H-13 Sioux | |
---|---|
An OH-13 over RIAT, 2022 | |
Role | Light observation helicopter |
National origin | United States |
Manufacturer | Bell Aircraft Bell Helicopter |
First flight | 8 December 1945 (Bell 47 prototype) [1] |
Status | Retired |
Primary users | United States Army United States Air Force United States Navy British Army [Iran] |
Number built | At least 2,407 |
Developed from | Bell 47 |
Variants | Bell 201 |
Developed into | Bell 207 Sioux Scout |
The Bell H-13 Sioux is an American single-engine light helicopter built by Bell Helicopter and manufactured by Westland Aircraft under license for the British military as the Sioux AH.1 and HT.2. It was the first helicopter to be certified for civil use. [2]
This section needs expansionwith: Fill in some details on early development. You can help by adding to it. (March 2009) |
In 1947, the United States Army Air Forces (later the United States Air Force) ordered the improved Bell Model 47A. Most were designated YR-13 and three winterized versions were designated YR-13A. The United States Army first ordered Bell 47s in 1948 under the designation H-13. These would later receive the name Sioux. [3]
Initially, the United States Navy procured several Bell 47s, designated HTL-1, between 1947 and 1958. The United States Coast Guard evaluated this model, and procured two HTL-1s for multi-mission support in the New York Harbor. The most common U.S. Navy version of the 47 was designated the HTL-4, and dispenses with the fabric covering on the tail boom. The U.S. Coast Guard procured three HTL-5s in 1952 (similar to the HTL-4 but powered by a Franklin O-335-5 engine) and used these until 1960. [4] The Coast Guard procured two of Bell's Model 47G and designated them HUL-1G in 1959. [4]
The H-13 was one of the principal helicopters used by the U.S. Army during the Korean War, with the H-13D variant being the most prevalent. During the war it was used in a wide variety of roles including observation, reconnaissance, and medivac. From its role in medevac flights, it gained the nickname "Angel of Mercy". It was also used as an observation helicopter early in the Vietnam War, before being replaced by the Hughes OH-6 Cayuse in 1966.
The Bell 47 was ordered by the British Army as the Sioux to meet specification H.240, with licensed production by Westland Helicopters. In order to comply with the terms of its licence agreement with Sikorsky Aircraft, which prevented it building a U.S. competitor's aircraft, Westland licensed the Model 47 from Agusta, who had purchased a license from Bell. [5] the first contract was for 200 helicopters. The first 50 helicopters of the contract were built by Agusta at Gallarate in Italy followed by 150 built by Westland at Yeovil. The first Westland Sioux made its maiden flight on 9 March 1965. [6]
The Sioux is a single-engine single-rotor three-seat observation and basic training helicopter. In 1953 the Bell 47G design was introduced. It can be recognized by the full "soap bubble" canopy (as its designer Arthur M. Young termed it), [7] exposed welded-tube tail boom, saddle fuel tanks and skid landing gear. In its UH-13J version, based on the Bell 47J, it had a metal-clad tail boom and fuselage and an enclosed cockpit and cabin.
The H-13 and its military variants were often equipped with medical evacuation panniers, one to each skid, with an acrylic glass shield to protect the patient from wind.
