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[kaxII]

I couldn't find a request for this in the search, so i am requesting this what i think is a obvious companion to the upcoming mi 8 and MiG-21's to make the middle-late cold war period very busy and close to being complete! (from the soviet side at least.)

The Mil Mi-24 ( NATO reporting name: Hind) is a large helicopter gunship and attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for eight passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and operated since 1972 by the Soviet Air Force, its successors, and more than 30 other nations.

In NATO circles, the export versions, Mi-25 and Mi-35, are denoted with a letter suffix as "Hind D" and "Hind E" respectively. Soviet pilots called the Mi-24 the "flying tank". More common unofficial nicknames were "Crocodile"due to the helicopter's camouflage scheme and "Glass" because of the flat glass plates which surround the cockpit of the Mi-24.

DESIGN
Overview

The core of the aircraft was derived from the Mil Mi-8 (NATO reporting name "Hip"): two top-mounted turboshaft engines driving a mid-mounted 17.3 m five-blade main rotor and a three-blade tail rotor. The engine configuration gave the aircraft its distinctive double air intake. Original versions have an angular greenhouse-style cockpit; Model D and later have a characteristic tandem cockpit with a "double bubble" canopy. Other airframe components came from the Mi-14 "Haze". Two mid-mounted stub wings provide weapon hardpoints, each offering three stations, in addition to providing lift. The load-out mix is mission dependent; Mi-24s can be tasked with close air support, anti-tank operations, or aerial combat.

The body is heavily armored and can resist impacts from .50 caliber (12.7 mm) rounds from all angles, including the titanium rotor blades. The cockpit is protected by ballistic-resistant windscreens and a titanium-armored tub. The cockpit and crew compartment are overpressurized to protect the crew in NBC conditions.

Flight charactistics

Considerable attention was given to making the Mi-24 fast. The airframe was streamlined, and fitted with retractable tricycle undercarriage landing gear to reduce drag. The wings provide considerable lift at high speed, up to a quarter of total lift. The main rotor was tilted 2.5° to the right from the fuselage to counteract dissymmetry of lift at high speed and provide a more stable firing platform. The landing gear was also tilted to the left so the rotor would still be level when the aircraft was on the ground, making the rest of the airframe tilt to the left. The tail was also asymmetrical to give a side force at speed, thus unloading the tail rotor.

A modified Mi-24B, named A-10, was used in several speed and time-to-climb world record attempts. The helicopter had been modified to reduce weight as much as possible, and among the measures used was to remove the stub wings. The speed record over a closed 1000 km course set on 13 August 1975 of 332.65 km/h still stands, as do many of the female specific records set by the all female crew of Galina Rastorgoueva and Ludmila Polyanskaia. On 21 September 1978 the A-10 set the absolute speed record for helicopters with 368.4 km/h over a 15/25 km course. The record stood until 1986 when it was broken by the current record holder, a modified Westland Lynx

Operational History

Ogaden War (1977–1978)
Cambodian-Vietnamese War (1978)
Chadian-Libyan conflict (1978–1987)
Soviet war in Afghanistan (1979–1989)
Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988)
Nicaraguan civil war (1980–1988)
Sri Lankan Civil War (1987–2009)
Persian Gulf War (1991)
Sierra Leone Civil War (1991–2002)
Croatian War of Independence (1990s)
First and Second Wars in Chechnya (1990s–2000s)
Cenepa War (1995)
Sudanese Civil War (1995–2005)
First and Second Congo Wars (1996–2003)
Kosovo war (1998–1999)
Conflict in Republic of Macedonia (2001)
Ivorian Civil War (2002–2004)
Afghanistan War (2001–present)
Iraq War (March 2003–2010)
War in Somalia (2006–2009)
War in Chad (2008)
South Ossetia war (2008)
Libyan civil war (2011)
2010–2011 Ivorian crisis

As you can see alot of wars!

First deployment and combat

Mi-24s were supplied to the Afghan government in April 1979 to deal with Mujahideen guerrillas. The Afghan pilots were well-trained and made effective use of their machines, but the Mujahideen were not easy targets. The first Mi-24 to be lost in action was shot down by guerrillas on 30 May 1979. The situation in Afghanistan grew worse and on 25 December 1979, Soviet troops were committed to the war.

After a brutal learning curve in the face of Afghan rebels, Mi-24 pilots learned to be dangerous themselves, and the rebels called the Mi-24 "Shaitan-Arba" (Satan's Chariot)". In one case, an Mi-24 pilot who was out of ammunition managed to rescue a company of infantry by maneuvering aggressively towards Mujahideen guerrillas and scaring them off. The Mi-24 was popular with ground troops, since it could stay on the battlefield and provide fire as needed, while "fast mover" strike jets could only stay for a short time before heading back to base to refuel.

The Mi-24's favoured munition was the 80-millimetre (3.1 in) S-8 rocket, the 57 mm (2.2 in) S-5 having proven too light to be effective. The 23 mm (0.91 in) gun pod was also popular. Extra rounds of rocket ammunition were often carried internally so that the crew could land and self-reload in the field. The Mi-24 could carry ten 100-kilogram (220 lb) iron bombs for attacks on camps or strongpoints, while harder targets could be dealt with a load of four 250-kilogram (550 lb) or two 500-kilogram (1,100 lb) iron bombs.[18] Some Mi-24 crews became experts at dropping bombs precisely on targets. Fuel-air explosive bombs were also used in a few instances, though crews initially underestimated the sheer blast force of such weapons and were caught by shock waves.

