The Sparrow is a helicopter featured in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars and Grand Theft Auto Online as part of The Cayo Perico Heist update.
Design[]
3D Universe[]
The Sparrow is based on the Bell Model 47 "Sioux" (more specifically on the "G-series"), evidenced by the "soap bubble" canopy and the exposed welded-tube tail rotor.
The Sparrow generally assumes a lightweight appearance, feauring a glass cockpit and curved doors, as well as a small engine, long skids and an exposed tail boom with small fins and a tubular end for the tail rotor. The rendition in GTA San Andreas appears to have linear doors and square-shaped windows spanning the upper area of the cabin. The Sparrow is only available in a grey color in the GTA Vice City and GTA Vice City Stories renditions, and white in the GTA San Andreas rendition. Although not visible, a red secondary color is also listed in the files in GTA Vice City and GTA San Andreas.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars[]
The Sparrow appears slightly more compact than its original appearance, with the tail being reduced in size and no longer sporting the original exposed frame. Despite this, it still appears as a compact helicopter featuring machine guns. It only appears during certain missions, alongside the Defender, a similar attack helicopter.
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
The Sparrow returns in Grand Theft Auto Online with the same design as the Sea Sparrow, being based on a Sikorsky S-300 with the engine from the Aérospatiale Alouette II.
The vehicle has the same design and features as the pre-existing Sea Sparrow, but the pontoons are replaced by regular skids. Some tweaks were also made to the model, such as the skid struts being slightly more vertical, the blades being fully black and the circular detail on the engine bay being fully finished in silver. Like the Sea Sparrow, it uses a small instrument panel with the "Flyer" dial set on it, with the same layout as the Buzzard and its Attack variant.
The vehicle is set to spawn in a light grey primary color for the body and a black secondary color for the small fins of the horizontal stabilizers. However, the respray option from the Moon Pool workshop seems to apply to both primary and secondary colors at once.
Like the Sea Sparrow, the vehicle does not have any weapon, but it can be equipped with one via customization, either a Minigun based on a GAU-19 gatling gun or a small missile launcher with four tubes inside.
Current Design Gallery[]
Version History Gallery[]
Performance[]
3D Universe[]
The helicopter handles quite well in GTA Vice City compared to the Maverick due to its low weight, but has taken a slight downturn in GTA San Andreas. It can fit two people inside and is great for transporting a body guard in GTA Vice City or a homie in GTA San Andreas. While it is not as fast as the VCN Maverick or the News Chopper, the Sparrow is easier to use, being a perfect choice for practicing flying. The weak point of the helicopter is its uncovered engine, and a few shots are enough to bring it out of the air, proving that it has no armor. If the player hits any door on the helicopter, it will be removed like it is the case with cars, making it the first helicopter to have removable doors.
The aircraft is powered by a single piston engine, and shares its engine sound with the Maverick and its variants.
3D Universe Overview[]
Take-Off Speed (0-60 knots in Seconds) |
Top Speed (mph / kmh / knots) |
Engine Type | Engine Location | Mass (kg / lbs) |
---|---|---|---|---|
N/A | 124 / 200 / 108 | Petrol | N/A | 2500 / 5512 (GTA Vice City & GTA San Andreas)
5000 / 11023 (GTA Vice City Stories) |
N/A | N/A | Single piston engine, two-bladed rotor | Rear-mid | Cannot be observed |
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
Vehicle[]
The performance of the Sparrow is a bit different to that of the amphibious variant, as the reduced weight gives it similar traits to the Buzzard and its attack variant. The handling of the helicopter is very nimble, but remains relatively stable (albeit slightly inferior to the Buzzard in that aspect), allowing the player to perform quick maneuvers. In addition, when flying at full speed, the aircraft will slightly descend, similarly to the Buzzard.
Being a standard helicopter, however, the Sparrow is unable to land on water, although it can still hover above water like most helicopters. Due to the skids being part of the aircraft's body, the tail rotor can be kept away from the sea waves. Even in stock condition, the Sparrow performs identically to a fully-upgraded Sea Sparrow.
Like its amphibious variant, the vehicle is powered by a single turboshaft engine, which produces the same rotor sound as the former, as well as most regular helicopters.
Defense[]
In terms of durability, the helicopter remains as vulnerable as the Sea Sparrow and other civilian helicopters in the game (including the Maverick and Frogger), as it has no protection for the occupants against gunfire and cannot withstand a single explosion before being destroyed. The lack of armor upgrades makes it even more fragile to collisions and most form of attacks, and the rigidness of the skids means it can be easily damaged by hard landings, unlike most helicopters with similar setups. Just like other helicopters, after taking enough damage, the engine will begin to smoke, until it will shut down after smoking for two minutes and twenty seconds. The Sparrow will gradually take damage when it is landed on top of a vehicle.
The tail rotor cannot be destroyed by any means, as receiving gunfire will damage the helicopter instead.
A unique feature of the helicopter is that it cannot be targeted by the air defenses of the Galaxy Super Yacht, allowing it to safely fly over or attack players on the yacht without getting blown up.
