<!-- google_ad_section_start -->Hey all,

Elaborating on Devcast #3 I'm going to outline some more of the changes to transport helicopters in v1.0 and in a little more detail.


Transport Helicopter Classes

First we have started by properly splitting our transport helicopters up into Light, Medium and Heavy lift classes based on their real life capabilities. Each of these classes performs a slightly different role and should be used differently on the battlefield to help keep your team on the move.


Light Transport/Utility Helicopters

The Light Transport Helicopters which are small, fast and manoeuvrable are mainly used for troop transport carrying up to eight players including the pilot, but also carry a new "Light Supply Crate" which I'll go into more detail on later in this highlight. This class of helicopter includes the Huey series which was incorrectly classed as Medium lift before, the Lynx and the new Zhi-9 and Panther series.
Full list of Light Transport Helicopters:

• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-1H Huey
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Zhi-9B
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> AS 565MB Panther
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> AH-7 Lynx
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-1D Huey
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-1N Huey
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-1C/E Huey
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-1D Huey
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-1D Medievac Huey

Medium Transport/Utility Helicopters

The Medium Transport Helicopters which most of you are pretty familiar with are as the name suggested, a medium sized helicopter that are used equally for both troop transport and logistics, carrying a single "Heavy supply Crate" (the crate your all use to in PR and works the same way in v1.0 as it did before) as well as a full load of troops. This class includes the UH-60 Black Hawk and the Mi-17 Hip which is also China's new Medium Lift Helicopter.
Full list of Medium Transport Helicopters:

• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Merlin HC3
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Wessex HU.5
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" />/nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Mil-8 Hip
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" />/nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" />/nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Mil-17
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" />/nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> UH-60 Black Hawk
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> H-34 Choctaw

Heavy Transport/Utility Helicopters

The Heavy Transport Helicopters are very large helicopters that require a pretty large LZ and are mainly used for logistic purposes, carrying two "Heavy Supply Crates" as well as a full load of troops. This class includes the Chinook series, the new MV-22 Osprey and the Z-8KA which was incorrectly classed as Medium Lift before.
Full list of Heavy Transport Helicopters:

• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Zhi-8KA
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" />/nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" />/nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> Chinook
• nload="NcodeImageResizer.createOn(this);" /> MV-22 Osprey

Light Supply Crate

As mentioned in the Devcast we have made a new logistics crate called the "Light Supply Crate" (LSC) and so far is only carried by the Light Transport/Utility Helicopters. For all intensive purposes, this crate is half a normal "Heavy Supply Crate", which is the supply crate you are all use to seeing in PR. By this I mean the Light Supply Crate has half the ammo resupply of a Heavy Supply Crate and you need twice as many of these Light Supply Crates in order to deploy any assets. So for example you need two of these Light Supply Crates in order to deploy a Forward Outpost and four are required to deploy any additional assets/weapons. You can still request kits off of this crate just like a normal Heavy Supply Crate. This essentially means that the Light Transport Helicopters can still do simple resupply missions on their own to out of the way squads, but in order to deploy any assets, they either need to team up with another Light Chopper, both dropping off their crates at the same location or need to make two trips in order to deploy a Forward Outpost.



Helicopter Wheels

As you've probably seen in the Devcast the working helicopter wheels concept which was first seen in PR:F v0.1 as a Proof of Concept dynamic and received the communities approval has been applied to all wheeled helicopters in PR for v1.0.

This essentially allows wheeled helicopters to taxi and perform rolling landings, as well as having much more control while on the ground. Before in PR and vBF2 the wheels where just for show but now helicopters with wheels will behave very differently on the ground from helicopters with skids. This will take a bit of time to get use to but once your use to the new system, you should really appreciate the new control you have on the ground and the new options you have for landing.



Cheers for reading and hope you all like the changes!<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

<!-- google_ad_section_start --> This has been a very long time coming and we know many of you have been eagerly awaiting these but these babies are finally here and ingame for PR:BF2 v1.0!

First a bit of History on this projects development for anyone who is interested:

Zhi-9B - PLA Light Transport/Utility Helicopter

Design and Development

The Zhi-9B (Z-9B) helicopter is a Chinese "indigenised", licensed-built version of the Aerospatiale (now Eurocopter) AS 365N Dauphin II. The helicopter has been built by Harbin Aircraft Manufacture Company (HAMC) since the early 1980s. The Z-9 is possibly the most produced helicopter in China, with over 200 machines delivered to both military and civilian customers.

China signed a contract with the French company Aerospatiale in 1980 for the co-production of its AS 365N Dauphin II helicopter. The helicopter was to be built by the Harbin Aircraft Factory (now HAMC) under the designation Z-9. Under the agreement, Aerospatiale would provide 48 sets of AS 365N kits. The first Chinese assembled AS 365N was completed in 1981. The initial 48 helicopters included 28 examples of the basic variant Z-9, which is equivalent of the AS 365N1, and 20 examples of the Z-9A, which is equivalent of the AS 365N2 with increased portion of Chinese-made parts. All 48 helicopters had been completed by the late 1980s. In 1993, HAMC signed a new contract with Eurocopter to build a further 22 examples of the AS 365N2.

