After sending its 13 previously grounded MiG-29s to Ukraine, Slovakia has been offered 12 AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters with 500 AGM-114 Hellfire II missiles at a reduced price of $340M, with the US covering $660M and the EU covering $213M of the cost. The U.S. State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Slovakia of AH-1Z Attack Helicopters and related equipment for an estimated cost of $600 million. The Government of Slovakia has requested to buy 12 AH-1Z attack helicopters; 26 T-700 GE 401C engines (24 installed, 2 spares); 1,680 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems (APKWS), WGU-59/B; and 14 Honeywell embedded global positioning systems (GPS)/inertial navigation systems (INS) (EGIs) (12 installed, 2 spares). The proposed sale will improve Slovakia’s capability to meet current and future threats by providing the Slovak Air Force (Vzdušné sily Ozbrojených síl Slovenskej republiky) with aircraft to meet its national defense needs. Slovakia will have no difficulty absorbing this equipment into its armed forces. The principal contractors will be Bell Textron, located in Fort Worth, TX; and the General Electric Company, located in Lynn, MA.
The following non-MDE items will also be included: Helmet Mounted Display System/Optimized TopOwl, Target Sight Systems and containers; ANVIS-9 night vision cueing displays; AN/ARC-210 Generation 6 receiver-transmitter 2036 radio equipment; AN/APX-123A identification friend or foe (IFF) Mode 5 mounting trays and batteries; cartridge actuated devices/propellant actuated devices (CAD/PADs); M299 launchers, LAU-61C/A and LAU-68F/A rocket launchers, M151 high explosive warheads for airborne 2.75 inch rockets; MK66 MOD 4, 2.75-inch rocket motors; WTU-1B warheads; M197 20 mm armament pod gun assemblies; 20 mm PGU-27A/B target practice rounds; 20 mm PGU-28A/B semi armor piercing high explosive incendiary rounds; AN/ALE-47 chaff and flare countermeasures system; MJU-32A/B and MJU-49B decoy flares; SMB875B/ALE flare simulators; RR-129A/AL chaff cartridges; RR-144A/AL training chaff cartridges; CCU-136A/A impulse cartridges; AN/AAR-47 missile warning system; AN/APR-39C radar warning receiver and other related elements of logistics.
The Bell AH-1Z Viper is a twin-engine attack helicopter, based on the AH-1W SuperCobra, designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Bell Helicopter. It is one of the latest members of the prolific Bell Huey family. It is often called “Zulu Cobra”, based on the military phonetic alphabet pronunciation of its variant letter. The AH-1Z Viper attack helicopterand UH-1Y Venom utility helicopter share a common tailboom, engines, rotor system, drivetrain, avionics architecture, software, controls and displays for over 84% identical components. Furthermore, it features a four-blade, bearingless, composite main rotor system, uprated transmission, and a new target sighting system amongst other improvements. Crew members are equipped with the Thales “Top Owl” helmet-mounted sight and display system. This display provides a 24-hour day/night capability and a binocular display with a 40° field of view; its visor projection provides forward-looking infrared (FLIR) or video imagery. The Lockheed Martin target sight system (TSS) incorporates a third-generation FLIR sensor which provides target sighting and identification in day, night, or adverse weather conditions.
The AH-1Z is equipped with a pair of redesigned stub wings, these being substantially longer than those of the preceding SuperCobra. Each one has an additional wingtip station for a missile such as the AIM-9 Sidewinder. Each stub wing has two other stations for 2.75-inch (70 mm) Hydra 70 rocket pods, or AGM-114 Hellfire quad missile launchers. There are several design efforts to turn the Hydra 70 rocket into a precision guided munition (PGM) to produce a weapon with greater accuracy but at less cost than other guided missiles. The AGR-20 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) is a design conversion of Hydra 70 unguided rockets with a laser guidance kit to turn them into precision-guided munitions (PGMs). Other mission equipment can be fitted to these stations, including 77 and 100 gallon external auxiliary fuel tanks, LUU-2A/B nighttime illumination flares, and numerous types of practice munitions. Underneath the nose of the AH-1Z is an A/A49E-7 turret fitted with a 20 mm (0.787 in) M197 three-barreled rotary cannon; this weapon has a higher muzzle velocity and flatter trajectory than predecessors; it is also compatible with M50-series air-to-air rounds.
