U.S. Army to designate AH-64D Block III as AH-64E

[IND151]

The Army has scheduled a news conference for Wednesday to announce that from that day on, the Block III version of Boeing Co.’s AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter will instead be designated the AH-64E. Program officials will make the announcement at this year’s annual meeting of the Association of the United States Army, the largest yearly meeting of top service and industry officials.

The Army decided to replace “AH-64D Block III” with “AH-64E” after the Defense Acquisition Board, a high-level Pentagon committee, approved full rate production in August. The Army, which plans to buy 690 AH-64Es, decided the new designation is warranted because the soon-to-be “Echo” model of the Apache has so much more capability than the AH-64D Block I’s and Block II’s it’s replacing, the first of which came into service in 1997.

The AH-64E, the first of which was rolled out last year, has a better drivetrain and a composite rotor that makes it fly both better and 25 knots faster than the Block II. It boasts improved open architecture avionics that will ease the way for future improvements. It also has the optional ability to control the sensors and flight of an unmanned aircraft.

It’s still too early to say what the Taliban might dub the AH-64E or whether insurgents will find it scarier than the AH-64D Block II, whose crew can target and kill enemies from miles away, day or night, using a 30mm chain gun that can fire 640 rounds a minute, Hellfire missiles of both the laser- and radar-guided varieties, and unguided Hydra 70 2.75-inch rockets. A radio intercept during a firefight in Afghanistan last year revealed that the Taliban know even the AH-64D Block II as “The Monster.”

http://idrw.org/?p=15107

 

[Mosamania]

So we will have 70 AH-64Es and 24 AH64Ds. It is easier than having to write "Block III" all the time.

 

[TR.1]

mosa what happened you left istanbul ? you could of have double eid as its thursday here and friday SA .

 

[Tshering22]

So we will have 70 AH-64Es and 24 AH64Ds. It is easier than having to write "Block III" all the time.

So in your country who handles the attack helos? Army aviation or the air force?

 

[Last Hope]

So in your country who handles the attack helos? Army aviation or the air force?

The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) operates 36 AH-64Ds.

 

[Mosamania]

The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) operates 36 AH-64Ds.

The training and maintenance school belong to the Air Force, But those are Land Forces Equipment:

You can clearly see the RSLF markings on it.

And how do you know it is 36 and not the published 12? You must be or you know someone who is close to our military I see. Well you would better stick to the published figures from here on out and keep such information to yourself bro ok?

 

[Arabian Legend]

The training and maintenance school belong to the Air Force, But those are Land Forces Equipment:

You can clearly see the RSLF markings on it.

And how do you know it is 36 and not the published 12? You must be or you know someone who is close to our military I see. Well you would better stick to the published figures from here on out and keep such information to yourself bro ok?

What It was officially announced.