Countermeasures[]
The vehicle can be fitted with countermeasures to improve its defensive capabilities against homing missiles, each one with their own attributes:
- The Chaff countermeasure disrupts the targeting system from missile launchers, rendering them unable to lock on to the aircraft for five seconds. They have a delay of five seconds before being available again and only have 10 uses.
- The Flare countermeasure drops flares from around the rear of the aircraft, which can "disorient" the homing missile and prevent it from following the aircraft. They have a delay of three seconds before being available again and only have 20 uses.
Weaponry[]
Like the Sea Sparrow, the Sparrow can equip a pilot-operated weapon mounted below the cabin, which only one can be installed at once:
- Minigun: The first option is a three-barreled .50 caliber Minigun, which offers similar statistics as the ones available for the Sea Sparrow and the Havok, though with a degraded fire rate of 600 rounds per minute (while the aforementioned helicopters have a fire rate of 1,200 rounds per minute), and it does not have the ability to blow up vehicles instantly upon being damaged enough (instead, it applies direct damage to the vehicle's engine).
- Missiles: The second option is a missile launcher, which function largely similarly to those on the Sea Sparrow and other aircraft such as the Savage, the FH-1 Hunter and the Akula, having no "reload" cooldown time. When fired in "homing" mode, they are about as accurate as the Buzzard's missiles, losing tracking on a target quite easily and being easily avoided. However, when in "homing off" mode, the missiles will fire at the middle of the crosshair, allowing a skilled pilot to more easily hit targets when compared to the Buzzard. These missiles have a 300 meter/984 foot lock-on range, can also fly for five seconds before detonating, and can travel 540 meters/1772 feet.
Occupants are unable to use drive-by weapons.
GTA Online Overview[]
Take-Off Speed (0-60 knots in Seconds) |
Top Speed (mph / kmh / knots) |
Vertical Climb/ Descent Rate (ft/min) |
Engine Type | Engine Location | Mass (kg / lbs) |
Fuel Tank Size (litres) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
N/A | 99 / 160 / 86 | N/A | N/A | N/A | 800 / 1764 | 100 |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
N/A | N/A | N/A | Single turboshaft engine, three-bladed rotor | Rear-mid | Cannot be observed | Cannot be observed |
Damage (per shot) [?] |
Fire Rate [?] | Range (m / ft) [?] |
Ammo Specifications/ Capacity |
Reload Mechanism | Reload Speed [?] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 (24) 22.5 |
0.1 (600 RPM) | 200 / 656.1 | 750 | N/A | N/A |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
N/A | 600 RPM | 200 / 656.1 | Unlimited | N/A | N/A |
Damage | 30% 30% | ||||
Fire Rate/Speed | 60% 60% | ||||
Accuracy | 40% 40% | ||||
Range | 60% 60% | ||||
Clip Size | 50% 50% |
Damage (per shot) [?] |
Fire Rate [?] | Range (m / ft) [?] |
Ammo Specifications/ Capacity |
Reload Mechanism | Reload Speed [?] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
N/A | 2 (30 RPM) | 300 / 984.2 (Lock-on & Weapon) | 1 (20) | N/A | 2 |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
N/A | 60 RPM | 300 / 984.2 (Lock-on) 540 / 1771.6 (Weapon) |
4 missiles (unlimited) | N/A | 1 second |
Damage | 0% 0% | ||||
Fire Rate/Speed | 0% 0% | ||||
Accuracy | 10% 10% | ||||
Range | 100% 100% | ||||
Clip Size | 1% 1% |
Modifications[]
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
The Sparrow can only be modified inside the Moon Pool workshop of the Kosatka. Unlike most vehicles, the vehicle has limited access to 30 Classic colors with the same cost.
Category | Modification | Cost | Image |
---|---|---|---|
Weapons | No Weapon | $700 | |
Mounted .50 Cal Minigun | $195,000 | ||
Mounted Homing Missiles | $240,000 | ||
Respray Vehicle |
|
$7,500 | |
Countermeasures | None | $700 | |
Chaff | $70,000 | ||
Flare | $110,000 |
Gallery[]
HD Universe[]
Variants[]
Sea SparrowGTA Vice City, GTA San Andreas, GTA Vice City Stories & GTA Online |
(Rear quarter view) |
The Sea Sparrow is a variant of the Sparrow, fitted with pontoons on the landing gear that allow it to land on water. |
Special Variants[]
- A static model variant exists, being similar to the Avenger for when the Sparrow is stored in the Moon Pool bay in the Kosatka. This variant has its rotor blades folded back. Unlike the Avenger, no entry animation is shown when storing the Sparrow, however it can be entered and an animation is shown lifting the helicopter up on a platform when leaving the submarine. This variant has the same "Flyer" dial set, but lacks needles, likely because it is not intended to be a pilotable helicopter.
Prominent Appearances in Missions[]
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City[]
- Phnom Penh '86 - Spawns flying toward the opposite direction during the mission, alongside a Sea Sparrow.
- Supply & Demand - Some Cubans will attack the player from a Sparrow.
- Martha's Mug Shot - One spawns inside InterGlobal Studios for the player to use to quickly follow Candy Suxxx.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories[]
- Civil Asset Forfeiture Impound - The Sparrow is one of the 32 vehicles wanted by the Civil Asset Forfeiture Impound in the side-mission of the same name. Placed on the third list.
