The Cameroon Air Force received four Z9WE attack helicopters in 2014, but one crashed in April 2015 and was shipped back to China to be rebuilt. (Erwan de Cherisey)
The Cameroon Air Force’s (CAF’s) 23 Squadron is now capable of conducting night attack operations using its three Harbin Z9WE helicopters.
One Z9WE crewmember told IHS Jane’s that the capability was operationally tested in late January, when the three Z9WEs were involved in a live firing training exercise over several days at Ngaoundéré Air Base in North Province along with a number of Mi-17s from 13 Squadron.
The exercise saw the Z9WEs fire 23 mm cannons and 57 mm rockets, as well as HJ-8 wire-guided anti-tank missiles, one of which was fired at night. The target identification was done using the Z9WE’s electro-optical turret, which features an infrared camera as well as a laser rangefinder.
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