Yl-75

YL-75 tells me that it's from HMM-362, the Ugly Angels. Is there a number on the tail cone near the tail wheel ? That would be the Bureau Number (Bureau of Weapons Number). If you can't find a BuNo there, there should be a manufacturer's plate on the bulkhead (wall), in the center, just below the pilot and co-pilot's feet. Check there for the BuNo. It should be a six (6) digit number starting with one (1). Many an H-34 rotorhead would love to know the BuNo so we can check our logbooks to see if and when we flew it. Please let us know if you find it. Hope this helps. Good luck with the painting.

Semper Fi.

"Crazy Joe" Scholle, HMM-363

I looked for a data tag in the cockpit, but didn't see one. Then again, I didn't know exactly where to look either. I mostly do armored vehicle maintenance there, so I'm not real familiar with the aircraft. Our Living History Day is June 11th, so I'll look for it when I'm there.

Thanks for your reply.

Vince

The HMM-362 Assn. website has a page listing the Bureau Numbers of aircraft known to have been in the squadron. It has a YL-75 with the BuNo 145748, but according to J. Baugher's list of BuNos, 145748 was destroyed in 1964.

HMM-362 Bureau Nos

Bureau Numbers 145062-150138

BuNo plate

Vince:

Regarding the BuNo tag in the cockpit - as I recall it is on the instrument panal, near the bottom on the pilots side. Check both sides though below all of the instument gauges. Of course it may have been moved to somewhere else on the instrument panel. It should be a little black plastic tag, about 1/2 inch high by about 1 inch long, with engraved white numbers.

Sometimes, and I stress sometimes, you may find the BuNo stamped into a fairing just outside the co-pilots window, top side. BuNo 149333 springs to mind because it had the BuNo stamped there. I have looked on other UH-34's and DID NOT see the BuNo stamped there. It's a bit of a crap shoot as to whether or not you will find it there. It may have been painted over too if it is there.

Hope this helps.

"Crazy Joe" Scholle
HMM-363

145748 (c/n 58-839) destroyed in Southeast Asia Jun 13, 1964.

You can lookup BuNo's on this page:
http://home.att.net/~jbaugher/navyserials.html

I was at the museum this weekend and was able to find a data tag on the A/C. It was above the door. I probably never saw it because it was behind my head as I got in. Still couldn't find a bureau number. I wanted to take a picture of it, but was too busy with the rest of the Living History Event and running the line for the machine gun shoot. Here's what was on the data tag:

Serial No. 57-1689

Contract No. DA-91-564-EUC-586

Scamp Contractor:

Weser Flugzeugbau

Gmbh

Bremen - Einswarden - Germany

Total Time 861:55

Date 23.Mar.1961

Vince

57-1689 (Sikorsky c/n 58-796) was an Army CH-34A. It looks like it was transferred to Germany in 1961.

Yl-75

Vince:

Interesting tag you found. It poses many new puzzles and questions.

The 57-1689 gives me the impression it was first built for the US Army under a 1957 contract. I don't believe, but am not 100 percent certain, that any Navy/Marine helos ever started life with that sort of number. I've always believed that Navy/Marine aircraft began life with the Bureau Number.

The Contract No. DA-91-564-EUC-586 tells me that work was done on this aircraft by the German Co. under a 1991 contract.

The : Bremen-Einswarden-Germany confirms to me that it was a 1991 contract after German reunification. If it was before that, the tag would have said West Germany.

The total time 861.55 I'm sure refers to flight hours, but from when ?

Date: 23 March 1961 is an unknown. It could be many things.

It appears that the Manufacturer's tag (data plate) is still missing from the puzzle.

All in all an interesting find. Perhaps another NOTAM Board reader has seen this sort of thing before and can shed more light on the subject.

Have you looked at the engine ? Is there a plate on the engine ? Does it say Wright-Cyclone ? R-1820-84A or R-1820-84C ? Was it built under license by a European Company ?

Thanks for the update and good luck.

"Crazy Joe" Scholle
HMM-363

I did look around the engine compartment and the engine itself, but didn't see any tags in there. Have no idea what engine it is.

I probably won't be at the museum again until sometime in July or August, so I won't be able to get any more info for a while.

Thanks,
Vince

Yl-75

Vince:

Please let me know when in July or August that you will be at the aircraft. If I can get the Commanding Officer to sign off on for some annual leave, I'd like to visit the old girl for a personal inspection. Thanks and Semper Fi.

"Crazy Joe"
HMM-363

Yl-75

A bunch of Army and Marine H-34s in a boneyard in Tucson showed the Army Choctaw had the exhaust stack in a different position than directly out the port side like the Marine H-34.

