(Baghdad) While the Iraqis bemoan the US for not supplying them with weapons when they say 'jump' as the reason why ISIS has captured virtually the entire northern half of Iraq, the Russians, quick to make a killing, sold them as much as they asked for straight from their own stocks. Other than the Mi-24 (aka Hind), the Russians sold them the Mi-28 Night Hunter (the Russian version of the Apache). Well, the Iraqis have started flying their new toys for the first time, and on Saturday the first video of the 'Havoc' in Iraqi colours was aired:
Designed from the off to replace the (but still formidable) Mi-24/35 (Hind), the Mi-28 is designed to kill the other fellow as quickly as possible. With a 2 man crew in a tandem seating arrangement, it is armed with a chin mounted 30-mm cannon and 16 anti tank missiles. Funny enough, a very similar load out to the AH-64 (Apache) which is currently being upgraded to its latest iteration the AH-64E which is supposed to be a quantum leap in performance over the earlier model AH-64D Apache Longbow which, let's be honest, isn't known for being a soft touch on the battlefield. Maybe that explains why the Apache costs over twice as much as this latest upstart.
Iraq is now the 4th country to field the Mi-28, after Russia, Algeria, and Kenya.
Designed from the off to replace the (but still formidable) Mi-24/35 (Hind), the Mi-28 is designed to kill the other fellow as quickly as possible. With a 2 man crew in a tandem seating arrangement, it is armed with a chin mounted 30-mm cannon and 16 anti tank missiles. Funny enough, a very similar load out to the AH-64 (Apache) which is currently being upgraded to its latest iteration the AH-64E which is supposed to be a quantum leap in performance over the earlier model AH-64D Apache Longbow which, let's be honest, isn't known for being a soft touch on the battlefield. Maybe that explains why the Apache costs over twice as much as this latest upstart.
Iraq is now the 4th country to field the Mi-28, after Russia, Algeria, and Kenya.
