Piasecki H-21 Workhorse

Cargo /Passenger Transport Tandem-Rotor Helicopter [ 1953 ]

The awkward-looking Piasecki H-21 Workhorse series of tandem-rotor transport helicopters was aptly-nicknamed the Flying Banana.

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The Piasecki H-21 tandem-rotor helicopter was born from a line of Piasecki products that began with the HRP-1. The HRP-1 utilized a tandem-rotor arrangement and first flew in 1945 before eventually being adopted by the United States Navy, Marine Corps and the Coast Guard. Twenty-eight examples were completed with service beginning in 1947. With this framework came the H-21 in the late 1940s, developed along the lines of cold weather rescue service. The United States Air Force contracted for thirty-two of the type and knew it as the H-21 "Workhorse". Due to its unique shape, the H-21 - and its predecessors - were nicknamed the "Flying Banana". A first flight was had in April of 1952, its design attributed to Frank Piasecki himself.

The H-21 was based on the HRP-1 but incorporated more modern elements to its construction for a more robust end-product. The cockpit was heavily glazed for excellent vision by the crew and positioned at the extreme front end of the fuselage. The fuselage was pulled downward aft of midships, giving the cockpit a "nose up" appearance and driving the tail upwards as well - providing the H-21 its most unique look. At the lowest point of the fuselage were the fixed main landing gear legs (wheeled) while a wheeled leg was held under the nose. Each main rotor consisted of three-blade assemblies and the collapsed nature of the fuselage center ensured that the main rotor blades did not interact at any one point - reducing the chance of a fatal accident occurring. Their rotation was counter to reduce inherent torque and maximize control/stability. Vertical tail fins were situated outboard of the rear main rotor position. Internally, the H-21 was crewed by two in the cockpit and held space for up to 20 fully-laden combat troops or up to twelve medical litters with accompanying medical staff. Performance included a maximum speed over 130 miles per hour and a range out to 400 miles.

H-21A marked the early Search and Rescue (SAR) models for the USAF and these came fitted with a Curtis-Wright R-1820-103 "Cyclone" supercharged air-cooled radial engine of 1,150 horsepower. The mark numbered 32 in all and were followed by the "H-21B" which was developed into an assault transport through 163 examples. The engine was changed over to a Wright 103 model outputting at 1,425 horsepower for improved performance. Additionally, the main rotor blades saw an increase to their diameter as the blades were lengthened some six inches. The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) soon joined the USAF in operation of the H-21 series (both A- and B-models).

In the early 1950s, the USMC shared interest in the H-21 and several H-21A models were used for evaluations. During 1957, an H-21B arrived and was used as a ship tug. The H-21C was a United States Army designation which carried the name of "Shawnee" and featured the Wright 103 engine. These were later redesignated under the "CH-21" model marker.

Production of H-21s spanned from 1952 until 1959 and their operational service ran into 1967. Beyond the United States and Canada, global operators included France, West Germany, Japan, and Sweden. New York Airways operated a civilian form as several models of the line were designed with passenger-hauling capabilities in mind. The French pressed their H-21C models into combat service during the Algerian War (1954-1962) in the gunship role armed with rockets and machine guns though this exposure was far from a complete success. Nevertheless the helicopter continued on in its given transport roles through to the end of the French commitment.

American H-21s were deployed during the Vietnam War (1955-1975) from December 1961 on and these were typically armed through trainable machine guns of 7.62mm and 12.7mm caliber for defensive purposes. However, their service in the conflict was relatively short-lived as the line was superseded in its over-battlefield roles by the new Bell UH-1 "Huey" and Boeing CH-47 "Chinook" series helicopters. The former excelled in the assault /gunship roles while the latter continued the tandem-rotor tradition and was cleared for heavy hauling. The war showcased several deficiencies in the H-21 design - slow performance and susceptibility to ground fire as well as below average hot weather operation. Their services in the war was greatly reduced from 1964 on.

A U.S. Army H-21C became the first American helicopter to cross the country non-stop on August 24th, 1954. In-flight refueling made this feat possible.

