• Troop carrier • Helicopter gunship • Medical evacuation
American soldiors in Vietnam won a prolonged, hand-to-hand battle with North Vietnamese infantry in the la Drang Valley in 1965, thanks to a new concept: air cavalry. The Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter, or ‘Huey’, enabled air cavalry soldiers to move from one firefight to another by air, leapfrogging the enemy and seizing the advantage. The ‘Huey’ revolutionised warfaro, adding a new dimension to air mobility.
▼ Purple haze
Landing on a purple smoke signal from tho ground troops, a ‘Huey’ lands at an artillery hrebase to offload shells earned m a cargo net.
A Machine-gun
Fitted with twin 7.62-mm Browning machine-guns, tho UH-1 was a devastating gunship.
▼ Resupply mission
The ‘Huey’ allowed ground units to refuel anywhere. This UH – ID is carrying a cargo of fuel cans.
◄ Straight into action
Troops would often iump into a landing zone. especially it the pilots suspected that the area was mined.
FACTS AND FIGURES
The ‘Huoy’ helicopter was the first turbine – powered aircraft to sorve with tho US Army when it was adopted in 1959.
► The first prototype In the series made its first flight on 22 October 1956.
► Thousands of UH-1s wore shot down in Viotnam, mainly by small-arms fire.
► In Vietnam, tho ‘Huey’ replaced the Piasecki H-21 as tho principal US Army troop-carrying holicoptor.
► The UH-10 had a lengthened fusolage and was first flown on 16 August 1963.
► The total number of aircraft in tho ‘Huey’ family exceeds 11,000.
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UH-1 В Iroquois
Type: generat-puipose helicopter
Powurplant: one 1044-kW (i.-tOO-hp.) Avco Lycoming T53I3B turboshiitt
Maximum speed: 204 krrvTi (126 m. p.n) Renge: 383 km (237 mi.) at sea tevei
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Loft: ‘Huoys’ had to fly m extremely dangerous conditions. UH-1 crow casualties in Vietnam were exceeded only by the Marines and Army ground troops.
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Service ceiling: 5790 m (19.000 fL|
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Hover ceiling: 4635 m 05.200 ft.)
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Weights: empty 2177 kg (4.78916.); maximum take-o!! 3856 kg (8.483 lb l
Armament: up to 3800 *g 18.300 id.) of g. ms rockets, missiles and grenades, including 40- mm gmnade-launcher. 70-mm air-to-ground rocket proiectues and 7.62-mm (.30 cal) machine-guns
Dimensions:
rotor o-ameter 14.63 m (48 ft.)
length 12.31 m (40 ft 5 in)
height &77 m (12 ft. 5 in )
rotor e*c area 168 fflm’ (1.809 sq. ft.)
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grenade-launchers or four side-mounted guns On tlie Ktttlefield.1 soldier might lie put into action at the I./ (landing zoneI In – one lluey, given covering file In another and taken to the field hospital by a third Cl 1-1
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Right: Flying tho ‘Huoy’ in Vietnam required good handling skills. Carrying a full load of troops in •hot-and-high" conditions, often landing in small /ungle clearings while under intense ground-tire, tho pilots soon learned tactical dying skills.
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The standard US Army helicopter in Vietnam, the UH-1
was first introduced in 1959 and continues in service
(in modified form) to this dny. This ni/cratt is a ‘slick’
troop-carrier version, without external armament.
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Plots always chocked the cjcass-Hbre rater bfcXJos Mono a flight » ««jure that the поГлм» w-ла rot dulunwiatng fney a’EO mspftctod tho *0 cafod ‘Jesus nut when hen trw iron rota beaded secure^.
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The large, r. vn btoded man mk r had a thek rretal tcodv-y edgo spiv, vitich nkwod p4otn
Confmxi WxJnQ.-on»W
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‘mod hnltw:iy iKtng the «8ЇХХХП to offload the main mtor »1 tprwanl Піу2
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compartment coakl carry 141 to Ш troops *1 combat gear 01 ax siretenors.
Tho enw chart supervised oadrvg ot cargo, and a gutmor operated the M 60 machmc gun
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Тім twirvbinttod tat iota лаз protected by a tmuf bumper. when very often struck the ground when plots Там ham during combat fendmgs___________________________
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■ PIASECKI H-21 SHAWNEE: this twn-rotor machine was the tirst US Army helicopter deployed In Vietnam In support ot the ARVN. It was soon replaced by – Hueys’ and Chinooks.
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■ SIKORSKY H-34 CHOCTAW: Used mainly by the US Marine Corps, the H-34 was fital used for undercover missions wtlh the Special Forces in Laos. Westland based ns Wessex on the H-34
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KM HOUND’ t ■ 12.7-ШП (.50 cal.) «зсмвв*ип
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Bell
