Info on CSAR helo's.......

[Army of One]

Hello all.....I have been looking at some pics of CSAR helo's from various air forces with the view to seeing what gear they have,mainly externally......I'm looking at what changes to make to the o/s of the helo. I'm going to be converting a mi24 Hind D....1/72. I'm thinking of stuff like in flight refuelling probe,winches above the door,door guns,maybe fuel tanks on inner pylons,some form of LLTV ball.....anyone got any other ideas? Armament fit n colour scheme opinion welcomed....got a rough idea of weapon fit already....I know colour scheme will be theatre dependant......I'd like dark green/black/dark grey.....sort of old european scheme the A10's used to wear....oh....it will be an RAF bird as well....as I said,any opinion welcomed.....H

[sandiego89]

Think you about covered the equipment with refueling probe, guns etc.  Go with FLIR, exact fit would depend on your time frame- a lynx might be good for donor parts.  Highly recommend UK parts for the sensors and weapons- as  hard as it is to imagine an RAF purchace of the Hind would be, having high UK part content would make it more plausible, at least so it BAE could get in their profit gou.......I mean so they could improve it.  Add folding fin rocket pods (UK).  Add chaff/flares and exhaust supression to reduce the MANPAD threat. Add emergency flotation bags, although they might have to be too big I imagine a hind would roll right over in a ditching situation.  Euro one camo would be cool.  Winter camo would be nice as well.

[Army of One]

Thanks for ur support....the escort helo's for my Hind are prob gonna be Ka50 Hokums.....bought as a package deal....much cheaper than the American equievelant...prob a bit more robust as well and with western equipment.....I think I'll pass on flotation bags....which Lynx kit n by who..? I was gonna scratch most of the stuff.....many thanks....H

[ChernayaAkula]

Cool project! 
Apart from the LLTV/FLIR turret, how about a small (possibly podded?) radar as seen on MH/HH-60s?
Euro 1 sounds great. How about white stripes applied over that for winter operations (as on the Jags and Harriers)?
Regarding the door-mounted weapons, how about some GPMGs? Miniguns and their associated bits'n'bobs are pretty big and the troop compartment on the Hind isn't all that big (ammo storage problem), especially if you want to cram in PJs and a crew chief. Plus, GPMGs have been used mounted in the troop compartment on Sierra Leonean Hinds. 

Whatever you do, have a look at Logan's Hind profiles. CLICKY! Pages 5+. Awesome stuff!

[Army of One]

Cool.....any idea re 1/72 guns....? I seen his profiles n have two printed out....like the zebra lookin one...like on the sea king/commando helo's....it will have sliding doors,Puma style n as mentioned by someone before.....a form of step.....H

[ChernayaAkula]

Gimpys can be found in pretty good quality in Dragon's 1/72 Challenger 2 MBT (two Gimpys supplied per kit).

[Weaver]

Airwaves do a resin GPMG helo door mount in 1/72nd: about a fiver each though!

Aeroclub used to do a white metal one, and they might still be available (see the various threads about Aeroclub).

[chrisonord]

Some of the modern Revel vehicles come with a choice of pintle armaments too.
Chris.

[Army of One]

The airwaves GPMG is indeed £5.....the aeroclub one seems oop,however I'm waiting an email back from a chap in the USA who sells them....bout $3.40 for a pair then p+p.....seems ok....maybe look into the revell vehicles for the guns.....get a free vehicle with them.......

[Army of One]

While lookin pics on helo's during work time I found a great site that has a wealth of info n some good pics......guncopter.com......loadsa stuff to help me out re my project......just for info for any other lovers of weapons put onto helo's......