Huey refurbishments lead to higher performance
The UH-1H on the front cover of this issue of “The Helicopter Newspaper” was refurbished in a process developed by Brian Reynolds and his team at Northwest Helicopters over the past twenty years.
“We take a standard UH-1H helicopter and turn it into a high performance UH-1H Plus,” explains Brian Reynolds. “It’s a cost effective way to achieve performance goals. The direct operating costs of the UH-1H Plus are estimated to be only $644.11 per hour.”
According to Reynolds, the upgrade starts with a standard UH-1H helicopter, either customer supplied or from the Northwest Helicopters inventory, and is lightened. The engine replaced or upgraded to the T53-L-703 configuration; the tailboom is modified with BLR Strake Kit and BLR Fast Fin Kit; a 212 intermediate gearbox is installed; a high output Bell 209 oil cooler blower installed; and the cockpit is upgraded for 1800 horsepower engine operations.
“We retain the commonality between the majority of the UH-1H components and use spares that you may already have in stock,” Reynolds said. “We also give our customers the ability to upgrade their fleet in phases at our facility in Olympia, WA.”
Meeting customer specifications drives the majority of refurbishment work. “We have rebuilt aircraft for firefighting, law enforcement, agricultural, exhibition and museum collections,” Reynolds said. He is also proud of a service life extension program that aids our current military operations.
The list of available options includes a cargo hook designed by Mechanical Specialties, Inc. “We worked closely with Mechanical Specialties, Inc., to design and put into service the best and strongest cargo hook assembly ever built for a Huey,” Reynolds said. “The new design is simple and rugged and allows only restricted twisting under a load and returns to centering on its own."
The UH-1H Plus configured for firefighting carries the Isolair Eliminator II Spray System. “We work with Isolair because their system features user oriented innovations made with quality U.S. manufacturing,” Reynolds said. “Its in-flight features make for faster firefighting cycles -- loading, mixing of foam or retardant, dump volume and drop length are all precisely controlled and monitored from the cockpit.”
But Northwest is far more than just a refurbishment facility. “Along with being approved as a Bell Customer Service Facility a couple years ago for most Bell models, In January we received our certification from MD and we are now an Authorized MD Service Center,” Reynolds said. “We are very excited about furthering our relationship with MD Helicopters and looking forward to supporting their product line as well from our new heliport and maintenance facility, which is the largest of its kind in the country. We have many clients who demand MD model helicopters for their high performance capability and we are proud to be aligning ourselves with MD to ensure them lasting support both locally and around the world.”
The list of other Northwest capabilities is a long one – FAA Part 135 Repair Station; STC development and manufacturing; component overhaul; custom pain services for interiors, exteriors and components; domestic and international spares capabilities and even the ability to “pack and ship” client’s aircraft overseas.
Northwest Helicopters does just a little bit of flying as well. Over the last 20 years the company has transformed from a single ship operation to the largest helicopter company in the state of Washington. “Flying five different models of helicopters, we can respond to almost any job anywhere in the nation,” said Reynolds.