Russian Navy Mistral-class landing ships could see their power projection capabilities greatly improved thanks to a special version of the Kamov Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopter. The Russian Navy is designing a special version called "Ka-52K" to equip the four Mistral-class amphibious assault ships ordered from France.
The Ka-52K is a navalised version of the ground-based Ka-52 Alligator combat helicopter operated by the Russian Air Force.
Kh-31 is a sea skimming cruise missile with a range of more than 100 kilometres, capable of supersonic speed. Its warhead is close to 100 Kg.
Kh-35V is subsonic (Mach 0.8) sea skimming anti-ship missile. Its range is reported to be 130 km and the warhead weighs 145 Kg.
Each Mistral landing ship is set to receive at least eight Ka-52K attack helicopters making the vessel a potent tool in terms of power projection at sea.
Asian Defence News
The Ka-52K is a navalised version of the ground-based Ka-52 Alligator combat helicopter operated by the Russian Air Force.
The special "navalized" version of the helicotper will be specially equipped to conduct attack missions against targets at sea and on the ground which requires different sensors and armaments than those used on the basic Ka-52 helicopter.
The major difference will be the radar: A modified version of the Mig-35 fighter's Zhuk-A phased array radar is currently being developped to fit into the Ka-52K nose cone. This will be a major step forward compared to the base Ka-52 helicopter as the AESA radar Zhuk-A is among the most advanced radars to date in Russia. The radar is stated to provide a detection range of 130 km for a head on target with up to 30 targets tracked and 6 of those engaged at any one time.
Ka-52K will also feature folding rotor blades, folding wings and anti-corrosion treatment to fuselage and systems which is a necessity for any helicopter set to operate from a ship.
Another significant improvement for the Ka-52K over the Ka-52 is the reported possibility to launch Kh-31 (AS-17 'Krypton') and Kh-35 (AS-20 'Kayak') anti-ship missiles.
The major difference will be the radar: A modified version of the Mig-35 fighter's Zhuk-A phased array radar is currently being developped to fit into the Ka-52K nose cone. This will be a major step forward compared to the base Ka-52 helicopter as the AESA radar Zhuk-A is among the most advanced radars to date in Russia. The radar is stated to provide a detection range of 130 km for a head on target with up to 30 targets tracked and 6 of those engaged at any one time.
Ka-52K will also feature folding rotor blades, folding wings and anti-corrosion treatment to fuselage and systems which is a necessity for any helicopter set to operate from a ship.
Another significant improvement for the Ka-52K over the Ka-52 is the reported possibility to launch Kh-31 (AS-17 'Krypton') and Kh-35 (AS-20 'Kayak') anti-ship missiles.
Kh-35V is subsonic (Mach 0.8) sea skimming anti-ship missile. Its range is reported to be 130 km and the warhead weighs 145 Kg.
Each Mistral landing ship is set to receive at least eight Ka-52K attack helicopters making the vessel a potent tool in terms of power projection at sea.
Asian Defence News
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