H-25/HUP Retriever | |
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A U.S. Navy HUP-2 from USS Franklin D. Roosevelt | |
Role | Utility helicopter |
Manufacturer | Piasecki Helicopter |
First flight | March 1948 |
Introduction | February 1949[1] |
Retired | 1958 US Army January 1964 RCN 1964 USN 1965 French Navy |
Primary users | United States Navy United States Army Royal Canadian Navy French Navy |
Produced | 1949–1954[2] |
Number built | 339[2][disputed – discuss] |
The Piasecki HUP Retriever or H-25 Army Mule, later UH-25, is a compact single radial engine, twin overlapping tandem rotor utility helicopter developed by the Piasecki Helicopter Corporation of Morton, Pennsylvania. Designed to a United States Navy specification, the helicopter was produced from 1949 to 1954, and was also used by the United States Army and foreign navies. The HUP/H-25 was the first helicopter to be produced with an autopilot and also the first to perform a loop.
Design and development
[edit]![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/Piasecki_XHJP-1_Retriever_at_Naval_Air_Station_Patuxent_River%2C_circa_in_1950_%28NH_101806-KN%29.jpg/220px-Piasecki_XHJP-1_Retriever_at_Naval_Air_Station_Patuxent_River%2C_circa_in_1950_%28NH_101806-KN%29.jpg)
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Salon_du_Bourget_20090619_155.jpg/220px-Salon_du_Bourget_20090619_155.jpg)
The design was a product of a competition by the U.S. Navy in 1945 for a compact utility/rescue helicopter to operate from ships including aircraft carriers, battleships, and cruisers.[2] Either 2[1] or 3[3][4][disputed – discuss] prototypes—designated PV-14 by the factory and XHJP-1 by the Navy—were built and subjected to a side-by-side flight evaluation against the 3 prototypes of the Sikorsky XHJS-1; however, the XHJS was fundamentally a scaled-up version of the Sikorsky H-5, and the increased weight and size magnified the design's problems with maintaining proper weight and balance under varying loading conditions.[3] The Piasecki won the competition,[3] and with the introduction of the aircraft configuration letter "U" for Utility in the 1950s,[5] the aircraft was ordered for production as the HUP-1.[1]
The design featured two three-bladed, 35-foot-diameter (11 m) rotors in tandem in which blades could be folded for storage; the relatively small rotor diameter allowed the aircraft to use aircraft carrier elevators with its blades fully extended.[2] The tandem overlapping rotor configuration was a development by Piasecki and was used in future helicopter designs by the company and successors including the H-21, HRB-1/CH-46, and CH-47. The original HUP-1 was powered by a single Continental R-975-34 radial engine, with a take-off rating of 525 hp (391 kW), while later versions used the uprated R-975-42 or R-975-46A with 550 hp (410 kW).[1] To aid search and rescue (SAR) operations, the aircraft was equipped with an overhead winch capable of lifting 400 lb (181 kg), which could lower a rescue sling through an electrically-operated door available after the copilot's seat was folded forward.[2]
During a flight demonstration of its capability to withstand high g-force, the type became the first helicopter to perform a loop, albeit unintentionally.[2]
Operational history
[edit]![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/PiaseckiHUP-2_Moffett_Field_%2811569663403%29.jpg/220px-PiaseckiHUP-2_Moffett_Field_%2811569663403%29.jpg)
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/HUP-3_Retriever_of_HU-1_on_USS_Lexington_%28CVA-16%29_c1961.jpg/220px-HUP-3_Retriever_of_HU-1_on_USS_Lexington_%28CVA-16%29_c1961.jpg)
The aircraft first entered service in February 1949 with the delivery of the first of 32 HUP-1 aircraft to the US Navy.[1] The improved HUP-2 (Piasecki designation PV-18) was soon introduced with a more powerful engine, deletion of the inward-canted horizontal stabilizer endplate fins, and various minor changes in equipment; a sub-variant equipped with dunking sonar for anti-submarine warfare was given the designation HUP-2S.[1][2] The HUP-2 was the first production helicopter equipped with an autopilot.[2] The US Navy also tested a radio navigation system called Raydist that allowed an unmanned HUP-2 to be directed from a ground station and by radio ordered to hover within five feet (1.5 m) of the desired point.[6] Edo tested a HUP-2 with a fiberglass hull and outrigger floats for amphibious operations.[7]