The development of the Sioux was helped greatly by Bell's implementation of a short weighted gyro-stabilizer bar at 90° beneath and to the main rotor. It had streamlined counterweights at both tips and was linked so it determined which plane the rotor was in and kept it horizontal. [8] The stabilizer, which was connected to the cyclic pitch control, acted as a hinged flywheel using gyroscopic inertia to keep the rotor blades in plane and independent of fuselage movement due to wind. It ensured that the system had enough inertia due to flight as well, so autorotation would function in case of engine failure. [9]
A single 260 hp Lycoming VO-435 piston engine was fitted to the 47G variant. Fuel was fed from two high-mounted external tanks. A single two-bladed rotor with short inertial stabilising minor blades was used on the Sioux. [6]
Airworthy
On display
Data from Newark Air Museum, [102] Britains Small Wars. [103]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Twin .30 in (7.62 mm) Machine guns [b]
The H-13 has appeared, and played key roles, in many film and television productions. It has been associated with both the M*A*S*H TV series (1972–1983) and the film of the same name (1970), prominently featuring the H-13 in its opening credits, and played a central role in the series finale, which still holds the record as the highest rated single episode broadcast in America. [105] [106] The series helped popularize the H-13 as the helicopter most people now associate with the Korean War. [107] The H-13 also played a key role in the Whirlybirds TV series (1957–1959). [108] [109]
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
The Curtiss JN "Jenny" is a series of biplanes built by the Glenn Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for the US Army, the "Jenny" continued after World War I as a civilian aircraft, becoming the "backbone of American postwar [civil] aviation".
The Westland Whirlwind helicopter was a British licence-built version of the U.S. Sikorsky S-55/H-19 Chickasaw. It primarily served with the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm in anti-submarine and search and rescue roles. It was also exported to other countries, and the Whirlwind was succeeded by the turbine powered Westland Wessex which was developed from the H-19/Whirlwind. The helicopter was made in many variants using a variety of radial (piston) and turbine engines.
The de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou is a Canadian specialized cargo aircraft with short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability. The Caribou was first flown in 1958 and although mainly retired from military operations, is still in use in small numbers as a rugged bush airplane.
The Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw is a multi-purpose piston-engined helicopter that was used by the United States Army and United States Air Force. It was also license-built by Westland Aircraft as the Westland Whirlwind in the United Kingdom. United States Navy and United States Coast Guard models were designated HO4S, while those of the U.S. Marine Corps were designated HRS. In 1962, the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Marine Corps versions were all redesignated as H-19s like their U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force counterparts.
The Stearman (Boeing) Model 75 is an American biplane formerly used as a military trainer aircraft, of which at least 10,626 were built in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Stearman Aircraft became a subsidiary of Boeing in 1934. Widely known as the Stearman, Boeing Stearman, or Kaydet, it served as a primary trainer for the United States Army Air Forces, the United States Navy, and with the Royal Canadian Air Force as the Kaydet throughout World War II. After the conflict was over, thousands of surplus aircraft were sold on the civilian market. In the immediate postwar years, they became popular as crop dusters and sports planes, and for aerobatic and wing walking use in air shows.
The Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar is an American military transport aircraft developed from the World War II-era Fairchild C-82 Packet, designed to carry cargo, personnel, litter patients, and mechanized equipment, and to drop cargo and troops by parachute. The first C-119 made its initial flight in November 1947, and by the time production ceased in 1955, more than 1,100 had been built.
The Piasecki H-21 Workhorse/Shawnee is an American helicopter, the fourth of a line of tandem rotor helicopters designed and built by Piasecki Helicopter. Commonly called "the flying banana", it was a multi-mission helicopter, capable of being fitted with wheels, skis or floats.
The Hiller YH-32 Hornet is an American ultralight helicopter built by Hiller Aircraft in the early 1950s. It was a small and unique design because it was powered by two Hiller 8RJ2B ramjet engines mounted on the rotor blade tips which weigh 13 lb (5.9 kg) each and deliver an equivalent of 45 hp (34 kW) for a total of 90 hp (67 kW). Versions of the HJ-1 Hornet were built for the United States Army and the United States Navy in the early 1950s.
The Bell 47 is a single-rotor single-engine light helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It was based on the third Bell 30 prototype, which was the company's first helicopter designed by Arthur M. Young. The 47 became the first helicopter certified for civilian use on 8 March 1946. The first civilian delivery was made on 31 December 1946 to Helicopter Air Transport. More than 5,600 Bell 47s were produced, including those under license by Agusta in Italy, Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Japan, and Westland Aircraft in the United Kingdom. The Bell 47J Ranger is a modified version with a fully enclosed cabin and tail boom.
