Try to understand that T129 uses American engine, so it is highly unlikely that Pakistan will be able to acquire them.
@Quwa Rooivalk 2 looks good but I believe it is highly unlike that Pakistan will wait long for Rooivalk's come back. About WZ10, I thought Pakistan has placed an order for WZ10 with some changes.
Haris Khan on PakDef said the PAA liked the Z-10 and submitted some changes to China, the completion of which will result in orders. Folks via contacts are saying the Z-10 was rejected due to issues with its engine (which the PLA also understands). Based on all this, I'm getting the sense the Z-10 as-is wasn't accepted by PAA, and that it is basically waiting for a new variant.
In the end, a future Z-10 variant will likely form the mainstay of the attack helicopter fleet. But it is worth remembering that it is a medium-weight platform. Even the PLA is looking to develop a AH-64-level heavyweight gunship, and this might be the category of the Rooivalk 2.
The ironic thing is that the T-129 was blocked by US not for political reason per se, but economic ones. We wanted PA to buy only our stuff (yes it is political but not for the reasons normally given).
That being said, any rooivalk deal needs to be examined in a wider context of creating in roads with SA and the potential of a Pakistani /SA defense partnership has. With the potential for Denel to be a leading provider of weaponry for JF-17 (via a darter and marlin, as well as any a2g weaponry), PAF will already be a potential partner for SA. If PN can utilize umkhonto versions for any future frigate and the PA goes rooivalk, we could see a very well intrenched integration of the defense industries of both nations leading to potentially massive oppurtunities for ToT and local manufacturing in Pakistan. One could potentially see a sort of affiliation on future projects between PAC, Denel and AWC.
Physically, it is nearly a match for apache (though electronically im not so sure)
Well said. The Rooivalk 2 aims to infuse the platform with modern electronics, a customer could theoretically ask their specific units be configured up to par with AH-64D.
Rooivalk is one of most heavily equipped helicopter .. 30 mm with six hard points gives it a good punch .. however it only lacks in good electronics, and counter measure ..
That'll be rectified with the Rooivalk 2.
The basic question we should first ask to ourselves that what is the maximum numbers of Gunship helicopter Pakistan requir .... ??
Currently we have ~ 40 (possibly less than 40) Cobra Helicopter,
For future needs even if we keep dedicated resource for counterinsurgency ops requirement in FATA on permanent basis add another 10-15 gunships for Balochistan, plus Marine Force 'may' require dedicated gunship for their operations in Southern Sindh & Rann of Kutch area at some point in time with their evolving role; now further add some numbers assuming that army will not only replace all of the aging Cobras one on one basis but will add more numbers to counter eastern threat let say 60, this mean our maximum requirement by any far stretch calculation is around 100-110 gunships helicopters
Now the second question: Can we fulfill all this required numbers with a single platform or with multiple platform ... ??
We are bound to have multiple platforms for obvious reasons specially when we are already acquiring 15 AH-1Z & I have a feeling that we may like to have 10-15 additional Vipers increasing their number up to 25-30 so this leave us the room for 70 to 80 other gunships at max, now out of these 70-80 how many of the gunships helicopters we want (more importantly 'afford') to be in the AH-64D class helicopter ... even if we split the numbers in half 35 to 40 is the maximum numbers.
Here at this stage we need to understand the international sales prospect including Partner Nation commitments which in my opinion might not be strong in numbers, from our perspective for having a successful program S. Africa & any other partner Nation (i don't see Nigeria as a prospective partner in this projects as their number of requirements could be less than 50 units) should commit at least 50 each with at least 150 International sales so that unit cost could be capped at $ 30 to 35 million; anything above this price range would be difficult for us to afford.
I agree. Moreover, Pakistan may not need many AH-64 class helicopters, the bulk of the force could very well be just medium-weight (Z-10). That said, of all available options, the Rooivalk 2 may be the only accessible one (until the Chinese platform comes to fruition). Also, our infancy in helicopter production may simply cap our annual rollout rate to a handful, the key for us would be ensuring we have MRO as well as local parts manufacturing (for spare parts).
Numerically the Army would need around 100-120 dedicated attack helicopters. I expect a total of 20-30 AH-1Z anyways, but these will be on station to keep FATA in check. Of the remaining, especially for the eastern front, having an all Rooivalk 2 force might be cost-prohibitive from an acquisition as well as maintenance standpoint. The Army probably wouldn't buy more than 30-40 of these helicopters, the likely aim would be to operate them in high-threat scenarios. The bulk of the fleet will in the end probably be Z-10s. I also think a separate aviation arm ought to be raised to support all paramilitary groups, but they wouldn't need Rooivalk II or even Z-10, the Z-19 would probably be enough.
Now if we factor in the Air Force and one day the Navy, things get interesting. The PAF might be inclined to use the Rooivalk 2 as the basis for its own AH-64E equivalent. From an operational standpoint, the Rooivalk 2 could serve as a dedicated CAS platform in a wide range of scenarios, be it COIN or anti-armour. The Navy could use it to support its Marines. The PAF and PN could add up to 30 units, collectively.
