The AMD Alarus CH2000 is a two-seat, fixed

tricycle gear Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has a single nose wheel in the front, and two or more main wheels slightly aft of the center of gravity. Tricycle g ...

general aviation airplane, used primarily for

flight training Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...

, that was designed by Chris Heintz. It is manufactured by

Aircraft Manufacturing and Design Aircraft Manufacturing and Design Co. (AMD) is a manufacturer of three aircraft- the Alarus CH2000, the Zodiac CH601, and the Patriot 150. The CH2000 is a two-seat, single engine aircraft used primarily for flight training purposes. The CH601 ...

Co. in Eastman, Georgia. It is a low-wing aircraft, with one door located above each wing, respectively. It can be considered a competitor to similar aircraft used for flight training, such as the

Diamond DA20 The Diamond DV20/DA20 Katana is an Austrian-designed two-seat general aviation light aircraft. Developed and manufactured by Diamond Aircraft, it was originally produced in Austria as the DV20. The DV20 shares many features from the earlier Dia ...

. The Alarus features

Garmin Garmin Ltd. (shortened to Garmin, stylized as GARMIN, and formerly known as ProNav) is an American, Swiss-domiciled multinational technology company founded in 1989 by Gary Burrell and Min Kao in Lenexa, Kansas, United States, with headquart ...

avionics Avionics (a blend word, blend of ''aviation'' and ''electronics'') are the Electronics, electronic systems used on aircraft. Avionic systems include communications, Air navigation, navigation, the display and management of multiple systems, ...

and a cabin. As of 2011 the aircraft is no longer in production by AMD, although

Zenair Zenair Ltd is a Canadian kit aircraft producer founded by aeronautical engineer Chris Heintz and based in Midland, Ontario. History The company was founded in 1974 when Heintz started to manufacture Zenith kits from his two-car garage. ...

provides parts support.Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12'', page 170. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X

Variants

The Alarus was offered in two variants: the AMD Alarus CH2000 general aviation aircraft and the SAMA CH2000 Military Tactical Surveillance Aircraft (MTSA).

SAMA CH2000

The SAMA CH2000 is a military surveillance variant of the Alarus. It is equipped with

forward-looking infrared Forward-looking infrared (FLIR) cameras, typically used on military and civilian aircraft, use a thermographic camera that senses infrared radiation. The sensors installed in forward-looking infrared cameras, as well as those of other thermal ...

– a multi sensor imager offering high performance, precision and high level imaging. The aircraft is also equipped with state-of-the-art communications systems for secure air-to-air and air-to-ground communications and is equipped for day and night missions. The aircraft is manufactured in

Amman Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 a ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

and

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. The

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

acquired 8 aircraft at a cost of

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

$5.8M for the

Iraqi Air Force The Iraqi Air Force (IQAF or IrAF) ( ar, القوات الجوية العراقية, Al Quwwat al Jawwiyah al Iraqiyyah}) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Iraqi Armed Forces. It is responsible for the defense of Iraqi airspace as well ...

in 2004, and the first two SAMA CH2000s were delivered on 18 January 2005. The first four CH2000s were used by the 3rd Squadron, based at

Kirkuk Air Base The Kirkuk International Airport is an airport located Kirkuk, Iraq. The airport officially opened in 20th October, 2022 for civil visitors. Since 2003 the airport was used by the U.S. Air Force as a military airport. It was returned to the Iraq ...

, and the others by the 70th Squadron at

Basra International Airport Basrah International Airport ( ar, مطار البصرة الدولي, Maṭār al-Baṣrah ad-Duwaliyy) is the second largest international airport in Iraq, and is located in the southern city of Basra. History Construction The airport was bu ...

. In 2008, following the service entry of the

Cessna 208 The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the FAA in October 1984 and its Cargoma ...

in the Iraqi Air Force, SAMA CH2000s used by the 3rd Squadron were transferred to the 70th Squadron.

Zenair CH 640

The four seat

kit aircraft Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.Armstrong, Kenn ...

derivative of the Alarus is the Zenair CH 640.Vandermeullen, Richard: ''2011 Kit Aircraft Buyer's Guide'', Kitplanes, Volume 28, Number 12, December 2011, page 77. Belvoir Publications. ISSN 0891-1851

Operators

The Alarus is used by some flight schools in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In February 2008 there were 113 CH2000 Alarus registered in the USA and four in Canada. The first military user of the CH2000 was the

, currently operating 8 aircraft. The

Peruvian Air Force The Peruvian Air Force ( es, link=no, Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguardin ...

will receive six CH2000s built under licence by SEMAN with some custom modifications. The Peruvian version is called the ''Antarqui'' (which was a special elite of

Chasqui The ''chasquis'' (also ) were the messengers of the Inca empire. Agile, highly trained and physically fit, they were in charge of carrying the , messages and gifts, up to 240 km per day through the relay system. ''Chasquis'' were not just messe ...

messengers in service with the

Inca Empire The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...

, that are believed to have used a

paragliding Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like 'po ...

device to jump from one hill to another).

Military operators

; *

- 70th Squadron ; *

Specifications

References

External links

Company website archives
on

Archive.org The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amd Alarus 1990s United States civil trainer aircraft Low-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Alarus