Bell 47

Bell 47
Bell 47G
Role	Multipurpose light helicopter
National origin	United States
Manufacturer	Bell Aircraft Bell Helicopter
Designer	Arthur M. Young
First flight	8 December 1945
Introduction	1946
Primary users	United States Army British Army
Produced	1946–1974
Number built	5,600
Developed from	Bell 30
Variants	Bell H-13 Sioux Bell 47J Ranger Kawasaki KH-4

The Bell 47 is a single rotor single engine light helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter. Based on the third Bell 30 prototype, the company's first helicopter designed by Arthur M. Young, the 47 became the first helicopter certified for civilian use on 8 March 1946.^[1][2] 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 fuselage.

Design and development

Early models varied in appearance, with open cockpits or sheet metal cabins, fabric covered or open structures, some with four-wheel landing gear. Later model D and Korean War H-13D and E types settled on a more utilitarian style. The most common model, the 47G introduced in 1953, can be recognized by the full "soap bubble" canopy,^[3] exposed welded-tube tail boom, saddle fuel tanks and skid landing gear.

The later three-seat 47H had an enclosed cabin with full cowling and monocoque tail boom. It was an attempt to market a "luxury" version of the basic 47G. Relatively few were produced.

Engines were Franklin or Lycoming vertically mounted piston engines of 200 to 305 HP (150 to 230 kW). Seating varied from two (early 47s and the later G-5A) to four (the J and KH-4).

In April 2011 there were 1068 registered with the Federal Aviation Administration in the United States^[4] and 15 in the United Kingdom.^[5]

Bell 47s were produced in Japan by a Bell and Kawasaki venture; this led to the Kawasaki KH-4 variant, a four-seat version of the Model 47 with a cabin similar to the Bell 47J. It differed from the "J" in having a standard uncovered tail boom and fuel tanks like the G series. It was sold throughout Asia, and some were used in Australia.

In February 2010, the Bell 47 type certificates were transferred to Scott's Helicopter Services.^[6] The sister company that was formed, Scott's - Bell 47, is in the process of starting production of a turboshaft powered version of the Bell 47, the 47GT-6, using a Rolls-Royce RR300 engine and with composite rotor blades, with deliveries planned from 2016.^[7]

Operational history

The Bell 47 entered U.S. military service in late 1946, in a variety of versions and designations for three decades. It was designated H-13 Sioux by the U.S. Army, and during the Korean War, it served a variety of roles, including reconnaissance and scouting, search and rescue, and medevac.

The "Telecopter," a Bell Model 47 rented by television station KTLA in Los Angeles, California, outfitted with a television camera, made the world's first flight by a television news helicopter on July 3, 1958, with its inventor, John D. Silva, aboard. When the television station reported it was receiving no video, Silva exited the helicopter's cockpit to climb onto its landing skid while it hovered at 1,500 feet (457 m) so he could investigate the microwave transmitter bolted to its side, where he discovered a vacuum tube had failed due to vibration and hot weather. After Silva fixed the problem overnight, the Telecopter made the world's first successful television news flight on July 4, 1958.^[8]

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) had a number of Bell 47s during the Apollo program, used by astronauts as trainers for the lunar lander. Apollo 17 commander Eugene Cernan had a nearly disastrous crash into the Indian River in Florida in 1972, shortly before his flight to the moon.^[9] The 47 has also served as the helicopter of choice for basic helicopter flight instruction in many countries.

Records

• 13 May 1949, a Bell 47 set an altitude record of 18,550 feet (5,650 m).^[10]
• 21 September 1950, first helicopter to fly over the Alps.^[10]
• 17 September 1952, Bell pilot Elton J. Smith set a world distance record for piston helicopters of 1,217 miles (1,959 km) by flying nonstop from Hurst, Texas, to Buffalo, New York.^[10] As of 2017, this record still stands.^[11]

Variants

Section source: Complete Encyclopedia^[12]

Civilian

Bell 47

Pre-production version, powered by a 133-kW (178-hp) Franklin piston engine.

