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AH-1G with M-35 loadout


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Hi everyone

I am about to start building Special Hobby Cobra kit and was wondering what were the loadouts when M-35 was installed? I've only seen photos from the port side and sometimes, the outer pylon is empty or loaded with some rocket pod. How about on the other side? Was the inner pylon empty or did it carry some rocket pod as well?

Thanks!

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Hi everyone

I am about to start building Special Hobby Cobra kit and was wondering what were the loadouts when M-35 was installed? I've only seen photos from the port side and sometimes, the outer pylon is empty or loaded with some rocket pod. How about on the other side? Was the inner pylon empty or did it carry some rocket pod as well?

Thanks!

there was no absolutely standard loadout, but it was most common to see the M35 paired with 3 M1587 shot rocket pods. Two M158s on the outboard pylons and a XM18 minigun pod on the inboard right pylon would also be an option. Definitely no 19 shots pods though from what I have seen. Hope that helps.

Ray

Here's a couple of shots of the typical M35 loadout showing the three M158 pods. Pics from US Army Aviation Museum archives.

6452_zpshuqi3mtn.jpg

AH-1-256_zps7rleuubo.jpg

Edited by rotorwash
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Thankd for these photos, mate! I didn't know, the minigun could be carried on either side.

Guess what, I just ordered another Cobra and I'll be building two of them - one of them carrying M-35 with 3x M158 pods, the other one carrying 4 19-shot pods.

Any good online walkaround?

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First time I have ever seen an XM-35 mounted under the right wing. There were no blast panels on that side. I have seen photos of an XM-35 system on the left side and an 19 shot pod on the inboard left pylon. Very rare.

Chris M

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First time I have ever seen an XM-35 mounted under the right wing. There were no blast panels on that side. I have seen photos of an XM-35 system on the left side and an 19 shot pod on the inboard left pylon. Very rare.

Chris M

I think that photo may be backwards when scanned. When flipped horizontally the number on the barrels becomes 6s.

AH-1-256_zpsztxjfzrq.jpg

Floyd

Edited by Floyd S. Werner, Jr.
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Yeah, I was thinking that too. What made me hesitate is the 6 also looked like a sloppy 2 and the other aircraft had the flipped rotor. The main rotor tells the tale. Direction of rotation.

Chris M

Edited by Chief Snake
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Did you notice that those two AH-1G in the photo have different tail rotor positions, the close one has it on the left and the far one on the right, was this a standar configuration or an inprovement?

Rod.

I mentioned that in the previous post. The tail rotor was moved from the left side to the right side as a measure of increasing tail rotor effectiveness/authority. Either late 1968 or sometime in 1969.

Chris M

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Interesting Cobra shot! The structures in the background are consistent with the old MAG 13 area on Chu Lai main. Army aviation took over the area in the fall of 1970 and stayed until the Americal Div. stood down in the fall of 71. In October of 71 Typhoon Hester hit Chu Lai and destroyed most of the modern hangers on the airfield as well as about 35 aircraft. Additional Cobra shots are always welcome!

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Never say definitely!

From my father's slide collection, 7/17 in 1970:

ah1.jpg

Right you are, Steve! Never say never is my motto and I forgot for a sec. However, nothing on the outer pylons either. Also, not a full pod, but this could be after a mission. If you have one like this with all four stations full that would be something. If you put three 19 shot pods full and the M35, you'd be bale to put about a teaspoon of gas on board and still get in the air in Vietnam!

Ray

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  • 2 years later...

Dear all,

I already built at least two Vietnam Cobra and I want to build another pair of Vietnam era Cobras.

While studying my references I discovered that some AC might have had one main rotor blade painted white.

Was there a practice on which Cobras a blade was painted white?

I'm asking because Floyds picture clerly shows that both blades are painted black.

 

Thanks a lot and best regards

 

Wiggi

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The white blade was a measure taken to alert an aircraft at a higher elevation that there was traffic below. There are variations such as one three foot wide white stripe on each blade. Another practice was to paint the top of the synch elevators orange. Some of these practices were dictated by higher commands while others were instigated by the unit commander.

 

Chris M

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Hello Chris,

 

thanks a lot for the information!

I checked a lot of pictures and it seems that this practice with white rotor blades was less common.

I also recognized that there were Snakes with orange elevators and that they had white rotor blades too.

I guess that it is up to everyone’s taste to paint the blades white as long as there is no picture of the particular aircraft available?

Cheers

Sven

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