MD-530 Scout

"Fly free...For a price!"

- Merchant of Menace store caption

The MD-530 Scout is a Russian Mafia light helicopter that is featured in Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction.

Overview
"Our sporty scout copter is armed with twin. 50cal machine guns and 70mm rocket pods to deal with any situation. The integrated winch allows you to quickly move light cargo where you need it."

- Merchant of Menace store description

Despite the similar armor and maneuverability, the MD-530 has completely different armaments than the North Korean MD-500 Scout. Instead of a minigun, the MD-530 has a weaker machine gun with less ammo. The two anti-tank missiles of the MD-500 have been replaced with a new 57mm rocket launcher which not only has much more ammo, but is very effective against infantry and light vehicles, but weak against heavily armored vehicles such as tanks.

The MD-530 is much rarer than the MD-500 in the field; however, there are some missions for the Mafia where the player is supplied with a free MD-530 which they can then keep after the contract is completed. Eventually the player can unlock the MD-530 in the Mafia's online shop (you unlock it by destroying 30 listening posts), the 'Merchant of Menace,' and from then on will be able to purchase it whenever they wish, provided they have the cash.

Tactics
The MD-530 is, like any faction vehicle, an easy way for the player to infiltrate areas held by the Mafia. Its armaments are mostly effective against infantry and light vehicles, such as trucks and jeeps. Also, considering its small size, the MD-530 can take off, land and move very quickly which makes it useful for making quick escapes and evading incoming enemy projectiles, such as RPGs.

Real life
The MD-530 is based on the MD 520N. It notably features a NOTAR system instead of a tail rotor, which creates less noise and reduces the chance of tail rotor related accidents and injuries.

Related pages

 * MD-500 Scout
 * Rogue series