An upgraded version of the HUP-2 was built for the US Army and designated as the H-25A Army Mule, but most were quickly withdrawn from Army service and converted for naval use under the designation HUP-3.[1][2][8]
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/330-ps-7528-usn-681155_16661806845_o.jpg/220px-330-ps-7528-usn-681155_16661806845_o.jpg)
In 1954, the Royal Canadian Navy received three former US Army H-25A aircraft, which were modified and redesignated on delivery to conform to US Navy HUP-3 standards.[8][9][10] The aircraft were used aboard HMCS Labrador for search and rescue and varied utility duties, and were later used to support construction at Distant Early Warning Line radar sites.[8][10] The helicopters were subsequently posted to NAF Patricia Bay and naval air station HMCS Shearwater; after the last two were stricken from inventory on 18 January 1964, one aircraft was donated to a technical school and the other two were sold as surplus.[8][10]
The US Army H-25 designation was adopted by the US Navy in 1962[1] on introduction of the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system. The final units were withdrawn from US service in 1964.[citation needed] It also served with French Naval Aviation (Aeronavale) from 1953[citation needed] to 1965.[2]
A total of 339 aircraft were delivered during the 6-year production run.[2][disputed – discuss] A large number of surplus US Navy aircraft later appeared on the US civil registry, and at least seven were transferred to the French Navy.[citation needed]
On 7 November 2009, former US Navy HUP-1, BuNo 124925,[11] civil registration number N183YP,[12] collided with high-voltage power lines in Adelanto, California; the subsequent crash and post-crash fire killed all 3 occupants and substantially damaged the aircraft.[12] Operated in association with Classic Rotors, the accident aircraft was the only airworthy example in the world.[11] The National Transportation Safety Board attributed the crash to "The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from powerlines during en route flight."[12]
Variants
[edit]![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/58/HUP-3_of_HU-1_delivers_mail_to_USS_Turner_Joy_%28DD-951%29_c1962.jpg/220px-HUP-3_of_HU-1_delivers_mail_to_USS_Turner_Joy_%28DD-951%29_c1962.jpg)
- XHJP-1
- Prototype, powered by a 525 hp (391 kW) Continental R-975-34 piston engine, equipped with large sloping endplate fins on the horizontal stabilizers. Piasecki-Vertol designation was PV-14. 2[1] or 3[3][4] produced.[disputed – discuss]
- HUP-1
- Utility transport and search and rescue helicopter for the US Navy, largely similar to XHJP-1, Piasecki designation was PV-18. 32 built.[1][2]
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Piasecki_HUP_of_HU-2_rescues_pilot_near_USS_Block_Island_%28CVE-106%29_on_12_August_1953.jpg/220px-Piasecki_HUP_of_HU-2_rescues_pilot_near_USS_Block_Island_%28CVE-106%29_on_12_August_1953.jpg)
- HUP-2
- Improved version, 550 hp (410 kW) Continental R-975-42 piston engine, horizontal stabilizer endplate fins eliminated.[1][2] 165 built for the US Navy,[1][disputed – discuss] 15 for French Aeronavale.[citation needed] Redesignated UH-25B in 1962.
- HUP-2S
- Anti-submarine warfare version of HUP-2 fitted with dunking sonar. 12 built.[2]
- HUP-3
- Naval utility conversion of H-25A aircraft transferred from US Army: 50 to US Navy, 3 to Royal Canadian Navy.[8]
- H-25A Army Mule
- Utility transport helicopter for US Army, similar to HUP-2 but powered by a 550 hp (410 kW) Continental R-975-46A piston engine, and fitted with large doors, power-boosted controls, and strengthened floors.[1][2] 70 were delivered from 1953, but they were unsuitable for front-line use,[13] with 53 transferred to the Royal Canadian and US Navies in 1954–1955,[8] and the remaining helicopters used for training, being withdrawn from army service by 1958.[13]
- UH-25B
- HUP-2 redesignated after 1962.
- UH-25C
- HUP-3 redesignated after 1962.
