of commercial shipping, on which the country relies, is blocked. In one occasion, coalition jets prevented an Iranian Red Crescent plane from landing by bombing Sanaa International Airports runway, as of 10 December, more than 2,500,000 people had been internally displaced by the fighting. Many countries evacuated more than 23,000 foreign citizens from Yemen, more than 1,000,000 people fled Yemen for Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan and Oman. Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, running unopposed for president, won the 2012 Yemeni elections, the Houthis, a Zaidi Shia movement and militant group thought to be backed by Iran, took control of the Yemeni government through a series of actions in 2014 and 2015. Saudi Arabia and other countries denounced this as an unconstitutional coup détat, Saudi media claim that Saleh or his son had approached Riyadh seeking such a deal. By September 2014, Houthi fighters captured Sanaa, toppling Hadis government, soon after, a peace deal was concluded between the Hadi government and the Houthis, but was not honored by either party. The deal was drafted with the intent of defining a power-sharing government, a conflict over a draft constitution resulted in the Houthis consolidating control over the Yemeni capital in January 2015. After resigning from his post alongside his prime minister and remaining under house arrest for one month. Upon arriving in Aden, Hadi withdrew his resignation, saying that the actions of the Houthis from September 2014 had amounted to a coup against him. By 25 March, forces answering to Sanaa were rapidly closing in on Aden, during the Houthis southern offensive, Saudi Arabia began a military buildup on its border with Yemen. In response, a Houthi commander boasted that his troops would counterattack against any Saudi aggression and would not stop until they had taken Riyadh, the Saudi capital
5.
Fighter aircraft
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A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat against other aircraft, as opposed to bombers and attack aircraft, whose main mission is to attack ground targets. The hallmarks of a fighter are its speed, maneuverability, many fighters have secondary ground-attack capabilities, and some are designed as dual-purpose fighter-bombers, often aircraft that do not fulfill the standard definition are called fighters. This may be for political or national security reasons, for advertising purposes, a fighters main purpose is to establish air superiority over a battlefield. Since World War I, achieving and maintaining air superiority has been considered essential for victory in conventional warfare, the word fighter did not become the official English-language term for such aircraft until after World War I. In the British Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force these aircraft were referred to as scouts into the early 1920s, the U. S. Army called their fighters pursuit aircraft from 1916 until the late 1940s. In most languages a fighter aircraft is known as a hunter, exceptions include Russian, where a fighter is an истребитель, meaning exterminator, and Hebrew where it is matose krav. As a part of nomenclature, a letter is often assigned to various types of aircraft to indicate their use. In Russia I was used, while the French continue to use C and this has always been the case, for instance the Sopwith Camel and other fighting scouts of World War I performed a great deal of ground-attack work. Several aircraft, such as the F-111 and F-117, have received fighter designations but had no fighter capability due to political or other reasons, the F-111B variant was originally intended for a fighter role with the U. S. Navy, but it was cancelled. This blurring follows the use of fighters from their earliest days for attack or strike operations against ground targets by means of strafing or dropping small bombs, versatile multirole fighter-bombers such as the F/A-18 Hornet are a less expensive option than having a range of specialized aircraft types. An interceptor is generally an aircraft intended to target bombers and so often trades maneuverability for climb rate, fighters were developed in World War I to deny enemy aircraft and dirigibles the ability to gather information by reconnaissance. Early fighters were very small and lightly armed by later standards, and most were built with a wooden frame, covered with fabric. As control of the airspace over armies became increasingly important all of the major powers developed fighters to support their military operations, between the wars, wood was largely replaced by steel tubing, then aluminium tubing, and finally aluminium stressed skin structures began to predominate. By World War II, most fighters were all-metal monoplanes armed with batteries of guns or cannons. By the end of the war, turbojet engines were replacing piston engines as the means of propulsion, further increasing aircraft speed. Since the weight of the engine was so less than on piston engined fighters. This in turn required the development of ejection seats so the pilot could escape, in the 1950s, radar was fitted to day fighters, since pilots could no longer see far enough ahead to prepare for any opposition. Since then, radar capabilities have grown enormously and are now the method of target acquisition
6.
