EVOLUTION OF THE VENOM VARIANT OF THE AH-1W SUPERCOCKPIT™

An extensively modified AH-1W SuperCobra has been proposed for the British Army’s new attack helicopter. Called Venom, the aircraft features an advanced technology mission equipment package integrated at the human/machine level by the AH-1W SuperCockpit™. This cockpit is one of the world’s most capable and integrated attack helicopter crewstations, incorporating the latest techniques in “glass cockpit” design. These techniques include mission-oriented application of automation and enhanced data management that makes the right information available to the crew at the right time. This was coupled with improved geometric accommodation, ergonomic control grips, and other crew-centered approaches. A key design objective was to reduce crew workload and enhance mission effectiveness while establishing and maintaining crew confidence in the advanced mission-oriented automation. Evolution of the Venom variant to the SuperCockpit™ is described herein, including cockpit design and the tools used to create and validate it. The control-display format approach is discussed and typical display formats are presented.