AH-1Z

AH-1Z

AH-1Z

USA

VII Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
10.3	12.0	10.0

Class:

Attack helicopter

Research:400 000

Purchase:1 020 000

Show in game

This page is about the American attack helicopter AH-1Z. For other uses, see AH-1 (Family).

Description

The AH-1Z in the garage

The AH-1Z is a rank VII American attack helicopter with a battle rating of 10.3 (AB), 12.0 (RB), and 10.0 (SB). This helicopter was introduced in Update 1.81 "The Valkyries".

General info

Flight Performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at ?,000 m)		Max altitude (meters)
AB	RB
?	?	6000
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at ?,000 m)		Max altitude (meters)
AB	RB
?	?	6000

Survivability and armour

Examine the survivability of the helicopter. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, how many engines the vehicle has. Describe the armour, if there is any, also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

Armaments

Offensive armament

Describe the offensive armament of the helicopter, if any. Describe how effective the cannons and machine guns are in battle, also what ammunition belts or drums are better to use. If there is no offensive weaponry, delete this subsection.

Suspended armament

Describe the helicopter's suspended armament: additional cannons under the winglets, any type of bombs, and rockets. Since any helicopter is essentially only a platform for suspended weaponry, this section is extremely important and deserves your special attention. If there is no suspended weaponry remove this subsection.

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the helicopter, the features of using vehicles in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Modules

Tier	Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
I	Compressor	Flak jacket	Offensive 20 mm	TOW	Flares
II		Helicopter frame	New 20 mm cannons	TOW-2	AIM-9	M261
III	Engine		Gun pod XM-18	TOW 4	TOW-2 4	AGM-114
IV	Replacing helicopter blades	Cover	New 7 mm MGs	TOW 8	TOW-2 8	AGM-114 2

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Can carry up to 16 TOW ATGMs (TOW-2 with modification)
• Flares
• One of the fastest helicopters in the game
• Can carry air-to-air missiles to take down aircraft
• Excellent ground attack capabilities.

Cons:

• Weak airframe can be taken down even by roof-mounted MGs from enemy tanks.
• Cannon fodder for dedicated SPAAGs
• Very slow, easy target for SPAAs and aircraft
• Priority target for the enemy team as you are extremely dangerous
• No armor whatsoever.

History

In 1996, the USMC launched the H-1 program in cooperation with the Bell company. The H-1 program was a plan to upgrade and modernize the Navy’s existing fleets of AH-1 and UH-1 helicopters, in order to extend their service life and lower future operating costs. This was achieved by developing a new version of each helicopter model respectively. The new AH-1Z Viper, also known as “ZuluCobra”, received upgraded avionics, fire control systems, engines and an improved four-blade rotor system, among other improvements. Furthermore, both the new Viper and UH-1Y were designed in a way to use mostly identical parts, achieving the desired reduction in operating costs and ease of maintenance as a result. The AH-1Z Viper conducted its maiden flight in December 2000, with three prototypes being built for testing in 2002. Small-scale production began in 2003 before the Viper was approved for full-scale production in November 2010. The USMC has ordered for 189 Vipers to be delivered to the fleet by 2021, with only a few dozen machines being in service today.

- From Devblog

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Devblog] AH-1Z Viper - A Lasting Legacy

USA helicopters
Attack
Black Hawk	MH-60L DAP
Choctaw	H-34
Cobra	AH-1F · AH-1G · AH-1Z
SuperCobra	AH-1W
Kiowa	OH-58D
Little Bird	AH-6M
Apache	YAH-64 · AH-64A · ▃AH-64A Peten · AH-64A (GR) · AH-64D
Utility
Huey	UH-1B · UH-1C · UH-1C XM-30