Rabu, Desember 08, 2010

Israel develops aerodynamic helicopter cargo container

The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk

The Israel Defence Force (IDF) has developed a new cargo container for carriage under a helicopter which, with specially designed aerodynamic wings, enables the aircraft to fly at almost regular speeds while carrying over a ton in supplies.

The new container was developed by the IDF's Technological and Logistics Directorate and the Israeli Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) Research and Development Directorate (MAFAT). IDF sources told Jane's that the MoD plans to issue a request for information (RfI) to local industries for large-scale production in the coming months.

The motivation behind the development of the new cargo container came from lessons learned from the IDF's war in Lebanon in 2006 when helicopters and C-130 transport aircraft were called in to transport supplies to forces operating behind enemy lines due to the difficulty the military encountered in opening land-based logistic supply lines.

The new container was aerodynamically engineered with stabilisers and add-on wings to enable IAF transport helicopters - Sikorsky CH-53 and the UH-60 Black Hawk - to carry large loads but without having to dramatically slow down their speeds.

"The upgraded container allows a helicopter to move with the same weight at three-quarters of its speed as opposed to about half its speed as was the case until now," an IDF officer told Jane's .

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