I flew the the Helios for a fishing lodge in Alaska. We installed helicopter airspeed indicators in ours because they registered airspeed from zero up. We flew on floats down to around 35 mph and, in a headwind, it was easy to earn tips by wowing the tourists by 'helicoptering up' in an absolutely vertical 'elevator' ascent. Incidentally , the Helios's nickname is 'the poor man's helicopter'. In heavy fog, we would inch our way forward at treetop level using a technique called 'hanging it on the prop' which meant pulling off the throttle to decrease the air speed and, as the nose was pulled up to maintain altitude, power was gradually added. Eventually a guy could get the ship up to full power with the nose at a very high angle of attack permitting plane to travel in level flight at a ground speed of around 15 mph. The trick was to get the rig into the 'zone of negative control' where pushing the yoke forward would cause the the ship to rise and pulling back would cause the plane to descend. I could go on for hours about the tricks a guy could pull in the 295.
Thanks for the tip! Trust me I could go on for hours listening. I love deep diving on these planes and it was a treat to learn about the Helio. I figure she deserved some exposure here on youtube 👍🤘
I grew up on a farm 40 miles from the Helio factory in Pittsburg, KS. My dad leased a Courier from '69 to '72. Factory pilot Larry Montgomery would drop in to our airstrip often. My dad used our Courier in his pipeline patrol business. I have many fond memories of our Courier.
the most famous of this type of plane was the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch, developed in the mid 1930s. Stalling speed was at 50km/h / 31mph. It was able to take off at half a soccer field
I was an Army Air Traffic Controller in the Mekong Delta of South Vietnam back in 1968 Air America used a number of Couriers in its fleet of aircraft.I recall clearing a Courier for takeoff one afternoon as it climbed out I saw the tail wheel fall off the bird and bounce down our PSP runway,i Told the pilot that he no longer had a tail wheel he said no problem,and flew it up to Saigon and landed in the grass next to the runway ,that bird was back flying again a couple of days later,that was a testament to the rugged design of the Courier!!
I worked for Jaars here in NC providing upset recovery for their missionary group. A few of the older folks had flown the Helio Courier. They raved about it’s capability. What a cool piece of history.
I was a Mk and my parents worked with NTM. NTM had a Cessna of our own, but on occasion our plane was out of service. When this was the case we would use the Jars Courier. I remember the small circular window. It was very slow but you could put it down any where. I was young but I can still remember it well. Great airplane.
The phrase has always been "...SEEMS to defy physics" which is perfectly correct - but for some reason more and more people have started corrupting it into just "defies physics" which destroys the entire meaning.
One of my favorite small planes, I had the opportunity to fly (as a passenger) in a Helio Courier several times back in the 80s. I was so impressed with that aircraft that the memory of those trips remains with me today. I cannot say the same for any other aircraft I flew in back then.
Meet the zenair 801 180hp - can land in deep grass/weeds too - no small tailwheel. Flies at 35 kts , 4 pass, fits in shed with 32’ wide doors and almost impossible to stall. Got a wide load - pin the doors up to the wings and load up bicycles, 2x4x8’ etc. Love my 801 😀
The Pilatus PC-6 Turbo-Porter has just as impressive a STOL capability and has been considerably more commercially successful - well worth a video about that one.
They are different machines...different price point, different fuel burn, the Porter is much larger, plus a bit longer takeoff role. I don't think they really compete - but the Porter has a huge advantage with a turboprop, seeing that it's becoming impossible to buy avgas in some countries. Which is why JAARS replaced them in their missions today. As to a video, I think the Porter is already very well covered, whereas there's no documentary on the Helio. (plus, i'm fond of old piston airplanes, lol)
Super -Duper Story! The comments here for this show are truly fantastic. So many of your subs have real experience with this aircraft. Nice to see respectable comments on a YT. Happy Trails from FL
Hey bud, I agree 100% and it's a big win when I see so much positivity and great commentary surrounding the topic (in this case, the Helio). Where in FL? I'm down in Fort Lauderdale.
Hope you folks enjoyed this brief documentary on the amazing Helio Courier. Don’t miss out on these next brief documentaries on more badass planes. Globe Swift ➡ ruclips.net/video/4Wf2RYJihuU/видео.html Dyke Delta ➡ ruclips.net/video/VSGE0rvhy4U/видео.html Fletcher Defender ➡ ruclips.net/video/q-8FQfH6K4g/видео.html Questair Venture ➡ ruclips.net/video/VfkmvqXSwW4/видео.html
When I was with Air America, the Helio Courier would land on airfields too steep that we could land in our helicopters. As they touched down, they added full power to get to the top of the hill. Amazing aircraft 3:54
Wonderful airplane. I hated to see it fade away. Love to see it return. The long fuselage helps it to avoid nosing over in hard braking and looks great along with the large vertical tail. Excellent design to this day. =PC=
That's my dad at 4:13 on the right. The photo was taken in Panama. He was a Staff Sgt in the 1st Air Commandos at the time. He still speaks fondly about the Helio Courier. I'll have to ask him about the photo and get a little more history.
Later, during riots in Panama, there was a spur of the moment mission in the U10. From dad, "I happened to go down to the hangar for something and found Col Gleason trying to wheel a U10 out of the hangar alone. I gave him a hand and he told me to get the speaker equipment. I put it in the plane and off we went for a night’s ride. We were flying in the dark with no running lights and power was out in a lot of Panama City. Having no light made us a difficult target and there was shooting going on. Gleason needed glasses but wasn’t wearing them during the flight. He kept them on top of the instrument panel. I was in the back kneeling on the floor while working the speakers. There were two large hills or mountains in the city that we had to dodge while flying around. The Colonel was occupied with watching activities on the ground and didn’t always notice to hills coming up straight ahead. When it got to a point I realized he didn’t see them or wasn’t watching, I tapped him on the shoulder and pointed out front. He took his glasses off the instrument panel, put them on and looked all this while we are still bearing down on a mountain! He would take an evasive maneuver to avoid crashing. I don’t know how many times I had to do that during the night, but it was several. A number of American troops were killed that night. They were not issued any ammo to protect themselves. The bodies were flown back to the states in a C124. Yes there were that many coffins."
Awesome video and very well researched! I got to fuel the one in the Alaska Aviation Museum, N6319V, in 1994 when it came to the FBO I was working at far away from it's home in Ottawa, Canada. What a cool aircraft!
good show ! I hope Helio can make a comeback.The sound of that geared Lycoming is a treat , not like that shrieking prop noise of a 180 at take off. will probably be a prat and whitney pt-6 turbo prop
I confess that NO piston engine nor blade noise turns me off, lol (unless you're up in alaska and hear it every day). But I do agree that the geared Lycoming is wonderful to listen to. About 20 years ago I recall a trigear Helio slowly flying in circles around my neighborhood, it was a nice symphony playing above me.
Great podcasts about the Helio I was fortunate enough to enjoy looking at a Helio Stallion in the early 70s It was whangarei at De Ridder airport in Louisiana Amazing aircraft. Turbines in private aircraft were rare at that time
I had the chance and fortune to get close enough to a helio courier that was abandon at an airfield in Mexico. People told me incredible facts about the airplane. I fell in love with it, so I wanted to buy it but the administration said that the owner had passed and nobody could make something with it. Finally, I never went again to the site and never knew what was the end of that wonderful, beautiful and great airplane.
