UHA7 Uhlwa Low profile transport

Post contact reconstruction  Era ( year 2110- 2130 Ad) Aircraft based on a modified version of Blastwaves MH-7x

  I've moved away from cut and paste, and modifying existing images for a lot of my designs. But I have to admit I liked the look Of blastwaves Stealth chopper and thought I'd make a few modifications ..with his kind permission of course.

Here is the original image if you'd like to check it out.  blastwaves.deviantart.com/art/…

The Name is Valkiir but was adopted as a Tribute to the Valkiir manufacturers who supplied the craft until Local industry recovered from wartime damage and were capable of producing the craft on Earth.

  It breaks with the usual tradition of naming Helicopters after Native tribes. However under the circumstances it was seen as a proper means of ackowledging the assistance of off world allies. 

The write up is for an aearly model of the aircraft at some point I may work up a later era version of the craft with an updated history.

UHA-7 "Uhlwa "owl" 

Manaufacturer: Hymdahl Aerospace under license for Multiple Earth Agencies

Primary User Unified American States Regular Army and multiple Reconstruction Authority Agencies

Role: cover/overt insertion and recovery High risk assault/Search and rescue operation

Crew: pilot copilot flight engineer/door gunner

Engines: 

Twin General Dynamic Gas turbines

Later modified to use  Westinghouse Single quantumn resonance  power plant and high efficiency electric drive system.

max hover altitude: 14000 feet

Max horizontal speed in rotor operation 250 mph

max horizontal speed "Whispercraft" mode:  420 Miles per hour

Rotor type: 

Rigid two blade ( with variable configuration modifications)

or 

Rigid four blade ( for high altitude/ heavy lift operations )

Max range 

internal tanks only: 280 miles

Add on tanks                : 480 miles

in flight refuel          : limited by crew endurance

Also developed in to No tail rotor Whispercraft design using a twin Airfoil/rotor system 

max vertical lift weight: 22,000 lbs

Passengers: up to 10 fully equipped troops, four medical beds with flight trauma specialist, field medic  and medical gear

weapons:

1 x .50 caliber mini gun ( can be fired from either side of air craft due to flexible arm mount in center of cargo cabin)

6 to 10 external mounted ordnance pods

Based on the rugged advanced air frame The UHA-7 s a low profile nearly silent assault transport used for inserting small teams well behind hostile forces and extracting deep cover agents in the case of their cover being compromised.

The aircraft modifications includes a Synthetic sapphire composite windscreen, matted to layers of carbon composite and aero gels to decrease the pilots thermal signature, as well as diffract and absorb radar emissions before they reach( and are reflected) by the cockpit and passenger cabin spaces. as well as a thermal decoy system mounted on the tail boom.

This is required due to an enlarged engine and more complex transmission system to allow the craft to operate in fixed rotor mode using the larger engines to propel the aircraft in forward flight at nearly 475 miles per hour.

  In this mode the rigid rotors move into a swept wing configuration and act as aero foils providing lift to the craft at high forward speeds. Transition into and out of Whispercraft mode is tricky and requires both computer assist and a steady hand on the controls. this make the craft a bit unpopular among inexperienced pilots and has led to a high accident rate among new pilots.

   As a result most training is carried out in simulators with only the top twenty percent of the training class moving to modified training craft with a second instructors controls that override the pilots controls if the trainee inadvertently puts the craft into a dangerous corkscrew roll that often results in an"Unplanned flight termination"

the craft is seldom used in open combat areas due to it's expense and  the difficulty of training competent operators. several less advanced non stealth versions are being developed for over the horizon combat duties including pathfinder operations, and rapid long range insertion into confined areas where larger tilt rotor craft are not likely to be able to land. 

Additionally tot he upgraded low profile and decoy systems load bearing winglets for fuel and limited ordnance, a pylon mounted multi optic observation system, and a door mounted .50 caliber mini gun have been added to increase the crafts range and "hot zone" survivability

             The use of a modified UHA-7 as a stealth gun ship has been reported but with the exception of two instances have not been confirmed . a heavily armed UHA-7 was used to neutralize a meeting of BTSi insurgent leaders, using the low observable systems to penetrate a ring of shoulder and vehicle mounted air defense missiles, as well as a hastily constructed network of thermal and radar sensitive ground stations around the meeting location.

Two UHA-7s with four man insertion teams penetrated the fortified estate of a sympathetic House O'maeda matron, neutralized local air defenses using rockets and guided munitions and deployed the  two ground teams who confirmed the death of several high ranking insurgent leaders and recovered valuable date sources from computers and communications equipment on site.

     The Internal Security forces commander responsible for the raid denied repeated allegations that Valkiir operative in the teams executed two members of the BTSi as they attempted to surrender. Instead they insist the BTSI officer opened fire when challenged and were killed only after non lethal force was unsuccessful.

The second event was in the case of a Hostile area extraction of aid workers in a disputed region. the Air rescue specialist received on site air support when they cam under fire from armored vehicles. the UHA-7s involved successfully destroyed several armored fighting vehicles, and The engaged and destroyed a obsolete Main Battle tank operated by rouge military factions in support of the criminal Group besieging the Internationally sponsored refugee aid station.