Bell 47A

Improved version of the Bell 47, powered by a 117-kW (157-hp) Franklin O-335-1 piston engine.

Bell 47B

Equivalent to the military YR-13/HTL-1, powered by the Franklin O-335-1 piston engine.

Bell 47B-3

Agricultural/utility version with open crew positions. Also, offered in a version to the US Postal Service as the Bell "Airmailer" .^[13]

Bell 47C

Bell 47D

First to appear with a moulded 'soap bubble' canopy, as described by Arthur M. Young himself in video recollections.

Bell 47D-1

Introduced in 1949, it had an open tubework tailboom reminiscent of the Bell Model 30, ship number 3, and a three-seat configuration.

Bell 47E

Powered by a 149-kW (200-hp) Franklin 6V4-200-C32 engine.

Bell 47F

Bell 47G

Combines a 149 kW Franklin engine with the three-seat configuration of the 47D-1 and introduced the twin saddle-bag fuel tank configuration.

Bell 47G-2

Powered by the Lycoming VO-435 engine. Produced under license by Westland Aircraft as the Westland Sioux, for the UK military.

Bell 47G-2A

Powered by a 179 kW version of the VO-435.

Bell 47G-2A-1

Wider cabin, improved rotor blades and increased fuel capacity.

Bell 47G-3

Powered by a supercharged 168 kW Franklin 6VS-335-A.

Bell 47G-3B

Powered by a turbocharged 209 kW Avco Lycoming TVO-435.

Bell 47G-4

Three-seat helicopter powered by an Avco Lycoming VO-540 engine.

Bell 47G-5

A three-seat, utility version. A two-seat agricultural version was later known as the Ag-5. The 47G-5 was the last model to be produced by Bell.

Bell 47H-1

A three-seat version with an enclosed cabin and fuselage.^[14]

Bell 47J Ranger

A four-seat version powered by an Avco Lycoming VO-435 engine.^[14]

Bell 47K

Military two-seat training variant of the 47J.

Military

See H-13 Sioux

Licensed versions

Agusta A.115

^[15][16] 1971 Italian prototype of a Bell 47J with an unclad, tubular tail boom, and powered by a Turbomeca Astazou II turboshaft engine

Meridionali/Agusta EMA 124

Italian prototype with redesigned forward fuselage. Not produced.

Kawasaki KH-4

Japanese production version with redesigned, lengthened cabin, and redesigned control system

Conversions

Carson Super C-4

El Tomcat Mk.II

Bell 47G-2 modified extensively for agricultural spraying by Continental Copters Inc. First flew in April 1959. Followed by further improved versions.

Operators

Military operators

For all military operators, regardless of the actual model, see Bell H-13 Sioux operators

Government operators

 Italy

• Carabinieri^[17]
• Guardia di Finanza^[18]
• Vigili del Fuoco^[19][20]

 United States

• Los Angeles City Fire Department^[21]
• Los Angeles Police Department^[21]
• New York City Police Department^[22][23]

Aircraft on display

Canada

• 654 – Bell 47D-1 on static display at the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.^[24][25]
• Unknown ID – Bell 47G on static display at the Alberta Aviation Museum in Edmonton, Alberta. It was assembled from parts and represents a Bell 47D.^[26][27]
• Unknown ID – Bell 47G on static display at The Hangar Flight Museum in Calgary, Alberta. It was built by college students from parts and has never flown.^[28]

Chile

• 655 – Bell 47D-1 on static display at the Museo Nacional Aeronautico y del Espacio in Santiago.^[29]

Germany

• AS+058 – AB-47G-2 on static display at the Deutsches Museum in Munich, Bavaria.^[30][31]

Malta

• AS7201 – Bell 47G-2 on static display at the Malta Aviation Museum in Ta'Qali. It was the first aircraft of the Armed Forces of Malta and was donated to the museum on 31 May 2008.^[32]

Norway

• Unknown ID – Bell 47D-1 on static display at the Norwegian Aviation Museum in Bodø, Nordland.^[33]

