Read WEAPONS, T/O and LDG instruction for maximum pleasure!!!
The current aircraft belongs to No7 Squadron of Uruguayan Air Force - FAU
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CONTROLS
AG1: JDAM Mk83 Bomb
AG2: AGM-65 Maverick MkII Anti-tank missiles Jettison
AG3 + Fire button: Missile Neutralization System operation
AG4: Brimstone Anti-tank missiles Jettison
AG5: Landing & Taxi Lights
AG6: Anti-collision Lights
AG7 + VTOL down: Spoilers operation
AG8: FLIR Turrets and Targeting Pod operation
VTOL Down: Flaps operation
TRIM: Normal operation (Tab-Down for Nose-Up)
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WEAPONS RELEASE INSTRUCTION
--------AGM-65 Maverick MkII Anti-tank missile--------
-> This weapon can be used after ALL Brimstone missiles have been fired or jettisoned (AG4)
Select Air-to-Ground target mode
-Select Inferno type weapon
-Acquire target (steady red box)
-WINGS STRAIGHT AND SLIGHT UPWARD MOVEMENT
-Fire weapon
-Repeat the same procedure and then press FIRE WEAPON for release of the LH missile

---------Missile Warning & Neutralization System-----------
-After AG3 Activation the system is ON
-When an enemy Missile is LOCKED on you:
-TURN AWAY from Missile and put it on your 6-o’clock position
-When the Missile is in visible proximity press FIRE GUNS
-The Flares Gun will spread decoy cartridges and Missile will burst into shrapnel
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T/O INSTRUCTION
-TRIM: Tab FULL DOWN
-THROTTLE: 100%
-Aircraft will rotate automatically at T/O speed (~165mph @ MTOW)
-GEAR UP
-THROTTLE 60%
-TRIM TAB at 1/2 mark DOWN
-Continue Flight
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LDG INSTRUCTION
-Reduce Airspeed at 180mph and below
-AG7: Activate (Spoilers)
-AG5: Activate (LDG/Taxi Lights)
-GEAR DOWN
-THROTTLE 18-22% depends on weight
-TRIM FULL DOWN gradually
-VTOL FULL DOWN gradually
-Establish reasonable Rate Of Descent and Airspeed 100-120mph
-Make altitude corrections using THROTTLE
-Maintain Attitude 5°-8° Nose Up
-At Touchdown: THROTTLE – 0%
-When all wheels on ground and airspeed below 80mph - APPLY FULL BRAKES
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The RM-5A Kudu (-R for Reconnaissance, -M for Multirole and –A for Attack) is a twin-seated, single-engine, turboprop, reconnaissance and counter-insurgency multirole aircraft developed in South Africa by AHRLAC Holdings and HARPIA Defence Systems. It is designed to perform as an inexpensive, more versatile substitute for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and modern expensive fighter aircrafts. The whole aircraft is being assembled in South Africa’s AHRLAC main production assembly factory due to HARPIA’s intensive production rates in the facilities for the 40+ A-9 aircraft orders from N. Zealand and Kuwait. HARPIA DS provided the cockpit, avionics and all of the advanced mission systems and AHRLAC provided the tailboom, landing gear and powerplant.
The RM-5A aircraft is intended to act as a viable alternative for helicopters to a wide range of missions. It had been conceived as an affordable intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and light-strike platform, for which the developers had identified as there being an increasing level of market demand for such an aircraft. Critically, it was recognized that jet-powered aircraft such as the A-9 Liger that were typically being used in this role were often overly-equipped and quite costly to operate in such capacities by a small nation; thus a strong emphasis on low-cost operations was established early on. It can be serviced, refueled and loaded in less than 1hr by an un-specialized technician crew of 2 and the operational cost is at 1/3 of that of jet-powered aircrafts for the same role.
According to aviation specialists, the RM-5A Kudu is likely to come at least partially into competition with the Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano and the Beechcraft T-6 Texan II; unlike either of those aircraft, it does not have any trainer heritage and thus is shaped distinctly differently, being more specialised to its low-intensity warfare and attack role. In addition to existing manned products, the RM-5A Kudu is intended to compete with UAVs in the marketplace. The aircraft will be cheaper to acquire and operate than UAVs, since the manned platforms shall not need the expensive subsystems required for the remote control of unmanned aircrafts.
