The most fearsome helicopter in the British Armed Forces moved a step closer to front-line service at sea after a gruelling month of trials with helicopter carrier HMS Ocean.

The Apache AH Mark I rose from the deck of the ship and landed again 750 times in a series of test flights which will pave the way for the aircraft joining the Navy’s amphibious striking power.

The Apache is due to be declared ready for combat with the Army Air Corps later this year as the first squadron is declared operational.

But Britain’s military leaders are determined the helicopter should have an expeditionary role with the RN and Royal Marines – especially as amphibious warfare has become the Senior Service’s core area again.

Whitehall is confident the Apache will be able to operate from Navy vessels from next year.

But the trials in the Atlantic and Channel which started in March were setting the benchmark as test pilots and engineers worked out the operating limits for the Apache in a marine environment.

The aircraft was designed for a battlefield support role, but its array of anti-armour missiles and rockets could prove invaluable to Royal Marines storming ashore – such as on the Al Faw peninsula in Iraq last year.

A specially-adapted trials aircraft joined Ocean, attended by computer experts, technicians and observers and a group of test pilots.

The aircraft had sensors fitted to its rotor blades, recording reams of flight data to assess the strains and stresses on the Apache on the flight deck and in the air.

This was not an entirely inhuman affair, however. The test pilots also ‘scored’ each flight, allowing the experts to fully assess the Apache’s performance at sea.

The trials ranged from the seas off Plymouth and Portsmouth down to Gran Canaria.

What surprised many of Ocean’s crew was the weight of the Apache.

At around 16,500 to 18,500lbs, Apache is a ‘light Sea King’, and much lighter than a Merlin.

There’s an old adage in the aero industry which says that if an aircraft looks right, it probably is – and the Apache looks just right for the job: fearsome and foreboding. You would not want to be looking down the barrel of its guns.

“The 30mm main gun moves in the direction the pilot’s helmet is facing,” explained CPO Grant Rod, an aircraft controller and also Ocean’s assistant public relations officer.

“On one occasion, the pilot forgot to turn his helmet off as he looked over at us – and the gun followed him, which was a bit worrying.”

“It’s an awesome aircraft to look at, and it looks good on the flight deck.”

As the first nation to test Apache at sea, the trials have not surprisingly drawn considerable interest – not least from the US military.

The Americans have no maritime version of the helicopter, or even a version with folding rotor blades, and so are keen to see how the British trials progress. A Boeing test pilot and experts from Arizona were amongst those who joined Ocean for the trials.

What RN personnel are already learning is that the Apache has potential far beyond simply pounding enemy ground forces.

In Iraq last year, 849 Naval Air Squadron learned that new surveillance radar fitted to their Sea King provided not just an excellent picture of enemy movements in the air, but also could be used to track movements on the ground – and Apache’s Longbow radar is even more potent.

“It’s a very good reconnaissance aircraft thanks to the radar,” CPO Rod said.

“Apache can use its radar to scan suitable landing areas, pick up gun emplacements and follow things moving on the ground – and tell you whether it’s a tank or wheeled vehicle.”

Certainly Apache posed no problems for Ocean. Staff from builders Westland folded, stowed and moved the aircraft around.

“The Apache performed really well. As far as we could see, it didn’t present any problems,” CPO Rod said.

Come next year, Britain’s armed forces will be able to deploy two squadrons of Apaches and two of Lynxes to hot spots around the world if necessary, and this amphibious dimension is vital for the Apache’s future.

Until now, commandos have relied upon the trusted Lynx Mk 7 and its TOW missiles for battlefield support.

Apache not only has more firepower, but its Hellfire missiles can engage enemy battle tanks at much greater distances – up to eight kilometres (five miles).

“Apache is a formidable fighting platform, and being able to operate at sea opens up a whole new area for what is already an extremely capable helicopter,” said Commodore Duncan Reid, in charge of the Attack Helicopter project with the Defence Procurement Agency.

“Britain’s Armed Forces are on track to receive a superb piece of equipment which will serve for many years to come.”

Defence procurement minister Lord Bach, who has been following the Apache’s progress on land and at sea, said his team had been hugely impressed by the aircraft’s performance aboard HMS Ocean.

“Completing these trials is a major milestone. Apache is a hugely flexible and formidable fighting platform,” he said.

“Being able to operate from sea will ensure it plays a major part in all manner of operations for years to come. The successful completion of these trials has boosted Apache’s already impressive capability.”

More sea trials with Apache are planned, as well as intense pilot training. RN and Royal Marine aircrew personnel will spend time with 9 Army Air Corps Regiment, ‘dunker’ and sea survival training will be given to air crew, and magazines in ships prepared to accommodate the Apache’s weaponry.

Aviation training ship RFA Argus will be the next test bed in the autumn, and the Navy is hopeful that four Apaches can join its amphibious exercise Argonaut 05 next year and eight in 2006.

Unfortunately for thrill-seekers there will be no chance for a quick spin in an Apache. Both seats on every mission are taken by its crew.

In the long-term, trials are likely with the RN’s future carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales.