Bell UH-1Y Venom

The Bell UH-1Y VenomDoD 4120-15L, ''Model Designation of Military Aerospace Vehicles''
. US DoD, 12 May 2004. (also called Super Huey) is a twin-engine, medium-sized utility helicopter built by Bell Helicopter under the H-1 upgrade program of the United States Marine Corps. One of the latest members of the numerous Huey family, the UH-1Y is also called "Yankee", based on the NATO phonetic alphabet pronunciation of its variant letter. The UH-1Y was to have been remanufactured from UH-1Ns, but in 2005, it was approved for the aircraft to be built as new. After entering service in 2008, the UH-1Y replaced the USMC's aging fleet of UH-1N Twin Huey light utility helicopters, first introduced in the early 1970s. In 2008 it entered full-rate production,"UH-1Ys to be built new starting in 06"
. US Navy, 22 April 2005. with deliveries to the Marines completed in 2018.

Development

Over the years, new avionics and radios, modern door guns, and safety upgrades have greatly increased the UH-1N's empty weight. With a maximum speed around and an inability to lift much more than its own crew, fuel, and ammunition, the UH-1N had limited capabilities as a transport.

In 1996, the United States Marine Corps launched the H-1 upgrade program. A contract was signed with Bell Helicopter for upgrading 100 UH-1Ns into UH-1Ys and upgrading 180 AH-1Ws into AH-1Zs.Donald, David. ''Modern Battlefield Warplanes''. AIRTime Publishing, 2004. .Bishop, Chris. ''Huey Cobra Gunships''. Osprey Publishing, 2006. . The H-1 program modernized utility and attack helicopters with considerable design commonality to reduce operating costs. The UH-1Y and AH-1Z share a common tail boom, engines, rotor system, drivetrain, avionics architecture, software, controls, and displays for over 84% identical components.''Rotorbreeze Magazine''
Bell, October 2006.

Originally, the UH-1Y was to have been remanufactured from UH-1N airframes, but in April 2005, approval was granted to build them as new helicopters. Bell delivered two UH-1Ys to the U.S. Marine Corps in February 2008,"Bell H-1 upgrade program delivers two UH-1Y and one AH-1Z in February"
, Bell Helicopter, 3 March 2008. and full-rate production was begun in September 2009. The Marine Corps purchased 160 Y-models to replace their inventory of N-models.Butler, Amy
"U.S. Marines Propose AH-1Z Production Boost"
. ''Aviation Week'', 13 October 2010. Retrieved: 17 August 2017.

Design

The UH-1Y variant modernizes the UH-1 design. The Y-model upgrades pilot avionics to a glass cockpit, adds further safety modifications, and provides the UH-1 with a modern forward-looking infrared system. Engine power was increased. Its most noticeable upgrade over previous variants is a four-blade, all-composite rotor system designed to withstand up to 23 mm rounds. By replacing the engines and the two-bladed rotor system with four composite blades, the Y-model returns the Huey to the utility role for which it was designed.

A fuselage extension just forward of the main door was added for more capacity. The UH-1Y features upgraded transmissions and a digital cockpit with flat-panel multifunctional displays. Compared to the UH-1N, the Y-model has an increased payload, almost 50% greater range, a reduction in vibration, and higher cruising speed.

Operational history

The UH-1Y and AH-1Z completed their developmental testing in early 2006. During the first quarter of 2006 the UH-1Ys were transferred to the Operational Test Unit at NAS Patuxent River, where they began operational evaluation testing. In February 2008, the UH-1Y and AH-1Z began the second and final portion of testing. On 8 August 2008, the Marine Corps certified the UH-1Y as operationally capable, and it was deployed for the first time in January 2009 as part of the aviation combat element of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The UH-1N Twin Huey was retired by the Marines in August 2014, making the UH-1Y the Marine Corps' standard utility helicopter.

On 11 October 2017, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified the United States Congress of the potential sale of 12 UH-1Ys and related systems and support to the Czech Republic for a cost of US$575 million. In December 2019, an order for eight UH-1Y helicopters was approved.

Operators

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* Czech Air Force (8 on order) Additional 2 to be transferred at no cost via the Excess Defense Articles programme.

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* United States Marine Corps
** HMLA-167
** HMLA-169
** HMLA-267
** HMLA-269
** HMLA-367
**HMLA-369
**HMLA-469
** HMLA-773
**HMLAT-303

Specifications

See also

References

External links

UH-1Y Venom page on BellHelicopter.com

UH-1Y Venom page on US Navy RDA site




Flight International, 22 August 2008.

{{US helicopters

H-001Y, U
2000s United States military utility aircraft
United States military helicopters
2000s United States helicopters
Twin-turbine helicopters
Aircraft first flown in 2001