Units operating the A129 CBT combat helicopter spearhead Italy’s army aviation. Soon, the fleet willreceive a major weapons and engine upgrade, following a recent modification programme thatconverted the Mangusta from its anti-tank role to a true combat platform.

Text and photos: Emiel Sloot

On 15 September 1983, the first of five Agusta A129Mangusta prototypes went airborne, andsubsequently the Italian army ordered 60 of theseanti-tank helicopters. It also briefly stood model forthe Tonal, a multinational project involving theNetherlands, United Kingdom, Spain and Italy,however this programme was cancelled in 1990.The A129 became operational with the 49° GruppoSquadroni ‘Capricorno’ in 1992, a squadronreporting to the 5° Reggimento Aviazionedell’Esercito ‘Rigel’. This regiment, established in1976, is based at Casarsa della Delizia. Beside the49° Gruppo, the 27° Gruppo Squadroni ‘Mercurio’forms part of this regiment. Both gruppi operatethree flights each of A129s, alongside a flight ofA109 (49° Gruppo) and AB205 (27° Gruppo)observation and transport helicopters, respectively.The AB205 will however soon be replaced by theNH90 TTH. The A129 is also operated by 48°Gruppo Squadroni ‘Pavone’ of the 7° ReggimentoAVES ‘Vega’ based at Rimini-Miramare. Both

regiments fall under the responsibility of the BrigataAeromobile (airmobile brigade) ‘Friuli’,headquartered in Bologna. Both regiments canoperate either independently, or in cooperation withthe 66° Reggimento Fanteria (infantry regiment)‘Trieste’ that is also controlled by the ‘Friuli’ brigade.

First modernisation of the fleetThe original Mangusta was designed just before theend of the Cold War as a dedicated anti-tankhelicopter, armed with Hughes TOW missiles. Inaddition, it could be fitted with rocket and gun podsof various calibres. Although 60 were ordered, only45 were initially taken on charge until 1992, asmeanwhile the Cold War had ended. However, in1999, the last 15 were eventually obtained as well,and they entered service from 2003 as A129 CBT(CBT for Combattimento), being a new variant. Acontract was signed in 2001 to modify the earlymodel to this version. During the 1990s, Agusta hadtried to sell the A129 International - an improved

New upgrade for Italy’s

A129

version of the Mangusta – abroad, but withoutsuccess. Nevertheless, most improvements werefinally incorporated into the A129 CBT, that wasdesigned as a versatile and efficient combathelicopter serving far more roles than anti-armouronly.The two Rolls-Royce Gem 2 Mk 1004D powerplants, licence-built in Italy, were retained as werethe BGM-71E TOW 2A missiles of which eight canbe fitted. Also the rocket pods, either 70-mm (up to76 rockets) or 81-mm (up to 38 rockets), were keptas weapon options. New features are the moveableAlenia TM197B 20-mm cannon, with up to 300rounds; a five-blade composite rotor; composite tailrotor; and the possibility to carry Stinger air-to-airmissiles. The A129 CBT is also certified to carryHellfire missiles, however the Italian army does nothave these in its inventory.

Both pilot and gunner are seated on protectivecrash-worthy seats, and are sideways protected bykevlar plates. Most of the helicopter can resistenemy fire up to 12.7-mm, while critical parts suchas engine bays and main rotor mast can withstandeven 23-mm calibre rounds. Following a crash, thecrew emergency egress system blows away thecockpit windows, allowing the crew to quickly exitthe helicopter.

More new systems insideLike all modern helicopters, the A129 CBT is pilotedby hands-on-collective-and-stick (HOCAS) controls.The Integrated Management System (IMS) consistsof modern avionics such as Have Quick II securespeech radios, a mode 4 IFF transponder and multi-function displays in both cockpits. Beside these, theIMS consists of visionics such as the IntegratedHelmet Display and Sight System (IHDASS). Withthis, all relevant flight and combat data are projectedon the visors, alongside the infrared image obtainedfrom the nose-mounted FLIR sensor that is slaved tothe helmet in view of direction, also known as theHelicopter Infrared Navigation System. The cannoncan be slaved simultaneously. Both cockpits arecompatible to night-vision-goggles. Navigation ismainly based on GPS and the radar altimeter. Thehelicopter has an automatic hover capability thatenables to maintain a preset position and altitudewith high precision. The latest modification to theA129 CBT was the addition of a self-integratedprotection system (locally designated SIAP). Aroundthe airframe, several radar and missile approachwarning sensors are fitted while two ModularExpendable Block (MEB) can be attachedcontaining 30 chaff and 30 flares. The present A129CBT version is locally designated G15.With a fuselage width of only 94 cm, the radarsignature is quite low. In fact, A129 is smaller thanan AH-1, AH-64, Tigre or Rooivalk. Most importanttasks of the A129 CBT are fire support to groundtroops, armed reconnaissance and escort, strikedeep into enemy airspace, and precision strikes. Italso has a limited Suppression of Enemy AirDefences (SEAD) possibility, as it is equipped withEW systems to detect and record enemy radaremissions and sites.

