As we continue the Boneyard Files series, which showcases some of the retired aircraft resting at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona, in the late 1960s, today’s story features the Vertol H-21C Shawnee through the lens of Neil Aird’s “Monthan Memories” photos. The H-21 Shawnee was an American helicopter designed by Piasecki Helicopter, which was later known as Boeing Vertol. The multi-mission helicopter was often called the “flying banana” because of its shape. In 1949, Piasecki proposed the YH-21A to the United States Air Force (USAF). The helicopter was an all-metal upgrade of the HRP-1 model. It used two sets of three blades that rotated in opposite directions and was powered by a nine-cylinder Curtis-Wright R-1820-103 Cyclone engine, which provided 1,150 horsepower. After its first flight in April 1952, the USAF ordered 32 H-21A search-and-rescue models and 163 of the more powerful H-21B transport models. The H-21B had a stronger engine, generating 1,425 horsepower, and its rotor blades were extended by 6 inches. This version could carry 22 fully equipped soldiers or 12 stretchers, with room for two medical attendants for medical evacuations.
The H-21A and H-21B were also used by the USAF and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in cold environments to support Distant Early Warning (DEW) radar sites from the Aleutian Islands and Alaska to Greenland and Iceland. In 1952, the US Marine Corps helicopter squadron HMX-1 tested some H-21A helicopters for air assaults. In 1957, the USMC borrowed an H-21B to see if it could tow disabled landing ships and amphibious vehicles to the beach. During this test, the H-21B successfully towed a landing ship at 5 knots and pulled a simulated tracked amphibious vehicle from the water to the shore. The H-21B helicopter engine was also used in later versions sold to the US Army, known as the Vertol H-21C Shawnee, and to military forces in other countries. In 1962, the US Army changed the H-21’s designation to CH-21. The Vertol H-21C Shawnee was widely used by the US Army to transport troops and supplies. The Army also experimented with arming the H-21C as a gunship. Some of these helicopters had flex guns mounted under the nose, while others had guns on the doors. An experimental version of the helicopter was also tested stateside with a Boeing B-29 Superfortress, which had a remote-controlled turret for a .50-caliber gun mounted beneath the nose.
The Vertol H-21C Shawnee, later called the CH-21C, began operating in Vietnam in December 1961. It was deployed by the 8th and 57th Transportation Companies to support the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). In the Army, the CH-21C Shawnee could be fitted with 7.62 mm or 12.7 mm machine guns on the doors. The CH-21 was relatively slow and had unprotected control cables and fuel lines, making it vulnerable to ground fire from the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Viet Cong troops. The helicopter was designed for cold weather but had difficulties in Vietnam’s hot climate. Although it could carry 20 passengers, it typically only carried 9 in Vietnam. In July 1962, a CH-21 Shawnee was shot down near the Laotian-Vietnamese border, resulting in the deaths of four aviators. It was one of the US Army’s earliest casualties in Vietnam. Despite these challenges, the Shawnee served as the Army’s main helicopter in Vietnam until 1964, when the UH-1 Huey replaced it. In 1965, the CH-47 Chinook arrived in Vietnam, and later that year, most CH-21 helicopters were taken out of service in the US Army and Air Force. The military began retiring the Vertol H-21C Shawnee in 1964, and most were out of service by the end of 1965, after which they were sent to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, known as “The Boneyard.” Read more Boneyard Files Articles HERE.