The Sikorsky H-34 is an American piston-engined military utility helicopter originally designed by Sikorsky as an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft for the United States Navy. A development of the smaller Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw (S-55), the H-34 was originally powered by a radial engine, but was later adapted to turbine power by the British licensee as the Westland Wessex and by Sikorsky as the S-58T. The H-34 was also produced under license in France by Sud Aviation.
The Sikorsky HH-52 Seaguard is an early amphibious helicopter designed and produced by American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. It was the first of the company's amphibious rotorcraft to fly and the United States Coast Guard's first turbine-powered helicopter and first amphibious helicopter.
The Kaman HH-43 Huskie is a helicopter developed and produced by the American rotorcraft manufacturer Kaman Aircraft. It is perhaps most distinctive for its use of twin intermeshing rotors, having been largely designed by the German aeronautical engineer Anton Flettner.
The Ryan PT-22 Recruit, the main military version of the Ryan ST, is a military trainer aircraft that was used by the United States Army Air Corps during WWII for primary pilot training.
The Aeronca L-3 group of observation and liaison aircraft were used by the United States Army Air Corps in World War II. The L-3 series were adapted from Aeronca's pre-war Tandem Trainer and Chief models.
The Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum is a non-profit aviation museum located in Southern Colorado. It was founded in the mid-1970s by former Pueblo City Manager Fred Weisbrod. The museum is made up of two hangars that were built in 2005 and 2011. The hangars house several of the museum's aircraft along with thousands of artifacts dating from World War I to modern day. PWAM is home to the International B-24 Memorial Museum and the Southern Colorado Space Museum and Learning Center. There are several historic military vehicles in the museum's collection, many of which are still in operational condition. The museum is located six miles east of Pueblo, Colorado on US Highway 50 at the Pueblo Memorial Airport, occupying space on what was the Pueblo Army Air Base during World War II. It is managed and maintained by the Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society.
The Sikorsky S-61R is a twin-engine helicopter used in transport or search and rescue roles. A developed version of the S-61/SH-3 Sea King, the S-61R was also built under license by Agusta as the AS-61R. The S-61R served in the United States Air Force as the CH-3C/E Sea King and the HH-3E Jolly Green Giant, and with the United States Coast Guard as the HH-3F, nicknamed "Pelican". This article covers several different variants of this type in different roles, one major difference compared to the S-61 was a rear ramp.
The Alaska Aviation Museum, previously the Alaska Aviation Heritage Museum, is located on Lake Hood Seaplane Base in Anchorage, Alaska. Its mission since 1988, is to preserve, display, and honor Alaska's aviation heritage, by preserving and displaying historic aircraft, artifacts, and memorabilia, and to foster public interest in aviation and its history. The museum has over thirty aircraft on display, a restoration hangar, flight simulators, two theaters, and a Hall of Fame. It provides an emphasis on historic aircraft, aviation artifacts, and memorabilia that contributed to the development and progress of aviation in Alaska, including Bush flying, and the World War II Army base on Adak Island.
The Bell 47J Ranger is an American single-engine single-rotor light helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It was an executive variant of the highly successful Bell 47 and was the first helicopter to carry a United States president.
The Heritage in Flight Museum is an aviation museum located at the Logan County Airport in Lincoln, Illinois.
The Museum of Mountain Flying is an aviation museum located at the Missoula Montana Airport in Missoula, Montana focused on the history of Johnson Flying Service.
I thought the bubble was a great idea, and we tried it. It consisted of taking a large sheet of Plexiglas, and a plywood form, cut for the final dimension for the outside of the bubble, then heating the Plexiglas, putting it under the plywood form, letting air pressure come up through the middle, and it would blow just like a soap bubble. And, then we had a gauge saying how far to blow, and when it reached that point, we turned off the air pressure.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)