A Korean War Icon — The Bell H-13,Throughout many conflicts in history, certain aircraft becom

A Korean War Icon — The Bell H-13,Throughout many conflicts in history, certain aircraft become icon’s of the conflicts they took part in.  The Sopwith Camel came to respresent World War I.  Planes such as the P-51 Mustang, F4U Corsair, Spitfire, and Me-109 became icons of World War II.  For the high tech battlefields of the Persian Gulf, it was the stealth fighter.  One icon of the Korean War was the diminutive Bell H-13 a small light helicopter that would seem unlikely to be a venerated icon.  However because of their lifesaving mission, as well as being the star of the popular book, movie, and TV series MASH, the Bell H-13 goes down in history as one of the most important aircraft of military aviation.The Bell H-13 was originally introduced as the Bell-47 and 1946, making it the first civilian helicopter on the market.  It was a simple light aircraft, distinguishable by it’s large bubble canopy, exposed welded tube tail boom, and skid landing gear.  It was a small aircraft, manned by 1 or two pilots and with enough room for another person.  It had a cruise speed of around 45 miles per hour and a maximum speed of 105 miles per hour.  Clearly, the Bell H-13 was no helicopter gunship, but shortly after its introduction the military became interested in the design.  It was during the Korean War that the Bell H-13 first cut it’s teeth, with NATO forces using it as a reconnaissance aircraft.  The Bell H-13 had many other uses, however its role as an emergency medical transport would cement its legacy in history.In 1951 the US Army began using the Bell H-13 as an emergency medical transport.  In its combat medical role, the H-13 was outfitted with two patient litters surrounded by protective acrylic glass.  Because the H-13 could only transport two patients, evacuation by helicopter was reserved for only the most series combat casualties, typically soldiers and marines requiring life saving treatment within the “golden hour” or even more pressing “platinum ten minutes.”  The job of the H-13 was to pick up the patients at the front lines, sometimes while under fire, then transport them 10 to 20 miles to a nearby MASH unit (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital).  The use of helicopters was considered an immense success, with 18,000 wounded soldiers evacuated by H-13’s with another 3,000 soldiers evacuated by other models of helicopter.  A hand goes out to the MASH units, were a wounded soldier could expect a 97% survival rate.  Success of the H-13 inspired the US military to expand the helicopter’s role in combat medicine, which further inspired the use of helicopters for civilian medical evacuation.   -- source link
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