From what I understand, it’s essentially a long range artillery system.
And yeah, it doesn’t completely destroy the helicopter, unless it’s a direct or near hit, but my god, from an engineering perspective, this craft is almost totaled. Ever single shot needs to be analyzed to determine if presents a critical risk to operation. Every ping on the rotary blades represents a new location for stress concentrations and likely failures. They will have to replace all of the blades, all of the panels, examine the entire engine, transmission, etc. the costs associated with this are astronomical.
Can they still fly it? Possibly, but no nation that values their pilots and flight personnel will ever risk it. That said, it’s Russia…it may be operational by next Tuesday.
From what I understand, it’s essentially a long range artillery system.
And yeah, it doesn’t completely destroy the helicopter, unless it’s a direct or near hit, but my god, from an engineering perspective, this craft is almost totaled. Ever single shot needs to be analyzed to determine if presents a critical risk to operation. Every ping on the rotary blades represents a new location for stress concentrations and likely failures. They will have to replace all of the blades, all of the panels, examine the entire engine, transmission, etc. the costs associated with this are astronomical.
Can they still fly it? Possibly, but no nation that values their pilots and flight personnel will ever risk it. That said, it’s Russia…it may be operational by next Tuesday.