YUH-61 | |
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Boeing Vertol YUH-61A | |
Role | Utility transport helicopter |
Manufacturer | Boeing Vertol |
First flight | November 1974 |
Status | Program terminated |
Primary user | United States Army |
Number built | 3 |
The Boeing Vertol YUH-61 (company designation Model 179), was a twin turbine-engined, medium-lift, military assault/utility helicopter. The YUH-61 was the runner-up in the United States Army Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System (UTTAS) competition in the early 1970s to replace the Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter. At the end of the flyoff program, Sikorsky Aircraft was awarded a contract to develop and build its UH-60A entry.
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Under a contract awarded in August 1972, Boeing Vertol designed and delivered three prototypes to compete UTTAS program.[1] When Boeing Vertol failed to win the Army competition, it pinned its hope on winning civil orders and the US Navy's LAMPS III program. In the end, a variant of the Sikorsky design, the SH-60B, won the Navy contract, and the civil orders received were canceled.[1] Three aircraft were built and a further two were cancelled and not completed. An attack helicopter design, using the YUH-61's dynamic system was proposed for the Advanced Attack Helicopter competition, but did not make the downselect that resulted in the Bell YAH-63 and Hughes YAH-64 being built. The Boeing Vertol AAH design was unique in that the crew were seated in a laterally staggered tandem configuration.[2]
The YUH-61 was designed to meet the UTTAS requirements for improved reliability, survivability and lower life-cycle costs resulted in features such as dual-engines with improved hot and high altitude performance, and a modular design (reduced maintenance footprint); run-dry gearboxes; ballistically tolerant, redundant subsystems (hydraulic, electrical and flight controls); crashworthy crew (armored) and troop seats; dual-stage oleo main landing gear; ballistically tolerant, crashworthy main structure; quieter, more robust main and tail rotor systems; and a ballistically tolerant, crashworthy fuel system.[3]
Transport aboard the C-130 limited the UTTAS cabin height and length.[4] This also resulted in the main rotor being mounted very close to the cabin roof.
While Sikorsky choose a fully articulated and with elastomeric bearings, Boeing Vertol choose to a rigid main rotor design, based upon technology supplied by MBB, which was partnered with Boeing Vertol at the time.[5] Boeing Vertol also selected to use a tricycle landing gear and a pusher tail rotor, as opposed to the tail wheel configuration and canted tractor tail rotor that Sikorsky chose.
Two of the three aircraft (73-21656 and 73-21658) built are preserved at the United States Army Aviation Museum in Fort Rucker, Alabama.
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Data from Modern Military Aircraft[1]
General characteristics
Performance
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