Operators
[edit]![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/French_HUP_landing_on_HMS_Albion_%28R07%29_1957.jpg/220px-French_HUP_landing_on_HMS_Albion_%28R07%29_1957.jpg)
Surviving aircraft
[edit]![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/Piasecki_H-25A_116616_Fort_Rucker_AL_14.12.02R_edited-2.jpg/220px-Piasecki_H-25A_116616_Fort_Rucker_AL_14.12.02R_edited-2.jpg)
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Salon_du_Bourget_20090619_153.jpg/220px-Salon_du_Bourget_20090619_153.jpg)
For surviving aircraft, hyphenated numbers are original US Army Serial Numbers; six-digit numbers are original US Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) Bureau Numbers (BuNo). All 50 H-25A/HUP-3 aircraft transferred from the US Army to the US Navy were given new bureau numbers; 3 aircraft transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy were redesignated, but retained their original US Army serial numbers.[8]
Canada
[edit]- On display
- UH-25B (HUP-2) 128529 at Shearwater Aviation Museum in Shearwater, Nova Scotia.[16] This aircraft has been restored to the appearance of 51-16621, the first Royal Canadian Navy HUP-3.[10]
- UH-25C (HUP-3), 51-16623 - Canada Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa, Ontario.[17][18]
Netherlands
[edit]- UH-25B (HUP-2), 130076 (construction number 253) – Baris Business Park roadway roundabout in Rotterdam. This aircraft was originally used by the US Navy and was later transferred to the French Navy.[19]
United Kingdom
[edit]- UH-25C (HUP-3), 51-16622 – displayed at The Helicopter Museum in Weston-super-Mare, England, wearing Canadian markings.[8][20]
United States
[edit]- On display
- H-25A Army Mule
- 51-16616 – United States Army Aviation Museum in Fort Rucker, Alabama.[21]
- HUP-1
- 124915 – USS Hornet Museum in Alameda, California.[22]
- UH-25B (HUP-2)
- 128479 – American Helicopter Museum in West Chester, Pennsylvania.[23]
- 128517 – Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum in Horsham, Pennsylvania.[24]
- 128519 – Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City, New York.[25]
- 128596 – Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum in San Diego, California.[26]
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/Piasecki_HUP-2_Retriever_130059_%287170804388%29.jpg/220px-Piasecki_HUP-2_Retriever_130059_%287170804388%29.jpg)
- 130059 – USS Midway Museum in San Diego, California.[27]
- 130082 – on the deck of the USS Iowa Museum in San Pedro, California.[28][29]
- UH-25C (HUP-3)
![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Air_Zoo_December_2019_094_%28Piasecki_HUP-3_Retriever%29.jpg/220px-Air_Zoo_December_2019_094_%28Piasecki_HUP-3_Retriever%29.jpg)
- 147595 – Pima Air & Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona.[30]
- 147600 – Air Zoo in Kalamazoo, Michigan.[31]
- 147607 – National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida.[32]
- 147628 – Mid-America Air Museum in Liberal, Kansas.[33]
- 51-16621 – Classic Rotors in Ramona, California.[34] As of December 2019, this is the only Piasecki Helicopter-manufactured aircraft with valid FAA aircraft registration.[35] This former Royal Canadian Navy aircraft is reportedly the last HUP/H-25 capable of being restored to airworthy condition; it was exchanged in 2000 by the Canadian Museum of Flight for unflyable HUP-2 128529, which was subsequently traded again in 2002 to the Shearwater Aviation Museum and repainted as 51-16621.[10][16]
- Under restoration or in storage
- UH-25B (HUP-2)
- 128598 - Stored at New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.[36]
- 130053 – Stored at Quartzsite, Arizona.[37]
- 130063 - Stored at New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.[36]
- UH-25C (HUP-3)
- 147610 – Yanks Air Museum in Chino, California, in storage.[38]
Specifications (HUP-2)
[edit]![](Https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Piasecki_H-25_orthographical_image.svg/350px-Piasecki_H-25_orthographical_image.svg.png)
Data from Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1956–57.[39]
General characteristics
- Crew: two
- Capacity: four passengers
- Length: 56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
- Height: 13 ft 2 in (4.01 m)
- Empty weight: 4,132 lb (1,874 kg)
- Gross weight: 5,750 lb (2,608 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 6,100 lb (2,767 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Continental R-975-46A 9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine, 550 hp (410 kW)
- Main rotor diameter: 2 × 35 ft 0 in (10.67 m)
- Main rotor area: 1,924.5 sq ft (178.79 m2) * Blade section: NACA 0012[40]
Performance
- Maximum speed: 105 mph (169 km/h, 91 kn)
- Cruise speed: 80 mph (130 km/h, 70 kn)
- Range: 340 mi (550 km, 300 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 10,000 ft (3,000 m)
- Rate of climb: 1,000 ft/min (5.1 m/s)
- Disk loading: 3 lb/sq ft (15 kg/m2)
- Power/mass: 0.09 hp/lb (0.15 kW/kg)
See also
[edit]Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
References
[edit]- Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.461.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "HUP-1 Retriever/H-25 Army Mule Helicopter". boeing.com. Boeing. Archived from the original on 9 June 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ^ a b c d Devine, Vinny (10 April 2013). "S-53 (U.S.Navy (XHJS-1)". Sikorsky Product History. Igor Sikorsky Historical Archives. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ^ a b "Piasecki PV-14 XHJP-1 US Navy". 1000aircraftphotos.com. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ^ Swanborough and Bowers 1976, pp.8–9.
