Tag Archives: Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warrior

8 December 1962

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Bell YOH-4 N73999 (U.S. Army serial number 62-4202. (U.S. Army)
Bell Model 206 N73999 (U.S. Army YOH-4-BF 62-4202) at the Bell Helicopter Company plant, Hurst, Texas. (Bell Helicopter Co.)
Bell YHO-4-BF. (U.S. Army)
Bell YHO-4. (Bell Helicopter Co.)

8 December 1962: At the Bell Helicopter Company plant at Hurst, Texas, the first Model D-250, N73999 (YHO-4-BF 62-4202) made its first flight.

The United States military had requested proposals from 25 aircraft manufacturers for a Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) to be powered by a gas turbine engine. Eventually, helicopters proposed by three companies were selected for flight testing. These were the Bell YHO-4, the Fairchild Hiller FH-1100, designated as YHO-5, and the Hughes Aircraft Company Model 369, designated YHO-6.

In 1962, U.S. military aircraft designations were standardized between services, and the three helicopters were redesignated YOH-4, YOH-5 and YOH-6. Bell Helicopter had also changed its internal company designation for their proposal from D-250 to Model 206. All three were powered by an Allison T63-A-5 turboshaft engine rated at 250 shaft horsepower (Allison 250-C18).

Bell 206 N73999 (YHO-4-BF-62-4202). (U.S. Army)
Bell 206 N73999 (YHO-4-BF 62-4202). Note the stabilizer bar. (U.S. Army)
A prototype Bell YOH-4 Light Observation Helicopter hovers in ground effect. The vertical fin has been changed from the original ventral configuration. (U.S. Army)

After the fly-off, the Hughes OH-6A Cayuse was selected 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 their Model 206 as a light civil aircraft, but its utilitarian appearance made it a hard sell. The helicopter was redesigned as the Model 206A and given the name JetRanger. This became one of the most successful aircraft ever built and it remained in production until 2011.

The first Bell 206A JetRanger, N8560F. (Bell Helicopter Co.)
The first Bell 206A JetRanger, N8560F. (Bell Helicopter Co.)

As the Vietnam War escalated, the need for helicopters increased. Hughes Aircraft had limited production capacity so the U.S. Army ordered a version of the redesigned Bell YOH-4 as the OH-58A Kiowa (Bell Model 206A-1). Though similar in appearance to the civil 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 turns at a slower r.p.m. Landing skids are mounted differently. The OH-58A has a lower maximum gross weight. There are internal differences as well, for example, the main transmission of the OH-58A has only three planetary gears while the 206B uses four, giving it a greater torque capacity.

The OH-58 Kiowa was continuously upgraded to the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior, with advanced targeting and communications capabilities. The D model uses a composite four-bladed “soft-in-plane” main rotor. Military variants of the civil Bell 206B-3 JetRanger III have been used as training helicopters for the U.S. Navy (TH-57 Sea Ranger) and U.S. Army (TH-67 Creek). The U.S. Army has now retired all of its OH-58s. The final flight of an OH-58D Kiowa Warrior took place in September 2017.

The first production Bell OH-58A-BF Kiowa, 68-16687. (U.S. Army)
The first production Bell OH-58A-BF Kiowa, 68-16687. (Bell Helicopter Co.)

The YOH-4A prototype is in storage at the U.S. Army Aviation Museum, Fort Rucker, Alabama. Because of an error is assigning serial numbers, this aircraft carries a manufacturer’s data plate with the military serial number 62-4201,¹ however, the correct serial number, 62-4202, is painted on the airframe exterior.

A flight of Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warriors scouting in a war zone. (U.S. Army)
A flight of Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warriors scouting in a war zone. (U.S. Army)

¹ Serial number 62-4201 had already been assigned to a Lockheed C-140B-LM JetStar.

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes

6 October 1983

Aviation, , , , , , ,
A flight of two U.S. Army OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopters. (Bell Helicopter)
A flight of two U.S. Army OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopters. (Bell Helicopter)

6 October 1983: First flight of the Bell Helicopter Company Model 406/OH-58D Kiowa reconnaissance helicopter. Developed from the earlier Model 206/OH-58A and OH-58C Kiowa, the D model features a four-blade composite main rotor, an upgraded engine and transmission, and improved avionics. The most visible features are the spherical mast-mounted sighting system above the main rotor and much larger engine/transmission cowling, or “dog house.”

The helicopter was designed with very low level, “nap-of-the-Earth,” (NOE) flight, using terrain and trees for cover. The four-bladed rotor provides more lift and increased responsiveness over the two-bladed semi-rigid rotor of the OH-58A and C.

The mast-mounted sight allows the helicopter to hover behind terrain or trees with just the sight exposed. The sight contains television, thermal imaging and laser range-finding and target designation equipment.

The instrument panel of a Bell OH-58D Kiowa. (Bell helicopter)
The instrument panel of a Bell OH-58D Kiowa. (Bell Helicopter)

Operated by two pilots, the Bell OH-58D Kiowa is 42 feet, 2 inches (12.852 meters) long, with rotors turning. The four-bladed composite main rotor has a diameter of 35 feet (10.668 meters). As is customary with American-designed helicopters, the main rotor turn counter-clockwise as seen from above. (The advancing blade is on the right side of the aircraft.) The two-blade semi-rigid tail rotor is mounted on the left side of the tail boom and turns clockwise when seen from the left. (The advancing blade is below the tail boom.) The overall height of the OH-58D is 12 feet, 10–5/8 inches (3.928 meters). Empty weight of the helicopter is about 3,500 pounds (1,588 kilograms), depending on installed equipment. This is approximately 15% greater than the maximum gross weight of the OH-58A. The OH-58D has a maximum gross weight of 5,500 pounds (2,495 kilograms).

Power for the Kiowa is supplied by a Rolls-Royce T703-AD-700A (Allison 250-C30R3) turboshaft engine which produces 750 shaft horsepower. The main transmission is limited to transient input of 637 shaft horsepower.

The helicopter can be armed with a fixed, remotely-fired, M3P .50-caliber (12.7 mm) machine gun, a pod carrying seven 2.75-inch (70 mm) rockets, or two AGM-114 Hellfire antitank guided missiles.

The OH-58D has a cruise speed of 95 knots (109 miles per hour/176 kilometers per hour) when armed. Its range is 140 nautical miles (161 miles/259 kilometers). The hover ceiling in ground effect (HOGE) at +15 °C. is 7,500 feet MSL (2,286 meters).

An OH-58D Kiowa decelerates as it approaches trees at Fort Lewis, Washington.( U.S. Army)
An OH-58D Kiowa decelerates as it approaches trees during gunnery exercises at Fort Lewis, Washington. A .50-caliber machine gun is mounted on the left side of the helicopter. (U.S. Army)

© 2015, Bryan R. Swopes