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Mi-2 HOPLITE

The MI-2 Hoplite provides transport and fire support. The MI-2 can conduct reconnaissance, resupply guerrillas and provide close air support with 57mm rockets. It can also have a smoke generator mounted to provide a wide area smoke screen in front of units, screening their movements. Additional missions include; direct air support, antitank, armed reconnaissance, transport, medevac, airborne command post, minelaying, and training. Although the Mi-2 Hoplite was developed by the Mil bureau in the former Soviet Union, the aircraft was produced exclusively in Poland by the PZL Swidnik aircraft factory. Several thousand of these aircraft were built and it remained in production until 1985.

The three-blade main rotor is mounted on top of a large hump above the body midsection. Two turboshaft enginess are mounted side-by-side on top of cabin, forming a hump, with round air intakes above the cockpit and oval exhausts on the sides of the engines. The small, bus-like fuselage with fixed landing gear features a stepped-up cockpit and rounded nose, and a tadpole-shaped body when viewed from bottom. The tapered tail boom has small, unequally tapered flats and a thin, swept-back fin with a rotor on the right.

The cabin door is hinged rather than sliding, which may limit operations. There is no armor protection for the cockpit or cabin. Ammo storage is in the aircraft cabin, so combat load varies by mission. Some Mi-2USs currently employ fuselage-mounted weapon racks rather than the 23-mm fuselage-mounted cannon which is removed. Some variants however, still employ the cannon. External stores are mounted on weapons racks on each side of the fuselage. Each rack has two hardpoints for a total of four stations.

VARIANTS

Specifications

Country of Origin Russia
Builder MIL / PZL Swidnik
Date of Introduction 1965
Role Transport, cargo, reconnaissance, trainer, search and rescue, liaison, armed support
Similar Aircraft Hirundo A109, Mi-8 Hip
Blades Main rotor: 3 Tail rotor: 2
Rotor diameter 47 ft, 6 in (14.6 m)
Length rotors turning: 17.4 m / 57 ft
fuselage: 11.9 m
Height 3.7 m
Weight Maximum Gross: 3,700 kg
Normal Takeoff: 3,550 kg
Empty: 2,372 kg
Engines 2x 400-shp PZL GTD-350 (series III and IV) turboshaft
Maximum speed 220 km/h
Cruising speed 194 km/h
Fuel Internal: 600 liters
Internal Aux Tank: N/A
External Fuel Tank: 238 liters ea.
Range Maximum Load: 580 km
Normal Load: 340 km
With Aux Fuel: 790 km
Ceiling Service: 4,000 meters
Hover (out of ground effect): 1,000 meters
Hover (in ground effect): 2,000 meters
Vertical Climb Rate 4.5 m/s
Standard Payload Transports 6-8 troops or
700 kg internal cargo or
800 kg external load on 4x external hardpoints.
Armament
  • 23-mm Automatic Cannon, NS-23KM:
    Range: (practical) 2,500 m
    Elevation/Traverse: None (rigidly-mounted)
    Ammo type: HEFI, HEI, APT, APE, CC
    Rate of Fire (rpm): (practical) 550
  • 7.62-mm or Pintle-mounted Machinegun:
    (may be mounted in left-side cabin door)
    Range: (practical) 1,000 m
    Ammo type: HEFI, HEI, APT, APE, CC
    Rate of Fire (rpm): (practical) 250
    OR
  • 12.7-mm or Pintle-mounted Machinegun:
    (may be mounted in left-side cabin door)
    Range: (practical) 1,500 m
    Ammo type: API, API-T, IT, HEI
    Rate of Fire (rpm): (practical) 100

  • 1 - 23-mm automatic cannon
  • 1 - 7.62-mm or 12.7-mm MG
  • 4 - AT-3c/SAGGER ATGM
  • 4 - SA-7b/GRAIL missile
  • 2 - 57-mm Rocket pods (16 each)
  • Twin or single fixed 7.62-mm or 12.7-mm MG
  • External fuel tanks (liters)
    • AVIONICS
  • The cannon is pilot sighted, and fire is adjusted by controlling the attitude of the aircraft.
  • The Mi-2 is primarily a daylight only aircraft.
    • Survivability Main and tail rotor blades electrically deiced.
    Crew 1 (pilot)
    Cost
    User Countries Azerbaijan, Burma, Bulgaria, CIS, Cuba, Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, Libya, Nicaragua, Poland, Slovakia, Syria, Ukraine

    Sources and Resources


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    http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/row/mi-2.htm
    Maintained by Robert Sherman
    Originally created by John Pike
    Updated Saturday, June 17, 2000 3:09:30 PM