Reportedly, Hughes had consulted at the last moment with Real, who recommended a bid of $53,550. A rescue operation for the crew of a downed Loach helicopter doesn't quite go as planned and the rescuers become victims themselves. Front left side view of the Hughes OH-6 Cayuse helicopter; color, Right side view of the Hughes OH-6 Loach in flight; color. | READ MORE. 2 Stinger AAM. OH-6A/MD-530F Super Cayuse/Lifter: Upgraded engine to a 425-shp Allison 250- C30 turboshaft, and avionics in 1988 for the US Army. As the H-13s were phased out, Loaches were paired with Cobra gunships. Home | The helicopter was hit in the Cockpit This teamwork was actively encouraged by Army officials, and led to the development of so-called "hunter-killer" tactics that sought to flush out and eliminate hostile ground targets. Date: 02/08/1969 The Mil Mi-1 was a Soviet-made light utility chopper with three or four seats. Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) program, The US Air Force Panicked When Its Top-Secret Stealth Fighter Crashed Into the California Wilderness. Over time, the effectiveness of this pairing was such that enemies would often decide against firing on the relatively vulnerable OH-1 in fear of the response that would be unleased by the AH-1. After around 10 hours at the controls of a Loach, the pilots were deemed worthy of flying in combat. In January 1968 PFC Richard Toops went on to Infantry OCS at Ft. Benning, Ga. graduating in September 1968. Loach and Cobra crews lived together, and schedulers generally paired the teams with the partners they requested, though given the high turnover rate, that wasnt always possible. Fitted with 1x 253-shp Allison T63-A-5A turboshaft, 4 bladed main rotor, and an offset "V" tail. Observation Helicopters Hughes OH-6 Cayuse (Loach) The Hughes OH-6 Cayuse is a light helicopter with a single engine and a four-bladed main rotor. During 1960, the United States Army issued Technical Specification 153 for a Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) capable of fulfilling various roles on the battlefield, including personnel transport, escort, casualty evacuation, observation, and attack missions. You had a couple of flights in the Huey, then you rode front seat in a Cobra, scout pilot Allan Krausz recounts. US Army Loach OH-6 Helicopter Vietnam War Era Steve1958OR 242 subscribers 14K views 9 years ago A friend came by today with his Vietnam war era Hughs OH-6 Loach helicopter. Operation Honey Badger never went ahead, as the hostages were released in January 1981. [2] This shaping, combined with the provision of internal bulkheads, has been attributed as giving the rotorcraft its uncommonly strong crashworthiness properties. Unfortunately, the weight of the armament kept the little bird from taking off. Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. The enemy was moving toward us when a [command and control] ship picked us up. Warrant officer John Shafer was 21 when he arrived on October 16, 1970, to fly Loaches. OH-6A Cayuse ('Loach') The OH-6A "Cayuse" is a small tactical helicopter flown by units of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment [SOAR]. | The following text is exclusive to this site. More from us: The US Air Force Panicked When Its Top-Secret Stealth Fighter Crashed Into the California Wilderness. [8][9] It was reported that Howard Hughes had directed his company to submit a bid at a price beneath the actual production cost of the helicopter in order to secure this order. They underwent two weeks of qualification training and an additional two weeks of mission training. Search and Rescue Helicopters 5. While they were circling the wreckage, enemy rounds hit their ship. We were so close to the elephant grass that wed blow the grass apart to see if anyone was hiding in there, observer Bob Moses says. Setting 23 world records for speed, distance, and altitude, the Hughes Tool Company OH-6 entered service in September of 1966. In contrast, of the nearly 1,100 Cobras delivered to the Army, 300 were lost. The Cayuse (white) was used alongside the AH-1 Cobra (red) attack helicopters, forming (pink) hunter killer teams. [16], Early on in the OH-6's career, the type demonstrated its performance in a particularly prominent manner via the setting of 23 individual world records for helicopters during 1966 in the categories of speed, endurance and time to climb. Jim was unconscious when I helped pull him out of the burning aircraft.. Heavy Attack Helicopters 2. Following the Second World War, significant advancements were made in the field of rotary-wing flight. Upon returning to the United States, he established a career in the construction industry and settled in rural Sierra City, California. Advertising Notice Army units this aircraft deployed with in Vietnam: Optional and variable (attack and special forces versions only). Here are the 24 helicopters used in Vietnam. On a few occasions, the OH-23 was also used for medical evacuation purposes, but this was rarely the case. The Chickasaw was a multi-purpose helicopter designed for both the US Army and Air Force. It gained impetus with the advent of the Vietnam War, and was aided by advances in helicopter technology, specifically the development of the turboshaft engine. I got shot down on my 22nd birthday, March 27, 1971. Upon encountering enemy fire, Loaches were to leave immediately, dropping smoke grenades to mark the target so that within seconds, the Cobra could roll in. [17] On 26 March 1966, Jack Schwiebold set the closed circuit distance record in a YOH-6A at Edwards Air Force Base, California, flying without landing for 1,739.96mi (2,800.20km). With all these benefits, several variations were developed. The Kaman SH-2 could extend and increase both shipboard sensor and weapon abilities against different types of enemy units, including submarines, ships, and patrol craft with anti-ship missiles. The mission training consisted of loading onto C-130 Hercules transport aircraft which would then transport them to forward staging areas over routes as long as 1,000 nautical miles (1,900km). Your email address will not be published. Improved versions were issued through the war and included pockets on the chest and back in which large additional plates could be inserted. During the Vietnam War, it was mostly deployed for aerial combat and for conducting rescue operations in areas close to US Air bases. Despite its strong offensive abilities, the SH-2 