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Aircraft Armament Subsystems
U.S. Army Helicopter Photos
Historic U.S. Army Helicopters
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U.S. Army Helicopter Photos.
UH-60 Series Black Hawk combat assault helicopter
UH-60A Black Hawk. The Sikorsky UH-60A Black Hawk, first flown in October 1974, is a light transport helicopter used for air assault, air cavalry, and aeromedical evacuation units. The UH-60A was developed as result of the
Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System (UTTAS) program. The Black Hawk is the primary division-level transport helicopter, providing dramatic improvements in troop capacity and cargo lift capability compared to the UH-1 Series Huey it replaces. The UH-60A, with a crew of three, can lift an entire 11-man fully-equipped infantry squad in most weather conditions. It can be configured to carry four litters, by removing eight troop seats, in the MedEval role. Both the pilot and co-pilot are provided with armor-protective seats. Protective armor on the Black Hawk can withstand hits from 23mm shells. The Black Hawk has a cargo hook for external lift missions. The Black Hawk has provisions for door mounting of two M60D 7.62mm machine guns on the M144 armament subsystem, and can disperse chaff and infrared jamming flares using the M130 general purpose dispenser. The Black Hawk has a composite titanium and fiberglass four-bladed main rotor, is powered by two General Electric T700-GE-700 1622 shp turboshaft engines, and has a maximum cruising speed of 184 mph (160 knots).
UH-60As from Ft. Stewart, GA armed with M60D door guns (with blank firing
attachments) on M144 armament
subsystem
UH-60L. In October 1989, the engines were upgraded to two General Electric T700-GE-701C 1890 shp turboshaft engines, and an improved durability gear box was added, resulting in a model designation change from UH-60A to UH-60L. The T700-GE-701C has better high altitude and hot weather performance, greater lifting capacity, and improved corrosion protection.
Special Electronic Mission Aircraft (SEMA) variants.
Sikorsky (S-76) H-76 Eagle was a Sikorsky funded
proposal for a utility helicopter that could also be used in the attack
role. Technology was based on the UH-60A Black Hawk. It was designed to
function as troop carrier, MedEvac, and as an armed tank killer. It
could be armed with 7.62mm gun pods, 2.75 inch rocket launchers or
Hellfire anti-tank missiles. When equipped with the Hughes M65
mast-mounted sight it was also capable of firing the TOW wire-guided
anti-tank missile system. Survivability designed into the H-76 included
crew protective armor, redundant systems, and crash-worthy fuel tanks.
The H-76 was powered by two Pratt & Whitney of Canada PT6B-36 960 shp
engines.
CH-47D
Chinook cargo helicopterCH-47 series Chinook. Development of the medium lift Boeing Vertol (models 114 and 414) CH-47 Series Chinook began in 1956. Since then, the effectiveness of the Chinook has been continually upgraded by successive product improvements, the
CH-47A, CH-47B, CH-47C, and CH-47D.
OH-6A
Cayuse light observation helicopterThe Boeing (McDonnell Dougles) (formerly Hughes model 369A) OH-6A, was designed for use as a military scout during the Vietnam war to meet the U.S. Army's need for an extremely maneuverable light observation helicopter (LOH program). The Hughes OH-6A Cayuse was quite effective when teamed with the AH-1G Cobra attack helicopter as part of what were known as Pink Teams. The OH-6A Loach would find targets by flying low, "trolling" for fire, and lead in a Cobra, or Snake, to attack. The OH-6A could be armed with the
M27 armament subsystem, the M134 six-barrel 7.62mm Minigun or the M129 40mm grenade launcher on the XM8 armament subsystem.
OH-6A at Ft. Indiantown Gap, PA, 1994 (Copyright Ted Jones, 1995)
OH-6A Loach with XM8 40mm grenade launcher
EH-6B, a previous version of the Little Bird, was used for command, control and radio relay.
UH-1D/UH-1H Iroquois utility helicopter The most widely used military helicopter, the
Bell UH-1 series Iroquois, better known as the Huey,
began arriving in Vietnam in 1963. Before the end of the conflict, more
than 5,000 of these versatile aircraft were introduced into Southeast Asia.
Hueys were used for MedEvac, command and control, and air
assault; to transport personnel and materiel; and as gun ships. The AH-1G
Huey Cobra arrived in Vietnam in August 1967 to replace the
UH-1B/UH-1C Huey in it's gun ship
role.
Bell UH-1D Iroquois or Huey utility helicopter
UH-1D Huey utility helicopter
Special Electronic Mission Aircraft (SEMA) variant
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