Sikorsky S-48
Sikorsky S-48 | |
---|---|
YR-5A |
|
Type: | Light helicopter |
Design country: | |
Manufacturer: | |
First flight: |
August 18, 1943 |
Number of pieces: |
65 |
The Sikorsky S-48 (initial manufacturer designation VS-327) was a helicopter developed in the 1940s and used in the military by the US manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation . The two-seater S-48 was further developed into the four-seater S-51 , which was given a nose wheel landing gear for the first time.
history
The S-48 received the military designation R-5 and flew for the first time on August 18, 1943. On October 12, 1943, the prototype (XR-5) suffered a low hover accident after the tail rotor blades came off. Despite a subsequent overturning and destruction of the main rotor, the machine was able to be repaired within a short time and test operations were resumed. By January 16, 1944, she had accumulated 8 1/4 flight hours. The US Army Air Force's R-5 designation was changed to H-5 through a new designation system in 1948 .
A total of 65 S-48s were built.
variants
after Andrade, 1979
- XR-5: 5 prototypes
- XR-5A: 2 XR-5s that received special equipment according to the requirements of the Royal Air Force .
- YR-5A (from 1948 YH-5A): only minor changes compared to the XR-5. 26 built, 2 of which went to the US Navy as HO2S-1 .
- R-5A (H-5A): Standard version, equipped for rescue operations with externally attached beds. 34 built, 66 other commissioned machines canceled.
- R-5B: modification of R-5A that was not carried out
- YR-5C: project not implemented
- R-5D (H-5D): 20 R-5A and one YR-5A, which received a nose wheel landing gear, a rescue winch, a device for an additional passenger and external tanks.
- YR-5E (YH-5E): 5 YR-5A that have been converted with double control.
- for the variants R-5F, R-5G and R-5H see Sikorsky S-51
Preserved specimens
- YH-5A (USAAF serial number 43-46620) is on display in the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB .
- YR-5A in the Royal Thai Air Force Museum , Don Mueang Airport , Bangkok, Thailand
Technical specifications
Parameter | Data |
---|---|
crew | 2, with the pilot sitting in the back |
Rotor diameter | 14.63 m |
Tail rotor diameter | 2.53 m |
Empty mass | 1700 kg |
Maximum flight mass | 2440 kg |
Top speed | 145 km / h |
Marching speed | about 130 km / h |
Summit height | 4300 m |
Rate of climb | 4 m / s |
Range | 370 km |
Engine | 1 × Pratt & Whitney Wasp Junior with 450 PS (330 kW) |
See also
literature
- Ryszard Witkowski: Allied Rotorcraft of the WW2 Period , Stratus sc, 2010, ISBN 978-83-89450-97-5 , p. 38
Web links
- S-48 / R-5 at www.sikorskyarchives.com (accessed February 14, 2015)
Individual evidence
- ^ John M. Andrade: US Military Aircraft Designations and Serials since 1909 , Midland Counties Publ., 1979, ISBN 0-904597-22-9 , p. 161