Crew trainingThe 5° Reggimento AVES is responsible for trainingnew A129 crews. Basic helicopter flying training fornew army pilots is done at the Centro AddestrativoAviazione dell’Esercito at Viterbo near Rome, mainlyflying the AB206. Before conversion to the A129, thecrew must have had some flying experience onanother operational type with the army aviation suchas the AB205. The conversion course starts with a5-week ground school, followed by 43 to 60 actualflying hours. Beside basic control of the helicopter, anumber of operational aspects are trained such asnap-of-the-earth flying, weapons training and nightflight with and without night vision systems.Furthermore, the infrared system has to bemastered in view of both navigation and targetacquisition. At Viterbo, two A129 combat simulatorsare located that can be linked with other NATOcombat helicopter flight simulators, enabling thetraining of complex exercise scenarios. The 5°Reggimento delivers combat-ready crew for all

Front (above) and rear (below) cockpit of the A129 CBT

operational A129 squadrons. Crews are trained forboth cockpit positions (pilot and gunner), maximisingflexibility.Near Casarsa della Delizia, five exercise areas arelocated, ranging from the Adriatic Sea to thelowlands surrounding the base and the Alps north ofthe base. Casarsa is located closely to Aviano andRivolto air bases, andoperations have to becoordinated with the air trafficcontrol centres of these bases.For live-firing exercises, theregiment annually moves toSardinia for a week, where ashooting range is situated.During these exercises, newcrews qualify for weaponstraining while others canrefresh their proficiency in thisfield.

International operationsFrom the very start, Mangustasquadrons have been involvedin a number of internationaloperations. The type had justbeen declared operationalwhen three A129s were sentto Somalia betweenDecember 1992 and April1994, in support of UN operation Restore Hope. In1995, four A129 returned to that area to cover theevacuation of UN troops. This - and so far the only -time, the helicopters were sea-based, operatingamongst others from the Garibaldi aircraft carrier. In1997, six A129s flew missions from Rinas, Albaniain support of the Multinational Protection Force leadby Italy. More operations over the Balkan followed,such as over Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1998, and overKosovo between May 1999 and February 2000. Atemporary detachment was set up in Macedoniaduring 1999 for armed escort flights around theextraction of international observers in OperationJoint Guarantor. The A129 CBT version deployedfor the first time in 2005 and 2006, when some werebased at Tallil, Iraq in Operation Antica Babilonica.

ISAFAs of 2007, the A129 CBT has been deployed toAfghanistan in support of ISAF. The Italiandetachment is allocated to Regional Command Westalongside Spanish and US units, and covers fourwestern Afghan provinces. The first A129 tour lastedfor 158 days from June till November 2007.Following a brief start-up period at Kabul, thedetachment moved to Herat, that became the mainoperating base. Simultaneously, a forward operatingbase was established in Farah, south of Herat. Thepresent A129 detachment is mainly organised by the

49° Gruppo. Also based here are some CH-47CChinooks of the 1° Reggimento AVES ‘Antares’ fromViterbo. The A129s form the combat element anddeliver close air support, armed escort for theChinooks, and armed reconnaissance andobservation.Standard configuration for the A129 CBT in ISAF is

a load of two TOW missiles and 200 rounds for the20-mm cannon, allowing a range of 75 nm.The present detachment consists of six A129 CBTsof which two are on a 24-hour standby. Thehelicopters are flown in and out of Afghanistan byeither civil Antonov 124s or C-130J Hercules aircraftof the Italian air force. For on-site maintenance, thedetachment has a rubber hangar available that isfully air-conditioned.A special training programme has been developedby 5° Reggimento for crews which are sent abroadon international operations. In view of ISAF, an 8-week training programme has to be followed,consisting of 25 training flights with special focus onvarious operational aspects such as additionalweapons training, mountain flying and expandingleadership and crew coordination skills.

MaintenanceRoutine inspections following 25, 50 and 100 flyinghours are mainly taken care of by the maintenancedepartments of the two operational regiments. Themore extensive 300 flying hours inspections aredone by one of the larger maintenance centres ofthe AVES, located in Bergamo and Viterbo. Specificmodifications to the helicopter are generally done atfactory level with AgustaWestland. For urgentoperational matters, the operational squadrons canalways contact the factory directly for issuesrequiring an instant solution.

A129 International’s second lifeIn due time, a new modification programme for thefleet will be started up in two phases. First, the TOWmissile system will be replaced by the Rafael Spike-ER, while the visionics will be expanded with a newOptical Telescopic System, compatible with the newmissile. Thereafter, the current engines will bereplaced by more powerful LHTEC CTS800

turboshafts. With these new power plants, theperformance in hot-and-high conditions willsignificantly improve, although it must be stated thatdue to the relatively low weight of the helicopter, thishas not posed severe restrictions in the past.Basically, the A129 CBT will eventually be modifiedto A129 International standard. Although markedwithout success in the 1990s, this variant finallydrew attention abroad, as Turkey bought 51 T129ATAK helicopters with an option for 40 more. Thesewill be built by TUSAS in Turkey, and featureseveral indigenous on-board systems such asavionics which are currently being developed. Oneof the new systems will be a mast-mounted radarsimilar to the Apache Longbow, while the T129 willbe able to carry twelve Roketsan UMTAS missiles, alocally built version of the Hellfire II.With this first export success, the A129 might getinto the picture of other military operators looking fora new combat helicopter, and enter competitionsalongside the Tigre and Apache. Anyway, the Italianarmy is quite happy with the helicopter, and is nowlooking forward to the re-engined version that willfurther strengthen their combat capabilities. ■

This article has been published in Onze Luchtmacht (NL – Vol.61 No.3) and J-Wings (Japan – No.127).

© 2008