Seasprite was mostly used for rescuing downed friendly aircrews instead of direct combat. The first Loach arrived in Vietnam in 1966, and a total of 1,434 of the primary . Under enemy fire this nimble machine had to fly low to the ground, just above the jungle canopy. Robert Davis Travel Management Consultant, 2023 Executive Flyers +1 (512) 241-0795. Overtop of the fuselage was the OH-6s single engine, attached to a four-blade main rotor assembly. MD-500MD/Scout and TOW Defender: Improved military version of the model 500 with 5 main rotor blades, 375-shp Allison 250-C20B turboshaft engine, and T-tail. The Model 369 had a distinctive teardrop-shaped fuselage that had strong crashworthiness properties and provided excellent external visibility. ", FAI Record ID #11656 Absolute Rotorcraft World Record, Distance over a closed circuit without landing, FAI Record ID #11655 Absolute Rotorcraft World Record, Distance without landing, Obituary: Robert G. Ferry; Air Force veteran was record-setting test pilot, "In Vietnam, These Helicopter Scouts Saw Combat Up Close", "Jane's Aircraft Upgrades, MD Helicopters (Hughes) Model 500 (Military Versions)", "Dominican Republic Air Force Unit History", "Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force OH-6J", "Breda Nardi Hughes NH.500M in Armed Forces of Malta service", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hughes_OH-6_Cayuse&oldid=1133333304, This page was last edited on 13 January 2023, at 07:46. Both Loach and Cobra have been in production, on and off, in one form or another ever since. The AH-6 and its troop-carrying sibling, the MH-6, are still heavily used by U.S. special-operations forces, as everything from airborne sniper platforms to transports inserting small teams to expeditionary light attack helicopters. AH-1G Huey Cobra 'Snake' . Read the harrowing story of what happened on that tragic mission. Despite a strong outcry from crews in Vietnam, the Bell OH-58A Kiowa, powered by the same Allison T-63 engine as the OH-6, was being distributed to Army units. But the Vietnam War was unlike any previous American conflict; there were few real definable frontlines, and combatants needed to know what was happening all around them, all the time. Also: LNOF, 90119, JSIDR (Lindenmuth Old Format Data Base. We operated from fixed bases that were islands, if you will, of allied control, says Hugh Mills, who flew both Loaches and Cobras in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972, and went on to fly helicopters for the Kansas City Police Department. The Army purchased this helicopter 0968 The Cayuse was publicly introduced in 1966 and set several records, including record for endurance, speed and rate of climb. In order to reduce their acoustic signature, the helicopters (N351X and N352X) received a four-blade 'scissors' style tail rotor (later incorporated into the Hughes-designed AH-64 Apache), a fifth rotor blade and reshaped rotor tips, a modified exhaust system, and various other performance boosting modifications. Unlike its troop-carrying ancestors, a Cobra was like a World War II fighter, says Jim Kane, who arrived in Vietnam fresh out of Purdue University. It was barely used in the Vietnam War because it was replaced by the more advanced Sikorsky H-34 Choctaw. Hughes, without informing Real, raised the bid by $3,000, and thus lost the contract to Bell. [18] Subsequently, on 6 April 1966, Robert Ferry set the long distance world record for helicopters by flying from Culver City, California, with over a ton of fuel to Ormond Beach, Florida, covering a total of 1,923.08 nm (2,213.04mi, 3,561.55km) in 15 hours, and near the finish at up to 24,000 feet (7,300m) altitude. During the Vietnam War the OH-6 helicopters served in huge numbers and were used for light observation and utility roles. Unlike previous aircraft, the Tarhe was extremely successful during the Vietnam War. The CH-53 Tarhe was another heavy-lift helicopter designed to transport and recover downed aircraft. Books/Magazines The-21C was extensively used by the US Army to transport troops and supplies. The Cobra is a single-engine attack helicopter produced by Bell Helicopter as a primary attack helicopter in the Vietnam War for aerial assaults or as air cavalry. The Seasprite was an anti-submarine and anti-surface helicopter that had over-the-horizon targeting facilities. contact us here and we will remove the The "loach" was the LOH (Light Observation Helicopter) or OH-6A. Two of these designs, those submitted by Fairchild-Hiller and Bell, were selected as finalists by the Army-Navy design competition board. The OH-6/Model 369 was also license-produced overseas by the Japanese aerospace company Kawasaki Heavy Industries for both military and civilian operators. The OH-6A could be armed with the M27 armament subsystem, the port (left) side mounting M134 six-barrel 7.62mm minigun or a 40mm grenade launcher on the XM8 armament subsystem. It was also the right size to fit the necessary avionics and fuel stores, all while keeping the structure nimble and agile. When the Loach debuted in 1966, it broke records for speed, endurance, and rate of climb, all important attributes for a scout helicopter. The OH-6 was largely removed from active U.S. Army service in favor of the Kiowa, but modified versions of the helicopter flew with the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment as the MH-6C Little Bird as late as 2008. Reportedly, 964 out of the 1,422 OH-6As produced for the U.S. Army were destroyed in Vietnam alone. OH-6A/Cayuse: Developed initially by the Hughes Aircraft company (later McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Company) in the mid-1960s for the US Army. In photo #2 you can see the nice graphics. [19][20][21], In December 1967, the first OH-6As arrived in Vietnam. Book A Flight | OA-6A 'Loach' Scout platoon. The Cayuse was publicly introduced in 1966 and set several records, including record for endurance, speed and rate of climb. The UH, nicknamed Huey is a utility military chopper that was used for troop and cargo transport, medical evacuation, and sometimes for military purposes. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); 2023 Vietnam Helicopters Museum. Worthy, the OH-6 Loach and two other air scout helicopter pilots, all decorated, were in Topeka on Saturday night for an event at Forbes Field Airport designed to increase interest and.

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