In 1959, Vertol Aircraft acquired the Piasecki concern, later becoming Boeing Vertol. A heavy-lift H-21 version was contemplated that featured conjoined H-21 airframes hauling very-heavy loads (the number of H-21s involved could vary based on cargo subject weight). This idea was not finalized into an in-service form.©MilitaryFactory.com

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Specifications

Service Year

1953

Origin

United States

Status

RETIRED
Not in Service.

Crew

2

Production

500
UNITS

Piasecki Helicopter / Boeing Vertol - USA

(View other Aviaton-Related Manufacturers)

Canada; France; Germany; Japan; Sweden; United States

(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)

✓ Ground Attack (Bombing, Strafing)
Ability to conduct aerial bombing of ground targets by way of (but not limited to) guns, bombs, missiles, rockets, and the like.

✓ Close-Air Support (CAS)
Developed to operate in close proximity to active ground elements by way of a broad array of air-to-ground ordnance and munitions options.

✓ Special-Mission: MEDical EVACuation (MEDEVAC)
Extraction of wounded combat or civilian elements by way of specialized onboard equipment and available internal volume or external carrying capability.

✓ Special-Mission: Search & Rescue (SAR)
Ability to locate and extract personnel from areas of potential harm or peril (i.e. downed airmen in the sea).

✓ Transport
General transport functionality to move supplies/cargo or personnel (including wounded and VIP) over range.

✓ Commercial Aviation
Used in roles serving the commercial aviation market, ferrying both passengers and goods over range.

✓ Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance (ISR), Scout
Surveil ground targets / target areas to assess environmental threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.

Length

52.5 ft
(16.00 m)

Width/Span

44.0 ft
(13.40 m)

Height

15.7 ft
(4.80 m)

Empty Wgt

8,946 lb
(4,058 kg)

MTOW

15,196 lb
(6,893 kg)

Wgt Diff

+6,250 lb
(+2,835 kg)

(Showcased structural values pertain to the Piasecki CH-21C Workhorse production variant)

Installed: 1 x Wright R-1820-103 radial engine delivering 1,425 horsepower to 2 x three-blade main rotors.

Max Speed

127 mph
(204 kph | 110 kts)

Ceiling

9,449 ft
(2,880 m | 2 mi)

Range

265 mi
(426 km | 789 nm)

♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the Piasecki CH-21C Workhorse production variant. Performance specifications showcased above are subject to environmental factors as well as aircraft configuration. Estimates are made when Real Data not available. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database or View aircraft by powerplant type)

OPTIONAL:
7.62mm or 12.7mm machine guns on fixed or trainable mountings; rockets fitted to some gunship models.

Supported Types

Graphical image of an aircraft medium machine gun

Graphical image of an aircraft heavy machine gun

Graphical image of aircraft aerial rockets

(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)

Hardpoint Mountings: 0

XH-21 - USAF designation of single prototype.

YH-21 "Workhorse" - Service Test Designation; 18 examples produced.

H-21A "Workhorse" Model 42 - Based on the YH-21 evaluation models; fitted with 1 x Wright R-1820-102 engine of 1,250 horsepower; 38 examples produced; redesignated to CH-21A in 1962.

H-21B "Workhorse" Model 42 - Based on H-21A production models; fitting 1 x Wright powerplant of 1,425 horsepower; 20-seat internal passenger capacity; standardized autopilot system; provision for external fuel tanks; armor protection; redesignated to CH-21B from 1962 onwards; 183 examples produced.

H-21C "Shawnee" Model 43 - Based on the H-21B production model for use by the US Army; 464 examples produced locally and under license in Germany; redesignated to CH-21C in 1962.

XH-21D "Shawnee" Model 71 - Proposed General Electric T58 turboshaft-powered model; 2 examples modified from -21C production models; never produced.

CH-21A - 1962 designation change of H-21A production models.

CH-21B - 1962 designation change of H-21B production models.

CH-21C - 1962 designation change of H-21C production models.

SH-21B - Based on the H-21B production model; modified as a rescue platform; redesignated to HH-21B in 1962.

HH-21B - Redesignation of SH-21B production model.

Model 42A - Vertol Aircraft of Canada conversions of H-21 military models for civilian operation; 19-passenger seating.

Model 44A - Civilian conversion model of military H-21B models.

Model 44B - Civilian 15-passenger seating conversion model of H-21B military models.

Model 44C - Civilian 8-passenger VIP transport version of the H-21B military model.

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