Aérospatiale SA 321
| Aérospatiale SA 321 Super Frelon | |
|---|---|
 Super Frelon over Portsmouth on June 10, 2004 |
|
| Type: | Medium-weight transport helicopter |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
7th December 1962 |
| Commissioning: |
1966 |
| Production time: |
1964 - today (People's Republic of China) |
| Number of pieces: |
99 |
The Aérospatiale SA 321 Super Frelon ("Super Hornet") is a medium-weight transport helicopter made by the French manufacturer Aérospatiale . The tasks of the helicopter include the areas of transport, rescue (SAR) and anti-submarine combat.
history
In the mid-1950s, the French army was looking for a new large helicopter, whereupon SNCASE proposed the X 316 project and at the beginning of 1956 received the order to build two prototypes called Sud-Aviation SA 3200 Frelon. This 7-tonne class helicopter made its maiden flight on June 10, 1959 with Jean Boulet , Roland Coffignot, Joseph Turchini and Jean-Marie Besse on board in Le Bourget . The helicopter, equipped with a four-blade rotor and short tail boom, did not meet expectations, however, and so in April 1960 a revised and much larger design was developed by the company, which has since been renamed Sud Aviation. The official development of the helicopter, now called SA 3210, began in April 1961 under the direction of chief engineer René Mouille, with Sikorsky being entrusted with the development of the six-blade rotor and Fiat with the gearbox. The first prototype made its maiden flight on December 7, 1962 in Marignane with the same crew on board. The first flight of the second prototype, a naval version with support floats, followed on May 21, 1963. After several world record attempts with the prototypes and four pre-series machines, series production of the SA 321 began in September 1964. The first machine was delivered to the navy - army and air force meanwhile lost interest - took place in August 1966, but due to a crash, production was only started at full capacity from the end of 1967.
The SA 321 is also often referred to as the "Hummel" because the helicopter is heavy, not very agile and slow. In addition to being delivered to France, the helicopter was also bought by Israel and South Africa in the 1960s . Later Libya (last delivery 1981) and Iraq also put the machine into service. Between 1975 and 1977, 13 SA 321Ja were delivered to the People's Republic of China , where the Changhe Aircraft Factory (later Changhe Aircraft Industries ) developed a copy under the name Z-8 with French support, which was only produced in series from the 1990s . This was continuously improved and today forms the basis for civil version AC313 . At the end of March 1965, Sud Aviation had an SA 310 on the Sabena route network on a trial basis, which at that time also operated a helicopter fleet. The attempt should shed light on whether the type also had a future as a civilian version.
In France, the last SA 321 was officially decommissioned on April 30, 2010.
variants
- SE 3200 Frelon
- Forerunner with a four-blade rotor, external tanks and short tail boom. Two prototypes built. First flight on June 10, 1959.
- SA 3210 Super Frelon
- Name for the completely redesigned series version. Equipped with Turmo IIIC2 engines with an output of 985 kW. Two prototypes (SA 321001 - identification F-ZWWE, first flight December 7, 1962, and SA 3210.02 (marine version) - identification F-ZWWF, first flight May 28, 1963) and four pre-production models for test purposes were built.
- SA 321A
- Version for the army without swimmers. Not built.
- SA 321B
- Transport version without float for the Armée de l'Air . Not built.
- SA 321C
- Proposal for a civil transport helicopter with 24 seats. Not built.
- SA 321D
- First marine version with equipment for submarine hunting. Not built.
- SA 321E
- Transport version with floats for naval aviators . Not built.
- SA 321F
- Civilian version for up to 37 passengers with a modified stern. First flight on April 7, 1967. Olympic Airways operated one machine between 1968 and 1969 .
- SA 321G
- First series version with Turmo-IIIC6 with 1170 kW output. Submarine hunting helicopters for the Navy. First flight on November 30, 1965. Delivery began in mid-1966. 25 units (other source: 24) built.
- SA 321GM
- Second series for Libya with Turmo IIIC7 engines with 1200 kW output. Six built.
- SA 321GV
- Navy version for Iraq. 14 built.
- SA 321H
- Designation for the land-based version without a float. Without de-icing and with Turmo IIIE6 engines.
- SA 321J / Yes
- Civil version for up to 27 passengers or load transport (4000 kg in the cabin or 5000 kg external load.) First flight on July 6, 1967 and registration in December 1971. Two sold plus 13 (according to another source: 16) to China.
- SA 321K
- Production version of the 321H for Israel with floats. 12 pieces (other source: 16) delivered. Later retrofitted with GE T-58-GE-16 engines with 1413 kW output.
- SA 321L
- Production version for South Africa without radar and float. 17 (other source: 16) built.
- SA 321M
- Transport helicopter version for Libya. 8 built (other source: 9).
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- Z-8
- Chinese replica with Wuhan WZ-6 engines with an output of 1155 kW. First flight on December 11, 1985. Serial production at Changhe Aircraft Industries Corp. since the 1990s.
- Z-8A
- Military transport version for the Chinese army. Delivery from November 2002
- Z-8F
- Further development with Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67B shaft turbines with 1450 kW output. First flight in August 2004.
- Z-8K / KA
- SAR version for the Chinese army , to be introduced in 2007.
- Z-8JA / JH
- Version of the Z-8 for transport or Medevac tasks for use on ships.
- Z-8 AEW
- Version presented in 2009 with a fold-out radar in the rear.
- AC313
- Civil advancement of the Z-8. First flight on May 18, 2010 in Jingdezhen
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 2 |
| Passengers | 34–37 (SA 321F) 27–30 soldiers 15 stretchers |
| length | 23.03 m with the rotor running 17.7 m with the rotor folded |
| Hull length | 19.40 m |
| Trunk width | 2.24 m |
| Main rotor diameter | 18.90 m |
| Main rotor area | 280.55 m² |
| Tail rotor diameter | 4.00 m |
| height | 6.76 m above the tail rotor |
| Gauge | 4.30 m |
| wheelbase | 6.56 m |
| Cabin dimensions (L × W × H) | 9.67 m × 1.96 m × 1.80 m (SA 321F) 7.00 m × 1.96 m × 1.80 m (SA 321G / Ja) |
| Empty mass | 6,863 kg (SA 321G) 7,540 kg (SA 321F) 7,550 kg (Z-8) |
| Max. Takeoff mass | 13,000 kg (SA 321G) 12,500 kg (SA 321F) 12,075 kg (Z-8) |
| Fuel supply | 3,975 l internal + 2 × 500 l internal and 2 × 500 l external additional tanks |
| Cruising speed | 240 km / h |
| Top speed | 275 km / h |
| Max. Rate of climb | 5 m / s |
| Hover altitude | 1,950 m (in the ground effect) |
| Service ceiling | 3,100 m |
| Flight duration | 4 hours in the submarine role |
| Range | 620 km with a 3,500 kg load |
| Engines | 3 Turbomeca Turmo IIIC6 shaft turbines with 1,140 kW (1,550 PS) each |
Armament
- movably installed armament in the door
- 1 x 20 mm automatic cannon Nexter system 20M621 on SH20-carriage 100 rounds of ammunition
- Ordnance at four external load stations on the fuselage
- Air-to-surface guided missile ( anti-ship missile )
- 2 × MBDA AM-39 "Exocet" - radar-controlled
- Torpedoes
- 4 × Alliant Techsystems Mk.46 light weight torpedo (diameter 324 mm)
- 4 × AST / General Electric Mk.44 torpedo (diameter 324 mm)
- 4 × ET52 ASW torpedo (China only)
- Unguided bombs
- 8 × sea mines (250 kg)