@aircraftadventures-vids yes, u r right, but now I'm retired with 64, so I won't fly again...at very least this type and size but an ultralight, a Kolb by the way. It is a pity to know that there might still be that flying wonder, getting damaged under merciless weather.
Many decades ago, in 1936, there already was such an aircraft in Germany, the Fieseler Storch Fi 156. For takeoff, the Storch needed 50 meters in headwinds and 20 meters for landing.
Yup, the Storch was definitely a pioneer STOL airplane. Which is why I did not claim the Helio as the 1st stol plane. The Helio employed quite a few fearures from the Storch, such as the slotted wings. The Helio, however, could carry 6 passengers, so that was a novelty.
It's a little bit like comparing apples and oranges. The Storch was a slow flying, low range, low payload, observer plane and nearly every aspect of its design was secondary to the STOL idea (eg the fixed slats). The Helio Courier is a little transport aircraft, it has the double payload, four times its range, it's much faster and it has good STOL capabilities. Yes the Fieseler Fi 156 is the first STOL Aircraft, but compared to the Storch, the Helio is a much more balanced design. PS Much of the things the Storch was built for, you would have chosen a helicopter to do when the Helio Courier was built.
6:40 correction here: The P-51 is a bespoke airfoil not used on any other design, it is the 45-100 which is from an unpublished family of specially designed laminar flow airfoils. The Helio Courior uses the NACA 230XX 5-digit series, which is a turbulent flow airfoil. It was used on many fighters on all sides of WWII. Including the F6F Hellcat, F8F Bearcat, FW-190, and F4U Corsair.
Thanks for that tidbit! Interesting. You know, one of the previous airplanes I covered also claims to have "P-51 airfoil wings" but it escapes me which one now (maybe the Meyers 200?)
My very first flight in a GA aircraft was in a Helio Courier, specifically N62JA at a JAARS day at their airport in Waxhaw decades ago. In a "Wow, the world is small but Alaska is smaller" instance, I had to go to Alaska for work about a year ago. I was making small talk with the Turo host who picked me up in Anchorage after noticing an Iditarod Air Force sticker on the back of the jeep. I mentioned that I had seen a clip of 62JA at a STOL competition in Alaska just a couple weeks before. He said he knew the current owner (and apparently, owner of the type certificate now?) of 62JA. Cool to see it feature heavily in this video.
@@aircraftadventures-vids For sure. My boss is actually from Palmer AK and his dad was a flying doctor and had one in the 60s and 70s. I also made my comment before the bit about the gents up in Chugiak who own the type certificate in the video. Awful lot of Alaska connections for a dude from NC.
Great video! I love learning about the unique machines that were designed and built over the years. There’s a Courier that lives locally to me and I’m friends with the owner. I think it’s about time I go ask for a ride. I appreciate the detail you went into describing the evolution of the plane. I had no idea… but now I’m smarter! Cheers!
Having owned a Helio Courier in the past , I can vouch for its utility over 5 years that I had the pleasure of flying it. You failed to mention that some came equipped with the CROSS WIND gear though I never flew one with this feature.
@@aircraftadventures-vidsit’s the only plane I know that can land pointing into a cross wind… Tail wheel landings are tough enough to understand, adding this additional skill is going to take somebody who really wants to do it… 😃
The crosswind gear made the forward landing gear a non-issue. You see, the very far forward gear radically improves braking without nose-over. But makes the moment arm from tore contact patches to aircraft center of gravity very long. This creates strong ground-loop tendencies. With crosswind gear, you land as you can, and the gear swivels to prevent side-loads. Without side-loads, there is no ground loop.
You mentioned they were used by police departments for surveillance, but I only know of one. The Pima County Sheriff's Department started using them in 2000 and had two of them they used for patrol support. They had a camera system and huge spotlight. Eventually both were converted to Turboprops.
I see your main title picture has a JAARS helio. I was born and raised in the Amazon jungle as my folks were missionaries with SIL working with wild indigenous people. This plane was our lifeline. I made many trips in one. I still have an instrument salvaged off the one at our base that was destroyed when a huge wind storm tore it up and flipped it over (it was without a motor that was in maintenance). God bless the JAARS pilots and crew. Check out the book "Into the Glory" about these pilots and their adventures.
Hey me too! I was born in Yarina, 1970. Some of my earliest memories were flying to northern Peru with my parents way in the back seat. The pilots like Doug Deming were my heroes.
1983 we painted one for my brothers father in law at my parents house positioned on the corner of Steese Hwy. and Chena Hot Springs rd. About 5 miles N. Of Fairbanks Alaska. Jack attempted to fly it out of the driveway he hit a tree landed on the hiway guard rail upside down broke the engine off the plane the prop carried it almost 1500 feet. 3 of his kids were watching. A terrible day for one of Alaskas Boldest pilots. He saved several people from the wilderness in heroic landings and take offs. He could land on sand bars in the middle of river beds and take of skimming the water always into the current so the tires would have a bit of initial drag. God Bless you Jack Freeman. FYI my dad did not want him trying to take off from his drive way Jack snuck up while my dad was at work. Imagine my dad’s thought process to see a plane crashed as he was coming home from work. AAAHHHH the Alaska life we had a really different childhood. Moose and Salmon Breakfast lunch and dinner.
You got me curious, and I looked up the accident report. Wow, guy tried to clear a 40 ft space (with a 38 ft wingspan) Yeah they were built different for sure! (the pilots, not the plane)
@1:50 JAARS... Jungle Aviation And Radio Service. The flying side of Wycliff Bible Translation. This airplane played a large role in getting missionaries into deep jungles and high mountains all over the world. It's neat to see them represented here. I realize I commented before I watched the rest of the vid.... I stand by my happiness to see JAARS shown so well here.
My "Uncle" flew a Courier in Vietnam. On one mission he got caught in a valley where his Courier took over 400 rounds! He was shot "several times" as well, once thru his legs, but managed to fly himself to safety. He was discharged from the air service after that. He never told us much about the mission, or who he was flying for, other than he was returning from a delivery. He went on to fly commercial for the remainder of his career.
@ Yeah…they sure do. It’s important to be a good listener, to acknowledge and share their sacrifices in a small way. I was surrounded by Vets growing up. My family has always had close ties with the military. One part I left out about his recount, was his lamenting at how slow the Courier was, as well that he’d managed to land it prior on a ledge of a mountain side and take off again. Thank you for the wonderful video. It was nice to visit those memories again.
If I'm not mistaken, the man sitting on the tire of the Spirit of Kansas City at 5:14 in the video is Cameron Townsend, the founder of Wycliffe Bible Translators and the Summer Institute of Linguistics. These two organizations use the Jungle Aviation and Radio Service to supply transportation and communication for their missionaries doing Bible translation work in remote areas around the world.
I got to see inside THE SAME N62JA Helio Courier when it came in a formation with a Taylorcraft I purchased get delivered to my local airport in Alaska. You almost wouldn't differentiate it from any other tail wheel bush plane until you realize just how large it is. 6 seats and can take off in a flash. Take off like a Super Cub but cruise a good clip faster than one. The owner is the same one part of the company that's beginning to make parts for these awesome aircraft. I had to do a double take when I saw the same blue and white paint and checked my photos to see the same tail number. What a coincidence to see this video days later. What a super small world.
