Rahul Sharma (Editor)

Westland WS 51 Dragonfly

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Top speed
  
153 km/h

Introduced
  
1950

Length
  
18 m

Manufacturer
  
Westland Aircraft

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly Westland WS51 Dragonfly Large Preview AirTeamImagescom

The Westland WS-51 Dragonfly helicopter was built by Westland Aircraft and was a license-built version of the American Sikorsky S-51.

Contents

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly Sikorsky WS51 Westland Dragonfly Rotary Wing Aircraft

Design and development

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly Westland Dragonfly HR5 WS51 UK Navy Aviation Photo 1637586

In December 1946 an agreement was signed between Westland Aircraft and Sikorsky to allow a British version of the S-51 to be manufactured under license in the United Kingdom. These would be powered by the 500 hp Alvis Leonides radial engine. A modified version was also developed by Westland as the Westland Widgeon, but it was commercially unsuccessful.

Operational history

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly Helicopters AS 555 Fennec AS 355 Ecureuil SA 345 N Dauphin

The Dragonfly entered service with the Royal Navy in 1950 in the air-sea rescue role. A number were also used by the Royal Air Force for casualty evacuation. It was replaced in British service by the Westland Whirlwind, another derivative of a Sikorsky design, in the late 1950s.

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

Fifty-one civilian WS-51s were produced. Examples were used by Pest Control Ltd for crop spraying and others were flown as executive transports by Silver City Airways, Evening Standard Newspapers and Fairey Aviation. Exported aircraft operated in Japan, Belgian Congo, Mexico and Norway.

Variants

Westland WS-51 Dragonfly AviationsMilitairesnet Westland WS51 Dragonfly
Westland/Sikorsky WS-51
Prototype.
Dragonfly HR.1
Air-sea search and rescue helicopter for the Royal Navy powered by a 540 hp (400 kW) Alvis 50 radial piston engine. 13 built, some modified later as HR.5s.
Dragonfly HC.2
Casualty evacuation helicopter for the Royal Air Force similar to the commercial Mark 1A, 2 built.
Dragonfly HR.3
Air-sea search and rescue helicopter for the Royal Navy. Similar to the Dragonfly HR.1, but fitted with all-metal rotor blades, 71 built some later modified as HR.5s.
Dragonfly HC.4
Casualty evacuation helicopter for the RAF similar to the Dragonfly HR.3 with all-metal rotor blades, 12 built.
Dragonfly HR.5
Air-sea search and rescue helicopter for the Royal Navy similar to the Dragonfly HR.3. Modified from HR.1 and HR.3.
Westland-Sikorsky WS-51 Mk.1A
Civil transport helicopter powered by a 520 hp (388 kW) Alvis Leonides 521/1 radial piston engine. Built by Westland in the United Kingdom, 36 built.
Westland-Sikorsky WS-51 Mk.1B
Civil transport helicopter powered by a 450 hp (336 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior B4 radial piston engine, 15 built.

Military and Government Operators

 Egypt
  • Egyptian Air Force
    •  Hong Kong
  • Hong Kong Police Force
    •  Italy
  • Italian Air Force
    •  Thailand
  • Royal Thai Air Force
    •  United Kingdom
  • Empire Test Pilots' School
  • Royal Air Force
  • Far East Casualty Evacuation Flight RAF
  • No. 194 Squadron RAF
  • Royal Navy
  • Britannia Royal Naval College/Britannia Helicopter Flight
  • 700 Naval Air Squadron
  • 701 Naval Air Squadron
  • 705 Naval Air Squadron
  • 727 Naval Air Squadron
  • 728 Naval Air Squadron
  • 744 Naval Air Squadron
  • 771 Naval Air Squadron
    •  Yugoslavia
  • SFR Yugoslav Air Force

    • Civil Operators

     Belgium
  • Sabena
    •  United Kingdom
  • British European Airways
  • Silver City Airways

    • Survivors

    +data

  • Dragonfly HR.1 VZ962 on display at the Ta'Qali Museum, Malta.
  • Dragonfly HR.3 WG725 in Nowra, New South Wales, Australia
  • Dragonfly HR.5 VX595 on display at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Somerset, United Kingdom
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WG719 on display at The Helicopter Museum, Somerset, United Kingdom.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WG724 on display at the North East Aircraft Museum, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WG751 on display at the Chatham Historic Dockyard, Kent, United Kingdom.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 8-1 on display at the Aviodrome, Lelystad, Netherlands.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WH991 on display at the Yorkshire Air Museum, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WN493 on display at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Somerset, United Kingdom.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WN499 on display at AeroVenture, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 WP495 on display at RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire, United Kingdom. Marked as G-AJOV.
  • Dragonfly HR.5 on display at the Sri Lanka Air Force Museum, SLAF Ratmalana, Sri Lanka.
  • Westland/Sikorsky S-51 Dragonfly on display at the Museu Eduardo André Matarazzo, Bebedouro, SP, Brazil.
  • Westland-Sikorsky WS-51 Mk.1A H1-4/96 (cn WA/H/120) at Royal Thai Air Force Museum, Don Muang AFB, Thailand
  • Westland-Sikorsky WS-51 Mk.1B 11503 on display at the Yugoslav Aeronautical Museum, Belgrade, Serbia.

    • Specifications (Dragonfly HR.1)

    Data from

    General characteristics

  • Crew: 1 (pilot)
  • Capacity: 3 (passengers)
  • Length: 57 ft 6½ in (17.54 m)
  • Main rotor diameter: × 48 ft 0 in (14.63 m)
  • Height: 12 ft 11½ in (3.95 m)
  • Main rotor area: 1809.56 ft2 (168.11 m2)
  • Empty weight: 4380 lb (1987 kg)
  • Gross weight: 5870 lb (2663 kg)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Alvis Leonides 50 radial piston, 540 hp (403 kW)

    • Performance

  • Maximum speed: 95 mph (153 km/h)
  • Range: 300 miles (483 km)
  • Service ceiling: 12,400 ft (3780 m)

    • References

    Westland WS-51 Dragonfly Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA