The BellAH-1 Cobra is a single-engine, two-bladed rotor attack helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It was designed using Bell UH-1 Iroquois ' engine, transmission and rotor system. A prolific Huey family member, the AH-1 is also known as the HueyCobra, or Snake. The AH-1 was the backbone of the helicopter attack fleet of the U.S. Army, but was replaced by the army service AH-64 Apache. Upgraded models continue to fly along with several other nations ' military forces. The twin-engine versions of theAH-1 are still in use with the United States Marine Corps (USMC) as the primary attack helicopter for the service. AH-1 surplus helicopters were adapted for war

Development

The story of the BellUH-1 Iroquois— an icon of the Vietnam War and one of the most numerous types of helicopters constructed — is closely related to the development of the BellAH-1. TheUH-1 made air cavalry theory practical, because the new tactics called for highly mobile US forces across a wide area. They wouldn't stand and fight long battles unlike before and they wouldn't stay and hold positions. Rather, the plan was that the troops carried byUH-1 "Hueys" fleets would spread across the country, sometimes fighting the enemy and places of their own choice. It soon became clear that the unarmed troop helicopters were vulnerable to ground fire from Viet Cong and North Vietnamese troops, particularly when they came down in a landing zone to drop their troops. Despite friendly artillery or ground forces support, the only way to pacify a landing zone was from the air, preferably with an aircraft capable of closely escorting the transport helicopters, and loitering over the landing zone as the war progressed. In 1962 a limited number of armed UH-1As, armed with multiple machine guns and rocket racks, were used as escorts. The massive expansion of Vietnam's American military presence opened up a new era of air warfare.