Westfields Cheetah

Westfields Cheetah
Role	Attack/Assault Helicopter
Manufacturer	Westfields Aircraft/Arthuristan Dynamics
Introduction	1970
Status	In service
Primary user	Commonwealth Army, Commonwealth Navy

The Westfield Cheetah began as a licensed version of the SA 330 Puma, selected by the Commonwealth Defence Forces in the late-60s as a replacement for the Wessex as its main medium utility helicopter. Unlike the baseline aircraft, the Arthuristan version features a marginally stretched airframe and is equipped with a pair of slightly more powerful Rollers Engineering turboshafts.

In the early-1970s, as gunships such as the Cobra and Hind began to proliferate overseas, the Commonwealth Army also started to consider the procurement of an attack helicopter. Since other projects had funding priority, surplus Pumas were given ad hoc upgrade kits to convert them into gunships. As such, the Cheetah was born in 1973.

Cheetah AHC.1

The first generation of Cheetahs were essentially Pumas given improvised upgrade kits. Two lattices of steel rods were bolted to the flanks of the airframe, creating two heavy duty hardpoints compatible with pods of four Swingfire anti-tank missiles and two light hardpoints for CRV7 unguided rockets or 20mm gun pods. As the Cheetah retained the baseline model's transport and assault capabilities, it soon proved immensely popular among divisional commanders for their flexibility and reliability.

Fire control was remarkably simple: the gunner, formerly the co-pilot, was equipped with a 2-12x telescopic sight unit which took the form of a trainable and stabilised pod bolted under the nose of the aircraft and sighted using a periscope on the gunner's panel, compatible with period night-vision goggles. It was connected to the missile control module to allow him to steer the missiles out to a range of 3.5km, while the pilot has a heads up reflex sight to engage close range targets with guns and rockets.

Cheetah AHC.2

The Commonwealth Army inducted its first Arthuristan Dynamics Raven in 1987. Yet, no one pressed for the wholesale replacement of Cheetahs given the combination of budgetary pressure, the mountainous stockpiles of Cheetah spare parts remaining in the inventory and their versatile combination of assault and attack capabilities. Instead, another series of upgrade its were made available for the Cheetah fleet. The telescopic sight unit was replaced by an Electro-Optical Unit mounted on the same pod, featuring a laser range-finder, a TV camera and FLIR for navigation and targeting at night or in adverse visibility conditions. Also added was a turret under the nose of the aircraft for a lightweight 20mm autocannon intended for strafing soft targets, slaved to the gunner's helmet-mounted display. The ACH.2 also received flare-dispensing units and satellite navigation equipment as well as being made compatible with the Hellfire. An applique armour suite of titanium and aluminium was installed to protect vital areas from ground fire.

Cheetah AHC.3

The 2000's led to another round of calls for the Cheetah's complete replacement, but the same combination of the aircraft's flexibility and lack of budget meant that the Cheetah remained in service and was given yet another upgrade package. This time, the Electro-Optical Unit's FLIR units were upgraded with second-generation thermal imaging technology, the model was made compatible with Scorpion missiles and received improved thermal-signature reduction measures and infra-red countermeasures. A targeting radar system, a simplified version of the AESA Anubis Attack Radar which equips the Raven, is mounted in a pod on the top of the shaft. The cockpit was upgraded to a semi-glass configuration with LCD screens replacing some of the analogue dials.

Cheetah EHC

The Cheetah EHC is a modification of airframes made surplus in the mid- to late-80s by the introduction of Ravens. It is an electronic intelligence and warfare helicopter, equipped with direction finders to find the bearing of enemy radars and headquarters broadcasting radio waves, as well as jammers to disrupt their communications. The EHC.2 was introduced in the early-2000s, featuring increased capabilities against modern frequency-hopping radio systems.

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Capacity: 16-20 troops
• Length: 15 m
• Height: 4.6 m
• Empty weight: 3,615 kg
• useful load: 1,200 kg
• Max takeoff weight: 7,400 kg
• Powerplant: 2 × Rollers Engineering RET-4 turboshaft engines, 1,650 hp each
• Main rotor diameter: 16.2 m
• Main rotor area: 206.15 m2

Performance

• Maximum speed: 257 km/h
• Range: 580 km
• Service ceiling: 4,800 m
• Rate of climb: 7.1 m/s

Armament

• 1x 20mm autocannon
• 2x heavy-duty hardpoints for quadruple anti-tank missile pods (Swingfire, Hellfire or Scorpion missile)
• 2x light hardpoints for single unguided rocket pod (CRV7) or twin air-to-air missile (Stinger, Starburst or Starstreak)

Sensors

• Integrated Electro Optical Unit (including TV camera, laser rangefinder and navigation/targeting thermal imagers)
• Anubis-B fire control radar