Chinese state-owned media have revealed more details about an upgraded variant of the Zhishengji-10 (Z-10) attack helicopter in service with the People’s Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF).
Weihutang, a programme on military affairs from state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV), showed images on 7 September of an upgraded Z-10 operated by an aviation brigade of the 79th Group Army and fitted with new engine exhaust outlets pointing upwards – instead of the previous outward/sideways configuration – in an apparent effort to reduce the helicopter’s infrared signature as seen from the ground.
A screengrab from CCTV footage highlighting some of the latest improvements made to the PLA’s Z-10 attack helicopter. (Via cctv.com)
Moreover, the rotorcraft shown in the footage features extra armour panels that have been externally attached to the helicopter. The CCTV footage shows that the panels, which are presumably on both sides of the tandem-seat helicopter, are present in three areas. The first two panels can be seen just below both of the cockpit’s side windows, with the third panel located under the front cockpit window.
The third panel, which is the largest of the three, covers the lower middle section of the housing for the helicopter’s WZ9 turboshaft engine.
The programme quoted unnamed analysts as saying that the armour plates are likely to be made from a new type of composite material that is not only stronger but also much lighter than steel amour.
Weihutang said the upgraded version is also equipped with a new identification friend-or-foe (IFF) system and a new antenna for the BeiDou satellite navigation system to help “ensure its combat capability in a complex electromagnetic environment”.
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