The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a tandem-rotor helicopter originally developed by American rotorcraft company Vertol and now manufactured by Boeing Defense, Space & Security. The Chinook is the second-heaviest-lifting Western heavy-lift helicopter, behind the Sikorsky CH-53. Its name comes from the Chinook people, who are indigenous to the Pacific Northwest of the United States.
The Chinook was designed by Vertol, which had begun work in 1957 on a new tandem-rotor helicopter, designated as the Vertol Model 107 or V-107. Around the same time, the United States Department of the Army announced its intention to replace the piston-engine–powered Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave with a new, gas turbine–powered helicopter. During June 1958, the U.S. Army ordered a small number of V-107s from Vertol under the YHC-1A designation; following testing, some Army officials considered it to be too heavy for the assault missions and too light for transport purposes. While the YHC-1A would be improved and adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps as the CH-46 Sea Knight, the Army sought a heavier transport helicopter and ordered an enlarged derivative of the V-107 with the Vertol designation Model 114. Initially designated as the YHC-1B, on 21 September 1961, the preproduction rotorcraft performed its maiden flight. In 1962, the HC-1B was redesignated CH-47A under the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system. Boeing had purchased Vertol in 1960, forming the Vertol division of Boeing, leading to some early production variants being produced as Boeing Vertol CH-47 Chinook.
The Chinook possesses several means of loading various cargoes, including multiple doors across the fuselage, a wide loading ramp located at the rear of the fuselage, and three external ventral cargo hooks to carry underslung loads. Capable of a top speed of , upon its introduction to service in 1962, the helicopter was considerably faster than contemporary 1960s utility helicopters and attack helicopters, and is still one of the fastest helicopters in the US inventory. Improved and more powerful versions of the Chinook have also been developed since its introduction; one of the most substantial variants to be produced was the CH-47D, which first entered service in 1982; improvements from the CH-47C standard included upgraded engines, composite rotor blades, a redesigned cockpit to reduce workload, improved and redundant electrical systems and avionics, and the adoption of an advanced flight control system. It remains one of the few aircraft to be developed during the early 1960s – along with the fixed-wing Lockheed C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft – that has remained in both production and frontline service for over 60 years.
The military version of the helicopter has been exported to various nations; the U.S. Army and the Royal Air Force (see Boeing Chinook (UK variants)) have been its two largest users. The civilian version of the Chinook is the Boeing Vertol 234. It has been used by civil operators not only for passenger and cargo transport, but also for aerial firefighting and to support logging, construction, and oil-extraction industries.
Design and development
Initial development During late 1956, the U.S. Department of the Army announced its intention to replace the Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave, which was powered by piston engines, with a new, gas turbine-powered helicopter. Turbine engines were also a key design feature of the smaller UH-1 "Huey" utility helicopter. Following a design competition, in September 1958, a joint Army–Air Force source selection board recommended that the Army procure the Vertol-built medium-transport helicopter. Funding for full-scale development was not then available, though, and the Army vacillated on its design requirements. Some officials in Army Aviation thought that the new helicopter should be operated as a light tactical transport aimed at taking over the missions of the old piston-engined Piasecki H-21 and Sikorsky H-34 helicopters, and be consequently capable of carrying about 15 troops (one squad). Another faction in Army Aviation thought that the new helicopter should be much larger, enabling it to airlift large artillery pieces and possess enough internal space to carry the new MGM-31 "Pershing" missile system.
During 1957, Vertol commenced work upon a new tandem-rotor helicopter, designated as the Vertol Model 107 or V-107.Apostolo, Giorgio. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Helicopters. New York: Bonanza Books. 1984. .Goebel, Greg. . Vectorsite.net, 1 December 2009. During June 1958, the U.S. Army awarded a contract to Vertol for the acquisition of a small number of the rotorcraft, giving it the YHC-1A designation.Spenser, Jay P. Whirlybirds, A History of the U.S. Helicopter Pioneers. University of Washington Press, 1998. . As ordered, the YHC-1A possessed the capacity to carry a maximum of 20 troops. Three underwent testing by the Army for deriving engineering and operational data. However, the YHC-1A was considered by many figures within the Army users to be too heavy for the assault role, while too light for the more general transport role. Accordingly, a decision was made to procure a heavier transport helicopter, and at the same time, upgrade the UH-1 "Huey" to serve as the needed tactical troop transport. The YHC-1A would be improved and adopted by the Marines as the CH-46 Sea Knight in 1962. As a result, the Army issued a new order to Vertol for an enlarged derivative of the V-107, known by internal company designation as the Model 114, which it gave the designation of HC-1B. On 21 September 1961, the preproduction Boeing Vertol YHC-1B made its initial hovering flight. During 1962, the HC-1B was redesignated the CH-47A under the 1962 United States Tri-Service aircraft designation system; it was also named "Chinook" after the Chinook people of the Pacific Northwest.
