Westland Lynx

Westland Lynx
Type:	Multi-purpose military helicopter
Design country:	United Kingdom
Manufacturer:	AgustaWestland (formerly Westland Aircraft )
First flight:	March 21, 1971

The Westland Lynx is a British multi-role helicopter that is primarily used for military purposes .

history

Three-sided view with skid frame

The Lynx ( English for lynx ) was designed by Westland Aircraft (now AgustaWestland ). The Mk.2 and Mk.4 series for the French armed forces were produced together with Aérospatiale . The first flight took place on March 21, 1971; the first machines entered service with the British Army in 1977 . Since 1982 he has been involved in all British military conflicts. The last British Lynx were decommissioned in 2018.

Due to the versatility of the Lynx and its high level of reliability and performance, it is now in service with the armed forces of 14 countries; Among them there are also 22 copies that are used by the German Navy in Marinefliegergeschwader 5 in Nordholz (near Cuxhaven ). The British Special Air Service also used the Army's Lynx for open missions as an emergency helicopter together with their Eurocopter Dauphin .

Over the years, more and more modern versions of the Lynx were built, bringing it up to date with the latest technology. The attempt to establish the Lynx - originally planned - on the civilian market had only moderate success. It is used here as a medical helicopter and to transport people.

Versions

More information about the series designations can be found in the information on the designation system of British aircraft . The following variants were intended for the armed forces of the United Kingdom and the French junior partner of the original Lynx program:

WG.13: prototype
AH.Mk.1: Multi-purpose variant, originally for the Army Air Corps of the British Army , which is used for tactical transport, escort protection, anti-tank defense, reconnaissance missions and the evacuation of injured soldiers. Depending on the type of use, it has different on-board equipment.
HT.Mk.1: This version based on the AH.1 was planned as a trainer for the Royal Air Force , but was not implemented.
HAS.Mk.2: Airborne helicopter originally built for the Fleet Air Arm of the British Royal Navy and the French National Navy . The so-called Sea Lynx differs from the land-based version in that it has wheels instead of runners. For submarine hunting , it is equipped with Stingray torpedoes and special sonar devices. For use against ships, it is possible to equip it with Sea Skua air-to-surface missiles , as was very often used in combating the Iraqi Navy in the Second Gulf War.
HAS.Mk.3: Modernized version of the HAS.Mk.2, built for the Royal Navy in the 1990s. There are various sub-variants of this.
Mk.4 (FN): Modernized version of the HAS.Mk.2 for France.
AH.Mk.5: Modernized version of the AH.1 with more powerful engines and gearboxes, of which only two copies were completed (after that the AH.7 version was already produced)
AH.Mk.6: This version with landing gear, foldable stern and catch hook was planned for the Royal Marines , but was not implemented.
AH.Mk.7: Last army version with runners, with some minor improvements in the area of the drive compared to the AH.Mk.5, 12 newly built and 107 converted AH.Mk.1, decommissioned in 2015
HMA.Mk.8: Airborne combat helicopter based on the Super Lynx 100 is again significantly more powerful in terms of system technology and drive side
AH.Mk.9: The Battlefield Lynx is the British Army's version of the Super Lynx . In contrast to its predecessors for land use, it now also has wheels instead of skids (16 newly built and 8 converted AH.Mk.7)
AH.Mk.9A: By 2014, all 22 AH.9s were equipped with, among other things, new CTS800-4N engines (with 37% more power) and a four-blade tail rotor, which improves operation under hot-and-high conditions and increases the payload capacity by one ton. The first modernized Lynx AH Mk.9A for the British Army had its maiden flight on September 16, 2009; the first four helicopters entered service on January 19, 2010. The decommissioning took place on January 16, 2018.