@@aircraftadventures-vids N62JA had an Abe behind the yoke when I got introduced this last week. Wicked small world, almost shouldn't be surprised the more I get involved with Aviation in Alaska, but I think it'll alway get me. I've got a photo of it with the Taylorcraft right behind it as they pulled into the parking lot. Part way thru the video I had to pull up the photo to check.
My dad who was a UK ag operator did some trials with a courier in the US to see how suitable it might be to use as a crop spraying aircraft. In the end he decided it was too expensive, it was being contemplated to operate with a belly tank and detachable booms so it could quickly be converted back to carrying pax. He wasn’t interested in that and the tank capacity was very big so did go for it, went with an-cats in the end. We had piston ones as well as turbine ones. The ag-cat might be a good idea for a video, they sounded amazing with the Wasp radial engines. P.s really enjoyed the vid, would love to fly one.👋😀🇬🇧
That's interesting, thanks for sharing. Yeah, I've NEVER seen a Courier fitted with crop dusting equip, and figured they simply were not a good fit. And thanks for the idea...maybe could do a compilation of agplanes, including the Ag cat
A awesome plane, it reminds me on the Fieseler Storch (look at "Fieseler Fi 156" Wikipedia) first built in 1938 with nearly same STOL capabilitys but fixed slats. Also equipped with a 8 cylinder aircooled engine and a enormous prop.
Brilliant narration. What is the name of the Alaskan Company you spoke of trying to revive the bird. Just a small criticism.. Speed is 99% in Knots. It is the internationally recognised aviation term. Please ……
Good point, and I know. But lots of folks watching are not as knowledgable in aviation and understand MPH. I've also got some flak for not using metric units as it's used worldwide. My next video is on an eastern european design so I'm using metric, as all the data you'll find is metric. I'm trying!
Flew the U10B and U10D out of Bien Thuy Vietnam in 1969 with the 5th SOS. In Nov 1969 all the U10Ds were ferried to Thailand for the Thai AF. U10Bs went to Seoul Korea where I checked out 10 ROKAF pilots on the aircraft and the special air warfare mission (SAW). Great aircraft and great first assignment for a young LT just out of flight school.
Excellent video. Great story about a great airplane. I seem to recall that there was an option for a castoring main gear for “easier” cross-wind ops. Some how I think a tricky tailwheel airplane got trickier with that option.
Did you speak of the "castoring " main gear that was, and is a handful but they have a pin tha locks the gear acts normally.and there was the wing spar mod which all should have if flying.
@@aircraftadventures-vids So cool, fingers crossed! Mike Petey's Draco kind of gave a glimpse into what a new Courier would look like and be capable off. I know that plane was a modded Wilga but wow a bling Courier in that vibe would be awesome!
A tail dragger that doesn't tip over is fantastic. I have played in the X-plane simulator for Android for about ten years and still tip over the Dakota and the Piper Cub 😅 I'd love to fly this beauty for real! Thanks for sharing, subscribed!
I saw one of those in Burns, Oregon when i was prepping for paving. It intrigued me at the time and the airport mechanic (Walt) told me all about it. It was out of service and needed to be completely redone. I would certainly be worth it if a person had the funds. I really wanted it
I’ve always wanted to see one and watch it in action. It has been my, if I won the lottery and could learn to fly, first choice of a plane. Guess they are rare today.
I'm not a pilot but these planes I see flying about mostly in Alaskan Airspace are almost unbelievable in how they get up/down from the sky. I'm going to watch this again, planes like this are impressive to me. peace
I've only seen them on-line or in a movie or two but they are remarkable planes... there's like 2-3 different ones & a couple of builders(I may be wrong) but they have this great ability to take off & land as you saw in this video. In Alaska planes are extremely limited in operating due to bad weather & all the people/settlements that don't have any airport. That's where these planes shine. Pilots of these got to have big brass ballz to fly in some of the places/conditions but it's what they do. I'm not going to become a pilot but if I did I'd look at these closely. There's something comforting about being able to land on a place shorter than a football field and I like that in case you had an emergency..... landing in a small place is nice to know. peace
Great video! As a missionary pilot (flying a Maule) I'm very familiar with the Helio Couriers. I've flown in both the H250 and the H295. There was even one of the H800 until the pilot flew it into mountain top. He was a real risk taker. No mention of the twin Stallion
Appreciate the comments! Love the Maule, am considering doing the video on the Maule line eventually. Twin Stallion? That was a thing? Never heard of it
While stationed at Ft. Bragg we watched a Helio on floats practicing take offs and landing from a swimming hole at the bottom of a sink hole 😅 We were USAF Air traffic controllers and were dually impressed
Tip o the hat to my next door neighbor Bob Laber, test pilot for Helio here in Norwood Mass. He landed the courier “ on the numbers” at Logan. ( BOS). I mean within the length of the numbers. Bob was a WW2 US Army Air Corps pilot.
Im not a pilot not knowlegable of aircraft but I LOVE the idea of a bush plane (little with ol balloon tires) and powerful engine that can take off and land in tiny spots on rough terrain. IF I got into flying that would be my focus initially ....even though I have no need of such a thing living in southern california rather than Alaska etc
Great video! There used to be a guy in the late 90's early 2000's that was at the Palomar (KCRQ) airport in Carlsbad, CA that was the Helio guru. He had like 5 or 6 parked at his place all the time. Definitely a cool machine, The company I worked for at the time looked at getting one but due to support for the airframe getting harder, we ended up buying a Cessna Caravan instead.
You are thinking of Steve Murray, he owned aero Pacific and was a Helio specialist. I worked for him in the 1980s when he was located at Oceanside California. Steve passed away in January of 2017.
We flew in one (it still had the porthole window in the back) in Canada, for a glacier landing. It had a supercharged engine, so the altitude was no problem. Lovely airplane.
@@aircraftadventures-vids True. I have the STC RayJay twin turbo with manual wastegate. Makes a significant difference in high altitude airports and to increase cruise speeds at mid altitudes. I see 140 KTAS at 9500 ft.
I always thought it was a cool aircraft. There was one based at my hometown airport while I was working on my private certificate. I was there one day when it was ground-looped, fortunately with no significant damage as I recall.
I got to take a ride in a JAARS Courier at a local grass field fly-in several years ago. He did max-performance take-off and landing and it was truly impressive. I read that there is now a turboprop conversion available for surviving Couriers using the PT6A and it gives as good performance as the original geared engines.
@@aircraftadventures-vids In those days it was 2300’ asphalt, nowadays I believe it’s landlocked at 3300’ long. I remember both demo planes were painted the same but one was a tricycle gear. During landing I could hear the slats popping in and out as they were put thru their paces.
I flew in a Helio Courier several times, piloted by JAARS, in the Amazon during 1977 and 1978 while serving in the jungle with LOGOS:: Translators. It is truly an amazing airplane. This was after serving in the USN on an aircraft carrier servicing jet aircraft. The Courier was more fun!
It may be difficult to crash, but it's not impossible. I saw one that crumped at my hometown airport in Florida when I was learning to fly in the early 1970s. The good news was the cabin remained intact and nobody was killed.