The RM-5A Kudu features a twin-boom, single-pusher-engine, high-mounted straight wing configuration, giving the aircraft an unconventional external appearance and providing for excellent external visibility. It is powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-70D turboprop engine at 3000hp; it has a top speed of 350mph, more than double of most helicopters and similar to larger military UAVs such as the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper, along with a flight endurance of five hours. It is flown by a crew of two, who are seated in tandem configuration, both being provided with Martin-Baker ejection seats and HOTAS (hands on stick-and-throttle) control functionality. The narrow airframe is composed of a combination of metal and composite construction, and is designed to provide maximum crew visibility. The lightweight but robust construction minimizes the total weight of the aircraft and the usages of synthetic materials expand the life cycle of the aircraft and reduce the airframe inspections and general maintenance. All critical systems are double and triple redundant and there have been provisions for future structural and equipment upgrade. The RM-5A has been designed to be capable of operating from austere runways and rough fields; it also possesses STOL (Short Take Off/Landing) and rapid deployment capabilities. It can easily take off at maximum combat payload (34.000lbs) in less than 800ft.
The aircraft is able to perform various mission roles, including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), signals intelligence (SIGINT), electronic intelligence (ELINT) and counter-insurgency missions, close air support (CAS), forward air control (FAC), target and firing observation, low-level aerial photography, maritime patrol and anti-smuggling operations. In order for the RM-5A to effectively engage in the diverse range of missions it is capable of, it features reconfigurable underfuselage pylons, a large mission bay for avionics beneath the two-person cockpit, and the lower tail-boom fuselage consists of a variety of interchangeable conformal modular units. These modules allow the aircraft to be outfitted with a variety of sensor systems such as infrared and optical cameras, synthetic aperture radar, tactical data link system (TDL) such as Link16, electronic intelligence gathering equipment, satellite navigation system and various electronic warfare packages. Additionally, electro-optical turrets and targeting pods can be installed both on the nose and belly of the aircraft. The avionics employ an open architecture, further adding to the ease of adding, upgrading and swapping components and systems from multiple sources and suppliers. The standard aircraft comes with AN/APQ-174 weather and ranging radar system but later variants can be equipped with more advanced air-to-ground radars capable of firing modern stand-off ordnance. The RM-5A Kudu is equipped with the newly commissioned TATS-521 “Active Archer” pod (Tactical Airborne Targeting System) designed and constructed by HARPIA’s Weapons Systems and Sensors Division, thus allowing the aircraft to designate, identify, and monitor multiple ground, aerial and sea targets to ranges up to 150km and transmitting target acquisition info to other platforms using the aircraft’s Tactical Data Link. This is the first wholly designed and manufactured targeting pod by HARPIA, in an effort to market a new series of sensor and weapons systems.
The RM-5A Kudu carries four 20mm cannons, which are internally mounted into the fuselage sponsons. Additionally, it is fitted with twelve hardpoints for carrying weapons mounted under the wings, including rocket pods, unguided bombs, and various air-to-surface and air-to-air missiles. Armor for the aircraft is also modular and can be added or removed entirely dependent on the mission requirements. Non-jettisonable fuel tanks are carried underneath the wing between the tailboom and the fuselage so the RM-5A is capable of a 2.000nm ferry range and 1.000nm combat profile range. The RM-5A Kudu is ideal for low-intensity warfare, such as for combat against insurgents and armed criminal elements, as well as patrol work-both on land and sea- performed by civilian border guard and law enforcement agencies.
The first production contracts have been signed with Uruguayan Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Uruguaya-FAU) for 12 aircrafts so as to replace its ageing fleet of A-37 Dragonfly and IA-58 Pucara aircrafts. The Uruguayan government also signed a contract for weapons purchase from the US in order to equip its new RM-5A Kudu fleet.
Extensive talks and negotiations have been made with Colombia, Philippines and Sri Lanka for purchase of the aircraft and development of a more specialized maritime variant for Anti-Ship and Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW-ASU).
------------HARPIA DEFENCE SYSTEMS & AHRLAC--------------