Yl-75

Great observation Wayne ! I just took a look at the H-34 picture submitted in the first post by Bloomautomatic. The engine exhaust stack is definitely NOT in the same position as the UH-34D. All the evidence points to this being an old US Army CH-34 bird that was painted to resemble a Marine Corps UH-34D. Too bad, I was hoping that another Marine H-34 had survived to make it back stateside.

Semper Fi

"Crazy Joe"
HMM-363

Bu numbers H34

While flying with the VNAF 1964 - 1968 we had 130 H34s of all categories. The Army Choctaws were designated like you stated 57 1689 etc and some were in foriegn inventory for instance Germany & France. Sikorsky bought from those countries their inventories back in 69 when they were converting them to the twin pack S58T. I crashed near Nha Trang in an Army Choctaw 54 3045. The engine exhaust systems were the older H34 was the low single port type both in the UH , CH etc in the earlier models. As I reccall the UH34D started the cluster high exhaust during the 145 series. However we incorporated in the field the cluster exhaust later when the parts were available. The reason was that the cluster exhaust incorporated venturas which resulter in less back presuure in the cylinders and it burned the excess fuel without the long blue stream from the low single port exhaust. If you oberserved them at night you would understand that effect.We also got 63 series H34s( example had 6313196,6313198 etc) called MAP helicopters late manufactured in 1963 for the foriegn Military Program I flew in all ,they had various Hyd systems and Engine oil clutch VS hyd clutch, ASE and Army Models no ASE. It was a real cluster F''''k trying to keep up when maintaining & flying the diffrent configurations (also diffrent fuel systems).Hope this doest add confusion. SF Paul Moore

Uh-34 Yl75

The numbers being discussed in these comments cloud the waters a bit, but you can't go by the picture. HUS-1/UH-34's prior to BuNo 148053 had the engine exhaust placed low on the left side of the engine cowling like the one shown in the picture. After 148053 the exhaust came throught the left clamshell door higher up.

Crazy Joe wrote: Vince:

Please let me know when in July or August that you will be at the aircraft. If I can get the Commanding Officer to sign off on for some annual leave, I'd like to visit the old girl for a personal inspection. Thanks and Semper Fi.

"Crazy Joe"
HMM-363

Probably won't be until sometime in August at this point. July is booked for me. It is on display outdoors, and is open to the public 7 days/wk. If you're going to be in the area and want to stop by, feel free at any time.

Vince

Looks like it is an ex US Army machine, 57-1689, taken on charge 14th February 1958. The German plate is probably an overhaul plate, proving that this aircraft saw service in Europe.

Where it has been since then is anybodies guess. I have no record of it entering the Boneyards at Davis Monthan, nor any other museum owning it.

Obviously somebody has decided to give it a paint job as an USMC machine.

Dan at Pittsburgh Air Crane

Hello all just wanted to let you know that we have purchased BuNo 14-8079 sn 58-1193 a USMC machine. We just finished doing a little TLC and we'll be flying her back from Tampa, FL area to Pittsburgh in the next few weeks. We'll be doing heavy lift as well as cargo and some passenger trips and rides with her.

The aircraft was once converted into the Winnebago "Heli Camper" as a prototype for sale to the public and was given a reduced gross weight of 12,500 lbs with a S-58H designation allowing "at the time" any helicoptyer pilot to fly it without a Type Rating in the aircraft. Since that time however all of us 58 drivers now have to have a FAA type rating to be legal. All versions including the 12,500 lbs or less aircraft variants.

The aircraft was owned by Airlift Helicopters and has a Red Bull Dog on the side of the aircraft. We'll be keeping the "Red Dog" as its called now and adding Semper Fi under the Bull Dog. We'll try to post some photos if you like.

The aircraft went through a Sikorsky approved weight reduction program that allowed the maintenance cowlings and the turtle back to be removed. In addition the S-58 tires and wheels were exchanged for S-55 tires and Wheels. Total wieght savings of approx 275 pounds. The interior is also bigger now that the radio room wall was removed giving the inside an enormous cavity.

The aircraft is painted Ford Torredor Red metallic with a clear coat imeron finish and looks real nice. The aircraft was formerly owned by Brad Ladue owner of 5 State Helicopters in Royce City TX. Brad is the best 58 driver and vertical reference pilot around. Brad tells me that most of the HVAC units in the downtown Dallas and surrounding areas were placed using this aircraft as well as other round motor 58's / UH34's over the past 20 years.

speaking of h-34 camper

i sure hope this works. i'm not very good at this.
ATTACH]2975[/ATTACH]

Yl75

When Stafford and I were in Tucson looking at the bone yard for parts I noticed all the army 34's had two radio antenas mounted on the clamshells and down exhaust.

Ron Luks HMM263