HELICOPTER HISTORY
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Igor Sikorsky and the first prototype electric rescue hoist in a 1944 8demonstration at Floyd Benne" Field. Piloting the Sikorsky HNS-l was ~USCG Cmdr Frank Erickson-father of the concept of the rescue hoist. ~
Developing the missing linkhow the rescue hoist was bornHow wartime innovation and the dreams of a fewmen made the helicopter's lifesaving role possible.By Sergei SikorskyContributing Writer
As Hurricane Katrina movedinland from the Gulf Coast
late last year, leaving a trailof death and destruction, the firstcall once again was "Send in thehel icopters!"
Among the first to arrive were theUS Coast Guard (USCG) helicopters, which had been prepositionedjust outside the predicted track ofthe storm. They were joined by heli-
116 PROFESSIONAL PILOT / February 2006
copters from the armed forces andthe National Guard. Operating fromdemolished airfields in and aroundNew Orleans LA, the helicopter aircrews and the often unsung servicecrews performed maintenance miracles while living under the mostprimitive conditions.
At the peak of the rescue operations, more than 400 helicopterswere involved. Hovering over halfsubmerged homes, helicopter crewmen were lowered onto the slipperyroofs by the rescue hoist. Often theywould have to chop holes in the
roof to rescue people trapped in theattic by high water. Despite the hazards posed by power lines, brokentelephone poles and half-destroyedtrees, hovering at night using nightvision goggles, the helicopter crewssaved an estimated 30,000 peoplein the hardest-hit areas of Louisiana
and Mississippi. Thousands morewere supplied with drinking water,food and ice while waiting to beevacuated in small boats.
Interestingly, much of the rescuetechnology displayed on TV screensduring Katrina was developed dur-
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-~-"'~"'-"f"I 't:c~'* ~ ~~~~~~~~;--==~~~Rescue hoist training demonstration at Floyd Bennett Field. The date is Aug 15, 1944 and the pilot is Cmdr Frank Erickson. Rescuee's name isunknown. Note the floating "horse-collar" and seat-type sling used in early versions of the rescue hoist.
ing WWII by a visionary USCG aviator, Lt Commander Frank Erickson.This writer had the honor of servingunder him as a helicopter mechanicduring WWII. Like an earlier "maverick" aviator, US Army Col "Billy"Mitchell, Erickson had his servicecareer destroyed by his peers. And,like Mitchell, Erickson had theuncomfortable gift of looking intothe future, and the problem of trying to sell that vision to his peers.
Erickson was an early convert tothe helicopter. He had visited theSikorsky factory in Jun 1942, andwatched a flight demonstration ofthe small VS300, with Igor Sikorskyat the controls. And he knew that
the Army had just taken delivery ofthe larger, 2-place XR4 and hadplaced an order for 30 more for service trials.
In addition, contracts had alreadybeen issued to Sikorsky to design 2larger helicopters-the 450-hp XR5and the 240-hp XR6. During themonths that followed, Erickson anda few fellow officers in the so-called
"helicopter mafia" started buildingsupport for a USCG helicopter program.
Their problem was that senior USNavy (USN) and USCG officerswere fighting the German submarine threat. The helicopter was notconsidered to be of use in the Battlefor the North Atlantic-hence not
worth funding.
Turning the first corner
In early 1943, the helicoptermafia gained credibility when the
British, with some 20 YR4 Hoverflies already on order, signed anorder for 200 R5s and openednegotiations for another 800 R6s.
Reluctantly, senior USN andUSCG officers agreed that USCGshould establish a Helicopter Testand Development Unit (HTDU) forevaluation purposes. And in Jun1943 Lt Commander Erickson andLt Stewart Graham were sent to the
Sikorsky factory for flight training,along with several hand-pickedUSCG aircraft mechanics. Theysh,!fed a small office at the Sikorskyfactory with 3 newly-arrived Britishpilots, also assigned to the helicopter program.
On Dec 1, 1943, the world's firsthelicopter training base was formally activated at Coast Guard AirStation (CGAS) Brooklyn-otherwise Floyd Bennett Field. Newlypromoted Commander Ericksonwas designated to lead the base,and Graham and the British pilotsmoved out of the Sikorsky plant toFloyd Bennett. A few draftees-former Sikorsky employees with priorhelicopter experience-were culledfrom the ranks and reassigned to thebase. This writer was one of them.
The hel icopter soon began itslong history of saving lives. In theearly morning of Jan 3, 1944, thedestroyer USS Turner blew up offSandy Hook NJ. The blast was sopowerful that it woke the teammembers at Floyd Bennett, some20 miles away. The weather wasterrible-winds were gusting to 30mph, and driving snow and sleethad closed all the New York area
airports. Despite the near-lethalzero-zero weather, CommanderErickson successfully flew critically-needed blood plasma to a SandyHook hospital treating the Turnersurvivors. In its Jan 6 editorial, theNew York Times said, "Nothing candim the future of a machine whichcan take in its stride weather conditions such as those that prevailed inNew York on Monday."
