The Bell UH-1 series Iroquois, better known as the “Huey,” became the most widely used military helicopter, beginning its arrival in Vietnam in 1963 and seeing more than 5,000 introduced into Southeast Asia before the conflict ended. These versatile aircraft served in MedEvac, command and control, air assault, transport of personnel and materiel, and as gun ships. With more than 9,000 produced from the 1950s to the present, the Huey has been considered the most widely used helicopter in the world and is flown today by about 40 countries. The Bell Model 205 UH-1D, introduced in 1963, had a longer fuselage than earlier models, a larger rotor diameter, greater range, and a more powerful Lycoming T5-L-11 1100 shp engine with growth potential to the Lycoming T53-L-13 1400 shp engine; its distinguishing feature was larger cargo doors with twin cabin windows on each side. Redesigned to carry up to 12 troops with a crew of two, the UH-1D reached Vietnam in 1963. It had a range of 293 miles and a speed of 127 mph, and UH-1Ds were also built under license in Germany. The UH-1D could be armed with M60 door guns, quad M60Cs on the M6 aircraft armament subsystem, 20 mm cannon, 2.75 inch rocket launchers, a 40mm grenade launcher in an M5 helicopter chin-turret, and up to six NATO standard AGM-22B wire guided anti-tank missiles on the M11 or M22 guided missile launcher. It could also carry an M60D 7.62 mm or M213 0.50 Cal. pintle-mounted door gun on the M59 armament subsystem, while the Medevac version, the UH-1V, could carry six stretchers and one medical attendant.