The export versions began with the series number 21; usually each customer was given a new version number. In the following only the series for the German Navy is listed:

Mk.88 / Mk.88A: The 22 German aircraft that are still stationed at Nordholz Air Base today consist of Mk.88 (83 + 03 to 83 + 19) that have been upgraded to the Mk.88A standard. Originally there were 19 Mk.88s, with a fourth batch of seven newly built Mk.88A models (83 + 20 to 83 + 26). The Mk.88 essentially corresponded to the HAS.Mk.2. Until the beginning of 2009, the machines were equipped with new 12.7 mm machine guns of the type M3M from the Belgian company FN Herstal , which were specially developed for helicopters and are characterized by a large continuous fire range of up to 600 rounds. In September 2014 the German Navy declared all of its 22 Mk.88s to be "not ready to fly" due to technical problems (cracks on the stern). Since January 2015, the helicopters have been allowed to take off again in restricted flight operations and since January 2017 in full flight operations.

AW159 Wildcat

The latest development so far is the former "Future Lynx", which is now referred to as the AW159 "Wildcat". This further development of the helicopter with many changes - including Rolls-Royce CTS800-4N engines - is classified as a new type, with the versions starting again with the series ( Mark ) 1 (in this case AH Mk.1).

Technical specifications

Dimensions of the Mk3

Dimensions of the Mk8

Data	Lynx AH.Mk.7	Lynx HMA.Mk.8	Lynx AH.Mk.9
Rotor diameter	12.80 m	12.50 m	12.80 m
Length (over rotating rotors)	15.24 m (hull length: 12.24 m)	15.24 m (hull length: 12.33 m or 10.85 m when folded)	15.24 m (hull length: 12.24 m)
height	3.60 m (rotor running)	3.20 m (folded)	3.73 m (folded)
drive	2 × Rolls-Royce Gem 41 (850 HP continuous power each)	2 × Rolls-Royce Gem BS 360-07-26 (900 HP continuous power each)	2 × Rolls-Royce Gem 42-1 (1000 HP continuous power each)
Top speed	330 km / h	295 km / h	324 km / h
Operating speed	232 km / h	259 km / h	256 km / h
Range	885 km	545 km / 1045 km with additional tanks	528 km
Rate of climb	600 m / min	660 m / min	756 m / min
Maximum weight	4763 kg	5330 kg (4400 kg empty)	4876 kg

Users

User states

With around 180 copies, the UK is the largest user of the Lynx. The following countries also use the Lynx: Algeria ( Navy ), Argentina ( Air Force ), Brazil ( Navy ), Denmark ( Danish Air Force ), Germany , France ( Aéronavale ), Qatar ( Qatar Emiri Air Force ), Malaysia ( Royal Malaysian Navy ), Netherlands ( Koninklijke Marine ), Nigeria ( Air Force ), Norway ( Luftforsvaret ), Oman ( Air Force ), Portugal ( Air Force ), South Africa ( South African Air Force ) and South Korea ( Air Force ). The most commonly exported variant is the Sea Lynx .

Station locations in Germany

German Navy (formerly Bundesmarine)
Nordholz Air Base , from 1981, Sea Lynx Mk.88 / 88A ( Marinefliegergeschwader 5 , until November 2012 Marinefliegergeschwader 3 "Graf Zeppelin" )

British Forces Germany (formerly British Army of the Rhine)

Hobart Barracks Detmold , from approx. 1980 to July 1995, Lynx AH7 ( 4th and 9th Regiment )
Princess Royal Barracks Gütersloh , late summer 1993 to October 2013, Lynx AH7 / AH9 / AH9A ( 1st regiment )
Tofrek Barracks Hildesheim , from January 1983 to late summer 1993, Lynx AH7 ( 1st regiment )
Soest-Bad Sassendorf Airfield , from approx. 1980 to early 1993, Lynx AH7 ( 3rd Regiment )

gallery

Royal Navy Mk3 drops torpedo
Royal Marines Mk7 transports soldiers
Mk8 of the Royal Navy
Westland Lynx of the German Navy
View into the cockpit

Records

In 1972 Roy Maxam set the world speed record over 15 and 25 km in a Lynx WG.13 with 331.74 km / h.

On August 11, 1986, Trevor Egginton set a new world record for helicopters in a Lynx AH MK.1 of the British Army with 400.87 km / h over a distance of 15 km and 25 km. However, the G-LYNX was modified with components from a Westland 'Model 30'. The partially restored aircraft can be viewed in the Museum of Army Flying (Middle Wallop, Hampshire ).

