American Aircraft Penetrator
| Penetrator | |
|---|---|
| Role | Experimental attack/transport helicopter |
| Manufacturer | American Aircraft Corporation (now Aerocraft R&D) |
| First flight | 1991 |
| Status | development continued & finished, ready for test flights again |
| Developed from | Bell UH-1B Iroquois |
The American Aircraft Penetrator, now referred as the Aerocraft Stealth Star 204 SS, was a gunship helicopter modified from the Bell UH-1B Iroquois with tandem seating for the pilots and a troop-carrying compartment.
Design and development
In 1990, Bell UH-1B Hueys were stripped down to the engine, transmission and tail boom. A complete armored composite structure was added, the flight controls and seating were modified to a tandem layout, with pilot in front and copilot at the rear. The third and fourth weapons operators were placed in the rear portion of the fuselage firing weapons to the rear. The outer fuselage mounts stub wings, two glazed gun turrets/observation windows under each side of the engine with rear-facing 20mm gun turret under the fuselage, and two forward-facing 12.7mm turrets under the cockpit. The prototype (N3080W ex U.S. Army 63-8508) uses a 1300 shp Avco Lycoming T53-L-13 turboshaft engine and had a gross take-off weight of 4280 kg. First flight was October 1991.
The basic Penetrator is said to be air-to-air, air-to-ground and ground-to-ground combat capable, using modified technologies. It has been in development and can be seen on Stealthstar.[1]
Specifications
General characteristics
- Crew: 4
- Length: 48 ft 9.5 in (14.872 m)
- Wingspan: 20 ft 1 in (6.12 m) (stub wings)
- Height: 13 ft 8 in (4.17 m)
- Wing area: 80 sq ft (7.4 m2)
- Empty weight: 5,200 lb (2,359 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 8,500 lb (3,856 kg)
- Fuel capacity: 1,600 lb (730 kg).
- Powerplant: 1 × Avco Lycoming T53-L-13 turboshaft, 1,300 hp (970 kW)
- Main rotor diameter: 48 ft 4 in (14.73 m)
- Main rotor area: 1,809.56 sq ft (168.114 m2)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 87 mph; 76 kn (140 km/h)
- Cruise speed: 122 kn; 225 km/h (140 mph) at 5,700 ft (1,700 m)
- Never exceed speed: 169 kn; 314 km/h (195 mph)
- Endurance: 3.5 hours
- Service ceiling: 18,000 ft (5,500 m)
- Rate of climb: 1,800 ft/min (9.1 m/s)
- Hover out of Ground Effect: 4,000 ft (1,200 m).
Armament
- 2x forward-facing 20mm gun turret under the cockpit.
- 2x rear-facing 12.7mm turrets under the fuselage.
- 2,500 lb (1,134 kg) of ordnance
References
- Simpson, R. "Airlife's Helicopter and Rotorcraft", 1998
- Ruzhitsky, E.I. "Helicopters", 1997