In 2015, the Israeli Air Force's AH-1 "tzefa" (Hebrew "Viper") helicopter gunship withdrew from active service just before the anniversary of its 40th anniversary of service. The aircraft was retired for two main reasons, one is that the Israeli government announced in May 2013 that it cut the defense budget to 3 billion Nishekels ($1 billion), and the other is that even though the Viper is equipped with the deadly Raphael "Spike" missile system, it is still underperformed compared to the Israeli Air Force's AH-64a "peten" (cobra, which entered service with the Israeli Air Force in 1990) and ah-64d "saraf" ("Fireser", which entered service with the Israeli Air Force in 2005). Not only is the horsepower of a single engine insufficient, but the range is too short and the on-board equipment is relatively simple.
Israeli Air Force ah-1f Viper C 385
As the number of Ah-64s in the Israeli Air Force continued to increase, especially the arrival of the more advanced Ah-64Ds in 2005, the activity and size of the Ah-1 Viper fleet also gradually decreased. The last three AH-1 helicopter squadrons– the 160th "First Attack Helicopter" Squadron at Palmachim Air Base, the 115th "Red" Squadron at the Advanced Training Center at Owaat Air Force Base, and the Advanced Training-Attack Helicopter Squadron of Rotorcraft at the Israel Air Force Academy were all disbanded in 2013-2014, ending the helicopter veteran's illustrious military career in the Israeli Air Force.
Two AH-1e Viper Fs of the Israeli Air Force Academy Rotorcraft Advanced Training- Attack Helicopter Squadron
Origin of the Yom Kippur War
The outbreak of the Yom Kippur War in October 1973 led to a growing interest in attack helicopters in the Israeli Air Force. Obviously, if the Israeli Air Force had been equipped with powerful attack helicopters at that time, it would have been more effective in stopping the large-scale armored clusters in Syria and Egypt, while also reducing its own casualties. Israel's national security doctrine is based on a small regular army and a large reserve army, which is held to the front line in the event of an enemy attack (special raid) until the large reserve forces arrive to support 24-48 hours after receiving the mobilization order. Attack helicopters will be effective in filling the gap in regular firepower before the reserve forces reach the front. In addition, U.S. studies have shown that the firepower and lethality rates of 20 attack helicopter squadrons are equivalent to two armored brigades.
The first step of the Israeli Air Force was the purchase of six AH-1G Cobra helicopters from the United States in 1975 and the establishment of an evaluation unit to evaluate and develop the operational tactics of this new weapon system. At that time the unit was part of the 124th "Rolling Sword" Squadron at Telenov Air Base, and later became the 160th "First Attack Helicopter Squadron" on December 1, 1977. The squadron received 12 AH-1s (modernized) Cobras between 1978 and 1979 and moved to Parmachim Air Base on 17 September 1979 and took root here. The Israelites called ah-1g "tzefa" ("viper").
Ah-1g "Viper" No. 124 being evaluated
The ah-1s had an improved weapon system that replaced the wing-mounted 7.62 mm "mini gun" Gatling machine gun pod with a 20 mm M197 three-barrel Gatling jaw turret. Since the machine gun pod is fixed on the short wing, the AH-1G must align the fuselage axis at the target to shoot accurately. The power of the AH-1S engine also increased from 1100 hp to 1800 hp of the AH-1G, increasing the climb speed and increasing the maximum takeoff weight (from 4.3 tons to 4.5 tons).
20 mm m197 three-barrel Gatling jaw turret
Expansion
After the commanders of the Armored Corps of the Israeli Air Force and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) assessed the AH-1 Viper and fully understood the advantages and disadvantages of the aircraft, Israel decided to expand the helicopter gunship force. But because the U.S. banned the export of more AH-1s to Israel, Israel was forced to buy 30 small MD-500 Defender helicopters. Deliveries began in November 1979 and were dubbed "lahatut" ("magic") by the Israeli Air Force. In March 1980, the Israeli Air Force established the 190th Magic Squadron equipped with the aircraft.