On September 15, 2010, the record was set at least unofficially by the Sikorsky X2 helicopter . A speed of 463 km / h was reached.

Armament

Movable armament installed in the door

1 × 12.7 mm FN Herstal M3M machine gun on ball joint with 110 rounds of ammunition

Gun load of 550 kg on two gun carriers

Air-to-ground guided missiles

2 × tube starters for 4 × Raytheon BGM-71 TOW each - wire-guided anti-tank guided missile

Anti-ship missiles and torpedoes

4 × BAe / MBDA Sea Skua / Sea Skua Mk.2 - radar-guided marine missile

2 × BAE Systems Stingray , 325mm torpedo

2 × Alliant Techsystems Mk.46 , 325mm torpedo

2 × EuroTorp MU90 , 324 mm torpedo

2 × EuroTorp A244-S , 324 mm torpedo

Unguided air-to-surface missiles

2 × FN Herstal FZ321 rocket launch containers, each with 12 unguided air-to-ground missiles, caliber 70 mm

Depth charges

2 × Mk.11 (160-kg water bomb )

External container

2 × FN-Herstal HMP-400LC containers with a 12.7 mm FN machine gun with 400 rounds of ammunition each
2 × GIAT M621 automatic cannon containers (POD NC 621 in 20 mm caliber) with 180 rounds of ammunition each

Web links

Commons : Westland Lynx - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

^ Bid farewell to the Lynx Mk7 aircraft, British Army, July 31, 2015
↑ FliegerRevue March 2010, p. 8, British Lynx modernized
^ British Army poised to retire last Lynx, Janes, January 11, 2017
↑ Christoph Hickmann: Navy helicopters have to stay on the ground. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung . September 22, 2014, accessed on September 22, 2014 : “Of all 22 Sea Lynx Mk.88A helicopters in the Navy, not a single one is currently“ ready to fly ”. This emerges from a document from the Ministry of Defense, which is available to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. The failure also affects the participation in the EU mission "Atalanta" in the Horn of Africa. "
^ T. Wiegold: Marine lifts flight restrictions for SeaLynx helicopters after 28 months. augengeradeaus.net, January 18, 2017, accessed July 29, 2017 .
↑ Sopheartith Moeng: Military Aircraft. Airlife Publishing Ltd, Shrewsbury, ISBN 1-85310-537-6 , p. 126.
^ Westland Lynx takes world speed record. flightglobal.com, August 23, 1986, accessed June 7, 2011 .
↑ Stephen Trimble: Sikorsky X2 sets unofficial helicopter speed record. flightglobal.com, July 26, 2010, accessed September 22, 2014 .
↑ Sikorsky X2 reaches a record speed of 463 km / h. FLUGREVUE, September 16, 2010, accessed May 7, 2011 .

[1] Bid farewell to the Lynx Mk7 aircraft, British Army, July 31, 2015

[2] FliegerRevue March 2010, p. 8, British Lynx modernized

[3] British Army poised to retire last Lynx, Janes, January 11, 2017

[4] Christoph Hickmann: Navy helicopters have to stay on the ground. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung . September 22, 2014, accessed on September 22, 2014 : “Of all 22 Sea Lynx Mk.88A helicopters in the Navy, not a single one is currently“ ready to fly ”. This emerges from a document from the Ministry of Defense, which is available to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. The failure also affects the participation in the EU mission "Atalanta" in the Horn of Africa. "

[5] T. Wiegold: Marine lifts flight restrictions for SeaLynx helicopters after 28 months. augengeradeaus.net, January 18, 2017, accessed July 29, 2017 .

[6] Sopheartith Moeng: Military Aircraft. Airlife Publishing Ltd, Shrewsbury, ISBN 1-85310-537-6 , p. 126.

[7] Westland Lynx takes world speed record. flightglobal.com, August 23, 1986, accessed June 7, 2011 .

[8] Stephen Trimble: Sikorsky X2 sets unofficial helicopter speed record. flightglobal.com, July 26, 2010, accessed September 22, 2014 .

[9] Sikorsky X2 reaches a record speed of 463 km / h. FLUGREVUE, September 16, 2010, accessed May 7, 2011 .