- Skywolf - One Sparrow must be destroyed by the Hunter.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars[]
- Copter Carnage - Used by the Spanish Lords to attack Kenny's Warehouse.
Locations[]
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City[]
The Sparrow only spawns in these areas (except the one in Downtown) after completing the mission Rub Out and entering them starts the Chopper Checkpoints side mission.
- On a grassy area in Vice Point, across the Links View Apartment near an alleyway.
- On a roof in Little Haiti.
- By a set of stairs leading to the interior of the building in Downtown used in G-Spotlight after completing that mission.
- On a roof across Apartment 3c in Ocean Beach.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas[]
- On the roof of Madd Dogg's mansion after completing A Home in the Hills.
- On the roof of the Zombotech Corporation building in San Fierro after completion of the Pilot School.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories[]
- On a helipad at the Escobar International Airport after completing From Zero to Hero.
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
- The Sparrow is only available as a Moon Pool upgrade for the Kosatka submarine, on Warstock Cache & Carry. It costs $1,815,000.
- It can be requested through the Interaction Menu under the "Kosatka Services", and spawns near the player, similar to VIP/CEO helicopters. Upon being sent back to storage or destroyed, it will have a cooldown of two minutes before requesting it again.
Trivia[]
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories[]
- In the game files, the Sparrow is designed to spawn with two color schemes that are identical (-15,-16). Negative color IDs are actually invalid, and the game just reads them as 0 instead. It seems that the chopper instead spawns with a set texture. This is a characteristic shared with the VCN Maverick, the Air Ambulance, the Armadillo, the Little Willie and the Sea Sparrow.
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
- Passive Mode is disabled even if the vehicle has no weapons. The same applies to its amphibious variant.
- When entering the Sparrow in the Kosatka Moon Pool helipad whilst in third-person view, the player's view automatically switches to first-person; upon exiting the submarine the view changes back to third-person.
Bugs/Glitches[]
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas[]
- The tail rotor of the Sparrow is dislocated, being placed on a considerable distance further back from the tail fin.
Grand Theft Auto Online[]
- In certain lighting conditions when leaving the Kosatka, the shadow of the blurred rotors of the helicopter can be seen on the hatch, despite the rotors being folded back. This is because the second variant of the Sparrow, which has the folded rotors, still has the "fast" rotor parts present, which are not disabled until the helicopter is empty.
- When a player steps out of the Sparrow inside the Kosatka, the door will simply warp straight into the closed position.
- Elsewhere, the doors of the Sparrow often will not close when the pilot or passenger leave the vehicle. Despite this, when re-entering the helicopter, the animation will show them going through the motions of opening the door, or the character will close the door and then reopen it.
- Certain spawn locations for the Sparrow may render take-off extremely difficult or impossible; it may spawn under low bridges or have its rotors or tail clipping through geometry, potentially destroying the rotor on take-off or even destroying the Sparrow instantly after spawning or upon the player entering it (killing the player).
- The Sparrow is incorrectly scripted to always play Kult FM which causes unintended behavior in certain situations:
- If requested the helicopter when driving a car, the radio station in the driven car will instantly change to Kult FM as the Sparrow spawns.
- When exiting the Kosatka using the Sparrow, Kult FM will play during the cutscene overlapping the in-game score (if any playing). However, the radio will be off when outside of the sub.
- These were fixed in the Los Santos Tuners update.
- While this was technically fixed, similar issues still exist. Requesting the Sparrow while driving a vehicle will forcibly change the radio station to Music Locker Radio. Entering the Sparrow will change the station to Kult FM. Having either of these stations disabled in the Inventory\Radio Station Favorites menu will turn the radio off instead.
- Using the automatic landing feature at Executive Office helipads with the Kosatka Sparrow and then starting a Special Cargo source mission can cause the game to forget that the Sparrow is a Kosatka vehicle, disabling the "Return Moon Pool Vehicle to Kosatka" option. Instead, it is possible to summon a second Sparrow from the Kosatka, while the first remains active, allowing one player to have two moon pool Sparrows active at the same time.
- A similar bug occurs with the automatic landing feature at The Diamond Casino & Resort and Agencies helipads.
- The vehicle lacks an engine startup sound, and the blades simply start spinning as soon as the pilot sits in the cabin. This action also takes priority over the closing door animation when the player is not using the acceleration button, unlike most aircraft and other vehicles.
- Second players may be unable to open the door to enter the passenger seat of the Sparrow, often instead punching the door and breaking the glass. This can happen on land as well as in the Kosatka hangar and appears to not be impacted by whether the second player is a crew member or not (Confirmed on PS4).
- Crew members cannot pilot the Sparrow when leaving the Kosatka Moon Pool helipad, nor can they use the sub's automatic landing feature (Confirmed on PS4).
- If parked outside a property, even in a safe location where undisturbed by other players or NPCs, the Sparrow may spawn upside-down when the player exits their property, rendering it impossible to fly.
References[]
- ↑ Seen when parked or when another player is flying a Sparrow.