Bell 207

Bell 207 Sioux Scout
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Bell Model 207 Sioux Scout
Type	Experimental attack helicopter
Manufacturer	Bell Helicopter
Developed from	Bell 47

The Bell 207 Sioux Scout was an early helicopter gunship developed privately for US forces in Vietnam. It featured a tandem cockpit, stub wings for weapons, and a chin-mounted gun turret.

Design and development

The Bell company had been interested in the concept of a dedicated helicopter gunship since 1958, and unveiled a mockup of such a rotorcraft in June 1962. The "D225 Iroquois Warrior" was based on the engine and mechanics of the Huey, but had a new sharklike fuselage that gave it the looks of a fighter. It had a tandem two-seat cockpit with a gunner in front and a pilot in back, with the seats stepped to give the pilot good forward visibility; a turret with an automatic grenade launcher in the nose; a forward-firing 20 millimeter cannon in a belly pack; and stub wings with stores pylons to carry munitions, such as six SS-11 wire-guided missiles.

The Army liked the idea and awarded Bell a contract in December 1962 to develop a proof-of-concept demonstrator. Bell engineers quickly modified the company's well-established Model 47 / OH-13 Sioux piston-powered helicopter to produce the "Model 207 Sioux Scout", which was completed in August 1963. The Sioux Scout featured a streamlined fuselage, with a tandem cockpit and a chin turret with two 7.62 millimeter M60 machine guns. It only generally resembled the Iroquois Warrior mockup and was too light for actual combat use, but after evaluating the Sioux Scout, the Army was impressed.

Specifications

Bell 207

General characteristics

• Crew: Two in tandem
• Powerplant: One Lycoming TVO-435-F1A Flat-6 piston engine (280 hp/210 kW)
• Armament: One Emerson Electric TAT-101 chin-turret armed with two 7.62mm machine-guns

Bell 47G (for comparison)

Data from International Directory of Civil Aircraft

General characteristics

• Crew: Three
• Length: 31.6 ft (9.63 m)
• Rotor diameter: 37.2 ft (11.32 m)
• Height: 9.28 ft (2.83)
• Disc area: 1,085 ft² (m100.8 m²)
• Empty weight: 1,893 lb (858 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 2,950 lb (1,340 kg)
• Powerplant: 1× Lycoming TVO-435-F1A Flat-6 piston engine, 280 hp (210 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 91 kt (105 mph, 169 km/h)
• Cruise speed: 73 kt (84 mph, 135 km/h) at 5,000 ft (1,525 m)
• Range: 214 nm (245 miles, 395 km) at 6,000 ft (1,830 m)
• Rate of climb: 860 ft/min (262 m/min)
• Hover ceiling: 17,700 ft IGE; 12,700 ft OGE (5,400 m IGE; 3900 m OGE)

See also

Related development

• Bell 47
• AH-1 Cobra

Comparable aircraft

• OH-23 Raven
• Hughes 300/TH-55

Related lists

• List of military aircraft of the United States

References

The initial version of this article was based on a public domain article from Greg Goebel's Vectorsite.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Bell 47

• Arthur M. Young story and the development of the Model 47 (PDF file with photographs)
• Bell 47 Enthusiast site
• Model 47G specs from The International Directory of Civil Aircraft by Gerard Frawley

Bell Aircraft/Bell Helicopters

Fighter aircraft: YFM-1 · P-39 · P-59 · P-63 · XP-77 · XP-83

Commercial Helicopters: 47 · 204 · 205 · 206 · 210 · 212 · 214 · 222 · 230 · 407 · 412 · 417 · 427 · 429 · 430

Military Helicopters: H-13 · UH-1 · 207 · 209 · AH-1 · 309 · YAH-63 · OH-58 · ARH-70

Tiltrotors: V-22 · BA609 · TR918 · QTR

Experimental aircraft: X-1 · X-2 · X-5 · X-20 X-22 · XV-3 · XV-15 · 533 ·

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bell 207".