I remember my dad telling me stories of his great uncle and him flying his uncles Helio they would take off and do figure eights about 10 feet off the ground right as they took off and then they would climb out over there house at a 45° nose up attitude and push the nose down at 1000ft haha those planes are something else he eventually put floats on it and flew it back and forth from Fremont MI to Ontario Canada and further every other year. Bird still Flys to this day! Just as powerful as the day she rolled off the line beautiful machine!!
There was a book I read back in the late 80’s when I flew a Helio, said how the CIA manufactured them in Asia as there was a disagreement with the manufacturer. Anybody else heard of this?
I read about that too! I was on the fence whether to talk about that but it would detract from the intent of the video. But I read that supposedly 1/2 the production of Couriers were CIA-built (with NO serial numbers).
@@aircraftadventures-vids it mentioned about a pilot going to pick up Helio No13But he found it being assembled, was told it was the wrong number13, his was around another corner. Great vid, thanks
These "rumors" are true. This aircraft was in high demand. But they went out of business by raising an issue with "Air American" for building unlicensed variants in S.E. Asia. MANY parts out there are bootleg, and uncertified. I'm with the private arm of the US government and I'm here to help stabilize your dictatorship. 😂
The Rans S7 Courier, S20 Raven & S21 Outbound are good little airplanes too. Simular to a kitfox or a Just Aircraft Highlander or Super Stol. The Super STOL has leading edge self deploying slats as well. But all those airplanes are only two place. Regarding the mention of Kitfox.
Great video. My Dad was Chief of Design at Helio in Bedford MA in late 60s into early 70s. He worked on the Stallion and other things with various arms of govt...lol..The Twin Courier is a big mystery ...curious...How many who contracted ...where ...and what happened to them..That original Helioplane is in one of the Smithsonian facilities ...one that i dont think open to public ..Garber..Curious too all the high lift devices on the Courier and Stallion are quite old...late 30s in some cases..I dont think the design will come back because the cost of manufacturing would be exorbitant with all its mechanisms..I remember meeting Lynn Bolinger in Concord Ma Nashawtic Hill Rd ..1970...
Damn! Thanks for sharing your experience. You’ll be happy to know that there’s a group of dedicated Courier people who are working hard on bringing it back again!
I flew the the Helios for a fishing lodge in Alaska. We installed helicopter airspeed indicators in ours because they registered airspeed from zero up. We flew on floats down to around 35 mph and, in a headwind, it was easy to earn tips by wowing the tourists by 'helicoptering up' in an absolutely vertical 'elevator' ascent. Incidentally , the Helios's nickname is 'the poor man's helicopter'. In heavy fog, we would inch our way forward at treetop level using a technique called 'hanging it on the prop' which meant pulling off the throttle to decrease the air speed and, as the nose was pulled up to maintain altitude, power was gradually added. Eventually a guy could get the ship up to full power with the nose at a very high angle of attack permitting plane to travel in level flight at a ground speed of around 15 mph. The trick was to get the rig into the 'zone of negative control' where pushing the yoke forward would cause the the ship to rise and pulling back would cause the plane to descend. I could go on for hours about the tricks a guy could pull in the 295.
Thanks for the tip! Trust me I could go on for hours listening. I love deep diving on these planes and it was a treat to learn about the Helio. I figure she deserved some exposure here on youtube 👍🤘
I'd like to invite you to share more about your experience with the Helios.
that and rhe turbine❤❤❤
My dad replaced a Hughes 269 with our Courier.
@@ducttapetech9885 Sounds great. Just hope the engine doesn’t quit while nose high at low airspeed. You’ll need some altitude to recover.
I grew up on a farm 40 miles from the Helio factory in Pittsburg, KS. My dad leased a Courier from '69 to '72. Factory pilot Larry Montgomery would drop in to our airstrip often. My dad used our Courier in his pipeline patrol business. I have many fond memories of our Courier.
Thanks for sharing your experience! Did you visit the factory often?
I wonder if we ever crossed paths. My dad was a land man in KS and OK.
Im a Joplin native Before I was born my dad commuted to and from Pittsburg taking classes there I was born in 56
Sound you like you had a good time growing up ! Im envious
the most famous of this type of plane was the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch, developed in the mid 1930s. Stalling speed was at 50km/h / 31mph. It was able to take off at half a soccer field
I was an Army Air Traffic Controller in the Mekong Delta of South Vietnam back in 1968 Air America used a number of Couriers in its fleet of aircraft.I recall clearing a Courier for takeoff one afternoon as it climbed out I saw the tail wheel fall off the bird and bounce down our PSP runway,i Told the pilot that he no longer had a tail wheel he said no problem,and flew it up to Saigon and landed in the grass next to the runway ,that bird was back flying again a couple of days later,that was a testament to the rugged design of the Courier!!
A great multi-purpose aircraft. Glad to hear that someone is reviving this marvelous plane 🙂
I'm excited to see what happens!
Thank goodness some company is working to revive this amazing aircraft. It doesn’t deserve to just fade into obscurity. It’s too good a plane.
I know, I couldn't believe it once I learned about it.
What's the company called?@@aircraftadventures-vids
Thanks for having my Helio H295 in the video! N295LA.
hope you don't mind!
You've got a beautiful rig, Sir.
8:18
You have excellent taste in Aircraft.
Liar, it's mine!
I worked for Jaars here in NC providing upset recovery for their missionary group. A few of the older folks had flown the Helio Courier. They raved about it’s capability. What a cool piece of history.
thanks for sharing your experience, bud!
I was a Mk and my parents worked with NTM. NTM had a Cessna of our own, but on occasion our plane was out of service. When this was the case we would use the Jars Courier. I remember the small circular window. It was very slow but you could put it down any where. I was young but I can still remember it well. Great airplane.
It doesn’t defy physics. It merely using great engineering to leverage physics to the hilt.
Agree. Just some good ol hyperbole, lol
The phrase has always been "...SEEMS to defy physics" which is perfectly correct - but for some reason more and more people have started corrupting it into just "defies physics" which destroys the entire meaning.
My gosh. It’s HYPERBOLE.
Yet with great engineering and robust design, it does amazing with it's FLYING PHYSICS...!
"leverage physics to the hilt" Beautifuly put
...NOTHING TO SEE HERE BUT AWSOMENESS...LOVE THE HISTORY LESSONS...👍
Thank you!
One of my favorite small planes, I had the opportunity to fly (as a passenger) in a Helio Courier several times back in the 80s. I was so impressed with that aircraft that the memory of those trips remains with me today. I cannot say the same for any other aircraft I flew in back then.
Thanks for sharing!
What an aesthetically pleasing, capable little aircraft. If I were younger and still flying, I’d love to own one! Thanks for this excellent video!
Thanks for watching! As far as age, I'd venture a guess that most Courier owners are well retired. Go for it!
Meet the zenair 801 180hp - can land in deep grass/weeds too - no small tailwheel. Flies at 35 kts , 4 pass, fits in shed with 32’ wide doors and almost impossible to stall. Got a wide load - pin the doors up to the wings and load up bicycles, 2x4x8’ etc. Love my 801 😀
The Zenair is an awesome machine for sure!
The Pilatus PC-6 Turbo-Porter has just as impressive a STOL capability and has been considerably more commercially successful - well worth a video about that one.
