Turkey recently hosted EFES 2018, a series of live fire military drills held in Western Anatolia, the Central Aegean region, the Gulf of Izmir and the Doğanbey Live Fire Drill Zone. During the event, Turkey demonstrated the capabilities of its T129 ATAK helicopters. Watch the footage above to get an idea of what these choppers can do.
The T129 ATAK is a tandem seat, twin-engine, helicopter capable of operating in all weather conditions. It is designed for attack, armed reconnaissance, precision strike and deep strike missions. Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) developed the helicopter in partnership with AgustaWestland. It is based on the Agusta A129 Mangusta. Here’s what it’s capable of in terms of weapons, via the TAI website:
The T129 ATAK incorporates asymmetric weapon loading capability and enables the use of all weapons effectively according to mission requirements. For close combat support missions, a 20mm turreted gun with a capacity of 500 rounds and 70mm Classic Rockets with a capacity of 76 rockets have been integrated; whereas for multipurpose missions, 16 x CIRIT 70mm Laser Guided Air-to-Ground Missiles, 8 x UMTAS Long Range Anti-Tank Missiles and 8 x STINGER Air-to-Air Missiles are integrated, as well as the state of the art EW systems and EO systems.
Below, see the specs for the T129 ATAK.
T129 ATAK Technical Data
| Length: | 14.54 m | 47.70 ft |
| Height: | 3.40 m | 11.20 ft |
| Main Rotor Diameter: | 11.90 m | 39.00 ft |
| Width: | 3.49 m | 11.45 ft |
| MTOW: | 5065 kg | 11166 lbs |
| Fuel Tank*: | 749 kg | 936 lt |
| Crew: | 2 Tandem | 2 Tandem |
T129 ATAK Performance
| Max Cruise Speed: | 281 km/h | 152 kts |
| HIGE (TOP): | 4572 m | 15000 ft |
| HOGE (TOP): | 4221 m | 13850 ft |
| Rate of Climb: | 13.26 m/sec | 2610 ft/min |
| Vertical Rate of Climb: | 7.3 m/sec | 1430 ft/min |
| Service Ceiling: | 4572 m | 15000 ft |
| Range (Std. Tank): | 537 km | 290 nm |
| Endurance: | 3 hr | 3 hr |
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