In 1988, HAMC was ordered to develop an "indigenised" Z-9 with further increased portion of Chinese-made parts. In order to achieve this, HAMC experimentally built two Z-9A-100s, which were powered by the Chinese indigenous Wozhou-8A (Turbomeca Arriel-IC1 copy) turboshaft engine. The Z-9B, an ?indigenised? variant with 71.9% Chinese-made content, flew successfully on 16 January 1992. The helicopter completed its flight test by November 1992, and was certified for design finalisation in December. Batch production of the Z-9B began in the mid-1990s, with 25 examples ordered by the PLA by 1997, and a further 7 examples in 1998. Over 150 examples of the Z-9B and its follow-on variants are believed to have been delivered to the PLA so far.

Generally the Z-9 is identical to the AS 365N Dauphin, though later variants of the Z-9 such as the Z-9B incorporate more composite materials to increase structural strength and lower radar signature. The helicopter has a four-blade main rotor, with two turboshaft engines mounted side by side on top of the cabin with engine layout identical to the AS 365N. The Z-9 teardrop-shaped body features a tapered boom to the tail fin, with rounded nose and stepped-up cockpit, and retractable gear and all flat bottom.

The Z-9B features an 11-blade Fenestron faired-in tail rotor with wider-chord, all-composite blades replacing the 13-blade in AS 365N. As a light tactical troop transport, the Z-9 has the capacity to transport 10 fully armed soldiers into battle.

In-Game

In-game this helicopter will server as the PLA's new Light Transport/Utility Helicopter much like the USMC UH-1N Huey and the AAC Lynx AH7, being able to carry a squad fast and swiftly into battle, with also being able to quickly maneuver and land into those tight and tricky landing zones the bigger helicopters can't easily fit into.

Screenshots



Zhi-9WA - PLA Light Attack Helicopter

Design and Development

Harbin Aircraft Manufacture Corporation (HAMC) began to develop an attack helicopter based on the Zhi-9 helicopter in the mid-1980s. The early versions of this attack helicopter, designated Zhi-9W (Z-9W, aka WZ-9, note, not the Z-9WA), featured a pair of external weapon pylon and a roof-mounted optical sight for target searching and tracking in daylight. The helicopter was mainly intended for anti-armour warfare role, carrying four HJ-8 wire-guided anti-tank missiles. Alternatively, the helicopter could carry rocket pods or machine gun pods for a close air support role.

In 2005, HAMC introduced an improved ?night attack variant?, also known as Zhi-9WA (Z-9WA, aka WZ-9A). The most notable improvement was an under-nose observing and tracking unit housing a low-light TV and an infrared search and track (IRST), allowing the helicopter to operate in all-weather, day/night conditions. Other improvements included redesigned weapon pylons similar to those of the French AS 565 Panther that allows it to carry eight HJ-8 Anti-Tank Missiles up from the Z-9W's four, a self-defence electronic warfare suite and a new cockpit with multi-function displays (MFD).

In-Game

In-game this helicopter will server as the PLA's new Light Attack Helicopter much like the USMC Attack Huey with Rocket Pods and will come in 4 separate versions, each carrying a different load out of weapons.

Zhi-9WA - HJ-8 Ant-Tank Missiles

This version of the Zhi-9WA is equipped with eight, Hongjian-8 ( HJ-8 ) Anti-Tank Missiles and is designed to hunt down and destroy enemy armoured vehicles. This version requires to co-pilot/gunner to optically track the missile onto the target, or to lock onto a laser designation, in much the same way other attack helicopters ingame track their missiles onto their targets, from the camera housed under the nose in either day or inferencer viewing mode. It also should be noted that to do any significant damage to an armoured vehicle, you need to get a direct hit now with all Anti-Tank weapons in PR v1.0. If the missile hits the ground or something else close to the target, the explosion from the missile will do hardly any damage to armour, although will do some damage to soft skinned vehicles and infantry within around a 10m radius depending on the missiles warhead size.

Zhi-9WA - HF-7D 90mm Rockets

This version of the Zhi-9WA is equipped with 14, 90mm HF-7D Rockets, loaded into two rocket pods. While 14 may not sound like many rockets, don't be fooled into thinking this isn't a threat. The Hydra 70 rocket which is fired from the Attack Huey with rocket pods, is only a 70mm rocket and that extra 20mm really dose make a big difference in how much punch these rockets pack and one or two close hits with these rockets will easily take out a soft skinned vehicle where a direct hit will cause quite a lot of damage to an armoured vehicle. The other advantage of only having a few, big rockets is that it doesn't have to spend much time loitering over the enemy while it fires off its rockets, instead it can deliver its punch in a quick burst, and run rather than wait a long time for all its rockets to fire, which could leave it in a vulnerable position. The co-pilot can also spot and lase targets with the nose camera in both day and inferred viewing modes and while the pilot can't lock his rockets onto the lases, he can see them on his HUD.