In Apr 1944, US Army Air Force(USAAF) Lt Carter Harman flew hisYR4 helicopter deep into Japaneseheld territory 4 times to rescue thesurvivors of an American medevacaircraft which had crashed in the
Burmese jungle. The 4 survivors hidby day and moved by night to thesafety of a friendly native village.Harman used a village rice paddyas a landing field, flying out the 4men one at a time to a secret
airstrip, where they were transferred to waiting aircraft and flownout to India.
A link defined
As details of the Burma rescue
reached Floyd Bennett, Ericksonstudied the mission. An idea struck
him. What the helicopter needed,literally, was a "missing link"-awinch or hoist that could lift a manfrom land or water, and into thecabin of a helicopter. By May, several ideas were being explored.
Basically, they were short-rangesolutions that could be tested on
the light, somewhat underpoweredHNS-1 (USN's R4) trainer. Longrange solutions would have to wait
PROFESSIONAL PilOT / February 2006 117
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large enough to carry a seated man.Large cork floats were fixed nearthe. upper edge, so that it floatedsemi-submerged, allowing easieraccess for the person being rescued. Today, many call it the"Erickson Basket."
Shortly afterwards, USAAF Col HF Gregory visited the base to familiarize himself with its activities.
Gregory was the US Army's seniorrotary-wing test pilot, and directlyresponsible for all its helicopterprograms. He too was intrigued bythe concept of a rescue hoist andbegan to follow its progress.
Another early demonstration of the rescue hoist. USCG Aviation Mechanic Sergei Sikorskyhangs below a Sikorsky HNS-l, again piloted by Cmdr Frank Erickson, at Floyd Bennett Field
in Brooklyn NY on Jul 30, 1945.
for the larger, more powerful helicopters expected in a year or two.There was no lack of ideas. Some
of them (fortunately) stayed asideas, while many of the other concepts that were developed are sti IIin use today.
The first rescue hoist was an exer
cise in low-budget improvisation.After scouring local junkyards forparts, the team fixed a boom to theside of the helicopter, braced to thelanding gear. The outer end of theboom was near the top of the copilot's doorway, about 12 inches outboard. A series of hovers and for
ward flights were made, whilegradually increasing the weighthanging at the end of the boom. Asa result, it was determined that a200-lb weight would not poseproblems in CG or lateral controlauthority.
In Jun 1944, a small team ofUSCG aviation mechanics, underthe direction of Machinist Mates
Oliver Berry and George Lubben,mounted the first experimentalhoist on HNS-1 BuAer No 39040.
The key part of the rig was a 12volt rotary actuator that had oncebeen part of a bomb hoist.
The first tests showed a problem-the 1000: 1 gear ratio resultedin a painfully slow hoist speed.Another unexpected problem wasthe magnetic brake, which had atendency to slip when lifting heavier loads, such as husky USN com-
U8 PROFESSIONAL PILOT / February 2006
manders. The hoist was then limited to 170 Ib, which made life moreinteresting for the younger, lightermembers of the base.
Development continued duringJuly, and the parachute shop created various slings and "horse collar"harnesses. Pilot training was generally done with dummy weights.Most "manned" testing was doneover the water, just off the seaplaneramp, to minimize injury in case ofbrake malfunction or sling failurewhich happened more than once.
That same month, while watchingthe training, Robert Barry of theSperry Gyro Company, who wasaware of a small Vickers pump thatmight work, suggested that Ericksoncontact the Vickers HydraulicCompany. A few days later, hereturned with Vickers Representative Tom Doe. After examining thehoist, Doe agreed to del iver 2 modified Vickers hoist pumps, promising they would lift 400 Ib at 2.5 ftper see.
Igor Sikorsky visited the USCGfacility on Aug 14. After he hadreviewed the British and Americanairmen, a series of demonstrationswas flown for him.
Sikorsky was particularly interested in the hoist, realizing its potential. Erickson raised him carefully inthe hoist to an altitude of about 12feet. If this writer's memory is correct, Sikorsky was also shown aprototype rescue hoist basket, just
Enter the hydraulic pump
On Sep 23, Vickers' Doe andHenry Laher arrived with the 2hydraulic pumps and associatedhardware. The Berry-Lubben teamwent to work. Literally overnight,they removed the old hoist, rebuiltit with the Vickers hydraulic pumpand had it ready for test on 39040the next morning. The results werespectacular. Not only could it lift aheavier load-the higher hoistspeed allowed the helicopter toaccelerate from hover to best climb
speed much faster.The improved hoist could not
have come at a better moment.
USN had scheduled a major air-searescue demonstration off Mana
squan NJ on Oct 2, 1944, andscores of civil and military government representatives were putaboard a flotilla of boats to watch.
