Helicopter records

[Thomas coupling]

Out of curiosity, I'm listing some 'records' / 'achievements' achieved by our tool of the trade:
If anyone wishes to add to it, fill your boots :8

Highest (official) altitude: Lama, 1972, 12442m (40,000 feet).

Fastest vertical rate of climb: CH54, 1971 (78 mph). [6900 f/m].

Fastest (unofficial) sideways: S76B, 1982, N Lappos, 89kts (102 mph).

Fastest (unofficial) backwards: S76B, 1982, N Lappos, 85kts (98 mph).

Fastest helicopter (level) ever: Lynx, 1986, 217kts (250 mph)

Lightest helicopter (unofficial): Lama, 1972, whilst attempting highest flight: 930kg (Two pax onboard).

Heaviest helicopter official): Mi-12 or V-12, 80,000 kg MGW (36 tons).

Maximum number of persons on board (unofficial): M26, 2003, Chechnya, : 108. (Helo brought down by suspected RPG, few survived).

World Speed Record in a Helicopter routing Eastbound:
MD 500E, 2004, 17 Days, 14 Hours, 2 Minutes and 27 seconds!!

Great Circle Distance Without Landing: 2,213.04 mi; 3,561.55 km.
Hughes YOH-6A, 1966, .Robert G. Ferry (U.S.) Culver City, Calif., to Ormond Beach, Fla.

Highest take-off altitude: 7077m (23000ft), Cheetal, 2004:
http://www.shephard.co.uk/rotorhub/Default.aspx?Action=745115149&ID=ecff2397-ef3e-4392-9896-cf52b0d3776c

What about:
Longest hover without refuel?
Largest number of flying (rotary) hours?
Fastest rate of turn?
Longest time airborne on 1 tank of fuel?
Furthest distance travelled on 1 tank?

[Flying Lawyer]

Record (official) Speed over Recognised Course (rotorcraft):
Chicago to New York: S-76, 331.39 km/h (205.92 mph). Nicholas D. Lappos, 1980.

[Hilico]

In real money that's 206mph average!

My copy of the BHAB 2003 handbook says the S-76 does 180. Is this the equivalent of running Microsoft software on Windows and it 'knowing the shortcuts' and so outperforming its rivals?

[Thomas coupling]

FL: what record is it? For the record, of course!
Distance/speed/time??? Does it beat any of the ones I've listed, or is it an additional one?

[CRAN]

Fastest conventional helicopter; Westland Lynx, G-LYNX, 249.09mph, Sommerset 1986.

:ok:

[CyclicRick]

As far as I can recall the altitude record was broken thgis year by a AS350 B3 I'm not quite sure how high they got but the record was definitly broken.
I heard of a maximum pax record of 117 in a CH47 Chinook in Vietnam during the evacuation, obviously unofficial but any confirmation?
One of our guys managed to fly three cabs U/S in a period of about 4 hours...that must be some kind of record :E

[Flying Lawyer]

Hilico

Nick was a lot lighter in 1980. ;) Come to think of it, so was I.

Sikorsky 2002
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v146/FlyingLawyer/Picture042600.jpg


TC
Speed over a Recognised Course - I've edited my previous post.

Nick also holds -

Helicopters: take off weight 1750 to 3000 kg
Speed over a straight 15/25 km course : 342.61 km/h
and
Speed over a straight 3 km course at restricted altitude : 335.50 km/h

Both set at West Palm Beach, Florida 4th Feb 1982. Sikorsky S-76A


Tudor

[Thomas coupling]

I'll add the Lynx one because it (to date) beats NL's X country one!!

http://www.helicoptermuseum.co.uk/aircraft/glynx.jpg

[NickLappos]

TC,

There is no pure helicopter speed close to the Lynx record, it stands quite proudly!

The Lynx record is a pure speed record in level flight, and requires that the speed along a 15 to 25 Km course be averaged going both ways in a set period of time.

The speed over a recognized course is a one way jaunt, at any altitude and flight profile with tail winds selected by the wise crew. On that Chicago to NY run, we flew with the help of a Canadian High pressure area (timed the takeoff accordingly) and picked altitudes up to 12,000 feet. We crossed New Jersey at 190 knots in a shallow dive. The FAI official who accompanied us was Ralph Alex, who was Igor's first graduate engineer employee, and a monument in the American Helicopter Society.