MD-500 "Defender" helicopter gunship
The Israeli Air Force's attack helicopter units and their tactics were baptized by the flames of war in the first Lebanese war that broke out in 1982
The Israeli Air Force's attack helicopter units and their tactics were baptized by the flames of war in the first Lebanese war that broke out in 1982. The MD-500 "Defender" of the "Magic" squadron successfully struck the Syrian armored forces, even more accurately than the AH-1. Israeli attack helicopters also performed a number of close-range air support missions to assist the advance of IDF infantry and armored forces. In total, the "First Attack Helicopter" squadron flew 62 combat sorties in the war, firing 72 tow missiles, with a hit rate of 71%.
During the First Lebanese War in 1982, the "First Attack Helicopter" squadron was in the AH-1s at the front-line airfield
Viper launches a tow missile
After the United States phased out export restrictions on AH-1s between 1983 and 1985, Jordan bought 24 AH-1s, comparable to the number of Israelis. At the same time, the Israeli Air Force also upgraded the old-fashioned AH-1G to the AH-1s (modernized) standard. As a result of acquiring more AH-1 helicopters, the Israeli Air Force established a second Viper squadron, the 161st Black Snake Squadron, at Palmachim Air Base in June 1985. The two squadrons divided israel's AH-1 Viper helicopters equally, with both the newly arrived and the longest-serving ones. A year later, on July 10, 1986, Blacksnake squadron launched its first attack on a terrorist camp near Thiel in southern Lebanon. Three months later, on October 16, 1986, an F-4 of the Israeli Air Force was hit by its own bombing, and after the crew parachuted, navigator Ron Arad was captured in Lebanon and subsequently disappeared, and the Black Snake squadron braved artillery fire to rescue the pilot, who flew back with the viper's skid.
After the 1991 Gulf War, the United States provided Israel with more AH-1 helicopters. Then, in August 1996, Israel received 14 second-hand AH-1Es from the U.S. Army. The two helicopters replaced the MD-500s of the First Line Squadron and the Israel Air Force Flight School.
The first flight of the second-hand AH-1e Viper F 655 in Israel
Tactical number of "Viper"
The six AH-1Gs received by the Israeli Air Force in 1975, numbered 109-130, were later sent back to the United States to upgrade to ah-1s (modernized) standards and returned with newly purchased Viper A and B helicopters, after which the tail numbers of the six aircraft were given the "3" prefix.
The second batch of Vipers was delivered to Israel from June 1978 and consisted of two models: the Ah-1s (modernized) upgraded from the AH-1G, featuring a round canopy, numbered 309-330, and was named "Viper" by the Israelis. The second was the newly manufactured AH-1s ecas (later known as the AH-1e), featuring a flat canopy, numbered 332-339, named "Viper" b.
Viper A 315 is an upgraded AH-1s from an AH-1G (modernized)
The third batch of Viper arrived after the United States lifted restrictions on the sale of attack helicopters to Israel in 1983. The helicopters were the brand new AH-1F, divided into two series, the Viper C (number 350-397) and the Viper D (Number 405-483), which were identical in appearance except for the internal equipment. At the same time, the Israeli Air Force upgraded the Viper A/B to the Viper c/d standard using new Carman rotor blades and larger exhaust pipes, while changing the tail number. The tail number of "Viper" a was changed back to the beginning of 1, such as ah-1g 115, which became 315 after being upgraded to "Viper" a, and now it has been changed back to 115. The tail number of "Viper" b was changed to start with 2, as "Viper" b 335 is now 235. When the Blacksnake squadron was formed in 1985, it was mixed with the newly arrived Viper D and the oldest Viper a/b handed over by the First Attack Helicopter squadron.
Ah-1s Viper B 232 and 235 twin aircraft formations
The next batch of "Vipers" was the AH-1F delivered after the 1991 Gulf War and was named "Viper" e. The aircraft was evenly distributed among the two squadrons, numbered 501-531.
ah-1e"蝰"f 660"f
The Israeli Air Force acquired the last batch of AH-1s in mid-1996 – 14 U.S. Army second-hand AH-1Es, designated Viper F, numbered 651-686. Most of these aircraft served in flight schools, with only a few entering first-line squadrons.