General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon
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The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force. Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft, over 4,500 aircraft have been built since production was approved in 1976. Although no longer being purchased by the U. S. Air Force, in 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation, which in turn became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta. The F-16 has an internal M61 Vulcan cannon and 11 locations for mounting weapons, the F-16 has also been procured to serve in the air forces of 25 other nations. As of 2015, it is the second most common operational military aircraft in the world. Experiences in the Vietnam War revealed the need for air superiority fighters, boyds work called for a small, lightweight aircraft that could maneuver with the minimum possible energy loss, and which also incorporated an increased thrust-to-weight ratio. Air Force F-X proponents remained hostile to the concept because they perceived it as a threat to the F-15 program, however, the Air Forces leadership understood that its budget would not allow it to purchase enough F-15 aircraft to satisfy all of its missions. The Advanced Day Fighter concept, renamed F-XX, gained political support under the reform-minded Deputy Secretary of Defense David Packard. As a result, in May 1971, the Air Force Prototype Study Group was established, with Boyd a key member and this was the region where USAF studies predicted most future air combat would occur. The anticipated average flyaway cost of a version was $3 million. This production plan, though, was only notional as the USAF had no plans to procure the winner. Five companies responded and in 1972, the Air Staff selected General Dynamics Model 401 and Northrops P-600 for the prototype development. GD and Northrop were awarded contracts worth $37.9 million and $39.8 million to produce the YF-16 and YF-17, respectively, with first flights of both prototypes planned for early 1974. To overcome resistance in the Air Force hierarchy, the Fighter Mafia, the high/low mix would allow the USAF to be able to afford sufficient fighters for its overall fighter force structure requirements. The mix gained broad acceptance by the time of the flyoff, defining the relationship of the LWF. The YF-16 was developed by a team of General Dynamics engineers led by Robert H. Widmer. The first YF-16 was rolled out on 13 December 1973, and its 90-minute maiden flight was made at the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, California and its actual first flight occurred accidentally during a high-speed taxi test on 20 January 1974. The test pilot, Phil Oestricher, decided to lift off to avoid a potential crash, the slight damage was quickly repaired and the official first flight occurred on time
7.
Helicopter
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A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and these attributes allow helicopters to be used in congested or isolated areas where fixed-wing aircraft and many forms of VTOL aircraft cannot perform. English language nicknames for helicopter include chopper, copter, helo, heli, Helicopters were developed and built during the first half-century of flight, with the Focke-Wulf Fw 61 being the first operational helicopter in 1936. Some helicopters reached limited production, but it was not until 1942 that a helicopter designed by Igor Sikorsky reached full-scale production, with 131 aircraft built. Though most earlier designs used more than one rotor, it is the single main rotor with anti-torque tail rotor configuration that has become the most common helicopter configuration. Tandem rotor helicopters are also in use due to their greater payload capacity. Coaxial helicopters, tiltrotor aircraft, and compound helicopters are all flying today, quadcopter helicopters pioneered as early as 1907 in France, and other types of multicopter have been developed for specialized applications such as unmanned drones. The earliest references for vertical flight came from China, since around 400 BC, Chinese children have played with bamboo flying toys. This bamboo-copter is spun by rolling a stick attached to a rotor, the spinning creates lift, and the toy flies when released. The 4th-century AD Daoist book Baopuzi by Ge Hong reportedly describes some of the ideas inherent to rotary wing aircraft, designs similar to the Chinese helicopter toy appeared in Renaissance paintings and other works. In the 18th and early 19th centuries Western scientists developed flying machines based on the Chinese toy. It was not until the early 1480s, when Leonardo da Vinci created a design for a machine that could be described as an aerial screw, that any recorded advancement was made towards vertical flight. His notes suggested that he built flying models, but there were no indications for any provision to stop the rotor from making the craft rotate. As scientific knowledge increased and became accepted, people continued to pursue the idea of vertical flight. In July 1754, Russian Mikhail Lomonosov had developed a small coaxial modeled after the Chinese top but powered by a spring device. It was powered by a spring, and was suggested as a method to lift meteorological instruments. Sir George Cayley, influenced by a fascination with the Chinese flying top, developed a model of feathers, similar to that of Launoy and Bienvenu. By the end of the century, he had progressed to using sheets of tin for rotor blades and his writings on his experiments and models would become influential on future aviation pioneers
8.
