Lockheed US-101 / VH-71 Tests At Mojave
E-I-C Note: By prior arrangement with
Mojave's ace observer/photog, Alan Radecki, we're pleased to offer
these shots and observations of the President's future ride, VH-71.
Alan has this amazing weblog that chronicles the many notable
comings and goings that make Mojave one of the most intriguing
airports on the face of the planet... even when Burt isn't up to
something funky. Do check out www.mojaveweblog.com
and get an eyeful of Alan's outstanding work. Just wait
til we start testing the Rocket Racing League's
X-Racers next year... we're gonna give him a
show! -- Jim Campbell, ANN E-I-C, RRL Rocket
Jockey.
The next generation of Marine One, the helicopter that carries
the President, is the US-101, which has recently received the
official designation VH-71.
Wednesday, the ninth and last pre-production prototype visited
winding Mojave for flight testing that is believed to have involved
the helicopter's capabilities to auto-hover in high winds.
Auto-hover is a feature of some helicopters' autopilot system which
allows the pilot highly stable, hands-free hover
operations.
A derivative of the European EH-101, the US-101 raised no small
amount of controversy when it beat out its American-designed
Sikorsky competitor for the Marine One contract. The team members
are publicly emphasizing that the aircraft will be US-build and
US-powered, resulting in a lot of US jobs. Lockheed is the team
leader and systems integrator for the US-101 program. The original
EH-101 is a Westland design, with Agusta collaborating and building
many of the components for the European variant. Bell Helicopter
Textron will build the American version in Texas, which is powered
by GE engines.
Positioned perpendicular to Rwy 8/26, the US-101 was flown
slowly sideways up and the down the runway, occasionally stopping
to make a 360 degree pirouette. What made this an important test of
the auto-hover system was the 15-20 kt quartering tailwind, which
is never fun to hover in!
Note the unusual blade tips. These are a derivative Westland's
ground-breaking British Experimental Rotor Program (or BERP
blades...only the Brits could come up with an acronym like
that!).
The blade tips, by their odd shape, fool the air into thinking
that their Mach number is lower so that the helicopter can be flown
faster. The original experimental BERP-equipped helo set a speed
record where the tips were moving at Mach .977, an amazingly high
number for a helicopter.