Sikorsky H-34
American helicopter / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Sikorsky H-34 "Choctaw" (company designation S-58) is an American piston-engined military helicopter originally designed by Sikorsky as an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft for the United States Navy. It has seen extended use when adapted to turbine power by the British licensee as the Westland Wessex and Sikorsky as the later S-58T.
Sikorsky H-34 / S-58 | |
---|---|
A United States Army CH-34 | |
Role | Helicopter |
National origin | United States |
Manufacturer | Sikorsky Aircraft |
First flight | 8 March 1954 |
Introduction | 1954 |
Status | In service |
Primary users | United States Army United States Navy United States Marine Corps |
Produced | 1954–1970[1] (Foreign production of derivatives and sub-types continued under license after the Sikorsky production ended.) |
Number built | 2,108[citation needed] |
Developed from | Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw |
Developed into | Westland Wessex |
H-34s served, mostly as medium transports, on every continent with the armed forces of 25 countries. It saw combat in Algeria, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and throughout Southeast Asia. Other uses included saving flood victims, recovering astronauts, fighting fires, and carrying presidents. It was the last piston-engined helicopter to be operated by the United States Marine Corps, having been replaced by turbine-powered types such as the UH-1 Huey and CH-46 Sea Knight. A total of 2,108 H-34s were manufactured between 1953 and 1970.[2]