The KAI LAH (Light Armed Helicopter) is a compact twin-engine combat helicopter that is being developed by

Korea Aerospace Industries Korea Aerospace Industries, Ltd. (KAI; ) is a South Korean aerospace and defense manufacturer. It was originally established as a joint venture of Daewoo Heavy Industries' aerospace division, Samsung Aerospace, and Hyundai Space and Aircraft ...

(KAI). The LAH has been developed from the

Eurocopter EC155 The Airbus Helicopters H155 (formerly Eurocopter EC155) is a long-range medium-lift passenger transport helicopter developed by Eurocopter from its Eurocopter Dauphin, Dauphin family for civil aviation use. It is a twin-engined aircraft and can ...

following an agreement between the multinational manufacturer

Airbus Helicopters Airbus Helicopters SAS (formerly Eurocopter S.A., trading as Eurocopter Group) is the helicopter manufacturing division of Airbus. It is the largest in the industry in terms of revenues and turbine helicopter deliveries, holding 48% of the wo ...

and KAI made in 2015. It is capable of performing multiple mission roles including light attack,

close air support Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...

, escort, and troop transport duties, replacing both the MD500 Defender and AH-1S Cobra helicopters of the

Republic of Korea Army The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA; ), also known as the ROK Army or South Korean Army, is the army of South Korea, responsible for ground-based warfare. It is the largest of the military branches of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces with 365,0 ...

(ROKA). On 4 July 2019, the LAH conducted its

maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...

, KAI reportedly aims to complete its development during 2022. The company has prompted several conceptual variants of the LAH, including an

unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or unmanned aircraft system (UAS), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft with no human pilot, crew, or passengers onboard, but rather is controlled remotely or is autonomous.De Gruyter Handbook of Dron ...

(UAV) and a troop-transport Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) model.

Development

Background

The origins of the LAH can be traced back to the

, a mid-sized civil utility helicopter produced by the multinational manufacturer

. During 2015, Airbus Helicopters and

Korean Aerospace Industries Korea Aerospace Industries, Ltd. (KAI; ) is a South Korean aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and Arms industry, defense manufacturer. It was originally established as a joint venture of HD Hyundai Infracore, Daewoo Heavy Industries' aerospace d ...

(KAI) jointly announced an agreement to transfer principle manufacturing activity of the EC155 to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

; under this arrangement, KAI would become the sole manufacturer of the type after 2018, and both firms shall be jointly involved in the international marketing and further development of the type. Furthermore, the EC155 served as the basis for two programmes headed by KAI: The Light Civil Helicopter (LCH) and Light Armed Helicopter (LAH). At the time of the agreement, Airbus stated that it foresaw demand within South Korea for 100 LCHs and 214 LAHs, and estimates an international market of 300–400 LAH versions to replace legacy attack helicopters. The LAH is expected to replace both the MD Helicopters MD 500 Defender and Bell AH-1J/S Cobra helicopters operated by the

. Furthermore, KAI has declared its hope to sell the LAH overseas. In addition to KAI, South Korea's

Defense Acquisition Program Administration The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA, ) is a central administrative agency of the South Korean Ministry of National Defense. It was founded on 1 January 2006 as part of a comprehensive reform of defense acquisition, including the ...

(DAPA) along with several other South Korean agencies have given their support to the project. Furthermore, numerous European suppliers are also involved in the programme; in June 2016, the French firm

Safran Group Safran S.A. () is a French Multinational corporation, multinational aerospace, defence industry, defence and computer security, security corporation headquartered in Paris. It designs, develops and manufactures both commercial and military airc ...

were selected to provide the

Turbomeca Arriel The Turbomeca Arriel is a series of French turboshaft engines that first ran in 1974.Gunston 1989, p.170. Delivering , over 12,000 Arriel engines have been produced from 1978 to 2018, logging more than 50 million flight hours for 40 helicopter ...

powerplant for both the LAH and LCH.

Design

The LAH features numerous changes from the EC155 it is derived from, these include a new cockpit, improved gearbox, and redesigned rotor blades. Furthermore, LAH is capable of using multiple new armaments, has been furnished with survivability equipment, and has the ability to carry up to ten fully-equipped troops. The LAH has been designed to perform both attack and reconnaissance missions. The flight system include a 4-axis automatic flight control system (AFCS), while the dynamic systems are designed to minimise both noise and vibration. Crashworthy

self-sealing fuel tank A self-sealing fuel tank (SSFT) is a type of fuel tank, typically used in aircraft fuel tanks or fuel bladders, that prevents them from leaking fuel and igniting after being damaged. Typical self-sealing tanks have layers of rubber and reinfor ...

s are also fitted. The LAH has been equipped with various avionics and apparatus to support its operations; these include a nose-mounted electro-optic/infrared sensor package, an integrated target acquisition/designation system, and a self-protection/ electronic warfare suite, which includes a

radar warning receiver Radar warning receiver (RWR) systems detect the radio emissions of radar systems. Their primary purpose is to issue a warning when a radar signal that might be a threat is detected, like a fighter aircraft's fire control radar. The warning can ...

(RWR),

laser warning receiver A laser warning receiver is a warning system used as a passive military defence. It detects, analyzes, and locates directions of laser emissionsPDF version4.53 MB) from laser guidance systems and laser rangefinders. Then it alerts the crew and can ...