Cyclicrick, I have my doubts about that climb done in South Africa, it has all the marks of a stunt and not a record. hope someone knows North and can have him comment.

[Bertie Thruster]

Most number of raw eggs to fall over pilots shoulder and smash on the the forward perspex, out of the rations box strapped to the rear seat of the Gazelle, during 90 degree nose down bunt from the hover: 24. (June '84, NI)

Ah , that's what the S in 'HASEL' is for!

[Ascend Charlie]

Number of starts for a brand-new B206 before the Private Pilot owner cooks the engine by starting it with the throttle open: TWO. (VH-***, Sydney, 1995):{

[HeliEng]

What about:


World Speed Record in a Helicopter routing Eastbound:

MD 500E

17 Days, 14 Hours, 2 Minutes and 27 seconds
Leaving on 4th June 2004, Returning 21st June 2004

Holder:- Simon Oliphant-Hope







"Mad as a Mooing Fish"

[B Sousa]

Somebody fill me in. Wasnt there a Helicopter Altitude record broken in South Africa last year?? Something about a Squirell(A-star)....

[discobeast]

Mr Sousa!! hope things are going well!! me?... head'n for some boerie and castle soon!! ;)

as always, you are right. the alt-record was broken in Cape Town, South Africa. official record was FL425. transponder died but the machine continued to climb. flame out during auto. then a restart closer to earth. saw the machine after it returned to helibip in JHB. stripped all non-essential stuff and then some. machine was a AS350 B2. photo's of it at www.helibip.co.za

sadly the machine was destroyed in morocco about 2 years ago.

[Thomas coupling]

Helieng: added, thanks.
Disco / B Sousa: read the above posts!!! It's NOT official!

[NickLappos]

In deference to discobeast, Thomas Coupling and Bsousa, the official record is set when the FAI publishes it.

The North claim is more than 3% above the Broulet, so it should have been recordable by FAI, had North chosen to employ the FAI.
Does anyone know North to ask him why he didn't take the simple steps to assure proper measurement? He took the trouble to discuss the attempt with Boulet, who surely must have told him how one goes about it.

Here is the FAI rulebook:

http://www.fai.org/sporting_code/sc09.pdf

[rotorfloat]

Greetings fellow pruners!

How about another category? Takeoff and landings?

For myself, 79 'lifts' in one day doing 3.5 minute passenger rides at the CNE in Toronto. I was the 2nd ship, so I can presume #1 has surpassed that.

I'm sure the heli-ski and logging pilots have put in some long days pumping the collective.

[huntnhound]

How about a category for the

"Most useless Helicopter spares supplier"

One name springs to mind almost immediately:*

[SilsoeSid]

"Most useless Helicopter spares supplier"

I can't begin to think who you would nominate HnH, ;) ,but surely the Yeovil based manufacturers would be in with a shout for this award. :ooh:

[Thomas coupling]

Latest from Rotorhub: highest take off altitude by a helicopter: 7077m (23000'). No previous record exists.

[46Driver]

For helicopter top speeds, wasn't the Boeing 360 "SuperPhrog" well in excess of 200 knots and close to the Lynx? 214 knots advertised if I remember correctly.

Phrogs Phorever!

[NickLappos]

46driver,

Just like the unofficial, sort of documented altitude claim, one must give credit to the party that chose to expose the attempt to independant proof, using the FAI.

While Boeing's claims were reported in the press, the 360 never did anything for the FAI. Knowing those Boeing folks as I do, I would bet they would have set the record were it possible.

[46Driver]

Nick,
Just out of curiousity, do you know the maximum speeds for the H-60, CH-47, and CH-53E? I would assume that the CH-53E is that fastest?

[NickLappos]

46driver,
Unfortunately, I can't tell, as it would be very unwise to advocate going beyond Vne. PM me ok?

I did find some old press reports that said 230 mph and even one at 246 mph for the B-360. I believe it, when you think of an advanced Chinook drive train in a Sea Knight body!

[Jack Carson]

During an engineering evaluation of the CH-53E to validate power requirements for a proposed new medium lift helicopter we achieved 196KIAS in level flight at a maximum continuous power of 137% approximately 13000 Hp. This was a production pure stocker with EAPS but no aux tanks.