PHI Air Medical

Hughes XH-17 “Flying Crane”

Hughes Helicopters’ first attempt at a heavy-lift rotorcraft. To speed construction, parts of the XH-17 were scavenged from other aircraft. The front wheels came from a B-25 Mitchell and the rear wheels from a C-54 Skymaster. The fuel tank was a bomb bay-mounted unit from a B-29 Superfortress. The cockpit was from a Waco CG-15 and the tail rotor from a Sikorsky H-19 was used for yaw control. The helicopter was tested for three years, beginning in 1952. It still holds the world’s record for the largest rotor system.

The XH-17 was too cumbersome and inefficient to warrant further development beyond the single prototype, but it laid the groundwork for later heavy-lift helicopters, such as the CH-54 Tarhe.

1965 Superior Cadillac Ambulance