The WZ-10 (WZ = Wuzhuang Zhishengji, literally "Armed Helicopter") is an attack helicopter developed by the People's Republic of China. It is designed primarily for anti-tank missions but is believed to have a secondary air-to-air capability as well. It is being built by Changhe Aircraft Industries Corporation (CAIC).
The origins of WZ-10 date as far back as 1979, when China began to explore ways of countering the advance of large enemy armour formations that would attack in great numbers. The resulting analysis by Chinese military establishments suggested that the most effective conventional way (i.e. without use of nuclear weaponry) was to attack enemy armour formations from the air and theattack helicopter was the best choice. Eight Aérospatiale Gazelle armed with Euromissile HOT were procured to further evaluate this option and the results lead to the birth of the WZ-10 project.
The resulting evaluation of modern warfare, with combined military arms, in the early to mid 1980s had revealed that the current armed helicopters in China's inventory no longer met the requirements of modern combat, because all of them were converted from civilian helicopters which made them vulnerable in intense combat situations. These civilian helicopters converted for military use could be used as scouts at best, it was found that facing off enemy armour formations required a dedicated attack helicopter such as the AH-1 Cobra or Mil Mi-24. As a result of these findings, the Chinese military evaluated the Agusta A129 Mangusta in the mid 1980s. In 1988 a defence agreement was signed between the USA and China authorising the sale of AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters to China, along with permission to produce the BGM-71 TOW in China under licence. But just as China was preparing to do further evaluations, China was sanctioned by the west after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Afterwards, as China turned to Eastern European countries for help in the period between 1990 through 1991, the colour revolutions also prevented China from obtaining attack helicopters. As China attempted to import the Mil Mi-24 from Bulgaria and Russia, all of them rejected Chinese requests.
While attempting to import foreign attack helicopters resulted in failure, domestic research continued to reveal the shortcomings of China's current fleet of helicopters exposed by war games. The Chinese military had concluded that not only was the Chinese helicopter force inadequate, so was the structure of its armed force. In order to check large enemy armour formations successfully withattack helicopters, the helicopter force had to be under the command of the army instead of the air force. People's Liberation Army Ground Force Air Force (PLAGFAF) was established as a result and starting from a mere 9 Harbin Z-9, it would eventually expand to over 500 in the next two decades. More importantly, despite the lack of attack helicopters, research was continued and the PLAGFAF used other armed helicopters to simulate future attack helicopters, exploring tactics and strategies, helping to define the requirements for the future WZ-10. Equally important, extensive research work had revealed that missiles such as BGM-71 TOW were inadequate and the earlier proposal of a more powerful anti-tank missile such as AGM-114 Hellfire was once again proven to be in need. Such findings were fundamental for WZ-10 in that the entire weaponry and fire-control system would be centred on the new missile, setting the most important criteria for the future helicopter.The results of combat in the Gulf War made the Chinese military further realise the importance and the urgent need for attack helicopters. Based on their experience gained in operating armed helicopters, the Chinese military concluded that armed versions of the Changhe Z-11 and Harbin Z-9 could not meet their requirements and a dedicated attack helicopter was needed. In addition to being an effective anti-tank weapon, it also needed to be capable of defending itself against enemy helicopters and other aircraft. It was found that the most effective tactic would be deploying the new attack helicopter alongside the Changhe Z-11 or Harbin Z-9. The latter would serve as scouts, finding and designating targets for the former, while the former performed the actual attack missions on the enemy targets.
To meet requirements quickly, foreign attack helicopters should be purchased. In the mean time, an attack helicopter research team should be established to prepare the necessary research work on future domestic manufacturing and development of an indigenous attack helicopter. However, China's second attempt to procure attack helicopters failed. In 1994, a deal to introduce the Mil Mi-28 fell apart. Russia rejected China's requirement to produce the Mi-28 in China under licence as in the case of the Sukhoi Su-27/Shenyang J-11.
The second approach had greater success. Sometime between 1990 and 1991, following the issue of recommendations by the Chinese military, China established the Armed Helicopter Developmental Work Team, consisting of members from various military and governmental organisations as well as scientific research establishments. The research work done by this team led to the recommendation that the new attack helicopter should not be based on the technologies of current Chinese light helicopters such as Z-11 or Z-9, but on a new medium helicopter design, which was also urgently required by China at the time. Since many helicopter technologies are shared by civilian and attack helicopter designs, it was suggested that it would be wise to hide the new attack helicopter program under a civilian medium helicopter development program. After the continuous failures in introducing heavier helicopters of foreign origin to China, the 6-ton class ChinaMedium Helicopter (CHM) program was started in 1994 by China, with the 602nd and 608th Research Institutes as the leading designers. Under this ostensibly civilian program, various key western helicopter manufacturers provided considerable technical assistance to the later WZ-10 development program, including Eurocopter (rotor installation design consultancy), Pratt & Whitney Canada (PT6C turboshaft engine) and Agusta Westland (transmission). Meanwhile, China concentrated efforts on those areas where it could not obtain foreign help. 