(LWR), missile warning receiver (MWR), and

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flare A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala, bengalo in several European countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illuminatio ...

dispensers. Its self-protection systems are reportedly designed to guard against

man-portable air-defense system Man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS or MPADS) are portable Shoulder-launched missile, shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles. They are guided missile, guided weapons and are a threat to low-flying aircraft, especially helicopters and ...

s (MANPADS). A precision navigation system has been included, which is reportedly resistant to hostile

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide geol ...

jamming. The pilots are provided with

helmet-mounted display A helmet-mounted display (HMD) is a headworn device that uses displays and optics to project imagery and/or symbology to the eyes. It provides visual information to the user where head protection is required – most notably in military aircr ...

s integrated with the fire control system. The LAH is armed with a single chin-mounted 20mm three-barreled

turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Optical microscope#Objective turret (revolver or revolving nose piece), Objective turre ...

gun and fitted with stub wings for carrying both non-guided rockets and air-to-ground

anti-tank missile An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a missile guidance, guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy armoured fighting vehicle, heavily armored military v ...

s. The

Agency for Defense Development The Agency for Defense Development (ADD, ) is the South Korean government agency for research and development in defense technology, funded by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). It was established in August 1970 under the ban ...

(ADD) and

Hanwha Hanwha Group () is a large business conglomerate (chaebol) in South Korea. Founded in 1952 as Korea Explosives Co. (), the group has grown into a large multi-profile business conglomerate, with diversified holdings stretching from explosivesthei ...

developed a new anti-tank missile, initially referred to as the ''TAipers'' (Tank Sniper) Light Armed Helicopter Air-to-Ground Missile (LAH-AGM), as the LAH's primary weapon. Guided by a dual CCD TV and imaging infrared (IIR) seeker delivering a

fire-and-forget Fire-and-forget is a type of missile guidance which does not require further external intervention after launch such as illumination of the target or wire guidance, and can hit its target without the launcher being in line-of-sight of the tar ...

capability as well as a fire, observe and update mode using a

fiber-optic An optical fiber, or optical fibre, is a flexible glass or plastic fiber that can transmit light from one end to the other. Such fibers find wide usage in fiber-optic communications, where they permit transmission over longer distances and at ...

data-link, it provides an anti-armor capability up to away. Serial production of the missile is expected sometime in 2023, coinciding with the LAH's introduction. Later rename
Chungum
, the missile is in diameter, weighs , can fly at , and is equipped with a tandem shaped-charge warhead with impact or time delay fuses. The LAH can carry four Chungums, two on each side. Development of the missile was completed in December 2022. In 2021, KAI and

Israel Aerospace Industries Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI; ), is Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer, producing aerial and astronautic systems for both military and civilian usage. It has 14,000 employees as of 2021. IAI is state-owned by the government ...

(IAI) signed a separate memorandum of understanding to develop

loitering munition A loitering munition, also known as a suicide drone, kamikaze drone, or exploding drone, is a weapon with a warhead that is typically designed to Loiter (aeronautics), loiter until a target is designated, then crash into it.maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...

; on 10 December 2019, it was followed by the second prototype. During December 2020, the LAH was declared to be fit for combat on a provisional basis by DAPA. In April 2021, KAI stated that both the 20mm cannon and 70mm rockets had been integrated with the LAH's target acquisition designation sight, and that testing of the air-to-ground missile would proceed within the year. Between December 2021 and February 2022, cold weather testing of the LAH was conducted at

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Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, performing over 40 flights and testing 165 items over the course of nine weeks. DAPA announced on 18 February 2022 that these tests had successfully verified the helicopter's ability to withstand cold weather conditions without impacting either its manoeuvrability and general performance. The company has also conceptualised an unmanned version of the LAH, which it promoted as intended to work in coordination with a manned LAH. In October 2021 the South Korean government issued a contract for development of the unmanned LAH. During 2022, the LAH's manned-unmanned teaming capability was formally evaluated. KAI has stated its intention to equip the helicopter with a canister-launched

(UAV). In September 2022, KAI unveiled a new variant, the Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), which is intended to support operations by

special forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

; it is based on the LAH, but has been stripped of non-essential equipment and its troop-carrying capability maximised, not only using the internal cabin but also outboard benches akin to those used on the Boeing MH-6M Little Bird. On 23 December 2022, DAPA signed a 302 billion won (US$235 million) deal with KAI to begin producing 10 LAH units and start deliveries in December 2024. Airbus Helicopters and KAI agreed to start serial production in August 2023. On 26 December 2024, the Korean Army received the first model of the homegrown Light Armed Helicopter.

Specifications

Armament * 1 × 20mm M197 electric cannon three-barreled electric Gatling-type

rotary cannon A rotary cannon, rotary autocannon, rotary gun or Gatling cannon, is any large-caliber multiple-barreled automatic firearm that uses a Gatling-type rotating barrel assembly to deliver a sustained saturational direct fire at much greater ra ...

* 4 × " Cheongeom" Air-to-Ground Missile (2 on each side) or * 2 × seven-shot rocket launcher

Hydra 70 The Hydra 70 rocket (weapon), rocket is an American made diameter fin-stabilized unguided rocket used primarily in the air-to-ground role. It can be equipped with a variety of warheads, and in more recent versions, guidance systems for point att ...

(1 launcher on each side)

References

External links

* https://www.koreaaero.com/EN/Business/LAH.aspx {{KAI aircraft South Korean military aircraft LAH South Korean helicopters Military helicopters 2010s helicopters Aircraft first flown in 2019 ADD research and development projects