MC-4 | |
---|---|
Role | Light helicopter |
Manufacturer | McCulloch Aircraft Corporation |
Designer | Drago Jovanovich |
First flight | 1948 |
Primary users | United States Army United States Navy |
Developed from | HERC JOV-3 |
The McCulloch Model MC-4 was an American tandem-rotor helicopter and was the first helicopter developed by McCulloch Aircraft Corporation, a division of McCulloch Motors Corporation. [1] It was evaluated by the United States Army as the YH-30 and the United States Navy as the XHUM-1.
The MC-4 was a larger version of the earlier HERC JOV-3 tandem-rotor helicopter and was developed by the McCulloch Aircraft Corporation. The JOV-3 was developed by Jovanovich when he headed the Helicopter Engineering and Research Corporation. The JOV-3 first flew in 1948. In 1949 Jovanovich moved to the McCulloch Motors Corporation where an enlarged helicopter the MC-4 first flew in March 1951. It was followed by a similar MC-4C and three evaluation helicopters for the United States Army (as the YH-30). The MC-4C was slightly larger than the MC-4. When the MC-4C was certified in 1953 it was the first tandem-rotor helicopter to be certified in the United States for commercial use. Three examples were evaluated by the United States Army as the YH-30, but the Army's evaluation showed the helicopter to be underpowered. [1]
The YH-30 had a steel tube framework with a light metal skin, A single 200 hp Franklin piston engine was horizontally mounted amidships and powered two intermeshing tandem rotors. It had a fixed-wheel tricycle landing gear with a castering nosewheel.
No civil or military orders were received and Jovanovich formed his own company, the Jovair Corporation, where he modified the MC-4C as a prototype for a four-seat private helicopter designated the Sedan 4E. The Sedan 4E was powered by a 210 hp Franklin 6A-335 engine. A version with a turbocharged engine was designed as the Sedan 4ES and a more basic Sedan 4A for agricultural use. By 1965 a small number of Sedan helicopters were built. In the early 1970s, McCulloch regained the rights to the helicopter designs.
In 2008 two MC-4Cs were registered in the United States.
The Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona has HUM-1, Bureau Number 133817, civil registration N4072K.
The Yanks Air Museum in Chino, California has another HUM-1, Bureau Number 133818. Possibly N4091K.
N4071K was purchased by Jovanovich and Kozloski then upgraded to the newer Jovair-4E Sedan design. It is currently dismantled in Switzerland. It was also used in the 1954 science-fiction movie 'Gog' from Ivan Tors.
One of the three YH-30 military prototypes, c/n 001 with military serial number 52-5837, is preserved by the US Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker, Alabama. In December 2018, the aircraft had completed much of its restoration and by January 2019 it was on display at the Army Aviation Museum.
General characteristics
Performance
The Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave is an American large heavy-lift helicopter of the 1950s.
The Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw is a multi-purpose 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.
A tandem-rotor aircraft is an aircraft with two large helicopter rotor assemblies mounted one in front of the other in the horizontal plane.
The Pacific Aerospace Corporation CT/4 Airtrainer series is an all-metal-construction, single-engine, two-place with side-by-side seating, fully aerobatic, piston-engined, basic training aircraft manufactured in Hamilton, New Zealand.
The Hiller YH-32 Hornet was 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 Sikorsky R-4 is a two-seat helicopter that was designed by Igor Sikorsky with a single, three-bladed main rotor and powered by a radial engine. The R-4 was the world's first large-scale mass-produced helicopter and the first helicopter used by the United States Army Air Forces, the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard and the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. In U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard service, the helicopter was known as the Sikorsky HNS-1. In British service it was known as the Hoverfly.
The Hiller OH-23 Raven is a three-place, military light observation helicopter based on the Hiller Model 360. The Model 360 was designated by the company as the UH-12, which was first flown in 1948.
