Gunship helicopters

[ysi_maniac]

Is it possible to aim a fixed gun with a helicopter?
Is it possible to fire an antitank gun (I mean 50mm to 105mm) from a helicopter?

[Rickshaw]

Is it possible to aim a fixed gun with a helicopter?

No more difficult than it is from a conventional aeroplane.   Just align it alone the axis of the aircraft and point the whole helicopter at the target.

Is it possible to fire an antitank gun (I mean 50mm to 105mm) from a helicopter?

A bit harder but if the helicopter is strengthened to withstand the recoil, I don't see why not.   Make the gun recoilless and it would have no problems with the recoil.

There have been numerous plans for making recoilless weapons semi-automatic in reloading.

[ysi_maniac]

Thanks! 

[GTX_Admin]

Largely fixed gun:



Large gun:  http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/750150.pdf

[kitnut617]

What I did with this Carlos, only because in the hover the Mangusta is nose up I went with an elevating gun pod

[Jeffry Fontaine]

AH-21 anyone? 


(Image source: War Is Boring > A Banana-Shaped Chopper With an Old Gun Turret Isn’t Much of a Gunship)

[elmayerle]

AH-21 anyone? 


(Image source: War Is Boring > A Banana-Shaped Chopper With an Old Gun Turret Isn’t Much of a Gunship)

Part of the US Army's early experimentation with armed helicopters; Cobra! The Attack Helicopter: Fifty years of Sharks Teeth and Fangs has a close-up of this B-29 remote turret installation in the chapter on early armed helicopter experiments (upper photo, page 8 of the hardback, if you're picky).  The USMC was in a similar effort and there is also a picture of a Sikorsky H-34 with a very large gun pod as well as one with 16 tube-launched rockets on each side.

[The Big Gimper]

Via Facebook



"Another attempt at helicopter mounted artillery. This US Army Weapons Command concept drawing shows a 105mm howitzer mounted on a CH-47 Chinook helicopter."

[elmayerle]

I could see the 105mm howitzer mounted on the rear ramp of a Ch-47 rather than a side door/ramp.

[GTX_Admin]

There was also this more dedicated proposal:



I do like the CH-47 proposal though.  HAs the advantage of being able to carry ammunition plus gun crew as well.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Sadly, mandatory urinalysis drug testing put a stop to crazy concepts. 

[GTX_Admin]

A proposal from 1972 - a CH-47C helicopter with two 105mm XM-204 howitzers:





The XM204 used a ‘soft recoil’ system, where just before firing, the gun barrel assembly would be pushed forward by a pneumatic system pressurized with nitrogen gas. As the gun barrel assembly moved forward the gun fired, and recoil energy would have to overcome the forward momentum of the gun barrel and breech. This would disperse most of the recoil energy, allowing the XM204 to dispense with the usual trail associated with towed howitzers.