True. Also wondering why it did not take market away from the Cessna 180/185 ?
They are different machines...different price point, different fuel burn, the Porter is much larger, plus a bit longer takeoff role. I don't think they really compete - but the Porter has a huge advantage with a turboprop, seeing that it's becoming impossible to buy avgas in some countries. Which is why JAARS replaced them in their missions today. As to a video, I think the Porter is already very well covered, whereas there's no documentary on the Helio. (plus, i'm fond of old piston airplanes, lol)
Different mission, different machine (although the Cessna is much more practical airplane)
@@aircraftadventures-vids Fair. On reflection, the Porter was more a competitor for the Stallion than the Courier.
@@MrHws5mp 100% 👍
Super -Duper Story! The comments here for this show are truly fantastic. So many of your subs have real experience with this aircraft. Nice to see respectable comments on a YT. Happy Trails from FL
Hey bud, I agree 100% and it's a big win when I see so much positivity and great commentary surrounding the topic (in this case, the Helio). Where in FL? I'm down in Fort Lauderdale.
Hope you folks enjoyed this brief documentary on the amazing Helio Courier.
Don’t miss out on these next brief documentaries on more badass planes.
Globe Swift ➡ ruclips.net/video/4Wf2RYJihuU/видео.html
Dyke Delta ➡ ruclips.net/video/VSGE0rvhy4U/видео.html
Fletcher Defender ➡ ruclips.net/video/q-8FQfH6K4g/видео.html
Questair Venture ➡ ruclips.net/video/VfkmvqXSwW4/видео.html
When I was with Air America, the Helio Courier would land on airfields too steep that we could land in our helicopters. As they touched down, they added full power to get to the top of the hill. Amazing aircraft 3:54
This is an amazing little plane.... An aviation enthusiast dream...
Wonderful airplane. I hated to see it fade away. Love to see it return. The long fuselage helps it to avoid nosing over in hard braking and looks great along with the large vertical tail. Excellent design to this day. =PC=
It is! I really hope it makes a comeback too
That's my dad at 4:13 on the right. The photo was taken in Panama. He was a Staff Sgt in the 1st Air Commandos at the time. He still speaks fondly about the Helio Courier. I'll have to ask him about the photo and get a little more history.
Nice. He looks like a cool guy.
No way! I'd love to know myself.
Later, during riots in Panama, there was a spur of the moment mission in the U10. From dad, "I happened to go down to the hangar for something and found Col Gleason trying to wheel a U10 out of the hangar alone. I gave him a hand and he told me to get the speaker equipment. I put it in the plane and off we went for a night’s ride. We were flying in the dark with no running lights and power was out in a lot of Panama City. Having no light made us a difficult target and there was shooting going on. Gleason needed glasses but wasn’t wearing them during the flight. He kept them on top of the instrument panel. I was in the back kneeling on the floor while working the speakers. There were two large hills or mountains in the city that we had to dodge while flying around. The Colonel was occupied with watching activities on the ground and didn’t always notice to hills coming up straight ahead. When it got to a point I realized he didn’t see them or wasn’t watching, I tapped him on the shoulder and pointed out front. He took his glasses off the instrument panel, put them on and looked all this while we are still bearing down on a mountain! He would take an evasive maneuver to avoid crashing. I don’t know how many times I had to do that during the night, but it was several. A number of American troops were killed that night. They were not issued any ammo to protect themselves. The bodies were flown back to the states in a C124. Yes there were that many coffins."
Never saw your channel before and only watched this one video..one was enough, you've earned another sub
Hey, thanks! Much appreciated
Love all the shots of the Knik.... used to fly there daily when I was instructor out of Palmer. No more beautiful place to fly on earth
You did an excellent job of defining its history and capabilities.
cool
Thank you!
Excellent video, I've seen quite a few of these up here in Alaska. Was amazed at how slow and steep their approaches were into Lake Hood!
It's their natural habitat!
Awesome video and very well researched! I got to fuel the one in the Alaska Aviation Museum, N6319V, in 1994 when it came to the FBO I was working at far away from it's home in Ottawa, Canada. What a cool aircraft!
Thank you! I had a lot of fun producing this one.
good show ! I hope Helio can make a comeback.The sound of that geared Lycoming is a treat , not like that shrieking prop noise of a 180 at take off. will probably be a prat and whitney pt-6 turbo prop
I confess that NO piston engine nor blade noise turns me off, lol (unless you're up in alaska and hear it every day). But I do agree that the geared Lycoming is wonderful to listen to. About 20 years ago I recall a trigear Helio slowly flying in circles around my neighborhood, it was a nice symphony playing above me.
Great podcasts about the Helio
I was fortunate enough to enjoy looking at a Helio Stallion in the early 70s It was whangarei at De Ridder airport in Louisiana
Amazing aircraft. Turbines in private aircraft were rare at that time
Thanks for sharing that
I had the chance and fortune to get close enough to a helio courier that was abandon at an airfield in Mexico. People told me incredible facts about the airplane. I fell in love with it, so I wanted to buy it but the administration said that the owner had passed and nobody could make something with it. Finally, I never went again to the site and never knew what was the end of that wonderful, beautiful and great airplane.
Might still be there! Albeit in worse shape 😢
@aircraftadventures-vids yes, u r right, but now I'm retired with 64, so I won't fly again...at very least this type and size but an ultralight, a Kolb by the way. It is a pity to know that there might still be that flying wonder, getting damaged under merciless weather.
Many decades ago, in 1936, there already was such an aircraft in Germany, the Fieseler Storch Fi 156. For takeoff, the Storch needed 50 meters in headwinds and 20 meters for landing.
Yup, the Storch was definitely a pioneer STOL airplane. Which is why I did not claim the Helio as the 1st stol plane. The Helio employed quite a few fearures from the Storch, such as the slotted wings. The Helio, however, could carry 6 passengers, so that was a novelty.
Anything that ever flew with swastica in WW2 is verbotten and illegal.
@@aircraftadventures-vids There also was the development of the Fi 256, a five-seat civil version; two were built by Morane-Saulnier.
Yeah, but Germany doesn't really have a need for STOL planes though, plenty of fields and flat terrain there.
It's a little bit like comparing apples and oranges. The Storch was a slow flying, low range, low payload, observer plane and nearly every aspect of its design was secondary to the STOL idea (eg the fixed slats).
The Helio Courier is a little transport aircraft, it has the double payload, four times its range, it's much faster and it has good STOL capabilities. Yes the Fieseler Fi 156 is the first STOL Aircraft, but compared to the Storch, the Helio is a much more balanced design.
PS Much of the things the Storch was built for, you would have chosen a helicopter to do when the Helio Courier was built.
6:40 correction here: The P-51 is a bespoke airfoil not used on any other design, it is the 45-100 which is from an unpublished family of specially designed laminar flow airfoils.
The Helio Courior uses the NACA 230XX 5-digit series, which is a turbulent flow airfoil. It was used on many fighters on all sides of WWII. Including the F6F Hellcat, F8F Bearcat, FW-190, and F4U Corsair.
Thanks for that tidbit! Interesting. You know, one of the previous airplanes I covered also claims to have "P-51 airfoil wings" but it escapes me which one now (maybe the Meyers 200?)