Combat experience quickly demonstrated the disadvantages of having a Mi-24 carrying troops. Gunship crews found the soldiers a concern and a distraction while being shot at, and preferred to fly lightly loaded anyway, especially given their operations from high ground altitudes in Afghanistan. Mi-24 troop compartment armour was often removed to reduce weight. Troops would be carried in Mi-8 helicopters while the Mi-24s provided fire support.

It did prove useful to carry a technician in the Mi-24's crew compartment, handling a light machine gun in a window port. This gave the Mi-24 some ability to "watch its back" while leaving a target area. In some cases a light machine gun was fitted on both sides to allow the technician to move from one side to the other without having to take the machine gun with him.

This weapon configuration still left the gunship blind to the direct rear, and Mil experimented with fitting a machine gun in the back of the fuselage, accessible to the gunner through a narrow crawl-way. The experiment was highly unsuccessful, as the space was cramped, full of engine exhaust fumes, and otherwise unbearable. During a demonstration, an overweight Soviet Air Force general got stuck in the crawl-way. Operational Mi-24s were retrofitted with rear-view mirrors to help the pilot spot threats and take evasive action.

The Mi-24s not only protected helicopter troop assaults and supported ground actions; they also protected convoys, using rockets with flechette warheads to drive off ambushes, performed strikes on predesignated targets, and engaged in "hunter-killer" sweeps. The hunter-killer Mi-24s operated in pairs at minimum, more often groups of four or eight, to provide mutual fire support. The Mujahideen learned to move mostly at night to avoid the gunships, and in response the Soviets trained their Mi-24 crews in night-fighting, dropping parachute flares to illuminate potential targets for attack. The Mujahideen quickly caught on and scattered as quickly as possible when Soviet target designation flares were lit nearby.

Specifications

General characteristics

    Crew: 3 (pilot, weapons system officer and technician)
    Capacity: 8 troops or 4 stretchers
    Length: 17.5 m (57 ft 4 in)
    Rotor diameter: 17.3 m (56 ft 7 in)
    Height: 6.5 m (21 ft 3 in)
    Disc area: 235 m² (2,530 ft²)
    Empty weight: 8,500 kg (18,740 lb)
    Max takeoff weight: 12,000 kg (26,500 lb)
    Powerplant: 2× Isotov TV3-117 turbines, 1,600 kW (2,200 hp) each
    Wingspan: 6.5 m (21 ft 3 in)

Performance

    Maximum speed: 335 km/h (208 mph)
    Range: 450 km (280 miles)
    Service ceiling: 4,500 m (14,750 ft)

PICTURES

Weaponary



Cockpit






BLUEPRINTS













YOUTUBE VIDEOS




(Can make photos bigger if needed and add more info if wanted)

[mikoyan99]

+1 for this, would love to see a hind in game.

[LuseKofte]

NO I SAY NO damn it, have some compassion. I got a yoke not a stick. NO MORE CHOPPERS plz


I had one old sim basedon that chopper, a real treat it was. You had to collect soldiers and blow tings up. Loved it

[SAS~Gerax]

Wasn't their a pic about a coming Mi-24 mod somewhere (our russian friends at Avia)?

[philly vodka]

I frickin love this chopper, since the first moment I saw it

[Fresco23]

+1 I've been hoping this one would come up sooner or later! Fingers crossed! 

[max_thehitman]

Wasn't their a pic about a coming Mi-24 mod somewhere (our russian friends at Avia)?

Indeed, I have seen screenshots of a Hind flying in the IL2 last year.
It is probably still in the factory, these things take time to make.

[kaxII]

NO I SAY NO damn it, have some compassion. I got a yoke not a stick. NO MORE CHOPPERS plz


I had one old sim basedon that chopper, a real treat it was. You had to collect soldiers and blow tings up. Loved it

Then get a stick as well!

and also i will have a look for this Hind pics, but i can't read russian 

[HotelAlpha]

Hind? That's the chopper to have in Il-2

[brav6]

My fav heli, here's some nice info by the military channel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALFTdSIdShs

[VF111Sundowner]

I like the Hind, it just looks mean with the wings loaded with pods.

Some additional facts about it, Another reason for the wheeled landing gear, was it needs to make rolling take-off and landing due to wieght.

The engine can only sustain a true hover for a total of 16 minutes before it needs to be overhualed (thats total time not 16 minutes at a time.)

They are do not normally turn right in close formation (rotor torque tends to swing tails into other squad mates)

The Original RED DAWN depicted the early verison fairly well (although they were modified Sea Kings to look like Mil-24As)
But the scene with the RPG exploding in the troop compartment and only killing the tech, is based on fact. From combat in Afganistan. (One of the reasons the US supplied Stingers to the Rebels)

Until the MiL-28 Havoc came out all attack heli pilots and AA crews were taught this was the most thing to fear and kill first if you had the chance over anything else, even other close support aircraft.

[BravoFxTrt]

Good info Sundowner, thanks.