| Bee | |
|---|---|
| Role | Utility helicopter |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Scheutzow Helicopter Corporation |
| Designer | Webb Scheutzow[1] |
| First flight | 26 January 1967[1] |
| Number built | 4[1] |
The Scheutzow Model B or Scheutzow Bee was a two-seat utility helicopter developed in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s.[1][2]
The aircraft was designed by Webb Scheutzow around a new type of rotorhead that he had developed, the FLEXIHUB.[1] In this system, the two main rotor blades were mounted in rubber bushes, reducing vibration and requiring no lubrication.[3][1]. The design was otherwise entirely conventional, consisting of a cabin with two seats arranged side-by-side, a centrally-mounted engine and rotor mast, and an open-truss tail boom of triangular section that carried a two-blade tail rotor.[1][4] The undercarriage consisted of skids.[4] The frame was constructed of welded steel tube[4] and the cabin was constructed of sheet metal.[4][5] Power was transmitted from the engine to the rotor by a series of belts, eliminating the need for a gearbox[6] and minimizing cabin noise.[4]
The prototype (registration N564A) first flew on 26 January 1967[1] and Scheutzow initially planned to have flight testing for type certification completed by the end of the year.[5] At the time, Scheutzow hoped to sell the helicopter for somewhere in the region of $10,000–$12,000,[5] although the following year, the estimated price rose to $16,700.[6] Scheutzow still hoped that the helicopter would be in production the following year and planned to build 191 examples in 1969.[6] However, the flight test program to obtain type certification did not commence until 1971.[4] Certification tests were almost complete by the end of 1973, at which point funding ran out.[4] Testing resumed again in February 1975[4] and the Bee was certified in May 1976.[7] Development was abandoned during the 1970s after only four examples were built.[1]
Data from Taylor, J.W.R. (1977), p.399
General characteristics
Performance
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