My very first flight in a GA aircraft was in a Helio Courier, specifically N62JA at a JAARS day at their airport in Waxhaw decades ago. In a "Wow, the world is small but Alaska is smaller" instance, I had to go to Alaska for work about a year ago. I was making small talk with the Turo host who picked me up in Anchorage after noticing an Iditarod Air Force sticker on the back of the jeep. I mentioned that I had seen a clip of 62JA at a STOL competition in Alaska just a couple weeks before. He said he knew the current owner (and apparently, owner of the type certificate now?) of 62JA. Cool to see it feature heavily in this video.
Alaska seems like the perfect environment for the Courier
@@aircraftadventures-vids For sure. My boss is actually from Palmer AK and his dad was a flying doctor and had one in the 60s and 70s.
I also made my comment before the bit about the gents up in Chugiak who own the type certificate in the video.
Awful lot of Alaska connections for a dude from NC.
Great video! I love learning about the unique machines that were designed and built over the years.
There’s a Courier that lives locally to me and I’m friends with the owner. I think it’s about time I go ask for a ride.
I appreciate the detail you went into describing the evolution of the plane. I had no idea… but now I’m smarter! Cheers!
Thanks for your feedback David! Hope you get a ride!
Having owned a Helio Courier in the past , I can vouch for its utility over 5 years that I had the pleasure of flying it. You failed to mention that some came equipped with the CROSS WIND gear though I never flew one with this feature.
I knew about it but didn't see too many pics or videos of it in action, so I did not include it.
@@aircraftadventures-vids I have the original Goodyear crosswind gear but honestly I haven't had the nerve to try it. It is just that strange.
All USAF U10Bs in Vietnam had the lockout wheels. We flew them unlocked, very weird feeling landing looking out the side window in strong crosswinds.
@@aircraftadventures-vidsit’s the only plane I know that can land pointing into a cross wind…
Tail wheel landings are tough enough to understand, adding this additional skill is going to take somebody who really wants to do it…
😃
The crosswind gear made the forward landing gear a non-issue.
You see, the very far forward gear radically improves braking without nose-over. But makes the moment arm from tore contact patches to aircraft center of gravity very long. This creates strong ground-loop tendencies. With crosswind gear, you land as you can, and the gear swivels to prevent side-loads. Without side-loads, there is no ground loop.
Thanks. A beautiful little aeroplane which deserves to be brought back into production.
Couldn't agree more!
You mentioned they were used by police departments for surveillance, but I only know of one. The Pima County Sheriff's Department started using them in 2000 and had two of them they used for patrol support. They had a camera system and huge spotlight. Eventually both were converted to Turboprops.
I see your main title picture has a JAARS helio. I was born and raised in the Amazon jungle as my folks were missionaries with SIL working with wild indigenous people. This plane was our lifeline. I made many trips in one. I still have an instrument salvaged off the one at our base that was destroyed when a huge wind storm tore it up and flipped it over (it was without a motor that was in maintenance). God bless the JAARS pilots and crew. Check out the book "Into the Glory" about these pilots and their adventures.
Hey me too! I was born in Yarina, 1970. Some of my earliest memories were flying to northern Peru with my parents way in the back seat. The pilots like Doug Deming were my heroes.
Thanks for watching, and also sharing your experience!
Hopefully it can be brought back into production at cost that makes it accessible it individuals and small operators
I'm with you!
There is 2 outfits starting production. One for the Stallion and one for the Piston.
I'm aware of the piston...but not the Stallion! Man I wish them both luck, would be great to see both flying together at Osh one day
I have seen those planes take of from airports. Truly amazing
They sure are! Thanks for watching
1983 we painted one for my brothers father in law at my parents house positioned on the corner of Steese Hwy. and Chena Hot Springs rd. About 5 miles N. Of Fairbanks Alaska. Jack attempted to fly it out of the driveway he hit a tree landed on the hiway guard rail upside down broke the engine off the plane the prop carried it almost 1500 feet. 3 of his kids were watching. A terrible day for one of Alaskas Boldest pilots. He saved several people from the wilderness in heroic landings and take offs. He could land on sand bars in the middle of river beds and take of skimming the water always into the current so the tires would have a bit of initial drag. God Bless you Jack Freeman. FYI my dad did not want him trying to take off from his drive way Jack snuck up while my dad was at work. Imagine my dad’s thought process to see a plane crashed as he was coming home from work. AAAHHHH the Alaska life we had a really different childhood. Moose and Salmon Breakfast lunch and dinner.
You got me curious, and I looked up the accident report. Wow, guy tried to clear a 40 ft space (with a 38 ft wingspan) Yeah they were built different for sure! (the pilots, not the plane)
Did he die that day or just get really smashed up?
@1:50 JAARS... Jungle Aviation And Radio Service. The flying side of Wycliff Bible Translation. This airplane played a large role in getting missionaries into deep jungles and high mountains all over the world. It's neat to see them represented here.
I realize I commented before I watched the rest of the vid.... I stand by my happiness to see JAARS shown so well here.
Hey, thanks for watching! A JAARS pilot was key in the making of this video.
@@aircraftadventures-vids Is his name Rob?
@ Mike Mower
As a single engine pilot... holy cow would I love to fly one of these. Great video!
You and me both! Thanks for watching
Saw heaps of those in New Guinea; especially on those Highland landing strips like Tapini
Bet they were right at home over there.
My "Uncle" flew a Courier in Vietnam. On one mission he got caught in a valley where his Courier took over 400 rounds! He was shot "several times" as well, once thru his legs, but managed to fly himself to safety. He was discharged from the air service after that. He never told us much about the mission, or who he was flying for, other than he was returning from a delivery. He went on to fly commercial for the remainder of his career.
Damn! What a story. And yeah lots of vets leave their stories behind them.
@ Yeah…they sure do. It’s important to be a good listener, to acknowledge and share their sacrifices in a small way. I was surrounded by Vets growing up. My family has always had close ties with the military.
One part I left out about his recount, was his lamenting at how slow the Courier was, as well that he’d managed to land it prior on a ledge of a mountain side and take off again.
Thank you for the wonderful video. It was nice to visit those memories again.
If I'm not mistaken, the man sitting on the tire of the Spirit of Kansas City at 5:14 in the video is Cameron Townsend, the founder of Wycliffe Bible Translators and the Summer Institute of Linguistics. These two organizations use the Jungle Aviation and Radio Service to supply transportation and communication for their missionaries doing Bible translation work in remote areas around the world.
Good eye!
I got to see inside THE SAME N62JA Helio Courier when it came in a formation with a Taylorcraft I purchased get delivered to my local airport in Alaska. You almost wouldn't differentiate it from any other tail wheel bush plane until you realize just how large it is. 6 seats and can take off in a flash. Take off like a Super Cub but cruise a good clip faster than one.
The owner is the same one part of the company that's beginning to make parts for these awesome aircraft. I had to do a double take when I saw the same blue and white paint and checked my photos to see the same tail number.
What a coincidence to see this video days later. What a super small world.
Are you referring to Lukas' plane? If so, we chatted a couple of times before I produced the video.
@@aircraftadventures-vids N62JA had an Abe behind the yoke when I got introduced this last week. Wicked small world, almost shouldn't be surprised the more I get involved with Aviation in Alaska, but I think it'll alway get me.
