It belongs to Pirate Airlift based at the Jackson County Airport, Jefferson, GA. I talked to the owner/pilot when they were doing a job near me. It is a complete rebuild after it crashed in 2002. It was previously used to fly tourists over the Grand Canyon. That's why it has those large windows in the doors. It has had many owner/operators over the years, even on display at a Canadian museum for a while. Originally delivered to the USAF as an H-19B Chickasaw (53-4414).
Thank you. Your background knowledge is spot-on! It was Papillon Helicopters that operated this aircraft, out of Las Vegas on Grand Canyon flights. I think it may have been re-engined with a Garrett AiResearch turbine. In 2004, I was in Las Vegas and enquired about flying in this type, but it had been discontinued. Instead, I flew with Maverick Helicopters, in an EC130, which was a fabulous experience.
People ask: Why does it sound like a Huey? Interesting question! A lot of what you hear is tail rotor growl. The UH-1 and S-55 tail rotors are about the same size and turn at about the same rpm, producing a similar noise. As for the main rotor... The UH-1 rotor turns at around 324 rpm. But it has two blades, so two-per-revolution means that you hear a blade 648 times per minute. The S-55 rotor turns at 220 rpm. But it has **three** blades, so you're hearing 660 blades pass by for every one revolution. The aural difference is quite small. And so the S-55 sounds like a Huey. For comparison, the Bell 206 main rotor turns a frenetic 394 rpm, meaning that you hear 788 blades per revolution! You would never mistake an S-55 for a 206. Oh, and the exhaust is angled up to make it quieter. The conversion to "Whisperjet" configuration (5-blades and the muffled exhaust) was designed to make the ship less noticeable to people on the ground. Turbine engines can be quite annoying. A standard (i.e. non-Whisperjet) turbine conversion of the S-55 has an unmuffled exhaust that comes out the front of the engine cowling. When it's nearby, it is just as loud as the piston version, but with an unpleasant high-pitched whine replacing the arguably more acceptable low-pitch roar of the radial engine.
That originally had a radial engine, never see one with a turbine. Odd that the jet exhaust is pointed up, but I guess that's the best solution for a retrofit.
I know where this helicopter is located as well. Some great photos of it and another on here. Good to see those old vintage helicopters back up and flying.
This S-55QT helicopter was designed by/ for Papillon Helicopters to fly tourists over the Grand Canyon, as bk1160 already mentioned. The reason it sounds different I would guess is because of the noise cancelling measurements that were built in: the idea was to have less helicopter noise in the Grand Canyon. The exhaust is muffled, and so is the engine and air intake. If you surpress the engine noise, the sound of the main rotor will be more audible. This gives the machine its indeed very distinctive sound! As a matter of fact the 55QT even had a five blade main rotor to also reduce the main rotor noise. On the ship in this clip however it looks like the original three blade main rotor remained.
Thank you for putting this video together. It’s great to see such a classic helicopter, looking so new, and flying. Do you know if it ever used to fly passengers? If so, how many seats does it have?