Boeing CH-47 Chinook
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The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is an American twin-engine, tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter. Its primary roles are troop movement, artillery placement and battlefield resupply and it has a wide loading ramp at the rear of the fuselage and three external ventral cargo hooks. With a top speed of 170 knots the helicopter was faster than contemporary 1960s utility helicopters and attack helicopters, the CH-47 is among the heaviest lifting Western helicopters. Its name is from the Native American Chinook people, the Chinook was designed and initially produced by Boeing Vertol in the early 1960s, it is now produced by Boeing Rotorcraft Systems. It is one of the few aircraft of that era – along with the fixed-wing Lockheed C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft – that remain in production and frontline service, with over 1,200 built to date. The helicopter has been sold to 16 nations with the U. S. Army, in late 1956, the United States Department of the Army announced plans to replace the Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave, which was powered by piston engines, with a new, gas turbine-powered helicopter. Turbine engines were also a key feature of the smaller UH-1 Huey utility helicopter. Following a design competition, in September 1958, a joint Army–Air Force source selection board recommended that the Army procure the Vertol medium transport helicopter, however, funding for full-scale development was not then available, and the Army vacillated on its design requirements. Vertol began work on a new tandem-rotor helicopter designated Vertol Model 107 or V-107 in 1957, in June 1958, the U. S. Army awarded a contract to Vertol for the aircraft under the YHC-1A designation. The YHC-1A had a capacity for 20 troops, three were tested by the Army for deriving engineering and operational data. However, the YHC-1A was considered by most of the Army users to be too heavy for the assault role, the decision was made to procure a heavier transport helicopter and at the same time upgrade the UH-1 Huey as a tactical troop transport. The YHC-1A would be improved and adopted by the Marines as the CH-46 Sea Knight in 1962, the Army then ordered the larger Model 114 under the designation HC-1B. The pre-production Boeing Vertol YCH-1B made its initial hovering flight on 21 September 1961, in 1962 the HC-1B was redesignated the CH-47A under the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system. It was named Chinook for the Chinook people of the Pacific Northwest, the CH-47 is powered by two Lycoming T55 turboshaft engines, mounted on each side of the helicopters rear pylon and connected to the rotors by driveshafts. Initial models were fitted with engines rated at 2,200 horsepower each, the counter-rotating rotors eliminate the need for an anti-torque vertical rotor, allowing all power to be used for lift and thrust. The ability to adjust lift in either rotor makes it sensitive to changes in the center of gravity. If one engine fails, the other can drive both rotors, the sizing of the Chinook was directly related to the growth of the Huey and the Armys tacticians insistence that initial air assaults be built around the squad. The Army pushed for both the Huey and the Chinook, and this focus was responsible for the acceleration of its air mobility effort, improved and more powerful versions of the CH-47 have been developed since the helicopter entered service
9.
Bell 412
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The Bell 412 is a twin-engine utility helicopter of the Huey family manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It is a development of the Bell 212, with the difference being the composite four-blade main rotor. Development began in the late 1970s with two Bell 212s being converted into 412 prototypes, an advanced four-blade main rotor with a smaller diameter replaced the 212s two-blade rotor. A Bell 412 prototype first flew in August 1979, the initial model was certified in January 1981 with deliveries commencing in the same month. The 412 model was followed by the 412SP version featuring larger fuel capacity, higher takeoff weight, in 1991, the 412HP variant with improved transmission replaced the SP version in production. The current production version, 412EP, is equipped with a digital automatic flight control system. In 2013 Bell introduced the 412EPI which includes an engine control for a PT6T-9 engine upgrade. Also featured is a Garmin touchscreen navigation system, and the BLR Strake, over 700 Model 412s have been built. Operated by the Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury and the Search, Bell Griffin HAR2 Search and Rescue helicopter based on the Bell 412EP, operated by No.84 Squadron RAF since 2003 at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus. Agusta-Bell AB412 Civil utility transport version, built under license in Italy by Agusta, agusta-Bell AB 412EP Italian-built version of the Bell 412EP. Agusta-Bell AB412 Grifone Military utility transport version, built under licence in Italy by Agusta, agusta-Bell AB412 CRESO Italian-built version, fitted with a ground surveillance radar. NBell 412 IPTNs licensed product of Bell 412 Panha 412EP Iranian domestically reverse-engineered version of AB 412EP,4 of these variant were introduced at October 8,2016 by Red Crescent of Iran. The Bell 412 is used by private and commercial operators and it is particularly popular in the oil industries, military and for law enforcement use. John Heinz III, which killed the senator, on December 10,2006, a Bell 412 medical helicopter Mercy Air 2 crashed in mountainous terrain near Hesperia, California. All three crew members on board died, all eight on board the helicopter died, including four key aides of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. On November 22,2010, a Bell 412 belonging to the Cameroon defense forces crashed en route from Douala to the countrys capital Yaounde, according to government sources, the aircraft had three crew and two passengers. Witnesses reported a dense fog with reduced visibility in the area, the aircraft was undertaking anti-drug operations against drug lords and was in pursuit of a high speed boat when it crashed in the jungle. On April 13,2014, an Augusta-Bell 412 military helicopter slammed into a hangar and crashed as it took off at Julius Nyerere International Airport, in Dar es Salaam, occupants including Tanzanian Vice President Mohamed Gharib Bilal and other top government officials narrowly survived the crash
10.
