Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site brl-tgr.ARPA
Path: utzoo!utcs!lsuc!pesnta!hplabs!hao!seismo!brl-tgr!wmartin
From: wmartin@brl-tgr.ARPA (Will Martin )
Newsgroups: net.aviation
Subject: re: Query about helicopters in the armed forces
Message-ID: <8616@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Date: Mon, 25-Feb-85 14:15:12 EST
Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.8616
Posted: Mon Feb 25 14:15:12 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 27-Feb-85 10:27:28 EST
References: <1258@shark.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: USAMC ALMSA
Lines: 30

> >  When did the armed forces start using helecopters?  (I know they
> > were used in the Korean War (1952 and thereafter) but I don't
> > recall ever seeing them in WW2.  Did they really develop in
> > just 7 years?)
> 
> Helicopters were indeed used during WW2 - the Focke Wulf 
> Fa-61, Fa-223 and Flettner Fl-282 Kolibri by Germany;
> the Sikorsky VS-300 and Sikorsky R-4 by the U.S. Army.
> The latter was used in Burma. Over 400 Sikorsky helicopters
> were built during WW2. Downed pilots and commando troops
> were helicoptered out of the jungle - their first use for this
> type of work.

I myself didn't know this, and thanks for posting the info. I think
I can hazard a guess as to why the WWII role of helicopters is little
known -- most of our knowledge of WWII comes from movies and books. I
don't recall seeing a single WWII movie wherein a helicopter was
used. Perhaps this was because there are no (or very few) flying examples
of these early Sikorsky rotorcraft still in existence? Since helicopters
are well known to have high maintenance requirements and spare-parts
usage, and few people bothered to keep "museum-examples" of contemporary
aircraft until recently, I wouldn't be surprised to find out that none
of these still exist. It would probably be fairly expensive and difficult to 
bring one or more into flyable shape (or recreate them from existing
rotorcraft, as was done in Red Dawn), so I doubt that we'll EVER see
a true-to-life WWII helicopter in a war film, except for documentary footage.

Will Martin

USENET: seismo!brl-bmd!wmartin     or   ARPA/MILNET: wmartin@almsa-1.ARPA