Helicopters with the heaviest weapons payload

25 of the 48 helicopters in the WeaponSpecs database publish a weapons payload figure. Ranked on the published number alone, highest first, with no weighting and no composite score. The 23 helicopters with no published figure are not ranked, absent data is never treated as a low value.

12 of the 25 entries below (Russia, China) rest on manufacturer or state claims with limited independent verification, marked † in the table. Treat their position in this ranking as directional, not tested.

Helicopters with the heaviest weapons payload, ranked by published weapons payload
#	System	Weapons payload	Source
1	NH90 Caiman Airbus Helicopters	4,000 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
2	AH-1Z Viper Bell	2,500 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
3	Mi-35M † Russian Helicopters	2,400 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
4	Mi-28NM † Russian Helicopters	2,300 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
5	Ka-52 Alligator † Russian Helicopters	2,000 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
6	Ka-29 † Russian Helicopters	2,000 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
7	Ka-50 Black Shark † Russian Helicopters	2,000 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
8	Denel AH-2 Rooivalk Denel Aviation	1,800 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
9	Tiger HAD Airbus Helicopters	1,500 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
10	Mi-24 Hind † Russian Helicopters	1,500 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
11	Z-10 † AVIC (Aviation Industry Corporation of China)	1,500 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
12	Mi-24P † Russian Helicopters	1,500 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
13	Mi-8MTV-5 † Russian Helicopters	1,500 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
14	AH-1W Super Cobra Bell	1,497 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
15	A129 Mangusta Leonardo	1,200 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
16	T129 ATAK Turkish Aerospace Industries	1,200 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
17	Ka-27 † Russian Helicopters	800 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
18	AH-64D Apache Longbow Boeing	771 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
19	AH-64E Apache Guardian Boeing	771 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-01
20	HAL Rudra Hindustan Aeronautics Limited	700 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
21	HAL Prachand (LCH) Hindustan Aeronautics Limited	700 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
22	Harbin Z-19 † AVIC (Aviation Industry Corporation of China)	600 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
23	Z-9 † AVIC (Aviation Industry Corporation of China)	600 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
24	AH-6 Little Bird Boeing	431 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02
25	Dhruv Hindustan Aeronautics Limited	0 kg	reference ↗ checked 2026-07-02

Compiled from public manufacturer, defense-ministry and reference sources. Published defense figures are approximations and are often stated under different conditions, so treat this ordering as directional rather than a tested result. A board is only generated where at least 5 systems in the class publish the figure. How we compile specs →

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Weapons payload in other classes

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