Sikorsky R-4
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| R-4 / Hoverfly | |
|---|---|
 Comdr. Frank A. Erickson, USCG & Dr. Igor Sikorsky, Sikorsky Helicopter HNS-1 C.G. #39040. |
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| Type | Helicopter |
| Manufacturer | Sikorsky |
| Designed by | Igor Sikorsky |
| Maiden flight | 13 January 1942 |
| Primary users | United States Air Force United States Navy United States Coast Guard Royal Air Force |
| Produced | 1942-1944 |
| Number built | 131 |
| Developed from | Vought-Sikorsky VS-300 |
| Variants | Sikorsky H-5 |
The Sikorsky R-4 was "America's first mass produced helicopter and the United States Air Force's first service helicopter". [1] [2] The World's first series production Helicopter was the German Flettner Fl-282 "Kolibri" which flew in 1941 and was used operationally from 1942 from ships in the Baltic, Mediterranean and Aegean. Six of the earlier Fl-265s were ordered by the Kriegsmarine in 1938 and flew operationally in service tests from ships from 1939. They retired from operational combat service with the German Navy on 29 April 1940, before Sikorsky's first primitive prototype VS-300 had even made its first un-tethered flight on 13 May 1940. [1]
The Fl 282 Kolibri had gained initial production of 45 units and had received official production orders of over a thousand units. Bombing of the factories and damage to production jigs prevented anywhere near this number being completed by wars end. In contrast, with its factory immune from attack in America, the Sikorsky R4 was able to be mass produced in large numbers, with at least 130 examples produced by war's end.
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[edit] Development
The original military model, the XR-4, was developed from the famous experimental VS-300 helicopter, invented by Igor Sikorsky and publicly demonstrated in 1940. The XR-4 made its initial flight on 13 January 1942 and as a result of its successful flight tests, the United States Army Air Forces ordered three YR-4As and 27 YR-4Bs[citation needed] for service testing and flight training.
The VS-316 was designated the R-4, under the United States Army Air Forces' series for "Rotorcraft". In 1947, with the birth of the United States Air Force, the series was changed to "H" for "Helicopter", and the R-4 became the H-4.
[edit] Operational history
The R-4 was first used in combat in May 1944. In a letter to a friend, Col. Philip G. Cochran, commanding officer of the 1st Air Commando Group, wrote "Today the 'egg-beater' went into action and the damn thing acted like it had good sense."[3] The R-4 showed such promise that the AAF ordered 100 R-4Bs.
Of these 30, one went to Burma and one to Alaska, while several others were assigned to the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard and Royal Navy who named it the Gadfly. In Royal Air Force service it was called the Hoverfly. The R4 equipped the first British military unit to be equipped with helicopters, the Helicopter Training School, formed in January 1945 at RAF Andover.
[edit] Variants
External differences noted in photos: Some R-4s had the tail wheel located at the extreme aft end of the boom near the tail rotor while others had it positioned at the mid-point of the boom. Additionally, some had short "stub" exhaust pipes from the engine while others had a much longer one which extended vertically and then aft above the main landing gear struts.
- XR-4
- One prototype Model VS-316A with a crew of two and dual controls, 165hp R-500-3 engine, became XR-4C
- YR-4A
- Version with larger rotor diameter and a 180hp R-550-1 engine, three built.
- YR-4B
- Version with detailed changes, redesignated YH-4B in 1962, 27 built for development testing followed by a further batch of 14, seven to US Navy as HNS-1s. Redesignated YH-4B in 1947
- R-4B
- Production version with 200hp R-550-3 engine, redesignated H-4B in 1962, 100 built including 20 for the US Navy and 45 for the Royal Air Force. Redesignated H-4B in 1947
- XR-4C
- Prototype XR-4 re-engined with 180hp R-550-1 engine with the larger YR-4A type rotor.
- HNS-1
- Three YR-4Bs and 22 R-4Bs transferred to the US Navy, two diverted to the United States Coast Guard.
- Hoverfly I
- UK military designation of the R-4 for the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy, 52 delivered and one later transferred to the Royal Canadian Air Force.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Survivors
- Smithsonian Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center has the XR-4C prototype
- National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB near Dayton, Ohio
- RAF Museum at Hendon in north London
- Canada Aviation Museum in Ottawa, Ontario
- National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola, FL. Exhibit is an HNS-1 Hoverfly (Bureau Number 39047) - On indoor static display in US Coast Guard markings.
[edit] Specifications (R-4B)
This aircraft article is missing some (or all) of its specifications. If you have a source, you can help Wikipedia by adding them.General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 33 ft 8 in (10.2 m)
- Rotor diameter: 38 ft (11.5 m)
- Height: 12 ft 5 in (3.8 m)
- Empty weight: lb (kg)
- Loaded weight: 2,581 lb (1,170 kg)
- Powerplant: 1× Warner R-550 piston, 200 hp (149 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 75 mph (120 km/h)
- Cruise speed: 65 mph (105 km/h)
- Service ceiling 8,000 ft (2400 m)
[edit] See also
Related development
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
[edit] Bibliography
- Myall, Eric and Sturtivant, Ray (ed.). The Hoverfly File. Tunbridge Wells, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1998. ISBN 0-85130-262-9.
[edit] External links
- Sikorsky R-4 page at the National Museum of the United States Air Force
- RAF Museum Sikorsky R4 Hoverfly webpage
- Photo gallery of Sikorsky R-4B Hoverfly I
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