Zhi-9WA - HF-25 57mm Rockets

This version of the Zhi-9WA is equipped with 36, 57mm HF-25 Rockets, loaded into two rocket pods. While the rockets are much smaller than the HF-7D 90mm rockets, the Z-9WA can carry more of them, meaning that this chopper can devastate a much wider area by spreading out its missiles more and having to worry a lot less about accuracy but at the same time, it takes longer to throw down all of its rockets. The co-pilot can also spot and lase targets with the nose camera in both day and inferred viewing modes and while the pilot can't lock his rockets onto the lases, he can see them on his HUD.

Zhi-9WA - 23mm Guns

This version of the Zhi-9WA is equipped with two, 23-II, 23mm Guns with a total of 480 rounds between them. While this might not sound like a lot, these guns are not 50cals, they pack close to the same round the attack helicopter nose gun fires and at a much higher rate of fire since there are two of them so soft skinned vehicles and infantry should be wary of this. It is also especially devastating to any enemy helicopters it can get close enough to, to use its guns on. The co-pilot can also spot and lase targets with the nose camera in both day and inferred viewing modes and while the pilot can't lock his rockets onto the lases, he can see them on his HUD. On top of this, this version can also carry two passengers in the back if it chooses to so it can be used to quickly get a recon team to the front line and then provide them with air support if need be.

New Projectiles

As you have probably noticed above in some of the screenshots for the new Z-9WA weapons we also made some new projectiles for them. This includes the overly long awaited HJ-8 Anti-Tank missile (currently the HJ-8 Missile Launcher ingame fires a TOW missile) and the HF-7D and HF-25 Rockets which are pretty much the same rocket just in two different sizes. It should be noted that all weapons/vehicles that are meant to fire these projectiles now do ingame, so the WZ-10 now fires the HF-25 missiles instead of the Hydra, and the Deployable/Stationary HJ-8 Missile Launcher now fires the HJ-8 Missile rather than the TOW missile, etc so they are for more than just the Z-9WA.

Common Zhi-9WA Screenshots



AS565 MB Panther - French Light Transport Helicopter

Design and Development

The Eurocopter AS565 Panther is the military version of the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin. The AS565 MB is the naval version of the Panther family of helicopters. This all-weather, multi-role light helicopter can be operated from ship decks or offshore to cover a vast array of naval and ground missions such as maritime surveillance, search and rescue (SAR), casualty evacuation, vertical replenishment, offshore patrolling and counter-terrorism. The AS565 MB is the ideal complementary asset for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and anti-surface warfare (ASuW) tasks, such as submarine and surface target destruction: It can launch its own torpedoes and provide Over-the-Horizon Targeting (OTHT) to surface ships. Offered with various armaments, including cabin-mounted 20mm cannon, AS 15 TT anti-shipping missile, Mark 46 torpedo and Whitehead A.244/S torpedo.

In-Game

In-game this helicopter will server as the French Light Transport/Utility Helicopter much like the USMC UH-1N Huey and the AAC Lynx AH7, being able to carry a squad fast and swiftly into battle, with also being able to quickly maneuver and land into those tight and tricky landing zones the bigger helicopters can't easily fit into.

Screenshots



HM-1 Pantera - Brazilian Light Transport Helicopter

Design and Development

HM-1 Pantera (Spanish for Panther) is a version of the AS565 Panther based on the AS565 AA and is licence-built by Helibras for the Brazilian Army and serves as their main Light Transport/Utility Helicopter.

In-Game

In-game this helicopter will server as the Brazilian Light Transport/Utility Helicopter much like the USMC UH-1N Huey and the AAC Lynx AH7, being able to carry a squad fast and swiftly into battle, with also being able to quickly maneuver and land into those tight and tricky landing zones the bigger helicopters can't easily fit into.

While there is no guarantee the Brazilian Forces will ever be included in Project Reality BF2, this version was pretty quick and easy to make off of the Zhi-9/French Panther and just we wanted to show you the work we had done with it, for the small chance that one day you might just see them flying around in this ingame.

Screenshots



Landing Gear Gauge

Stealing an idea from Clivewil from AIX, one gauge I did manage to add was a landing gear gauge to show you when your landing gear (wheels) are up or down. Since the landing gear in BF2 is automated, its sometimes hard to tell if your wheels or in or out, especially when in a helicopter and trying to land on a tall building as the code for making it go in and out can be a bit unreliable. As such all you need to do now is look down at this gauge and it will show you if your gear is in or out before you try to land.


Credits

Models: [R-DEV]Rhino, Foul_Killer
UVs: [R-DEV]Rhino
Textures: SashaSK8, [R-DEV]Rhino
Export: [R-DEV]Rhino, [R-DEV]Hauteclocque
Coding: [R-DEV]Rhino, [R-DEV]Jafar Ironclad, [R-DEV]J.F.Leusch69
Sounds: [R-DEV]-=anders=-
HUDs: [R-CON]Moszeusz6Pl<!-- google_ad_section_end -->