Viper's secret weapon – "Spikes"
Viper's mission in most operations was to attack "soft" targets, such as vehicles and buildings located in civilian areas, so the Israeli Air Force needed to equip the aircraft with a precise and low-destructive weapon system, and finally chose a derivative of Raphael's "Long Peg" anti-tank missile, the longer-range "Long Peg" NLOS (non-line of sight) missile, which Israel called "machtselet" ("mat").
"Long Peg" missile launch box and nose data link antenna
The Viper, which has the ability to launch the "Long Nail" missile, is mixed with the ordinary "Viper"
"LongTalk" is a multifunctional photoelectric guided missile system with a real-time wireless data link with a range of 25 kilometers. The bomb has a dual-sensor photoelectric guide head that can effectively aim at targets during day and night and in bad weather. The data link allows the operator to communicate with the missile after launch, and can make course corrections to the missile during flight or change the target in real time. The missile's long-range and advanced photoelectric guidance mechanism can complete the long-range attack of the non-aiming line, which is not easy to be detected by the enemy during launch, and the operator can also conduct damage assessment and intelligence gathering through the video transmitted back by the missile implementation.
"Long nail" NLOS (non-line of sight) missile
The Viper fleet has been equipped with Mat missiles for 20 years, and israeli forces have fired them in large numbers during conflicts on Lebanon's northern border and in the Gaza Strip. In a typical tactical application, the Israeli Air Force will first send a high-altitude drone to the conflict area for target identification, locate the target, and then send the coordinates to ah-1 "Viper" in real time, which will launch the "Long Spike" missile at this coordinate from a distance.
Fighting over Lebanon
Viper participated in IDF combat operations in southern Lebanon between 1985 and 2000, mainly performing close air support and precision attack missions against high-value targets. The ongoing fighting has intensified the combat tactics of this attack helicopter, exemplified by a 4-aircraft formation night attack launched by Blacksnake Squadron on 13 February 1987, in which two helicopters dropped flares into the target area and two attacked a target in a refugee camp near Thiel with missiles. During another night operation near Mount Hermon on 15 September 1987, an IDF infantry unit was attacked and suffered losses, and ah-1 was called in to escort the evacuated soldiers' Bell 212. As a result, viper encountered enemy fire during the rescue operation and was forced to fly low to seek cover for terrain. In order to cover the retreating helicopters, a Viper crew flew for five consecutive hours, changing helicopters several times, and each time when the Viper was about to run out of fuel, they flew to a meeting point and jumped on another fuel-filled helicopter to return to the battlefield.
In December 1988, Viper participated in a joint operation by the Israeli Air Force and the Israel Defense Forces against terrorist groups in southern Lebanon ("Operation Blue and Brown"). 4 Israeli infantry were separated from the large force during the operation, and 10 AH-1 helicopters participated in the search operation, and finally found them and braved artillery fire to rescue them. But how do you get the soldiers back? The crew made a clever move, opened the helicopter shell hatch, let the soldier sit on it, and flew back.
Ah-1 with small bench
The peak of the ah-1's operations in Lebanon occurred during Operation Responsible in July 1993, when it flew more than 150 combat sorties and more than 500 missions during Operation Grapes of Wrath from March to April 1996. Viper imposed an effective air blockade on southern Lebanon to stop terrorist groups from firing short-range rockets into major cities in northern Israel.
Ah-1s Viper B took off from front-line airfields near the Lebanese border
When the IDF finally began withdrawing from southern Lebanon on 24 May 2000, Viper helicopters escorted ground forces to the Israeli border to prevent Allah attacks on soldiers and vehicles.
Viper is also active in the West Bank and gaza strip, and its precision weapon system allows it to strike terrorist targets in areas close to the civilian population, even sniping terrorist leaders and key members. Viper's first attack in the West Bank was in September 1996, when an Israeli infantry unit was attacked from a rooftop in a public place in the city of Nablus, and helicopters arrived at the scene to open fire on enemy forces, allowing IDF soldiers to pass safely.
