The venerable Bell 47
Widgeon,
Hollywood does all sorts of neat stuff.....you could load six on the old girl but that would not necessarily mean you were flying anywhere that way.
Me and Ol' Bill Barrel in a 47G2 one fine Summer morning at Redhill had a situation of max revs, collective against the up stop, and not even light on the skids enough to slither away. His comment "Well Shag....wotcha gonna do now?"
It being early and lots of dew on the grass...."We shall go flying Sir!" was my response....wiggled the cyclic about and off to the races we went.
He then said....land in yon Confined Area....which we did after the world's longest most thorough Hi Recon, Low Recon, and approach.
His next comment was classic...."I guess you think we are going flying from here do you Shag?"
We did.....and never toppled the ash of his fag in the process!
The 47 can surprise you with its performance sometimes!
Hollywood does all sorts of neat stuff.....you could load six on the old girl but that would not necessarily mean you were flying anywhere that way.
Me and Ol' Bill Barrel in a 47G2 one fine Summer morning at Redhill had a situation of max revs, collective against the up stop, and not even light on the skids enough to slither away. His comment "Well Shag....wotcha gonna do now?"
It being early and lots of dew on the grass...."We shall go flying Sir!" was my response....wiggled the cyclic about and off to the races we went.
He then said....land in yon Confined Area....which we did after the world's longest most thorough Hi Recon, Low Recon, and approach.
His next comment was classic...."I guess you think we are going flying from here do you Shag?"
We did.....and never toppled the ash of his fag in the process!
The 47 can surprise you with its performance sometimes!
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Bill Barrel
Post #2930 on the "What's New in West Africa"
"Leading Edge" posted the following:-
I don't have any confirmation of this, but Bill was most certainly one of the most colourful characters that this industry had.
"Leading Edge" posted the following:-
You mentioned....Bill Barrel....what a great instructor. Did my initial instrument training with Bill in AVII round and round the Norwich hold. When it came to doing the initial approach checks and the item "seat belts and no smoking sign on" old Bill, with his fag still going would say "don't worry about that shag, just fly the f...in' aircraft and get after that QDM!!"
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Sadly, dear old Bill, with whom I had the pleasure of joining Bristow and flying the S58T, is no longer with us. It was oft' said that you could tell his real age from the spread of the nicotine rings on his beard 
. 'Twas that which got to him in the end though, and after a lifetime of 60 gaspers a day (?), he finally succumbed to lung cancer a couple of years ago. I believe he died only a couple of months after it was diagnosed, which was when he finally stopped flying. A wonderful man, a great character without whom the world is a less colourful place.
. 'Twas that which got to him in the end though, and after a lifetime of 60 gaspers a day (?), he finally succumbed to lung cancer a couple of years ago. I believe he died only a couple of months after it was diagnosed, which was when he finally stopped flying. A wonderful man, a great character without whom the world is a less colourful place.
Gatvol
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For those of you who are MASH fans. The movie location can be found on Google Earth at 34 05 47 17N, 118 44 41 20W There are still some old junkers there for the tourists.
And yes they could haul one on each skid. There are some photos here.
http://www.bell47helicopterassociati...EA-VIETNAM.htm
And yes they could haul one on each skid. There are some photos here.
http://www.bell47helicopterassociati...EA-VIETNAM.htm
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I remember landing at the MASH site during my cpl training many years ago, quite a buz. Was anybody here a passenger (horizontal) during the war? must have been a surreal experience..
Early days in Vietnam the Bell 47 and Hiller 12E (OH-13 and OH-23) were used by the 1st Cav as Scout Helicopters (what became known as Loach's when the OH-6 came into being).
Imagine going to war in a 47....Bell 47 not the CH-47!
Imagine going to war in a 47....Bell 47 not the CH-47!
Last edited by SASless; 23rd Apr 2009 at 12:48.
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Not only early days 'SAS' - the Oz Army had them over there for years of course - '65 to '71/2.
161 Recce Sqn.
Unit History
161 Recce Sqn.
Unit History
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Bell 47s
We used to operate in Mocambique with various Bell 47,s all with litters on the skids to carry everything from explosives to casualties. The exception was the 47J2 which was the forerunner to the Jetranger. The contract we had was involved with the famous well fire near Beira which Red Adare put out.
The Mash aircraft are 47G3B1,s I think, which were supercharged so had better performance.
The Mash aircraft are 47G3B1,s I think, which were supercharged so had better performance.
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mtoroschanga:
The MASH aircraft were Franklin-powered 47-D1 models with wooden M/R blades. You can spot the "D" model by the gas tank aft of the rotor mast, vs. the "G" model with a tank on either side.
The Mash aircraft are 47G3B1,s I think, which were supercharged so had better performance.
