What types of helicopters are there?
8286923#2
Helicopters were developed and built during the first half-century of flight, with the Focke-Wulf Fw 61 being the first operational helicopter in 1936. Some helicopters reached limited production, but it was not until 1942 that a helicopter designed by Igor Sikorsky reached full-scale production, with 131 aircraft built. Though most earlier designs used more than one main rotor, it is the single main rotor with anti-torque tail rotor configuration that has become the most common helicopter configuration. Tandem rotor helicopters are also in widespread use due to their greater payload capacity. Coaxial helicopters, tiltrotor aircraft, and compound helicopters are all flying today. Quadcopter helicopters pioneered as early as 1907 in France, and other types of multicopter have been developed for specialized applications such as unmanned drones.
Helicopter
6603263#4
Transport helicopters are operated in assault, medium and heavy classes. Air assault helicopters are usually the smallest of the transport types, and designed to move an infantry squad or section and their equipment. Helicopters in the assault role are generally armed for self-protection both in transit and for suppression of the landing zone. This armament may be in the form of door gunners, or the modification of the helicopter with stub wings and pylons to carry missiles and rocket pods. For example, the Sikorsky S-70, fitted with the ESSM (External Stores Support System), and the "Hip E" variant of the Mil Mi-8 can carry as much disposable armament as some dedicated attack helicopters. The assault helicopter can be thought of as the modern successor to the military glider. Finally, there is the generic term utility helicopter, which generally refers to medium-lift designs.
Military transport aircraft
49701804#1
Summit Helicopters operates 6 different types of helicopters and they are all equipped with "onboard satellite phone, portable phone, next generation satellite tracking, and Transport Canada approved medevac kit." Depending on the service required optional equipment includes "wildlife antennae, camera mounts, utility baskets, and emergency and fixed floats".
Summit Helicopters
6603263#5
Not all militaries are able to operate a full range of transport helicopters, so the medium transport type is probably the most useful compromise and probably the most common specialist transport type. Medium transport helicopters are generally capable of moving up to a platoon of infantry and are capable of being able to transport towed artillery or light vehicles either internally or as underslung roles. Unlike the assault helicopter they are usually not expected to land directly in a contested landing zone, but are used to reinforce and resupply landing zones taken by the initial assault wave. Examples include the unarmed versions of the Mil Mi-8, Super Puma, and CH-46 Sea Knight.
Military transport aircraft
3172920#4
The following types were deployed to Iraq under JHF (I):The following types were deployed to Afghanistan under JHF (A):The majority of the United Kingdom's military helicopters come under JHC, although exceptions include the Royal Navy's fleet helicopters, the Defence Helicopter Flying School, and the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force's search and rescue helicopters.
Joint Helicopter Command
1918291#28
The ship’s stern hangar accommodates 1 Kamov Ka-28 (export version of the Kamov Ka-27, NATO codename: "Helix") antisubmarine warfare (ASW) helicopter, or alternatively, 1 Z-9 ASW helicopter (Chinese version of the Eurocopter Dauphin AS 365N), and both type can carry various weapons including torpedoes and depth charges. The Ka-28 helicopter can operate in all weather conditions up to 200 km from the host ship, but its onboard dipping sonar only has half the range of the Chinese copy of the French dipping sonar on board Z-9, furthermore, it lacks the processing capability to process the information gathered, so the information has to be passed back to the host ship for processing via data links, while in contrast, Z-9 can process information gathered on board the helicopter, but with shorter range. Z-9 can process information on board because it is equipped with IPS, short for Integrated Processing System, which is essentially an airborne version of combat data system, which also is a subsystem of the combat data system on board the mother ship. Type 052C is the first warship in Chinese navy to be equipped with IPS, and after evaluation which judged to be successful, IPS is fitted to all other Z-9 helicopters in Chinese navy during scheduled upgrades.
Type 052C destroyer
1431754#4
The class carries one anti-submarine helicopter on a deck placed aft with a hangar provided for storage. Originally supplied with a Eurocopter AS 565 Panther, they were later replaced with the Westland Lynx. The SAMAHE 210 helicopter handling system is adaptable to different types of undercarriages on helicopters and had munitions trucks to position weapon loadouts to assist the arming of the helicopters.
Cassard-class frigate
32087#62
While the United States Army Aviation Branch operates a few fixed-wing aircraft, it mainly operates several types of rotary-wing aircraft. These include the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, the UH-60 Black Hawk utility tactical transport helicopter and the CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift transport helicopter. Restructuring plans call for reduction of 750 aircraft and from 7 to 4 types.
United States Army
37643485#6
In October 2011 the German Federal Ministry of Defence announced a reorganisation/reduction of the German Armed Forces. As a consequence, all helicopters of the type CH-53G were to be transferred to the Air Force. German Army Aviation Corps Medium Transport Helicopter Regiment 25 flying CH-53G, based at Laupheim Air Base, was disbanded on 31 December 2012 and re-established as new Helicopter Wing 64 on 1 January 2013. The other unit within the German Army flying CH-53G, Aviation Corps Medium Transport Regiment 15 based at Rheine Air Base, will be disbanded, a number of its helicopters eventually relocating to either Laupheim Air Base or Holzdorf Air Base. The remainder will be decommissioned. The wing's helicopters of the type Bell UH-1D and NH90 were transferred to the German Army. The tasks previously carried out by helicopters of Helicopter Wing 64, most importantly national SAR service and CSAR, were also transferred to the German Army. The restructured wing has a strength of approximately 1800 personnel, 1200 of which are stationed at Laupheim Air Base, the remaining 600 at Holzdorf Air Base.
Helicopter Wing 64
32709#1
Besides the ubiquitous helicopter, there are currently two types of VTOL aircraft in military service: craft using a tiltrotor, such as the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, and another using directed jet thrust, such as the Harrier family and new F-35B Lightning II Joint strike Fighter (JSF). In the civilian sector currently only helicopters are in general use (some other types of commercial VTOL aircraft have been proposed and are under development ). Generally speaking, VTOL aircraft capable of STOVL use it wherever possible, since it typically significantly increases takeoff weight, range or payload compared to pure VTOL.
VTOL