Vertol H-21C with Agusta-Bell 47G
Based on the P-V Engineering Forum, Inc./Piasecki Helicopter Corp. successful HRP tandem rotor series, the H-21 was the winner of a US Air Force competition for an arctic rescue helicopter to recover downed bomber crews in extreme winter conditions.
The prototype YH-21 made its first flight on April 11, 1952, piloted by Len LaVassar and Marty Johnson.
Piasecki built 18 pre-production YH-21 helicopters, followed by three production variants; the H-21A and H-21B Workhorse for the US Air Force and the H-21C Shawnee for the US Army. The first H-21A was delivered to the US Air Force in 1953 and the H-21C had its first flight in 1956. The aircraft was redesignated as the CH-21 in September 1962.
Foreign operators of the H-21 or its V-42/-43/-44 commercial variants included Canada, France, Japan, Sweden and West Germany. The German Federal Armed Forces received their first five H-21Cs in 1957 with the Luftwaffe receiving those aircraft. The remaining deliveries of the 32 aircraft order went to the German Army Air Corps, with licensed-production completed by Weser Fluzeugbau GmbH (Weserflug), which then became Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke (VFW) following the 1964 merger with Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau GmbH.
The last H-21 to see service with the German Army made its last flight on Dec. 8, 1972.
The aircraft shown in the mountainside recovery operation is a license-manufactured Agusta-Bell AB-47G. The German Army flew the AB-47 between 1957 and 1972 in the observation, liaison and training helicopter roles.
License manufacturing of the type started in July 1952 by Agusta (Costruzione Aeronautiche Giovanni Agusta) with the first flight of the Agusta-Bell AB-47G made on May 22, 1954. More than 1,000 AB-47G/J variants were made by Agusta with hundreds delivered to customers worldwide. The Bell 47 was also produced under license by Kawasaki in Japan and Westland Helicopters in the UK.
Description: Ken Bartie
Photo credits: Bundeswehrfoto, March 5, 1961; Günter Grondstein/Airliners.Net, September 1971
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