I've got a photo of it with the Taylorcraft right behind it as they pulled into the parking lot. Part way thru the video I had to pull up the photo to check.
My dad who was a UK ag operator did some trials with a courier in the US to see how suitable it might be to use as a crop spraying aircraft. In the end he decided it was too expensive, it was being contemplated to operate with a belly tank and detachable booms so it could quickly be converted back to carrying pax. He wasn’t interested in that and the tank capacity was very big so did go for it, went with an-cats in the end. We had piston ones as well as turbine ones. The ag-cat might be a good idea for a video, they sounded amazing with the Wasp radial engines.
P.s really enjoyed the vid, would love to fly one.👋😀🇬🇧
That's interesting, thanks for sharing. Yeah, I've NEVER seen a Courier fitted with crop dusting equip, and figured they simply were not a good fit. And thanks for the idea...maybe could do a compilation of agplanes, including the Ag cat
A awesome plane, it reminds me on the Fieseler Storch (look at "Fieseler Fi 156" Wikipedia) first built in 1938 with nearly same STOL capabilitys but fixed slats. Also equipped with a 8 cylinder aircooled engine and a enormous prop.
The Storch is also amazing. And I'd guess a big influence on the Helioplane (and later Courier)
Brilliant narration.
What is the name of the Alaskan Company you spoke of trying to revive the bird.
Just a small criticism.. Speed is 99% in Knots.
It is the internationally recognised aviation term.
Please ……
Good point, and I know. But lots of folks watching are not as knowledgable in aviation and understand MPH. I've also got some flak for not using metric units as it's used worldwide. My next video is on an eastern european design so I'm using metric, as all the data you'll find is metric. I'm trying!
Helio Alaska
Flew the U10B and U10D out of Bien Thuy Vietnam in 1969 with the 5th SOS. In Nov 1969 all the U10Ds were ferried to Thailand for the Thai AF. U10Bs went to Seoul Korea where I checked out 10 ROKAF pilots on the aircraft and the special air warfare mission (SAW). Great aircraft and great first assignment for a young LT just out of flight school.
This was great! Thank you for sharing.
My pleasure, and thanks for watching!
Excellent video. Great story about a great airplane. I seem to recall that there was an option for a castoring main gear for “easier” cross-wind ops. Some how I think a tricky tailwheel airplane got trickier with that option.
Yeah it's kind of a unicorn, don't see too many pics with that option. And I read it was a bit tricky to handle.
Did you speak of the "castoring " main gear that was, and is a handful but they have a pin tha locks the gear acts normally.and there was the wing spar mod which all should have if flying.
Hope it works out with the brand new Courier. Will be nice with full glass cockpit, center stick and 800shp turboprop with 5 swept blades.
Someone in the comments mentioned that there's an effort in place to revive the Stallion, well there you go!
@@aircraftadventures-vids So cool, fingers crossed! Mike Petey's Draco kind of gave a glimpse into what a new Courier would look like and be capable off. I know that plane was a modded Wilga but wow a bling Courier in that vibe would be awesome!
A tail dragger that doesn't tip over is fantastic. I have played in the X-plane simulator for Android for about ten years and still tip over the Dakota and the Piper Cub 😅 I'd love to fly this beauty for real! Thanks for sharing, subscribed!
Thanks for the sub! And drop in the comments later what you think about the Courier in x-plane (just don't groundloop it!)
Awesome seeing ZS-JAR in the video!🤩
I saw one of those in Burns, Oregon when i was prepping for paving. It intrigued me at the time and the airport mechanic (Walt) told me all about it. It was out of service and needed to be completely redone. I would certainly be worth it if a person had the funds. I really wanted it
Thanks for sharing that. I hope they all get saved!
Now I want one
Is there a light/sport version?
Not really. Cub will be closest you can get, pretty much. Although, that chopped up Vagabond would probably be popular today!
I’ve always wanted to see one and watch it in action. It has been my, if I won the lottery and could learn to fly, first choice of a plane. Guess they are rare today.
They are rare indeed, and want to see more of them myself.
I'm not a pilot but these planes I see flying about mostly in Alaskan Airspace are almost unbelievable in how
they get up/down from the sky. I'm going to watch this again, planes like this are impressive to me. peace
Now I want to see one up close!
I've only seen them on-line or in a movie or two but they are remarkable planes... there's like 2-3
different ones & a couple of builders(I may be wrong) but they have this great ability to take off
& land as you saw in this video. In Alaska planes are extremely limited in operating due to bad
weather & all the people/settlements that don't have any airport. That's where these planes
shine. Pilots of these got to have big brass ballz to fly in some of the places/conditions but
it's what they do. I'm not going to become a pilot but if I did I'd look at these closely. There's
something comforting about being able to land on a place shorter than a football field and
I like that in case you had an emergency..... landing in a small place is nice to know. peace
An incredible airplane. Thanks for the video.
Agreed! And tx for watching
Great video! As a missionary pilot (flying a Maule) I'm very familiar with the Helio Couriers. I've flown in both the H250 and the H295. There was even one of the H800 until the pilot flew it into mountain top. He was a real risk taker. No mention of the twin Stallion
Appreciate the comments! Love the Maule, am considering doing the video on the Maule line eventually. Twin Stallion? That was a thing? Never heard of it
While stationed at Ft. Bragg we watched a Helio on floats practicing take offs and landing from a swimming hole at the bottom of a sink hole 😅
We were USAF Air traffic controllers and were dually impressed
Excellent job on this video and such a remarkable airplane!
Couldn't agree more! and thanks!
Didn’t know this jewel existed how epic !
Glad to share it!
JAARS seats are 50Gs. I hope to buy several and help put them back into production
I really enjoyed this video about such a capable and useful aircraft. Thank you for posting.
Glad you enjoyed it! Tx for watching
Fab history of a little known plane. Never flew one, always wanted to. Thanks for vid
Glad you enjoyed it Thanks for watching
The Helio is a great old bird; I loved flying it
*I Landed my STOL Draco in -7 Feet. That's right, after landing it went 7 Feet backwards.*
Nice video Richard!
Never heard of these interceptors on the leading edge! Very cool!
Me neither! (before i did my research on them)
self deploying Slats yes.
Tip o the hat to my next door neighbor Bob Laber, test pilot for Helio here in Norwood Mass. He landed the courier “ on the numbers” at Logan. ( BOS). I mean within the length of the numbers. Bob was a WW2 US Army Air Corps pilot.
Nice! He could probably take off across the runway with room to spare, lol
Im not a pilot not knowlegable of aircraft but I LOVE the idea of a bush plane (little with ol balloon tires) and powerful engine that can take off and land in tiny spots on rough terrain. IF I got into flying that would be my focus initially ....even though I have no need of such a thing living in southern california rather than Alaska etc
Those STOL planes are amazing, especially for places that need them, like Alaska, Africa, etc.
They sure are!
Great video! There used to be a guy in the late 90's early 2000's that was at the Palomar (KCRQ) airport in Carlsbad, CA that was the Helio guru. He had like 5 or 6 parked at his place all the time. Definitely a cool machine, The company I worked for at the time looked at getting one but due to support for the airframe getting harder, we ended up buying a Cessna Caravan instead.