Eurocopter Fennec
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The Eurocopter AS550 Fennec and AS555 Fennec 2 are lightweight, multipurpose military helicopters manufactured by Eurocopter Group. Based on the AS350 Ecureuil and AS355 Ecureuil 2 series, they are named after the fennec fox, the armed versions of the AS550 and AS555 can be fitted with coaxial weapons, rockets, torpedoes and various other munitions. As a result of the Vienna Treaty, military variants of the Écureuil were marketed under a separate designation, in February 2007, India selected the AS550 C3 Fennec over the Bell 407 helicopter in a deal for 197 helicopters worth 500 million USD. This deal was suspended in June 2007 because of concerns of alleged corruption in the bidding process, the contract is now being re-competed, and the AS550 C3 is among the helicopters competing for the deal. However India chose Kamov Ka-226T over AS550 C3 in the refreshed tender, on 20 January 2011, Royal Malaysian Navy PASKAL commandos rescued a hijacked Malaysian chemical tanker and its crew from Somali pirates. A Fennec helicopter provided reconnaissance and aerial gunfire to keep the mother ship at bay while commandos boarded the tanker. Single engine AS350 L1/L2 Ecureuil – Original military variants of AS350, AS550 C2 Fennec – Armed version based on AS350 B2. AS550 U2 Fennec – Unarmed version based on AS350 B2, AS550 C3 Fennec – Armed version based on AS350 B3. AS555 AR Fennec 2 – Armed with cannon and rockets, AS555 MN Fennec 2 – Unarmed naval version. AS555 MR Fennec 2 – Naval version, AS555 SN Fennec 2 – Armed naval version. AS555 SR Fennec 2 – Armed naval version, AS555 UN Fennec 2 – Training and utility version. AS555 UR Fennec 2 – Utility version, janes All The Worlds Aircraft 2003–2004. Official webpage Danish AS550 Fennec
11.
Eurocopter AS565 Panther
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The Eurocopter AS565 Panther is the military version of the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin medium-weight multi-purpose twin-engine helicopter. The Panther is used for a range of military roles, including combat assault, fire support, anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, search and rescue. During the 1980s, French aerospace firm Aerospatiale decided to develop a military version of their popular Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin. The civil SA365 N variant of the Dauphin was used as the point for the project, the new rotorcraft was designed to perform utility, anti-tank, troop-transport. On 28 February 1984, the military variant prototype, designated as the AS365M and later named Panther, a total of three prototypes were built. In May 1986, Aerospatiale formally launched production of the AS365M, the initial production model, which was initially designated as the AS365 K, was shortly re-designated and became widely known as the AS565 Panther. In February 2016, Airbus Helicopters promised to relocate the production line for the AS565 Panther to India if it is selected by the Indian Navy for a proposed utility helicopter acquisition. The AS565 Panther is a twin-engine medium-sized multi-mission rotorcraft, the Panther is powered by a pair of Turbomeca Arriel turboshaft engines, which drives the rotorcrafts main rotor as well as the fenestron anti-torque tail rotor device. The flight profile of the Panther has been described as being easy to manoeuver, possessing generous g-force limitations, in the commando-transport configuration, the Panther may carry up to 10 fully armed soldiers on board at a time in addition to the two pilots flying the aircraft. Various avionics are present upon the Panther, some variants are fitted with the advanced human-machine interface glass cockpit. The design of the cockpit and avionics systems, such as the management system. The cockpit was designed with extra panel space to accommodate future upgrades. According to Airbus Helicopters, the Panther family has been qualified to operate from the decks of over 100 classes of NATO vessels. The compact size of the Panther has enabled the type to be operated from smaller ocean-going vessels such as corvettes, to aid in shipboard landings under rough sea conditions and high winds, some variants can be furnished with the hydraulic Harpoon deck-lock securing device. The Panther can be armed with different sets of munitions and armaments. Damage resistance is increased by the adoption of self-sealing fuel tanks, the French Naval Aviation took delivery of 15 Panthers between 1993 and 1998 for maritime operations. In the Aden, the Panther has been used for maritime patrol, surveillance and troop-transport missions, such as the transportation of strike teams. In May 2009, France announced a major upgrade program for the Aeronavales Panther fleet, focused on cockpit upgrades
United Arab Emirates
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