Spain

• HE.7B-31 – AB-47G-3B1 on static display at the Museo Aeronáutico de Málaga in Málaga, Andalusia.^[34][35]

Sweden

• Unknown ID – Bell 47G on static display at the ABBA: The Museum in Stockholm. It had previously been featured on the cover for ABBA's 1976 album Arrival.^[36][37]

Switzerland

• 689 – Bell 47G on static display at the Swiss Museum of Transport in Lucerne.^[38]

United Kingdom

• 1538 – Bell 47H on static display at the Helicopter Museum in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. It supported a scientific expedition in Antarctica.^[39][40]

United States

• 3 – Bell 47B on static display at the American Helicopter Museum & Education Center in West Chester, Pennsylvania.^[41][42]
• 5 – Bell 47 on static display at the Niagara Aerospace Museum in Niagara Falls, New York.^[43][44]
• 36 – Bell 47B on static display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum in Chantilly, Virginia.^[45][46]
• 39 – Bell 47D on static display at the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, California.^[47][48]
• 66 – Bell 47B-3 on static display at the Classic Rotors Museum in Ramona, California.^[49][50]
• 67 – Bell 47B-3 on static display at the Niagara Aerospace Museum in Niagara Falls, New York.^[49][51]
• 82 – Bell 47D1 on static display at the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, Georgia.^[52]
• 1349 – Bell 47H-1 on static display at the Niagara Aerospace Museum in Niagara Falls, New York.^[53]
• 1355 – Bell 47H on static display at the American Helicopter Museum & Education Center in West Chester, Pennsylvania.^[54][55]
• Unknown ID – On static display at the American Helicopter Museum & Education Center in West Chester, Pennsylvania.^[56] It is a Bell 47D-1 that has converted to an H-13 and painted in "M*A*S*H"configuration.
• Unknown ID – Bell 47D-1 on static display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, New York.^[57]
• Unknown ID – Bell 47 on static display at the Lawrence D. Bell Aircraft Museum in Mentone, Indiana.^[58][59][60]

Surviving aircraft

Austria

• 3575 – Bell 47 G-3B-1T airworthy with The Flying Bulls in Salzburg.^[61][62][63]

United States

• 1516 – Bell 47G-2 airworthy at the EAA AirVenture Museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.^[64]
• 2666 – Bell 47G-2A airworthy at the Classic Rotors Museum in Ramona, California.^[65][66]
• CCI-563 – Bell 47G airworthy at the Mid America Flight Museum in Mount Pleasant, Texas.^[67][68]

Specifications (Bell 47G-3B)

Data from International Directory of Civil Aircraft^[14]

General characteristics

• Crew: 1 or 2
• Capacity: 1 passenger or 2 litters
• Length: 31 ft 7 in (9.63 m)
• Rotor diameter: 37 ft 2 in (11.32 m)
• Height: 9 ft 3 in (2.83 m)
• Disc area: 1,085 sq ft (100.8 m²)
• Empty weight: 1,893 lb (858 kg)
• Useful load: 1,057 lb (482 kg)
• Max. takeoff weight: 2,950 lb (1,340 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Lycoming TVO-435-F1A flat, six-cylinder, reciprocating engine, 280 hp (210 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 91 knots (105 mph, 169 km/h)
• Cruise speed: 73 knots (84 mph, 135 km/h)
• Range: 214 nmi (245 mi, 395 km)
• Rate of climb: 860 ft/min (4.37 m/s)

Notable appearances in media

See also

Related development

• Agusta A.115
• Bell 47J Ranger
• Bell 201/XH-13F
• Bell 207 Sioux Scout
• Bell H-13 Sioux
• Continental Copters El Tomcat
• Kawasaki KH-4
• Meridionali/Agusta EMA 124

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• Canadian Home Rotors Safari
• Hiller OH-23 Raven
• Hughes TH-55 Osage
• Sikorsky S-300

Related lists

• List of military aircraft of the United States

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bell 47.

• Model 47G Museum site
• Model 47G specs from The International Directory of Civil Aircraft by Gerard Frawley
• Scott’s – Bell 47, Inc the current type certificate holder