HForce

HForce is a unique and flexible weapon system designed to meet the requirements of defence agencies looking for light attack mission capabilities to complement their existing fleet of specialised attack helicopters.

It is the latest generation of Airbus' weapon system. Modular and incremental, HForce can be fitted onboard military versions of Airbus’ commercial helicopter range (H125M, H145M, H225M).

HForce offers a wide range of modern weapons, and is easy to operate – with a level of targeting accuracy that formerly was reserved for high-end attack helicopters.

Unique, exhaustive and flexible

Drawing on experience with the Tiger attack helicopter, Airbus developed an off-the-shelf solution to address a large scope of customers’ armament needs.

Designed as a modular and incremental system, HForce offers a multi-purpose mission computer that is interchangeable from one helicopter to another, along with a large choice of weapons (air-to-air, air-to-ground, ballistic and guided) to comply with any operational needs. This technically advanced solution takes into account the different aspects of firing accuracy: weapon recoil, the center-of-gravity, ground clearance and vehicle separation.

Specifications

HForce is composed of:

One central core unit for firing computation
Monocular helmet-mounted sight and display
(HMSD) for pilot and gunner targeting
and ballistic firing
Electro-optical system (EOS) for target
identification and firing
Armament grips for armament management
Weapons pods with the following armament:

- Ballistic: machine gun, cannon, rocket
- Guided: laser-guided rockets, air-to-ground missile, air-to-air missile (with growth potential)

Exhaustive

Full operating spectrum

HForce covers the full operational spectrum of missions:

Air-to-ground

Tanks, armoured vehicles, troops, fire support for troops in contact:

Air-to-air

Aircraft, drones and attack helicopters:

Air-to-surface

Maritime counter terrorism and counter piracy speedboats

Ballistic:

20 mm Cannon
12.7 mm Machine Gun
68 and 70 mm rockets

Guided:

Laser-guided rocket
Air-to-ground missile
Air-to-air missile (with growth potential)

Missions

Addressing today’s requirements for many types of operations, HForce equips helicopters for a wide range of mission.

Armed scout

Intelligence
Surveillance
Reconnaissance
Attack
Deep operations (depending on helicopter type)
Fire support
Attack
Escort

Utility

Air movement
Combat recovery
Casualty evacuation (casevac)
Fire support

Maritime security:

Maritime counter-terrorism

Parapublic:

Law enforcement

Flexible

Incremental and modular

HForce is offered with different options and armaments:

Option 0: Fixed parts and capabilities; structural parts and harnesses

Option 1: Ballistic armed scout (pilot/gunner firing with HMSD)

Option 2: Ballistic light attack (captain/gunner firing with EOS or pilot firing with HMSD)

Option 3: Ballistic and guided light attack (captain/gunner firing with EOS or pilot firing ballistic with HMSD).

HForce’s flexible architecture permits aircraft to be retrofitted with any available armament.

Crew resource management

HForce enables a significant reduction of workload as the result of experience gained from crew resource management on Tiger helicopters. With the HForce system, the captain/gunner manages the helicopter’s weapons while the pilot flies, exactly like in an attack helicopter.

Making the most of Airbus Helicopters’ experience, HForce offers easy cooperation among the crew in target identification and acquisition, and firing computation for drastic improvements in firing accuracy.

A competitive solution

Aircraft retrofitted with the basic “Fitted for, but not with” capability (Option 0) can become potential light attack helicopters, ready for weapons installation at any time.

With HForce, multi-purpose helicopters are equipped with a kit of weapons fully adaptable for light attack missions. For armed forces, it is a combat-ready alternative to attack-specialised helicopters.

Furthermore, defence agencies gain more flexibility in the management of stocks and use of weapons thanks to this fully interchangeable equipment system.