Westland Scout

infobox Aircraft
name = Scout
type = Helicopter
manufacturer = Westland

---

caption =
designer =
first flight =
introduced =
retired =
status =
primary user = Army Air Corps
more users =
produced =
number built = About 150
unit cost =
developed from =
variants with their own articles = Westland Wasp

The Westland Scout was a general purpose military light helicopter developed by Westland Aircraft Limited.

Design and development

It was the older brother to the Westland Wasp, both of them developed from the Saunders-Roe ("Saro") P.531, itself an extension of the Saunders-Roe Skeeter. With the acquisition of Saunders Roe, Westland took over the project which became the prototype for the Scout and Wasp.

The P.531 was developed with both 635 shp Bristol Siddeley Nimbus and 685 shp de Havilland Gnome H.1000 engines. The production Scout AH.1 used a 1,050 shp Rolls-Royce (RR having acquired Bristol Siddeley by then) Nimbus 101 engine. The Scout first flew on 29 August 1960.

The Scout had a skid undercarriage. Behind the two front seats was a three-seat bench.It was used for general light work including observation, liaison, training, and search and rescue. When fitted as a light attack helicopter it carried two machine guns (L7 GPMG and 4 anti-tank guided missiles (the SS.11). In use for casualty evacuation, the Scout could carry two stretchers internally and two externally.

About 150 Scouts were built, mainly at Hayes, by 1968.

Operational history

British Army Air Corps Scout helicopters were used during Falklands War. One of them was shot down by a FMA IA 58 Pucará (the only Air-to-air Argentine victory in the war), and a second one was forced to land after being attacked.

Variants

;Saunders-Roe P.531:Prototype.;Saunders-Roe P.531-2 Mk.1:Pre-production aircraft.;Scout AH.1:Five-seat light utility helicopter for the British Army, Scout helicopters were also used in Borneo 1965-1966 3 flt AAC based at Sibu 3rd division Sarawak

Operators

Military Operators

;AUS
*Royal Australian Navy operated 2 helicopters in 723 Squadron RAN.;JOR
*Royal Jordanian Air Force operated 3 helicopters.;flag|South Africa|1928
*South African Air Force;UK
*Army Air Corps
*Royal Marines

Law Enforcement Operators

;BHR
* Bahrain State Police operated 2 helicopters.;UGA
* Ugandan Police Air Wing operated 2 helicopters.

pecifications(Scout)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=copter
jet or prop?=prop
crew= 2
capacity= 6 passengers in two rows
length main= 30 ft 4 in
length alt= 9.25 m
span main= 32 ft 3 in
span alt= 9.83 m
height main= 8 ft 10 in
height alt= 2.70 m
area main= 3,266 ft²
area alt= 303 m²
empty weight main= 3,084 lb
empty weight alt= 1,400 kg
loaded weight main=5,350 lb
loaded weight alt= 2,427 kg
max takeoff weight main= lb
max takeoff weight alt= kg

engine (prop)= Rolls-Royce Nimbus 101
type of prop= turboshaft
number of props= 1
power main= 1,050 shp
power alt= 783 kW

max speed main= 131 mph
max speed alt= 210 km/h
range main= 316 miles
range alt= 510 km
ceiling main= 17,700 ft
ceiling alt= 5,40 m
climb rate main= 1,670 ft/min at sea level
climb rate alt= 8.50 m/s
loading main= 1.64 lb/ft²
loading alt= 8 kg/m²
power/mass main= 0.20 hp/lb
power/mass alt= 0.32 kW/kg

armament=
* 2x L7 GPMG machine guns
* 4x SS.11 anti-tank guided missiles

ee also

aircontent
related=
*Westland Wasp

similar aircraft=
*Kamov Ka-15
*Aérospatiale Alouette II
*Aérospatiale Alouette III

lists=
* List of aircraft of the Army Air Corps

see also=

External links