Seven records cover the armament installations carried outside a helicopter or a light aircraft. Four are gun pods: the GH-12.7M, the M08 pod holding a 12.7 x 99 mm M87N machine gun, the 20 mm GH-20 and the twin GA-2x7.62. The M09 is a side-door machine gun with its carriage. Two are rocket launchers, the seven-tube L-80-07 for the 80 mm S-8KOM and the four-barrel L-128-04H for the 128 mm BR-VZ M15. Overall dimensions are given on six of the seven records and mass on five; supply voltage and lug spacing appear where the source states them.
A compact helicopter pod carrying a 12.7 mm machine gun for neutralising ground targets such as command posts, light armoured vehicles, logistics trucks and personnel, and for engaging helicopters, light aircraft, RPVs and parachutists; two pods are mounted externally on the armament pylons, one at each side of the fuselage, so that spent cases and powder gases are ejected into the air.
A 12.7 mm machine gun with carriage for installation on the side doors of the MI-17 helicopter, used against ground targets such as command posts, light armoured vehicles and troops and also against helicopters, light aircraft, UAVs and parachutists; it allows simultaneous fire from the left and right doors and is particularly useful for self-protection during landing, take-off and crew embarkation or disembarkation.
Under-wing aeronautical gun pod for light piston/propeller trainer aircraft, integrating a 12.7 x 99 mm M87N heavy machine gun, 150-round belt, nitrogen pneumatic cocking and a cockpit control box with selectable burst modes.
A four-barrel launcher of honeycomb structure for separately launching 128 mm BR-VZ M15 unguided rockets from a helicopter fitted with single-channel wiring and unguided rocket launching equipment.
A helicopter gun pod carrying a 20 mm gun with 200 rounds in the belt, mounted on helicopter side supports for close fire support in anti-terrorist and anti-riot missions as well as territory surveillance and border protection, effective against lightly armoured and unarmoured vehicles and troops in buildings and field fortifications.
A gun pod integrating two 7.62x54 mm machine guns with air-cooled barrels, a sight adjustable in azimuth and elevation, link collection in the front fairing and NATO-standard mounting lugs 14 in (355.6 mm) apart, for pilot training and engagement of light armoured and unarmoured vehicles.
A seven-tube helicopter launcher for individual launching of 80 mm S-8KOM unguided rockets from a single-channel electrical installation, compatible with MIL-STD-1760 digital architecture and with hardpoints complying with both NATO and Russian standards.
Overall dimensions
1715 x Ø336 mm
Caliber
80 mm
Number of launch tubes
7
Specifications →
How pods and launchers are specified in tender documents
The GH-12.7M, M08 and GH-20 pod records give empty and loaded mass or pod weight, length, width or diameter, the weapon integrated with its calibre, muzzle velocity, rate of fire, effective range and belt capacity; the GH-12.7M adds sighting ranges and a maximum range of 6000 m. The GA-2x7.62 record is shorter, naming the two machine guns and their calibre, a combat set of 2 x 300 rounds, rate of fire, sight adjustment, link collection, lug spacing, barrel cooling and aircraft integration, without mass or dimensions. The M09 door mount is broken down by component mass. Of the two launchers, the L-128-04H gives barrel calibre and length, overall dimensions, hook spacing, the mass of the empty launcher and the rocket the tubes take, while the L-80-07 gives overall dimensions, calibre, tube count, rocket type and the standards it complies with. Supply voltage of 28 V is quoted on three of the seven records.
Pod and launcher designations compared
The GH prefix marks the two helicopter gun pods, GA the twin aircraft pod, M08 the pod supplied with the M87N machine gun and M09 the door mount. The letter L opens both launcher designations, followed by calibre and tube count. Mass runs from 86 kg for the empty GH-12.7M and 88 kg for the empty L-128-04H, through 95 kg for the loaded M08 pod, to 130 kg for the GH-20.
Questions about this equipment
Which weapons do the pods integrate?
The GH-12.7M carries a 12.7 mm machine gun, the M08 pod a 12.7 x 99 mm M87N with a 150-round belt, the GH-20 a 20 mm gun with 200 rounds in the belt, and the GA-2x7.62 two 7.62 x 54 mm machine guns with a combat set of 2 x 300 rounds.
What rockets do the two launchers take?
The L-80-07 has seven launch tubes for the 80 mm S-8KOM rocket and is quoted at 1715 x 336 mm. The L-128-04H is a four-barrel honeycomb launcher of 2308 mm for the 128 mm BR-VZ M15 rocket, with an empty mass of 88 kg plus or minus 2 kg.
