On 13 July 2018, Pakistan’s Ministry of Defence Production (MoDP) signed a much-anticipated deal for 30 T129 ATAK attack helicopters from Turkish Aerospace and Turkey’s Defence Industries Undersecretariat (SSB). The deal, widely believed to be worth $1.5 billion US, is a “large contract package … [comprising] of logistics, spare parts, training and ammunition.”[1] The T129 contract is slated for completion in five years.[2]
For Turkey, the T129 sale to Pakistan represents Turkey’s single largest defence export to-date (followed by a $1 billion US sale of four MILGEM Ada corvettes to the Pakistan Navy). For Pakistan, the T129 will be a significant qualitative upgrade over its current fleet of roughly 40 AH-1F/S Cobras, which have served as the Pakistan Army Aviation Corps’ (PAA) mainstay attack helicopter since their induction in the 1980s.
Contract Details
According to Turkish Aerospace’s General manager Temel Kotil, the PAA will begin receiving its T129s in “less than a year.”[3] Based on the five-year project timeline, it appears that the PAA will induct its ATAK on an incremental basis, i.e. in small (e.g. 5-6 aircraft) annual batches. The first 10 ATAKs for the PAA will be T129B Block-Is, which will be similarly configured as the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK) Block-I.[4] The next 20 will be Block-IIs which, again, will be configured along similar lines as the TSK’s Block-IIs.[5]
The T129B Block-I is a baseline configuration equipped with an electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) turret, an integrated avionics suite, and semi-active laser-homing (SALH) anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM) as well as 70 mm SALH air-to-ground rockets. The Roketsan UMTAS (Mizrak) ATGM offers a range of 500 m to 8,000 m.[6] Supporting weapons include the Roketsan CİRİT, a 2.75” air-to-ground rocket (range: 1,500 m to 8,000 m) and a single 20 mm nose-mounted cannon.
The onboard electronics suite also includes Aselsan’s AVCI Helmet Integrated Cueing System, which enables the pilot to direct the EO/IR turret for target identification and tracking.[7] In addition, the T129B Block-I is also equipped with a self-protection suite comprising of a missile warning system, a chaff and flare countermeasure system and directed infrared countermeasure system.[8] It is also includes the MXF-484 and 9651 V/UHF (Very and Ultra-High Frequency) radio systems (produced by Aselsan).[9]
The T129B Block-II retains the Block-I’s configuration, but it also features an electronic warfare (EW) suite equipped with a radio-frequency jammer, radar warning receiver (RWR), laser warning receiver (LWR) and Aselsan’s 9681 V/UHF (Very and Ultra-High Frequency) airborne radio terminals.[10] It should be noted that Turkish Aerospace and Meteksan are also testing a millimetric wave radar – i.e. Meteksan MILDAR – from the T129, but it is unclear if the MILDAR will be an option for the current ATAK or the future ATAK-2.[11]
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