The Bristol Type 173 was a British twin-engine, tandem rotor transport helicopter built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It was designed by Raoul Hafner as a civil transport helicopter but evoked interest from the military. It did not enter production but was developed into the Bristol Belvedere which was operated by the Royal Air Force from 1961 to 1969.
The Cessna CH-1 Skyhook is the only helicopter ever built by the Cessna Aircraft Company. It was the first helicopter to land on the summit of Pike's Peak and the last piston-engined helicopter to set the helicopter altitude record. The CH-1 had a single, two-bladed main rotor, and a front-mounted reciprocating engine which gave the aircraft a stable center of gravity (CG). Its semi-monocoque airframe greatly resembles its light airplane siblings built by Cessna. The CH-1 was named Skyhook for the civil market, similar to the marketing names used in the Cessna single engine airplane line, such as Skyhawk, Skylane and Skywagon. The United States Army designated the CH-1C as the YH-41 Seneca. While the CH-1 achieved several helicopter firsts and set a world record, it never became a commercial or military success.
The Piasecki VZ-8 Airgeep was a prototype vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft developed by Piasecki Aircraft. The Airgeep was developed to fulfill a U.S. Army Transportation Research Command contract for a flying jeep in 1957. The flying jeep was envisioned to be smaller and easier to fly than a helicopter.
The McCulloch J-2 was a small, two-seat autogyro with an enclosed cabin, one of only three designs of this type of aircraft to receive a type certificate in the United States. It was built by McCulloch Aircraft Corporation.
D K Jovanovich and Frank Kozloski founded the Helicopter Engineering Research Corporation in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1946, the predecessor of Jovair.
The Seibel S-4 was a two-bladed, single-engine helicopter built by Seibel Helicopter. Designed by Charles Seibel, the S-4 was evaluated by the United States Army under the designation YH-24 Sky Hawk, but would be rejected for service. The S-4B would serve as the basis for the design of the Cessna CH-1 Skyhook, the only helicopter Cessna ever produced.
Dragoljub Kosta Jovanovich, also known under his pen name D. K. or "Gish" Jovanovich, was a Serbian-American helicopter designer, inventor, and pioneer in autogyro technology. Born in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, he subsequently moved to the United States, living first in Philadelphia and later in southern California.
The HERC JOV-3 was a two-seat tandem helicopter originally designed by Drago Jovanovich at the Helicopter Engineering Research Corporation (HERC). The helicopter first flew in 1948.
The Doman LZ-5 was a utility helicopter developed in the United States in the early 1950s by Doman Helicopters Inc. of Danbury, Connecticut. Despite the procurement of international manufacturing agreements, no series production of the aircraft ever occurred, and only three prototypes were built. Two of these were purchased by the United States Army as the YH-31, but eventually becoming VH-31.
The Piasecki HRP Rescuer is a United States tandem-rotor transport or rescue helicopter designed by Frank Piasecki and built by Piasecki Helicopter. The Piasecki PV-3 was adopted as the HRP-1 Rescuer by the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and United States Coast Guard. An improved PV-17 variant was later produced as the HRP-2. As one of the first transport helicopters in military service, the HRP-1 was capable of carrying two crewmen and 8–10 passengers or 2,000 lb. (907 kg) of cargo.
The Sikorsky S-52 is a utility helicopter developed by Sikorsky Aircraft in the late 1940s. It was used by the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. The S-52 was the first US helicopter with all-metal rotor blades. Initially a two-seater, it was developed into the four-seat S-52-2 and S-52-3. It was designated HO5S-1 by the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, HO5S-1G by the Coast Guard, and YH-18A by the U.S. Army, and was used extensively by civil operators after being retired by the military.
The Piasecki H-16 Transporter was a tandem-rotor transport or rescue helicopter designed by Frank Piasecki and built by Piasecki Helicopter. The prototypes were evaluated by the United States Air Force and Army, but the crash of the second test aircraft led to cancelling the project.
The Kaman K-225 is an American experimental helicopter developed by Kaman Aircraft. One example was modified to become the world's first gas turbine-powered helicopter.