Since entering 2000, the AH-1 fleet has participated in a number of major operations, including the Second Lebanon War in 2006 and Operation Cast Lead from December 2009 to January 2010, in which a surgical strike operation was carried out against terrorists. Viper also carried out missions in support of the Israel Defense Forces, eliminated direct threats, attacked rocket launchers, launch teams and other high-value targets during these operations, and escorted UH-60 "yanshuf" ("owl") and ch-53 "yasur" ("albatross") helicopters during search and rescue missions, including daytime rescue operations under heavy Allah fire. During the 50-day fighting of the Second Lebanese War in 2006, the First Attack Helicopter Squadron conducted thousands of combat operations, and one crew was commended by the Chief of the General Staff for supporting a rescue mission to a seriously wounded soldier. At the time, the Viper escorted a UH-60 Owl into an area threatened by Allah snipers and mortars and eliminated the ongoing threat to rescue missions.
Fatal accidents
Over the years, viper helicopter units have suffered a number of fatal accidents, the last of which occurred on March 12, 2013. At that time, the Ah-1f Viper D 447 of the First Attack Helicopter Squadron returned from night training, and the crew finally reported that it "landed within six minutes" and then disappeared at about 0100 hours. The Viper encountered a transmission or rotor system technical failure in the air 300 meters above the ground, resulting in a rupture of the tail rotor, and the pilots, Lieutenant Colonel Norn Ron and Major Erez Flaxer, tried to fly the plane to a forced landing, but both were killed in the crash. The entire Viper fleet was grounded after the crash, waiting for the completion of the crash investigation. The previous fatal accident occurred on September 10, 2008, when a Viper crashed in the Izreal Valley in northern Israel, killing two crew members.
Two other Vipers crashed on March 15, 1998 and March 18, 1987, killing both crews.
Viper had another noteworthy accident on October 21, 1985, when two Viper squadrons of the First Attack Helicopter squadron were flying over the Sea of Galilee, one of which crashed into the water due to its low altitude and overturned in the silt, while the crew was still strapped to a seat. The second Viper landed nearby, and the crew jumped off the plane to help keep the trapped pilot's head on the water. The 669th Rescue Team arrived and rescued the pilots and took the two to hospital. The helicopter was re-commissioned after 4 years of repairs, but crashed again in March 1998.
retire
Viper celebrated its 30th anniversary of service in 2005, the same year the Israeli Air Force began receiving its latest attack helicopter, the ah-64d Firesnake. These two events marked a change in the composition of the Israeli Air Force's attack helicopter fleet, with the new and advanced AH-64 gradually increasing and the old AH-1 gradually decreasing. Although viper was the only carrier aircraft of the LongTalk anti-tank missile system, maintenance problems, lack of spare parts and a number of accidents and accidents forced the Israeli Air Force to cut two Viper squadrons into one in September 2005, and the Blacksnake squadron flew an impressive 30 helicopters in a large formation at its dissolution ceremony, leaving behind the only ah-1 combat squadron, the "First Attack Helicopter Squadron".
Viper celebrated its 30th anniversary of service in 2005
Israeli Air Force AH-64A
Some of the helicopters of black snake squadron were handed over to the 115th "Red" Squadron at Owat Air Base, a specially established imaginary enemy squadron of the Israeli Air Force, equipped with a variety of fixed wings and helicopters for advanced training of combat troops. The Vipers of the "Red" squadron will imitate enemy tactics in training, allowing the Israeli Air Force and IDF forces to practice tactics against enemy attack helicopters. The remaining helicopters of the Blacksnake Squadron were handed over to the Flight School's Rotorcraft Advanced Training-Attack Helicopter Squadron.
115th "Red" Squadron ah-1f Viper e 521
The cuts in the defense budget forced the Israeli Air Force to gradually retire the AH-1 Viper, and the last three Viper units were disbanded within 8 months. The first to be disbanded was the helicopter squad of the Red Squadron, which held a decommissioning ceremony for the aircraft at Owaat Air Force Base on July 29, 2013. On August 2, 2013, the "First Attack Helicopter" squadron was disbanded at Parma chim Air Base, and on March 20, 2014, the ah-1 Viper of the Rotorcraft Advanced Training-Attack Helicopter Squadron made its last flight.