The World’s Best Choppers
Everything from that monster in Swordfish that lifted the bus to the Chinook.
Erickson Air-Crane – Number 10
Nicknamed the Dragonfly – it is one of the most powerful and versatile choppers ever made. Originally designed to recover other helicopters and aircrafts that went down during a war and move heavy military equipment, the mighty Airrane excels in civilian duties as well. Since this beast can scoop up thousand gallons of water in a mere 45 seconds, firefighting is something it’s extensively used for. It costs around $140,000 a day just to fly th, so
Lama – Number 9
Originally designed for the Indian Air Force todefend our high-altitude borders in the Himalaya, it’s currently the highestflying chopper in the world. While most helicopters have trouble flying higher than 10,000 feet, the Lama can perform very efficiently in double th altitude. What makes this high flyer so efficient? Its 870 HP engine and a super-light framewhich is actually nothing more than a plexiglass bubble for the pilot to sit in attached to an open tail and rotator blades.
Chinook – No 8
A real workhorse, the Chinook carries out transportation of troops, artillery, supplies and equipment to the battlefield. giant its double intermeshing rotors it incredible amounts of power a great capacity to haul tons of equipment and loads of people. It doesn’t compromise on speed either. Even when carrying its full capacity – 12 tons (that’s around 5 fullygrown African elephants) the Chinook can fly at speeds of 260 Km/hr.
Jet Ranger Number 7
ithout a shadow of a doubt the best selling civilian helicopter n the planet. Originally developed by its maker Bell helicopters for the US army for lightobservation purposes, it lost the contract and was then re-developed to serve commercial purposes. has the best safety record of any helicopter in its class and has the lowest operating costs burning just 30 lit of fuel an hour. The plush wellappointed leather interiors can comfortably seat up to four passengers (plus the pilot) and promise to fly you to your destination in style.
Sea King – Number 6
Developed for the British Royal Forces in 1959 to win the Falklands War it had one primary mission – to seek and destroy enemy submarines. The Sea King has been in service for more than 25 years and 344 are in service with the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, with the navies of Australia, Egypt, Germany, India and Pakistan. This search and destroy machine can carry two antiship missiles, four torpedoes, six MK11 heat seeking missiles and several thousand rounds of ammunition for the M360 D cannon.
Westland Lynx – Number 5
Developed during the Cold War to ambush tanks using its optically tracked TOW missiles, the Lynx is an extremely powerful aircraft. It’s very agile, very maneuverable and very responsive. Not surprisingly it also happens to be the fastest chopper in the world. an amazing 321 kilometers an hour, the Lynx has held the world speed record for over 30 years.
M26 – Number 4
The problem of transporting nuclear missiles and warheads to Siberia during the Cold War was solved with the development of Mil 26 – the largest and most powerful helicopter ever made. With capability to lift 40,000 pounds, there is nothing that out-lifts th. It’s the only helicopter to have eight rotor blades and is roughly 50 times more powerful than a Ferrari.
Apache Longbow – Number 3
With its 30 millimeter chain gun stationed right under the co-pilots station fir at the rate of 650 rounds a minutea rocket that can shoot a dozen folding-fin aerial rockets and missile launchers deadly Hellfire missilesApache Longbow the ultimate fighting machine and the world’s deadliest helicopter. It however comes with a hefty price tag: 25 million US dollars.
Robinson R22 – Number 2
ince WWII, that one day we’ll be able to own a personal flying machine that would serve the same purpose as a regular car. The dream came true with the R22. The two-seat R22 and its big brotherthe four-seat R44 were the brainchild of one man, Frank Robinson bored helicopter designer who in 1973, set out to bring flying to the masses. The Robinson R22 is affordable, reliable, efficient and fast. Moreover, it practical. It is a the first time a helicopter personal transport. At just 185,000 dollars, the R22 is the same price as a top-end Mercedes and that’s made flying possible for practically anyone.
Bell UH-1 – Number 1
There is no other helicopter that is as recogniable as the Huey. The Huey was the first mass-produced helicopter with a turbine engine. This nearly doubled the speed it could fly at and meant it could lift nearly twice as much payload. The Huey very simplistic in design, but it’s still a very rugged helicopter. In the Vietnam ar the U.S. Army lost only one helicopter for every 8,000 missions that were flown during the conflict. Its toughness is legendary. The chopper could take multiple hits in the rotor system the fuselage still keep flying Bell UH-1 number on our list.
From the August 2011 issue of FHM India.
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