The 'scaravan' is a beautiful bird in own right.
You are thinking of Steve Murray, he owned aero Pacific and was a Helio specialist. I worked for him in the 1980s when he was located at Oceanside California. Steve passed away in January of 2017.
My grandfather owned one of the few tricycle gear versions, it was amazing to see the front slats pop out on slow flight.
That's awesome! And it seems they are loud as well.
That looks like the flat 6 emgine i have in my chevy corvair. Also air-cooled btw
Well it turns out that Corvairs actually power many small homebuilt aircraft. Owners claim they run great (and also, sound great!)
I think the Pilatus PC-6 Turbo Porter can give it a run for the money but I haven’t studied it that close but it is very STOL, great info, thanks
Not a direct competitor (much larger, turboprop, etc). The Stallion was more of a direct competitor, of course, the Stallion was not successful.
We flew in one (it still had the porthole window in the back) in Canada, for a glacier landing. It had a supercharged engine, so the altitude was no problem. Lovely airplane.
That's cool! Very few supercharged models built.
@@aircraftadventures-vids True. I have the STC RayJay twin turbo with manual wastegate. Makes a significant difference in high altitude airports and to increase cruise speeds at mid altitudes. I see 140 KTAS at 9500 ft.
I like that it doesn’t need intrusive wing support struts.
Yeah, I'm not sure what was thinking on not having those. It sure does make for a heavier wing.
@
The wing was properly engineered making them unnecessary. Struts also cause wind resistance and hinder visibility which is a crucial safety factor
My Dad helped deliver one for JAARS back in the early 70's... The Spirit of Jackson.
Nice!
I always thought it was a cool aircraft. There was one based at my hometown airport while I was working on my private certificate. I was there one day when it was ground-looped, fortunately with no significant damage as I recall.
I've seen a Helio Courier take off from a taxiway and also flying backwards over the runway by flying into a strong headwind.
Bet that's wild to witness!
First 3 seconds of the intro "That's a courier, this is going to be a killer vid."
Lol! Thanks, hope you enjoyed it!
Very interesting ❣️👌🏼😊
Love from Berlin 🇩🇪
Ramsi 🙋🏻♂️
I got to take a ride in a JAARS Courier at a local grass field fly-in several years ago. He did max-performance take-off and landing and it was truly impressive. I read that there is now a turboprop conversion available for surviving Couriers using the PT6A and it gives as good performance as the original geared engines.
You might have met Mike Mower, who helped educate me on many aspects of the plane. He's a real Helio Wizard.
There was a Helio Dealership at my home airport F46 in the early 70’s.
I take it the runway was only 500 ft long, right?
@@aircraftadventures-vids
In those days it was 2300’ asphalt, nowadays I believe it’s landlocked at 3300’ long. I remember both demo planes were painted the same but one was a tricycle gear. During landing
I could hear the slats popping in and out as they were put thru their paces.
@@chuckcawthon3370 ah yes they are loud!
A beautiful plane and video. Thank you. Liked and subscribed. Cheers, D.
Thanks for the sub! And great plane indeed
There is demand for aircraft that can land in short spaces. The implications for emergency situations alone is significant.
Agree 100%
How would it compare in cruise speed, fuel efficiency and range to similar sized and priced aircraft?
I see it compared the the Cessna 185 a lot. 185 cruises faster, and I presume has better range, but can't beat the Helio's stol capabilities.
@@aircraftadventures-vids Seems like a reasonable tradeoff for the versatility. Thanks for the answer!
And you get 6 seats to.
I flew in a Helio Courier several times, piloted by JAARS, in the Amazon during 1977 and 1978 while serving in the jungle with LOGOS:: Translators. It is truly an amazing airplane. This was after serving in the USN on an aircraft carrier servicing jet aircraft. The Courier was more fun!
It may be difficult to crash, but it's not impossible. I saw one that crumped at my hometown airport in Florida when I was learning to fly in the early 1970s. The good news was the cabin remained intact and nobody was killed.
Exactly as it was designed!
I got to visit the new owners of the Helio Courier type certificate in Birchwood, Alaska. They are updating it with more bush mods with a test Courier
I spoke quite a bit with the new owner, am really excited to see what they come up with.
If all they did was keep them in the air with new parts, this would be enough.
Otherwise, re start production.
I remember my dad telling me stories of his great uncle and him flying his uncles Helio they would take off and do figure eights about 10 feet off the ground right as they took off and then they would climb out over there house at a 45° nose up attitude and push the nose down at 1000ft haha those planes are something else he eventually put floats on it and flew it back and forth from Fremont MI to Ontario Canada and further every other year. Bird still Flys to this day! Just as powerful as the day she rolled off the line beautiful machine!!
The planes can only do what the pilot makes them do - so I'd say, your uncle was something else! 👍. Tx for sharing.
Had the pleasure of flying in one several time s at the Jaars center in NC
Serial number 1
Ole #1!
There was a book I read back in the late 80’s when I flew a Helio, said how the CIA manufactured them in Asia as there was a disagreement with the manufacturer. Anybody else heard of this?
I read about that too! I was on the fence whether to talk about that but it would detract from the intent of the video. But I read that supposedly 1/2 the production of Couriers were CIA-built (with NO serial numbers).
@@aircraftadventures-vids it mentioned about a pilot going to pick up Helio No13But he found it being assembled, was told it was the wrong number13, his was around another corner. Great vid, thanks
These "rumors" are true.
This aircraft was in high demand. But they went out of business by raising an issue with "Air American" for building unlicensed variants in S.E. Asia. MANY parts out there are bootleg, and uncertified.
I'm with the private arm of the US government and I'm here to help stabilize your dictatorship. 😂
We had a Helio 500 twin at Intermountain Aviation during the mid sixties. Only 7 were built.
what a treat to see that thing!
Actually has quite a bit in common with the just aircraft superstol. Atleast a lot in common in the wing with the slats n fences
Great plane. Great video. Thanks
Thanks for watching!
If it DOES make it back to production, that'd be interesting.
If it doesn't, well, I guess there's always the KitFox.
Like a tiny weeny Courier, lol. Yeah I hope it does make it back to production.
The Rans S7 Courier, S20 Raven & S21 Outbound are good little airplanes too. Simular to a kitfox or a Just Aircraft Highlander or Super Stol. The Super STOL has leading edge self deploying slats as well. But all those airplanes are only two place. Regarding the mention of Kitfox.
Ive got to have this plane.
Great video. My Dad was Chief of Design at Helio in Bedford MA in late 60s into early 70s. He worked on the Stallion and other things with various arms of govt...lol..The Twin Courier is a big mystery ...curious...How many who contracted ...where ...and what happened to them..That original Helioplane is in one of the Smithsonian facilities ...one that i dont think open to public ..Garber..Curious too all the high lift devices on the Courier and Stallion are quite old...late 30s in some cases..I dont think the design will come back because the cost of manufacturing would be exorbitant with all its mechanisms..I remember meeting Lynn Bolinger in Concord Ma Nashawtic Hill Rd ..1970...
Damn! Thanks for sharing your experience. You’ll be happy to know that there’s a group of dedicated Courier people who are working hard on bringing it back again!
Supposedly the twin couriers went to the CIA but there's no way to verify that
Well done video, thanks!
Glad you liked it!