The Boeing AH-64 Apache is a four-blade, twin-turboshaft attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear arrangement, and a tandem cockpit for a two-man crew. It features a nose-mounted sensor suite for target acquisition and night vision systems. It is armed with a 30 mm (1.18 in) M230 chain gun carried between the main landing gear, under the aircraft’s forward fuselage.
It has four hardpoints mounted on stub-wing pylons, typically carrying a mixture of AGM-114 Hellfire missiles and Hydra 70 rocket pods. The AH-64 has a large amount of systems redundancy to improve combat survivability. The Apache originally started as the Model 77 developed by Hughes Helicopters for the United States Army’s Advanced Attack Helicopter program to replace the AH-1 Cobra.
Academy 1/72 AH-64D Block II ‘Early Version’
We recently received the new 1/72 Academy AH-64D at our office and this is definitely not the Academy Apache AH-64A we reviewed back in 2012. To my surprise, the kit features beautiful engraved details. Although the kit is pretty much comprised of 2 gray styrene sprues plus one in clear, those plastic runners are filled with nice details and beautifully molded parts with very minor flash on some random parts.
The Academy 1/72 AH-64D features a well-appointed cockpit out-of-the-box for this scale. The clear parts especially the canopy are crystal clear with no injection flowing marks and just the right thickness and frame detail. I wish we had the option of having an open canopy because honestly, OOB this kit is very promising.
Other Features:
- One-piece main rotor with blades
- Hydra 70 rocket pods (x2)
- Rotor with blades is presented as a one piece feature
- Optional TADS & PNVS to create either an early or late production
- MFD (Multi Function Displays) for front and rear cockpit.
- EFAB (Extended Forward Avionics Bays)
- Maintenance access doors depicting early or late production
- Nice decal sheet printed by none other than Cartograf
- MSRP: $32.00 (USD)
Markings are provided for the following aircraft:
- AH-64D, 07-7029, A-4-2 Attack Helicopter Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division, Camp Humphreys, South Korea, 2010
- AH-64D, 07-7031, C-4-2 Attack Helicopter Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division, Camp Humphreys, South Korea, 2010
- AH-64D, 99-5118, C-1-3 Attack Helicopter Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, Iraq, 2003
- AH-64D, 99-5102, B-1-3 Attack Helicopter Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, Iraq, 2003
- AH-64D, 02-5289, A-1-227 Attack Helicopter Battalion, Iraq, 2003
- AH-64D, 01-5241, C-1-4 Attack Helicopter Battalion, 4th Infantry Division, Iraq, 2003