For roughly 3 hours, the assembledaudience watched aircraft droppingrescue teams by parachute into thewater and demonstrations of largeand small inflatable life rafts and
other survival gear.Last on the program was the heli
copter. A small boat put out 4"coasties" in 2 life rafts. Their inflat
able life vests were equipped withspecial harnesses to hook to thehoist cable. Piloted by Lt Graham,helicopter 040 took off from a platform on one of the ships, flew 1/4mile to the rafts, picked up the 4men one at a time, and had themall back on deck in less than 10minutes.
To Erickson's delight, the helicopter captured the majority of theheadlines in the press the followingday. But, more importantly, thedemonstration converted Chief of
Sergei Sikorsky, son ofthe late Igor Sikorsky,joined United Aircraft(later United Technologies) in 1951 andretired from SikorskyAircraft as vp specialprojects in 1992.Today he is a Phoenix
AZ-based aviation consultant for several
companies, as well as an active freelancewriter and historian.
Undaunted, Erickson had the helicopter reassigned to CGAS StPetersburg in Florida. The tests werehighly successful, and today, cropdusting by helicopter is a worldwide industry.
Another program, started at FloydBennett in 1945, saw the modification of an HOS-1 (USN's R6) tocarry a prototype sonar installation.That summer, Graham proved theconcept of helicopter antisubmarinewarfare in a series of tests off BlockIsland NY. Much more sonar devel
opment would follow before itbecame viable, but the seed hadbeen planted.
In May 1945, Germany surrendered, followed by Japan in August,and the war was over. CGAS Brook
lyn began to reduce manpower aspersonnel became eligible for discharge and return to civilian life. InFeb 1946, this writer also returnedto civilian life, just before Ericksonand the HTDU moved to CGAS
EI(zabeth City in North Carolina. Bythen, the unit had been reduced to3 hel icopters and a handfu I of"rotorheads" who would continue
the fight.Eventually, Erickson retired as a
commander and became a heli
copter test pilot. Much later, theUSCG would recognize him bynaming a training facility at MobileAL-Erickson Hall-after him.Graham later retired as a commander, too, after founding and leadingfor several years the prestigiousHelicopter Test Pilots School atNaval Air Test Center Patuxent River
in Maryland.Some 60 years on, I can clearly
remember the feeling of floating onthe water in a one-man life raft,hooking up to a cable, and thenbeing lifted up as the engine noiseand airspeed increased, the sea gotfurther away and that friendly cabindoor drew closer. ~
Nov 29, 1945 saw what is believed to be
the first rescue of civilians by a hoist
equipped helicopter. A Sikorsky YR5
flown by Sikorsky Chief Pilot D D "Jim"
Viner and USAAF Pilot Capt J Beighle
picked up 2 men trapped on an oil bargethat had been driven onto Penfield Reef,off Fairfield C1
ber of rides in the covered Stokes
litter, both during tests and laterdemonstrations, this writer neverfelt comfortable in the casket.
In the spring of 1945, thingsbegan to change. World War II wasclearly coming to an end-the lastclass for helicopter pilots andmechanics finished training in Feb1945, and the school closed.Shortly afterwards, CommanderErickson was relieved of his command of the air station. His visionof converting the USCG to helicopters was on target, but the timing was premature.
Erickson's replacement was afixed-wing officer who was convinced that the future of Coast
Guard aviation lay in large flyingboats. A limited number of heli
copters remained under Erickson'scommand, for "special projects,"but now the HTDU, and Ericksonhimself, were mere "guests" at theair station, rather than the owners.
Two special projects that Ericksonpreserved deserve mention. The firstwas to test the helicopter as a cropsprayer-the objective being to fightmalaria around US bases in Africa
and Asia. Berry designed the installation of a 30-gallon tank, spraybooms and associated plumbing.The rig was ready by Nov 1945, butthe mosquitoes had gone south forthe winter.
Refining the hoist and sling
Development of the rescue hoistand accessory slings continuedthrough 1944. The team tried hoisting a "Stokes" litter, but found thatrotor downwash from the hoveringhelicopter tended to rotate the litter.Slip lines were then used to alignthe litter with the helicopter while itwas being hoisted.
In the fall, a team member suggested a hinged cover for the litter"to keep the patient warm" in flight.A coffinlike contraption, it had asmall window in the top. The onlything one saw through the windowwas the rotor head-as long as itwas turning, one presumed that allwas well. However, despite a num-
,
Naval Operations Admiral Ramseyfrom a skeptic to a supporter of thehel icopter.
After the Manasquan demonstration, Col Gregory ordered severalhoists from the Vickers Company.Engi neers from Wright Field,Sikorsky Aircraft and the KellettAircraft Company visited FloydBennett Field to study the new,improved hydraulic hoist. TheArmy's hoists were ready in late Oct1944, and Erickson sent Chief PettyOfficer Leo Bryzicki to Wright Fieldto assist in the first installation of thehoist in one of USAAF's R4s.
90 PROFESSIONAL PILOT / February 2006