Why didn’t the USMC buy AH-64 Apache helicopters instead of continuing to upgrade AH-1 Cobras?
The AH-1 Cobra is an attack helicopter featuring a single engine and a two-blade rotor, produced by Bell Helicopter. It was created employing the rotor system, transmission, and engine from the Bell UH-1 Iroquois. As a member of the well-known Huey family, the AH-1 is commonly known as the Huey Cobra or Snake.
The AH-1 served as the foundation of the US Army’s fleet of attack helicopters but has been succeeded by the AH-64 Apache within Army operations. Enhanced models continue to be operational with the armed forces of various other countries. The twin-engine variants of the AH-1 (AH-1W Super Cobra and AH-1Z Viper) are still active with the US Marine Corps (USMC) as their main attack helicopter.
Why did the USMC choose not to purchase Apache helicopters and instead keep upgrading Cobras?
‘I had this same discussion with a friend of mine who is a Marine Huey crew chief. Turns out the answer is pretty simple: it’s because the Marines still use Hueys. But the explanation as to why they still use Huey’s goes back a bit,’ Damien Leimbach, Former Avionics Technician at the US Air Force, says on Quora.
‘The original Cobra was a derivative of the Huey airframe. They used the same engine, transmission, flight controls, rotor blades, tail boom, etc. In fact, when first built, it was called the “HueyCobra.”
‘This lineage is easy to see with the naked eye, especially the first-gen Cobras that had the rounded bubble canopy.
‘Note the similarities in lines and general appearance.
‘It made sense for the Army and Marines in the 1960s to adopt a system that used so many common parts as the Huey they already had in service, as it streamlined supply and training.
‘But the Army and Marines have different missions. The Army’s job is to confront other Armies, who will probably have tanks. During the Cold War, it was expected that the US Army would have a confrontation with Warsaw Pact forces in Europe, as a million screaming Soviets would pour through the Fulda Gap with their tanks leading the way.
‘The gap was so important that the US alone dedicated the entire V and VII Corps to its exclusive defense, comprising several infantry divisions, several armored divisions, several cavalry regiments, and multiple helicopter brigades.’
Leimbach continues;
‘The Army wanted something with more anti-armor punch than what the Cobra could deliver back in the ’70s, and so it paid for the development of the AH-64 Apache to replace it.
‘Moving infantry around in Europe required hauling a little more than the Huey could provide as well, so the Army paid for the development of the Blackhawk to replace it.
‘The US Air Force also recognized the Fulda Gap’s importance and concentrated its airpower in this corridor, partially distributed amongst small bases in the region.
‘This dedicated anti-armor mission also led to the development of one of the world’s most iconic airplanes, the A-10, specifically designed to confront tanks in Europe.
‘But wait, isn’t this about the Marines?
‘It is. What you will look for very hard but not find a lot of are Marine bases in Germany or Marine divisions stationed there. That’s because blunting an armored assault across the plains is not their job. Their job is to assault beaches and to fight from ships to support those beach landings.
‘The Apache could carry a little more and go a little faster than the Cobra, but it was twice the weight of a Cobra and also twice the price. It took up more space on deck and consumed more fuel, and was also more maintenance-intensive.
‘It’s a similar story with the Huey and the Blackhawk. A little bigger, a little faster, but much more expensive.
‘More importantly, the Apache was a Hughes (now Boeing) product, and the Blackhawk was from Sikorsky. So, zero parts commonality with each other or either of the two Bell helicopters the Marines already had.’
Leimbach concludes,
‘So, the Marines decided they didn’t need the new toys and kept upgrading and improving what they had in order to keep the very efficient system of common training, tools, and interchangeable parts going. The new models are fantastically lethal, less expensive, and both save space and share parts, dramatically simplifying maintenance and logistics.’
Photo by U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps
