From Past to Present OH-58D "Kiowa Warrior" Armed Reconnaissance/Surveillance Helicopter (Part-1)
The helicopter was named Kiowa Warrior in reference to the Kiowa Warriors' warrior spirit as well as their horsemanship, bravery and valor in defense of their land.
What Does Kiowa Warrior Mean?
The name Kiowa Warrior in the name of this American Bell-made helicopter may not have the same connotation for everyone who hears it. The name Kiowa Warrior comes from the Kiowa tribe, one of the tribes of American Indians. Strangely, the tendency of the Americans to name vehicles of war, especially helicopters, after these Indian tribes, which they once wanted to exterminate, leads many people like me to deep thoughts.
Traditionally in the Americas, the Kiowas lived nomadically, following herds of bison and hunting across the vast plains from Montana to Texas. Before the 17th century, when the Spanish introduced them to and took horses from them, the Kiowas were primarily hunters on foot, relying on their skill and endurance to track and capture bison. With the introduction of horses, they became expert riders, known for their warrior culture.
Like many Native American tribes, the Kiowas faced significant challenges in the 19th century due to westward expansion, forced relocation and conflict with the US government. Despite these challenges, the Kiowas persevered, preserving their distinct cultural identity and traditions. Today, the Kiowa Tribe is based in southwestern Oklahoma, where they seek to pass on their language, traditions and cultural heritage to future generations.
I believe the name "Kiowa Warrior" was a reference to the Kiowa people's historic warrior culture, referring to the Kiowa Warriors' skilled horsemanship, bravery and valor in defense of their land, as well as their warrior spirit.
The photo shows a family of Kiowa Indians (Photo by JV Dedrick, 1908)
The photo shows the OH-58D Kiowa Warriors Helicopter, which entered the Croatian Army inventory at the end of 2016. (Photo; Dirk Jan de Ridder 2018)
Development of the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior Armed Reconnaissance/Surveillance Helicopter
Those with limited and inadequate knowledge of aircraft design can easily fall into the misconception that the design of aircraft is easily done. In the design of helicopters, it is noteworthy that Bell's design engineers developed another model based on one model.
The US military had requested proposals from 25 aircraft manufacturers for a Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) to be powered by a gas turbine engine. In the end, helicopters proposed by three companies were selected for flight tests. These were the Bell YHO-4, the Fairchild Hiller FH-1100, designated YHO-5, and the Hughes Aircraft Company Model 369, designated YHO-6. In 1962, American military aircraft designations were standardized across services and the three helicopters were redesignated YOH-4, YOH-5 and YOH-6.
In the photo below; Hiller's first flight in the YOH-5 (FH-1100) took place on January 21, 1963.
In the photo above; Hughes YOH-6A 62-4213 at Edwards Air Force Base, 1966 (FAI) (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale). The Hughes YOH-6A made its first flight on February 27, 1963.
Bell Helicopter had changed its internal designation for its offerings from the D-250 to the Model 206. All three were powered by Allison T63-A-5 turboshaft engines with 250 shaft horsepower (Allison 250-C18). Let's add an important piece of information before we forget it. Although the designs of all three helicopter manufacturers were different in 1962, they used the same engine in the first phase, not different engines. Jack Schweibold, a test pilot for the Allison Engine Company at the time of the selection, wrote "In The Safety Of His Wings: A Test Pilots Adventures" contains interesting information.
On December 8, 1962, the first Model Bell (D-250) (Model 206), N73999 (YHO-4-BF 62-4202) made its first flight at the Bell Helicopter Company factory in Hurst, Texas.
In the photo below; Bell Model 206 N73999 (US Army YOH-4-BF 62-4202), which made its first flight on December 8, 1962, at the Bell Helicopter Company factory in Hurst, Texas. (Bell Helicopter)
In the photo above; Colorized Bell YHO-4 (Bell Helicopter)
Following Operational Test and Evaluation flights, the US Army selected the Hughes OH-6A Cayuse for production. With the LOH classification, the OH-6 earned the nickname "Loach". Modern variants of the OH-6, now the AH-6 and MH-6 "Little Bird", remain in service with United States special operations forces.
Bell Helicopter tried to market the Model 206 as a light civilian helicopter, but without success. This was because Bell felt that the Model 206's unattractive bubble face and guppy fuselage turned off image-conscious buyers. After these negative developments, Bell Helicopter produced the Model 206A Jet Ranger, which first flew on January 10, 1966. In addition to a more attractive front profile, the Jet Ranger featured a 317 hp Allison 250-C18 engine and luggage space behind the five-seat passenger cabin. The helicopter was redesigned as the Model 206A and renamed the JetRanger. It became one of the most successful helicopters ever built and production continued until 2011.
In Vietnam, the need for reconnaissance helicopters grew as the fighting in the Vietnam War escalated and intensified. While Bell in the United States was busy converting its Model 206 into the 206A, Hughes OH-6A Cayuse helicopters were flying extensively in Vietnam to perform reconnaissance and artillery fire correction missions for the Army's air cavalry units. Of the 1,500 Hughes OH-6 Cayuse helicopters sent to fight in Vietnam, a staggering 635 were shot down by the Viet Cong. Again in Vietnam, 297 OH-6A Cayuse were lost in various accidents. In total, 932 helicopters were lost. This was 22% of all American helicopter losses in the war. As OH-6A Cayuse losses increased during the Vietnam War, the pressure on Hughes to produce new ones increased.
One of the factors that contributed to the OH-58A Kiowa going to Vietnam was that the Bell Helicopter production line worked faster than Hughes, and the second factor was hidden in Hughes Aircraft's marketing strategy, which you will be surprised to read about. To sweeten the deal, Hughes was offering the OH-6A Cayuse helicopter for US$17,000 (excluding engine and avionics; another article puts the price at US$19,860 against Hiller's YOH-5 (FH-1100) at US$29,415).
It turned out that Hughes had also offered the original OH-6A price well below actual production costs in order to win the LOH competition. To compensate for their financial shortfall, Hughes Helicopter now asked for $56,550 per helicopter for a new batch of OH-6As in response to the reopening of the LOH tender in 1967. Since Bell's price was $54,200 per helicopter for the OH-58A Kiowa, the US Army selected Bell's candidate, a version of the redesigned Bell YOH-4, the OH-58A Kiowa (Bell Model 206A-1) in March 1968. A total of 312 OH-58As served in Vietnam between 1969 and 1973, 48 of which were lost in the Vietnam War.
As a result, the Hughes OH-6A Cayuse helicopter, which flew more flights and was more numerous than any other reconnaissance helicopter, dominated the data and information on the use of US reconnaissance helicopters in Vietnam.
Although similar in appearance to the civilian Bell 206A JetRanger, the OH-58A has significant differences and few parts are interchangeable between models. The Kiowa's main rotor blades and tail boom are longer than the JetRanger's. The rotor system rotates at a slower speed. The landing skids are mounted differently. The OH-58A has a lower maximum gross weight. There are also internal differences; for example, the OH-58A's main gearbox has only three planetary gears, while the 206B has four, giving it a greater torque capacity.
Later on, the OH-58A Kiowa helicopter was replaced by the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter, with its surveillance, reconnaissance, targeting and communications capabilities continuously improved since its first flight. The D model uses a composite four-bladed "soft-in-plane" main rotor. Military variants of the civilian Bell 206B-3 JetRanger III were used as training helicopters for the US Navy (TH-57 Sea Ranger) and the US Army (TH-67 Creek). The US Army has now retired all of its OH-58Ds. The last flight of the OH-58D in the US Army took place in September 2017.
In the photo below; 1968 first production Bell OH-58A-BF Kiowa, 68-16687. (Bell Helicopter)
The photo above shows the cable cutters marked with a red arrow on the OH-58A Kiowa helicopter that entered the US Army inventory in May 1969. Also, OH-58A Kiowa with the original backward exhaust outlet. After the 1972 Easter Offensive in Vietnam, the OH-58A Kiowa exhaust outlets were modified to face upwards towards the rotor outline to make them less visible to IR-seeking missiles. (Image Source: militaryfactory.com)
Below, Photo of the first Bell 206A JetRanger, N8560F. (Bell Helicopter)