The CH-47 is powered by two turboshaft engines, mounted on each side of the helicopter's rear pylon and connected to three-blade rotors by drive shafts. Initial models were fitted with Lycoming T55 engines rated at each. The counter-rotating rotors eliminate the need for an antitorque vertical rotor, allowing all power to be used for lift and thrust. The ability to adjust lift in either rotor makes it less sensitive to changes in the center of gravity, important for the cargo lifting and dropping. While hovering over a specific location, a twin-rotor helicopter has increased stability over a single rotor when weight is added or removed, for example, when troops drop from or begin climbing up ropes to the aircraft, or when other cargo is dropped. If one engine fails, the other can drive both rotors. The "sizing" of the Chinook was directly related to the growth of the Huey and the Army's tacticians' insistence that initial air assaults be built around the squad. The Army pushed for both the Huey and the Chinook, and this focus was responsible for the acceleration of its air mobility effort.
Improved and later versions
Improved and more powerful versions of the CH-47 have been developed since the helicopter entered service. Often, the same airframe was upgraded to later standards, or sometimes the airframes were built to the newer upgrade. The U.S. Army's first major design leap was the now-common CH-47D, which entered service in 1982. Improvements from the CH-47C included upgraded engines, composite rotor blades, a redesigned cockpit to reduce pilot workload, improved and redundant electrical systems, an advanced flight control system, and improved avionics. The latest (2009) mainstream generation is the CH-47F, which features several major upgrades to reduce maintenance, digitized flight controls, and is powered by two Honeywell engines.
An example of a British upgraded version is the HC.4, which first flew on 9 December 2010.Parsons, Gary. "First Project Julius Chinook flies" . Key Publishing via key.aero, 24 January 2011.
A commercial model of the Chinook, the Boeing-Vertol Model 234, is used worldwide for logging, construction, forest fire suppression, and petroleum-extraction operations. In December 2006, Columbia Helicopters Inc. purchased the type certificate of the Model 234 from Boeing. The Chinook has also been licensed to be built by companies outside the United States, such as Agusta (later AgustaWestland, now Leonardo) in Italy and Kawasaki in Japan.
CH-47F orders In February 2007, the Royal Netherlands Air Force became the first international customer of the CH-47F model, expanding their Chinook fleet to 17. On 10 August 2009, Canada signed a contract for 15 extensively modified and upgraded CH-47Fs for the Canadian Forces, later delivered in 2013–2014 with the Canadian designation CH-147F. On 15 December 2009, Britain announced its Future Helicopter Strategy, including the purchase of 24 new CH-47Fs to be delivered from 2012."As Cuts Loom, Britain Orders 24 Chinooks From Boeing". Defense News, 15 December 2009. Australia ordered seven CH-47Fs in March 2010 to replace its six CH-47Ds between 2014 and 2017."Australia Ordering CH-47F Chinooks" . Defense Industry Daily, 22 March 2010. In September 2015, India approved purchase of 15 CH-47F Chinooks. On 7 November 2016, Singapore announced that the CH-47F would replace its older Chinooks, which had been in service since 1994, enabling the Republic of Singapore Air Force to meet its requirements for various operations, including search-and-rescue, aeromedical evacuation, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations. The German government announced in June 2022 that the CH-47F Block 2 was selected as the winner of its heavy helicopter program to replace its Sikorsky CH-53G Sea Stallion fleet. Germany is planning to buy sixty airframes to boost heavy lift capability.
Spain had 17 CH-47s, which it is planning to upgrade to CH-47F standards. By 2023, 13 CH-47Ds were upgraded to CH-47Fs, and additionally, four newly built CH-47Fs were acquired.
Operational history
Vietnam War
The Army finally settled on the larger Chinook as its standard medium-transport helicopter, and by February 1966, 161 aircraft had been delivered to the Army. The 1st Cavalry Division had brought its organic Chinook battalion (three Chinook companies) when it arrived in 1965 and a separate aviation medium helicopter company, the 147th, had arrived in Vietnam on 29 November 1965. This latter company was initially placed in direct support of the 1st Infantry Division. CH-47 crews quickly learned to mount an M60 machine gun in each of the forward doors. Sometimes, they also installed an M2 machine gun to fire from the rear cargo door.
The most spectacular mission in Vietnam for the Chinook was the placing of artillery batteries in perilous mountain positions inaccessible by any other means, and then keeping them resupplied with large quantities of ammunition. The 1st Cavalry Division found that its CH-47s were limited to a payload when operating in the mountains, but could carry an additional when operating near the coast.
As with any new piece of equipment, the Chinook presented a major problem of "customer education". Commanders and crew chiefs had to be constantly alert that eager soldiers did not overload the temptingly large cargo compartment. Quite some time was needed before troops would be experts at using sling loads. The Chinook soon proved to be such an invaluable aircraft for artillery movement and heavy logistics that it was seldom used as an assault troop carrier. Some of the Chinook fleet was used for casualty evacuation, and due to the very heavy demand for the helicopters, they were usually overburdened with wounded. Perhaps the most cost effective use of the Chinook was the recovery of other downed aircraft.