The 139 is designed to fly at an attitude that presents the underside of the aircraft to the airflow - 5 degrees nose up is accelerative! C of G in this respect becomes irrelevant.
If memory serves me correctly, 99% of the AW139 CG envelope is aft of the mast. Oddball.
Originally Posted by
gipsymagpie
I think Blackhawk might be a special case with a moveable tail plane but I also think aft CG is preferred. When flying faster, the pitch attitude tends to be negative, presenting the aircraft obliquely to the flow (more draggy). Aft CG tends to raise the nose at equivalent speed. I've flown at least one type where you managed the location of the fuel towards the rear tanks to raise the nose a little in the cruise. The disadvantage might be that the aircraft is less stable at cruise speed meaning it's more work for you/AFCS possibly sapping energy/causing drag.
The UH-60 Stabilator doesn't really enter into it. Like you said, reducing pitch attitude is the key. To over-simplify it, think of the fuselage like a 4x8 piece of plywood. Lying flat, flying edgewise produces ~24 sq. in. of front plate area. At just 1-degree of tilt, the equivalent area becomes ~30.6 sq. in., which is a 21% increase!