Kaman Aircraft
Kaman Aircraft (pronounced /kəˈmɑːn/) is a U.S. aerospace company, with headquarters in Bloomfield, Connecticut. It was founded in 1945 by Charles Kaman. During the first ten years the company operated exclusively as a designer and manufacturer of several helicopters that set world records and achieved many aviation firsts.
In 1956, Kaman began to diversify[1] as an aerospace subcontractor of McDonnell Douglas, Grumman and others. In the mid-1960s Kaman diversified outside of the aerospace industry, using the expertise Kaman had gained in composite materials and the end of the need for skilled woodworkers to craft wooden rotor blades. Charles Kaman, a guitarist as well as an aerospace pioneer, worked with his engineers and other musicians to create the round-backed, composite-body Ovation guitar, which revolutionized the guitar industry and led to the eventual creation of Kaman Music. Kaman Music is an independent distributor of musical instruments and accessories, and a major producer of guitars and guitar parts and accessories.
Kaman timeline
- December 1945
- With $2,000 and his invention of the servo-flap controlled rotor, 26-year-old Charles Kaman founded the company.[2]
- January 15, 1947
- K-125 - Kaman's first helicopter; Kaman selected an intermeshed contrarotating twin rotor design.
- July, 1949
- K-225 - An improved version of the K-125; the U.S. Navy bought two and the Coast Guard one for $25,000 each. Later, they received the H-22 designation.
- December 1951
- A modified K-225 equipped with a Boeing 502 (YT50) engine becomes the world's first gas turbine powered helicopter.[3] This aircraft is now at the Smithsonian
- 1953
- Kaman produced the first electrically powered drone
- April 1953
- Ordered for the U.S. Marine Corps, the HOK-1 first flies; Air Force version was the H-43A Huskie
- 1954
- K-16 A V/STOL designed around a rotoprop
- March 1954
- A modified Kaman HTK-1 becomes the world's first twin-turbine powered helicopter
- September, 1956
- HH-43 Huskie — A variant of the OH-43, equipped with a Lycoming T-53 gas turbine engine
- July 1957
- QH-43 - A HTK-1 modified as a UAV[4]
- 1958
- Kaman K-17 - A tipjet powered helicopter. A Blackburn-built Turmo turbine powering a compressor delivering the air to the rotor tips.[5]
- July 2, 1959
- HU2K-1; later known as UH-2A Seasprite
- March 1960
- Kaman develops and flies the first all composite main rotor blade.
- October 1961
- The H-43 Huskie sets an altitude record of 10.000 m and numerous rate of climb records.
- During the Korean and Vietnam Wars, the Huskie flew more rescue missions than all other aircraft combined — with the best safety record of any U.S. military aircraft.
- 1962
- UH-2A / B production begins
- January 1964
- First flight of Kaman's experimental Convertiplane equipped with a GE J-85 engine and wings from a Beechcraft Queen Air. The aircraft achieves speeds of over 320 km/h
- 1965
- Tomahawk — A Seasprite modified with stub wings and a pair of twin guns side-by-side under the nose. Kaman's proposal for the US Army 's interim gunship helicopter between the AAFSS (AH-56) and AAH (AH-64) competitions. Lost to the Bell 209 (AH-1 HueyCobra)
- 1967
- Seasprites are modified into twin turbine helicopters
- 1969
- US Navy begins LAMPS (Light Airborne Multipurpose System) development to obtain a on board helicopter for escort ships
- 1971
- SAVER — The Stowable Aircrew Vehicle Escape Rotoseat is the first jet-powered autogyro with telescoping rotor blades
- May 1973
- SH-2F Seasprite - The LAMPS Mk I enters US Navy service
- July 1976
- Kaman designs and begins manufacturing the K-747 blade, the world's first production all-composite rotor blade for the Bell AH-1 Cobra helicopter. Total production exceeds 4,000 blades.
- January 1991
- Magic Lantern, a new laser-based mine countermeasures system, is deployed in the Persian Gulf during Operation Desert Storm. It is highly successful in locating mines.
- February 1993
- SH-2G Seasprite - The new version of the Seasprite, with new avionics, mission electronics and GE T-700 engines, enters US Navy service
- August 1994
- K-1200 K-MAX - a purpose-built helicopter with intermeshing rotors specializing in external load operations.
- November 1998
- The Egyptian Air Force accepts delivery of its 10th SH-2G Super Seasprite for use in anti-submarine warfare missions, completing the order and becoming the first international customer to operate the aircraft.
- August 1999
- New Zealand approves purchase of SH-2G(NZ).
- January 2000
- Australian SH-2G(A) begins initial flight testing.
- January 2001
- U.S. Government purchases 5 K-MAX for Peru.
- October 2002
- The 5 Peruvian K-MAX are transferred to the Colombian Army where they are still in service as of 2008.
- June 2008
- All Royal Australian Navy SH-2G Seasprite helicopters are withdrawn from service and returned to supplier[6] as budget blew-out and contract specifications unable to be met.
- January 31, 2011
- Charles Huron Kaman, founder of Kaman Aircraft, was one of the leading aviation pioneers of the 20th century died on Tuesday,February 1, 2011, Bloomfield, CT. He was 91. ref
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