- ^ Hearst Magazines (May 1954). "Radio Waves Hold Helicopter In Fixed Hovering Position". Popular Mechanics. Hearst Magazines. p. 122.
- ^ "Picture News: Watertight hull makes helicopter amphibious". Popular Science. Vol. 172, no. 2. February 1958. p. 149.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Walker, R.W.R. "Royal Canadian Navy – HUP detailed list". Canadian Military Aircraft Serial Numbers. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP-3". ingeniumcanada.org. Ingenium Canada - Canada Air and Space Museum. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f "Piasecki HUP-3". www.shearwateraviationmuseum.ns.ca. Shearwater Aviation Museum. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ^ a b Allnutt, Richard Mallory (25 December 2009). "Piasecki crash claims three lives". Aircraft Illustrated. Stamford, Lincolnshire, UK: Key Publishing Ltd. ISSN 0002-2675.
- ^ a b c NTSB Aviation Investigation Final Report (Report). National Transportation Safety Board. 18 July 2011. WPR10LA048. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
- ^ a b Harding 1990, pp. 197–198.
- ^ a b c d "Piasecki H-25 History". Boeing. Archived from the original on 2012-10-29. Retrieved 2013-02-02.
- ^ "Piasecki PV-18 (HUP/H-25/UH-25) (Photo)". pictaero.com. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ a b Skaarup, Howard (2009). Canadian Warplanes. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse. p. 520. ISBN 978-1-4401-6758-4.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/51-16623." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ Canada Aviation and Space Museum. "Piasecki HUP-3". techno-science.ca. Archived from the original on 7 February 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2016.
- ^ "De helikopter" [The helicopter]. www.baris.nl (in Dutch). Baris Groep. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/622 RCN." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/51-16616." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/124915." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 25 April 2017.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/128479." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP-2 "Retriever"". Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum. Retrieved 26 August 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/128519." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/128596." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/130059." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/130082." Daily Breeze Retrieved: 25 April 2017.
- ^ Pacific Battleship Center (2019). "New Exhibits". pacificbattleship.com. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/147595." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/147600". www.aerialvisuals.ca. Retrieved 2016-06-08.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/147607." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/147628." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ Federal Aviation Administration (1 November 2018). "N-Number Inquiry Results N7089F". Archived from the original on 6 November 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- ^ Federal Aviation Administration (16 December 2019). "Manufacturer Inquiry Results Piasecki". Archived from the original on 4 January 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ a b "Bradley - Museum, Connecticut". Retrieved 20 September 2023.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/130053." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 15 July 2021.
- ^ "Piasecki HUP Retriever/147610." aerialvisuals.ca Retrieved: 5 May 2016.
- ^ Bridgman 1956, p. 345.
- ^ Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". m-selig.ae.illinois.edu. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- Bibliography
- Bridgman, Leonard. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1956–57. New York: The McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1956.
- Harding, Stephen. U.S. Army Aircraft Since 1947. Shrewsbury, UK:Airlife, 1990. ISBN 1-85310-102-8.
- Swanborough, Gordon; Bowers, Peter M. (1976). United States Navy Aircraft since 1911 (2nd ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-968-5..
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