The Bell 533 was a research helicopter that Bell Helicopter built under contract with the United States Army in the 1960s to explore the limits and conditions that helicopter rotors meet at high airspeeds. It was a YH-40, a preproduction version of the UH-1 Iroquois, modified and tested in several helicopter and compound helicopter configurations, and the Army called it the High Performance Helicopter. Bell built it from one of six preproduction UH-1s after an Army contract awarded on 7 August 1961, and it made its maiden flight on 10 August 1962 at Fort Worth, Texas. The second configuration added a pair of Continental turbojet engines for extra thrust, tested from 21 October 1963. It reached a top speed of 274.6 knots in 1969 before being retired, and it is on display at Fort Eustis, Virginia.
Facts
Top Speed (km/h) Comparison
Body StyleAircraft (no road body style) 1 Connections
Of Make
Source Bell 533 (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Bell 533 (Wikipedia)
Development, maiden flight
The 533 made its maiden flight on 10 August 1962
Lead, top speed
reached a top speed of 274.6 knots (508.6 km/h; 316.0 mph) in 1969
Lead, aircraft description
The Bell 533 was a research helicopter
Lead and display
The Model 533 is on display (in highest speed configuration) at the US Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate, Fort Eustis, Virginia.
Lead, builder
The Bell 533 was a research helicopter built by Bell Helicopter under contract with the United States Army during the 1960s
In Group: Vertical Takeoff and Landing Research Aircraft, Lead, role of the aircraft
The Bell 533 was a research helicopter built by Bell Helicopter under contract with the United States Army during the 1960s
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