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Bell OH-58 Kiowa
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== Design == [[File:Cobra and Kiowa DF-ST-86-10445.JPEG|thumb|right|OH-58 with AH-1 Cobra in June 1985]] The Bell OH-58 Kiowa is a family of single-engine single-[[Helicopter rotor|rotor]] [[military helicopter]]s principally used for observation, utility, and direct fire support. The primary role of the original OH-58A was to identify targets for other platforms, such as the [[Bell AH-1 Cobra]] [[attack helicopter]] and ground [[artillery]]; it lacked any armaments and weighed 1,451 kg (3,200 lb) when fully loaded, being able to carry a small amount of cargo or up to two passengers.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> While initial examples were reliant on the crew to conduct observations, later models were furnished with sophisticated sensors to precisely determine a target's location. Payload capacity was also increased considerably on later-build rotorcraft, the OH-58D Kiowa was designed to carry a maximum load of 2,495 kg, 72% more capacity than the original version.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> Early Kiowas were fitted with a flexible twin-bladed main rotor; starting with the OH-58D, a four-bladed rigid main rotor was used.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> This was entirely composed of [[composite material]]s, the OH-58D was the first US Army rotorcraft to incorporate an all-composite main rotor hub. Later models were outfitted as light [[gunship]]s, being equipped with various armaments, such as [[Stinger]] [[air-to-air missile]]s, a .50-caliber [[machine gun]], podded 70mm [[Hydra rocket]]s and [[AGM-114 Hellfire]] [[air to ground missile]]s.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> Other areas of improvement were the avionics and the cockpit; new navigation and communication systems were installed along with new and larger flight instrumentation, while all light sources were redesigned for compatibility with [[Night vision device|Night Vision Goggle]]s (NVG). Later versions were outfitted with a [[glass cockpit]], which retained conventional instrumentation as a fallback measure.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> [[File:OH-58D.webm|thumb|upright=1.35|right|OH-58D firing its [[.50 caliber machine gun]] and [[Hydra 70]] rockets]] The OH-58D introduced perhaps the most distinctive feature of the Kiowa family β the Mast Mounted Sight (MMS), which resembles a [[beach ball]] perched above the rotor system. The MMS by [[Ball Aerospace & Technologies]] has a gyro-stabilized platform containing a television system (TVS), a [[Thermographic camera|thermal imaging system]] (TIS), and a [[Laser rangefinder|laser range finder]]/[[Laser designator|designator]] (LRF/D). These features gave the OH-58D the additional mission capability of target acquisition and laser designation in day or night, limited-visibility and adverse weather.<ref>{{cite web |series= Department of the Army Historical Summary |url= http://www.history.army.mil/books/DAHSUM/1986/ch04.htm |title= Fiscal Year 1986: Chapter 4 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090122070833/http://www.history.army.mil/books/DAHSUM/1986/ch04.htm |archive-date= 22 January 2009 |page= 43 |access-date= 17 February 2017}}</ref> In combination with the [[MIL-STD-1553|1553 databus]], the OH-58D being first US Army helicopter to be fielded with such equipment, target data from the sensors could be directly passed to precision-guided weapons.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> The MMS was developed by the McDonnell Douglas Corp. in Huntington Beach, CA. Production took place primarily at facilities in Monrovia, CA. As a result of a merger with Boeing, and a later sale of the business unit, the program is currently owned and managed by DRS Technologies, with engineering support based in Cypress, CA, and production support taking place in Melbourne, FL.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.drs.com/Products/RSTA/MMS.aspx |title= DRS Technologies, Inc. β Mast-Mounted Sight (MMS) |publisher= DRS Technologies |access-date= 11 February 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121108090300/http://drs.com/Products/RSTA/MMS.aspx |archive-date= 8 November 2012 |url-status= dead}}</ref> On the OH-58F, the MMS was removed, its functions having been replaced by the AAS-53 Common Sensor Payload, which is mounted on the chin.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/> [[File:OH-58D 2.jpg|thumb|right|An OH-58D Kiowa Warrior takes off armed with an [[AGM-114 Hellfire]] and 7 [[Hydra 70]] rockets.]] One distinctive feature of operational OH-58s are the knife-like extensions above and below the cockpit which are part of the passive [[wire strike protection system]]; it protects 90% of the frontal area of the helicopter from wire strikes that can be encountered at low altitudes by directing wires to the upper or lower blades before they can entangle the rotor blade or landing skids. The OH-58 was the first helicopter to test this system, after which the system was adopted by the US Army for the OH-58 and most of their other helicopters.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://magellan.aero/product/wsps/ |title= WSPS |author= Magellan Aerospace |website= magellan.aero |access-date= 1 December 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181201222822/http://magellan.aero/product/wsps/ |archive-date= 1 December 2018 |url-status= dead |author-link= Magellan Aerospace}}</ref> Various other defensive and survivability measures were incorporated, such as ballistic floor armor, a [[missile warning system]], crashworthy seats, and [[infrared]] suppression systems for the engine exhaust.<ref name= "flight cutaway2010"/>
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