Stealth helicopter

[1] There are a diverse range of technologies used to achieve this decreased detectability; these have largely involved the reduction of several different signatures typically generated by a rotorcraft, including those of noise, radar, and infrared.

In many ways, helicopters are less suitable for stealth technology than fixed-wing aircraft are; one such area is their rotor blades, which not only generate copious noise levels but can also give off a strong radar signature.

Attack helicopters, such as the Changhe Z-10, Eurocopter Tiger, and HAL Prachand have incorporated numerous presence reduction technologies into their design to increase their survivability.

The raid on the compound of Osama bin Laden in May 2011 utilized what appeared to be two Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks, heavily modified for quieter operations and employing stealth technology to be less visible to radar.

The United States Army sought to develop a stealth helicopter for aerial reconnaissance missions; between 1996 and 2004, work on the Boeing/Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche entered the prototype stage with an eye towards production.

The airframe features a slim, rhombic shape, blended fuselage with the top and bottom half canted inward and merging with the stub wings and tail boom, creating a distinctive ridge line, intended to reduce helicopter's frontal profile and radar cross section (RCS).

[26] According to F. Michael Maloof, a former Pentagon senior policy analyst, identical stealthy UH-60s have been supplied to Israel and used for intelligence gathering missions inside Iran.

[29][30] HAL's Prachand (LCH) is reported to feature a digital camouflage system,[31] an infrared (IR) suppressor fitted to the engine exhaust, and an exterior covered by canted flat panels to minimise its radar cross-section (RCS).

While the exact extent of the 360s stealth properties may not be available for security reasons, the visible external shape and internal weapons bay do seem to exhibit radar signature reducing capabilities.

The stealth technology used to decrease the RCS of this helicopter and to avoid its detection includes infrared heat suppressing systems and various stealthy fuselage contour constructions, in addition to an internal weapons bay.

[citation needed] Alternative design proposals have since emerged, one harnessing an unorthodox canard configuration that was allegedly capable of great manoeuvrability and a high top speed along with its stealth features.