OH-58D (China)

This page is about the attack helicopter OH-58D (China). For the other version, see OH-58D.

␗OH-58D

␗OH-58D

Description

The ROCA purchased 39 OH-58D Kiowa Warriors, known as the OH-58D戰搜直升機 (lit: combat reconnaissance helicopter), from the US in 1992 (26 purchased alongside a fleet of AH-1Ws) and 1999 (13 helicopters assembled by AIDC), and deployed them in the only two helicopter companies in the ROCA and Army Aviation Training Command. Although two helicopters have crashed during their service since 1992 (in 2001 and 2020), the ROCA will likely continue to operate the OH-58D for a number of years, thanks to up to 12 years worth of spare parts bought from the US.

Introduced in Update "Sons of Attila", the ROCA OH-58D performs identically with its American counterpart, only lacking the option to equip the 30 mm grenade launcher or 7.62 mm Minigun. It has small dimensions, AIM-92 Stinger missiles, and countermeasure pods, aiding its survival in combat and somewhat mitigating the lack of armour. It also has a mast-mounted camera, allowing it to make good use of terrain or treetops to conceal itself, while the four AGM-114K Hellfire II missiles will make light work of any enemy ground vehicle.

General info

Flight performance

The OH-58D is a reasonably nimble machine, fully researched it will be able to fly at a reasonable straight-line speed of up to 220 km/h in neutral flight and climb up to 7 m/s. While this is completely sufficient for use without notable shortcomings, it pales in comparison to the opposition at its BR, both within its own tech tree and outside. Though in turn this means when freshly bought, players may find its performance lacking.

One point of note is the Kiowa Warrior's ability fly evasive or performative manoeuvres. While it can make some impressive turns and even fly upside down, its flight model fails to compare against what players might have become used to on the first Z-9 model or any of its successors. All in all the OH-58D is a very average machine in terms of flight performance, by no means bad, but also nothing outstanding.

Characteristics	Max speed (km/h at 1,000 m)		Max altitude (metres)
	AB	RB
Stock	214	203
Upgraded	247	230

Survivability and armour

Due to its nature of being an observation helicopter, there are very little need for extra protection other than the flak jacket for the pilots; this also means flying into the main combat area equals to kamikaze and should only be considered in dire situation.

Armaments

Offensive armament

The OH-58D (China) is armed with:

• A choice between three presets:
  • 36 x countermeasures
  • 36 x countermeasures + Flak jackets
  • 36 x countermeasures + Flak jackets + IRCM

Suspended armament

The OH-58D (China) can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

Default weapon presets
1 x 12.7 mm GAU-19 machine gun (550 rpg) 4 x ATAS (AIM-92) missiles 2 x AGM-114K Hellfire II missiles 4 x AGM-114K Hellfire II missiles 14 x APKWS II (M151) missiles 14 x APKWS II (M282) missiles 14 x Hydra-70 M247 rockets

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in a helicopter, the features of using the helicopter in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Small profile and agile, good for switching locations to hit enemies
• Mast mount cameras for minimal visibility to enemies
• Access to AIM-92 for self-defense against aircraft
• Powerful AGM-114K with good range
• Laser-guided rockets for precise hit on enemies

Cons:

• No extra protection
• Slower than PLAGF Aviation Corps counterparts
• Relatively low payload weight

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the helicopter in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the OH-58D (China) from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

OH-58 Kiowa Warrior Ultimate Review - Bob Dickinson

See also

Related development

• OH-58D

External links

• [Devblog] OH-58D: Headwatch

China helicopters
Attack/Utility	Z-9W · Z-9WA · Z-10 · Z-11WA · Z-19 · Z-19E
	␗OH-58D (USA)
Attack	␗AH-1W (USA)
Utility	SA.342L Gazelle (France)
Pakistan	▄Mi-35M