Hobby Master Archive
Air Power Helicopters 1/72
AH-64
In the early 1970’s the US Army wanted a replacement for the AH-1 Cobra so companies submitted proposals. In July 1973 the list was shortened to Hughes and Bell with each building a prototype in 1975. The Army selected the Hughes helicopter because its landing gear was more stable and the main rotor was more damage tolerant. In 1981 3 pre-production AH-64As were given to the Army for testing and named Apache. The Apache went into production in 1982 and has evolved into one of the deadly machines over the battle field.
The AH-64E Apache Guardian was originally designated AH-64D Block III in 2012 but because of its advanced capabilities compared to previous variants it was renamed. Everything about the AH-64E is bigger and better or improved when compared to earlier variants. A large number of improvements are meant to protect the crew from guns up to 27 mm rounds as well as crash resistant seats. Equipped with new sensors, avionics and night operation capabilities the AH-64E also has the ability to control UAVs.
