The Kiowa Warrior is slated to retire in 2025, the Chinook in 2035, and both the Apache and Black Hawk will be gone by 2040. We thought we had a suitable replacement for all of these platforms in the Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche. But then, this next-gen stealth chopper vanished in a puff of bureaucratic smoke.
The RAH-66 Comanche would have been awesome—a veritable 21st Century Air Wolf. Designed for armed reconnaissance and assault operations, the Comanche could have done the work of both the lighter OH-58D Kiowa Warrior and the older AH-1 Cobra, but in stealth. The RAH-66 's body was constructed almost entirely of radar-absorbing composite materials and shaped to minimize the helicopter's radar cross section. On radar, the Comanche appeared 360 times smaller than the equivalently-sized AH-64 Apache. And in real life, it would have looked badass. Its five-blade main and shrouded tail rotors were also constructed from composite materials in order to minimize their noise.
The 43 foot long, tandem two-seater would have been powered by a pair of 1,563 hp turboshaft engines which provided a top speed of 201 MPH and a 173 mile combat radius. Its avionics and navigation systems were state of the art; using digital fly-by-wire and the Helmet-Integrated Display and Sight System (HIDSS) similar to what current Typhoon pilots enjoy. And, in addition to its retractable .50 cal belly gun, the RAH-66 could also carry six Hellfires or 12 Stinger missiles in its retractable weapons pylons.
In 1983, development on a replacement to the "Vietman Era" helicopters—specifically the OH-58D Kiowa and the AH-1 Cobra—which became the basis of the Light Helicopter Experimental program. Six years of internal planning later, the Army got around to issuing a Request for Proposals and just three years after that, in 1991, the Army awarded a development contract to Boeing-Sikorsky for the production of two prototypes.
The RAH-66 Comanche would have been awesome—a veritable 21st Century Air Wolf. Designed for armed reconnaissance and assault operations, the Comanche could have done the work of both the lighter OH-58D Kiowa Warrior and the older AH-1 Cobra, but in stealth. The RAH-66 's body was constructed almost entirely of radar-absorbing composite materials and shaped to minimize the helicopter's radar cross section. On radar, the Comanche appeared 360 times smaller than the equivalently-sized AH-64 Apache. And in real life, it would have looked badass. Its five-blade main and shrouded tail rotors were also constructed from composite materials in order to minimize their noise.
The 43 foot long, tandem two-seater would have been powered by a pair of 1,563 hp turboshaft engines which provided a top speed of 201 MPH and a 173 mile combat radius. Its avionics and navigation systems were state of the art; using digital fly-by-wire and the Helmet-Integrated Display and Sight System (HIDSS) similar to what current Typhoon pilots enjoy. And, in addition to its retractable .50 cal belly gun, the RAH-66 could also carry six Hellfires or 12 Stinger missiles in its retractable weapons pylons.
In 1983, development on a replacement to the "Vietman Era" helicopters—specifically the OH-58D Kiowa and the AH-1 Cobra—which became the basis of the Light Helicopter Experimental program. Six years of internal planning later, the Army got around to issuing a Request for Proposals and just three years after that, in 1991, the Army awarded a development contract to Boeing-Sikorsky for the production of two prototypes.
