Combat Helicopters in War Thunder: Pros and Cons

Combat helicopters, a new type of vehicle in War Thunder, was announced in August 2018. Gaijin Entertainment released the update 1.81 named “The Valkyries,” which is specific for the availability of various fight models for game fans. The devs had to update simulation elements and introduce several new ones, including a swash plate and rotor with moving blades. Besides, the upgrade required to implement turbo shaft engines with detailed transmissions and other flight control systems. All these introduced technical novelties were necessary for the helicopters to correspond to the physics engine requirements.

In this War Thunder preview, we are going to tell you about the main features of combat helicopters, as far as the technical improvements are necessary for helicopter control. You will also discover the world of the best fight models to figure out the main pros and cons of helicopters.

Few Words about the Helicopters and Weaponry in War Thunder

The helicopters are available in all modes within the combined ground battles starting from rank V. Gamers can’t join the battle in a helicopter from the start; the player should gain enough spawn points whilst controlling ground vehicles. This requirement is necessary because helicopters have limited SP. As for the researchable modifications, there are several types of flight models depending on the flight characteristics, armament, and survivability.

The modifications affect the flight characteristics of the helicopter and provide an opportunity for unlocking the new armament. Speaking about weaponry, War of Thunder presents different armament types for helicopters, including cannot mounts, grenade launchers, unguided rockets of various calibers, and, of course, MG (including turreted and stationary ones).

Flight Physics and Helicopter Control in War Thunder

As was mentioned above, the devs provided several technical improvements before introducing the combat helicopters. Implementing the momentum and tilting of the rotor made possible the creation of the horizontal component necessary for forward/backward and left/right movements of the helicopter. As for the control of the flying machines, complete, manual control is available for the players in “full controls” mode.

Several more modes, including realistic, simplified, and mouse aim, involve different functions, manipulations, and maneuvers. If you are searching for more information about the game, read a War Thunder review to discover more interesting facts about a game. Finally, each of the gamers can choose the best of the modes to control the helicopter depending on the complexity of the battle.

The Best of the Best

Combat helicopters are the highly versatile heroes of close support in War Thunder. Here, you can find the best of the best flight machines in all categories.

Speed

Speed is one of the central characteristics of combat helicopters. The fastest helicopters include the American Cobra AH-1G (capable of flying at more than 300 km/h), Soviet Mi-24 (with the airspeed record by reaching the speed of 368 km/h), and the British challenger G-Lynx (able to reach the speed of 400 km/h).

Weapons

Undoubtedly, speed is the important criteria, but it is not the critical factor for winning the battle. A powerful weapon is essential to destroy the enemy. War Thunder presents several helicopters with supreme firepower. Russian Ka-52 can carry 80 S-8 rockets and 1426 kg of missiles. Each of the rockets is equipped with a HEAT warhead, which makes Ka-52 a pure destruction machine. This helicopter is also unique for carrying up various armaments; anti-tank guided missile, S-8 and S-13 rockets, Igla-v air-to-air missiles, and kilograms of bombs. All these features make Ka-52 a real monster of the battle capable of carrying various weaponry at once.

Weight

The weight is also an important technical feature for the helicopter. As for the lightest helicopter, French SA.313B Alouette II weighs just 895 kg, which results in a limited capability to carry rockets or missiles. The heaviest helicopter is the Russian Mi-35M, the empty weight of which is 8360 kg; besides, it can weigh 11 tones loaded with weaponry. This flying machine is also equipped with sturdy armor and has a lot of firepower due to its vehicle class. Although it is a super-heavyweight helicopter, Mi-35M is still quite fast on level flights.

Rate of Climb and Utility

The rate of the climb also plays a great role during a battle. As for the helicopters with the highest rate of climb, this list includes Russian Ka-52 (it takes approximately 30 seconds to get to 500 meters). As for the utility, the champions in this category are the following helicopters: KA-29 and SA.342M Gazelle.

Pros and Cons of Helicopters

After discussing the unique features of the best combat helicopters, it becomes easier to choose the most appropriate flying machine to win the next battle. We hope that our War Thunder review helped you to discover important facts about helicopters. Here also several pros and cons of combat helicopters in War Thunder:

+ variety of fight models, depending on speed, weight, rate of climb, and armament —

+ combat helicopters can make the battle more spectacular — one of the unique characteristics of the War Thunder is breathtaking fights and bright emotions, which the gamers get after winning the battle. Thus, combat helicopters do make the gameplay exciting to its full extent.

+ new experience within a game — no doubt that combat helicopters mean a totally new game experience for the player due to the opportunity to enjoy all types of battles, including the air ones.

— limited SP — due to this issue, the gamers have no opportunity to join the battle in the helicopter until gaining enough spawn points while controlling some of the ground vehicles.

— helicopter control can be quite challenging — undoubtedly, controlling the helicopter is not an easy thing, and it requires great skills from the gamer; that’s why the player should pump up controlling skills, including several controlling modes.

— high vulnerability — one of the features that can make the gaming process quite exhausting, as far as combat helicopters are quite vulnerable in the air, making it almost impossible to hide somewhere from the enemy. So, the flying machine can become an easy target to destroy.

Final Words

Despite some of the drawbacks and challenges, combat helicopters will bring bright emotions for the players and an unforgettable game experience. The variety of flying machines, as well as powerful weaponry, make the fight helicopters the versatile heroes of close support in War Thunder.