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mtoroshanga:
Not all at. My first aircraft maintenance job was with a 47D1 operator in Oklahoma....stripping down and cleaning the old Franklins. Beautiful old machines.
I bow to your superior knowledge.
Last edited by Matari; 23rd Apr 2009 at 16:21. Reason: sp.
I flew my 47G3B1 2 up with supposedly the worlds largest bakewell tart cut in 2 and in each litter . Landed with a load of press waiting for them to take it out and stick together again !!! I seem to remember that even back then the caa thought it was an aoc job !!!!!!
In my machine we regularly brought people off the top of hills after sling loading stone and posts etc once had 3 inside ( incl me ) plus one on each skid ...and a labrador !!!! We basically auto,d all the way down the hill to the lake at the bottom. Guys on skids were told to jump into the water if we get below 10ft high as that would not be intentional !! G-BHKW a great machine .
In my machine we regularly brought people off the top of hills after sling loading stone and posts etc once had 3 inside ( incl me ) plus one on each skid ...and a labrador !!!! We basically auto,d all the way down the hill to the lake at the bottom. Guys on skids were told to jump into the water if we get below 10ft high as that would not be intentional !! G-BHKW a great machine .
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Bell 47s
I must be getting old but I miss the old aircraft and the characters who used to operate them, helicopters were fun in the 60's and early 70,s. These health and safety wasters would have a fit if they saw what used to happen. I once spent 3 months in Kruger park culling elephants and buffaloes in the 60,s then landing and setting up camp for the night while they were butcherd and the meat sent as aid to starving people. Those were the days. ( It was a Bell 47 G4, the pride of the fleet).
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Griff:
I worked for Allied Helicopters, which was up at a small airfield on 36th St. North in Tulsa (many many years ago). The owner was a guy named Ozzie, and I do remember that when we weren't fixing his 47's we were moving furniture around his house. Apparently the company no longer exists..I'm not even sure the airport is still there. I should check Google Earth and see.
I worked for Allied Helicopters, which was up at a small airfield on 36th St. North in Tulsa (many many years ago). The owner was a guy named Ozzie, and I do remember that when we weren't fixing his 47's we were moving furniture around his house. Apparently the company no longer exists..I'm not even sure the airport is still there. I should check Google Earth and see.
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I think the thead should be renamed
"the mighty 47 mash and elsewhere"
One G5 I remember, picking up a fully rigged cessna 206 engine, prop an' all with nearly 3/4 fuel, 38 degrees C. well I didn't just pick it up and fly away, sort of bounced a bit. but I did deliver it some fifty miles away at 40 knots all the way and oscillatng between max cont and that other thing, FT. the day before we had medivaced the pilot, a strapping 6ft 4 gent with about a foot of leg over the rear of the litter plus a doctor on board, trying to keep him alive all the way. cyclic where it's not supposed be.
another 3B1 for which I had particular affection saved my bacon more than once. One episode was doing what has killed many people.
Jerking off the ground to over a canopy of fifty feet with over MAUW by about (classified). a pax a stock inspector says to my statement, 's@@t that was close' with a ribald "well here's the olive branch" and produced a sizable tree branch from the window. 2pob, SLR quantity of ammunition + a sizable cut up bullock, I'm not saying how much fuel.
lesson is, never jerk off the ground.
vive la '47
"the mighty 47 mash and elsewhere"
One G5 I remember, picking up a fully rigged cessna 206 engine, prop an' all with nearly 3/4 fuel, 38 degrees C. well I didn't just pick it up and fly away, sort of bounced a bit. but I did deliver it some fifty miles away at 40 knots all the way and oscillatng between max cont and that other thing, FT. the day before we had medivaced the pilot, a strapping 6ft 4 gent with about a foot of leg over the rear of the litter plus a doctor on board, trying to keep him alive all the way. cyclic where it's not supposed be.
another 3B1 for which I had particular affection saved my bacon more than once. One episode was doing what has killed many people.
Jerking off the ground to over a canopy of fifty feet with over MAUW by about (classified). a pax a stock inspector says to my statement, 's@@t that was close' with a ribald "well here's the olive branch" and produced a sizable tree branch from the window. 2pob, SLR quantity of ammunition + a sizable cut up bullock, I'm not saying how much fuel.
lesson is, never jerk off the ground.
vive la '47
Just to add to this thread, here's a picture of my current office. Still flying scenics around Mount Maunganui, New Zealand. Is a 3b1 with a 435 lycoming non turbo.
Whoops! That was a bit on the large size, here's one that I hope is a little more acceptable.
Whoops! That was a bit on the large size, here's one that I hope is a little more acceptable.
Last edited by Evil Twin; 26th Apr 2009 at 02:45.