This update adds the 1st REDFOR helicopter to the game - the mighty Mi-24D!
Currently this helicopter is seen by the game as a BLUFOR helicopter so it will appear at the bottom of the usual helicopter selection list.
The Hind is very much an assault helicopter. It's big, fast and heavily armoured. It can easily withstand 23mm rounds and it'll take more than one Strela to down this beast! However, pilots remain a weak point and it's best not to fly head first into a Shilka fire.
The downside is that it lacks long range precision missiles for picking off AAA/SAM threats at a distance which means you'll be getting up close and personal with either rockets (all 128 of them!), AT-2 missiles or the rapid firing (but low powered) YakB cannon. Fortunately the Hind carries a lot of flares and chaff so make sure you use them when engaging air defence units.
The Hind is also capable of carrying troops and cargo.
Flight model is as you'd expect, the Hind is heavy so takes a while to get up to full speed and, with landing gear retracted, you'll be seeing 180kts even when fully loaded. It is also a well balanced helicopter and quite easy to fly, you just have to learn to maintain speed when turning.
The Hind isn't fully complete yet. It still needs some of its IR textures adding in and some suitable sound effects for the landing gear sequence and there are some other minor bits and pieces which I need to fix such as the Damage System showing it has a Radar but you should be able to complete mission with it without to many issues.
Next week I'll be adding in the AT-6 Spiral/Shturm which will give the Hind some long range punch as well as the S-8 80mm rockets which will give some extra punch against MBTs. I should also be able to drop in the "P" version of the Hind with the side mounted canons and the "VP" version which has twin canons in the turret.
It will then be back to missions where I want to start working on more complex missions such as escorting convoys, attacking enemy convoys, providing CAS to units attacking targets etc. This will require ground forces to actually move which should be a very interesting addition to the game.
I will also be looking at the air defence saturation and making this a configurable option. Getting this balanced is important for these lower tiered helicopters that lack the stand off capabilities of the Apache/Viper.
As always - feedback welcome ːsteamhappyː