Unidentified Helios I

[Doug Johnson]

link to other unidentified Helios click on

http://flyhelio.com/smf/index.php?topic=454

http://flyhelio.com/smf/index.php?topic=1339

http://flyhelio.com/smf/index.php?topic=1398.msg6148

http://flyhelio.com/smf/index.php?topic=1458.msg7403#msg

Can anybody Identify or link these Helios to a construction # (c/n), another countries registration mark, or military serial # (s/n)

Doug
edit; c/n 1409 N6346V, CF-FIH, N295TA Lowell Thomas, Branham air  accident '07 @ Port Allsworth AK, crash Sept/08 @King Salmon AK

c/n 1218 previously N6325V, crash Jul '74

c/n 2505   HS-???     1964  H-250   Thailand   N5447E, ZS-EEV South Africa, 7P-FDA Dominican Rep, ZS-EEV, 7P-EEV, 5Y-AMM Nairobi, Kenya xprd reg '05 Tom Clayton,  300hp Lyc IO-54OK1B5 / 3 bladed Hrtzl  prop, now  in Laos RDPL-?  Marc Lekou

[gearedone]

The bottom photo is Talkeetna Air Taxi, they may still have this one.

The Helio H-295 in Iceland is now TF-SUN

[Doug Johnson]

I just called Talkeetna air Taxi, Helio N295TA, N295HC were there when Lowell Thomas owned it they now use turbine Beavers. They don't know who owns N295TA now its been 20 years, or what its c/n was. I made the change on the Iceland Helio TF-ORC.

Anyone have any ideas on finding the construction # for N295TA or who owns it now?

Doug

[Doug Johnson]

I was looking at some other pictures and the Paint scheme on the 7P-EEV looks like a factory paint scheme on early 391's and the cowling on the red one in AK looks like a modified 391 cowling.

The attachments are labeled incorrectly by me. I'm going to edit the labels
Doug

[gearedone]

The cowling on the red 391B has had the ejector tube removed as most have. The weight penalty was insufficient and not needed, the airplane is quiet anyway!!

[Doug Johnson]

I found this description of the augmenter in the Atlantic Flyer thought it was very descriptive and thought I would add it to your comment.

Slow tip speeds made for a very quiet and efficient propeller.  Cooling drag, which is usually 2.5% of the total, was reduced by the pioneering use of ejectors, also known as augmenters. Exhaust was dumped into the engine cooling air exit plenum, and the high velocity of the gases would entrain the cooling air, accelerating it and creating the needed pressure differential ordinarily produced by drag-creating cowl flaps. Eventually, it was determined that ejectors were a maintenance headache, and were not cost-efficient, so they were eliminated in favor of conventional cowl flaps.

I known little about cooling and cowling design but with all the concern with noise abatement and the introduction of new material.

It seems that the ejector might be worth reevaluating or redesigning . My understanding is that the high maintenance was due to fiberglass packing burning out. I have heard of ceramic fiber that has high heat tolerance. Also a reduction in drag wouldn't hurt, not having to be concerned about opening and closing cowl flaps at the proper time would be beneficial also.

Just an opinion. What do you guys think?

Doug

[Doug Johnson]

Found another unidentified Helio file name says Andy's Helio anyone have any numbers.

Edit; c/n 519, last registry C-GVKG owner Andrew Williams in picture, 1960 H-395, originally N4166D, Arctic Institute of North America, blown engine crash landed in mountains, Burwash Yukon,  deregistered canceled '07,  wreck now owned by Perry Linton for parts

[Ken Berger]

Does anyone recognize the mountains in the background?  I am guessing somewhere in Alaska.

[391stol]

It looks like alaska range type geology. going by the color of the rock and shape of the things.

[Doug Johnson]

I found the picture of Andys Helio again while doing a Google Helio picture search, in Yves Martins album "mountains (2006)", which also included a picture of Thukla, Nepal and other pictures that appear to be Everest. Mr. Martin appears to be from Quebec area. There is also an album that refers to Andrew Kouchibougoac of Halifax.

Does this jog anyones memory about the red Helio in the mountains?

Doug

[Doug Johnson]

I was reading the National Geographic mag and came across this anyone know which Helio it was.

In Maya cosmology the underworld is ruled by the Lords of Xibalba (shee-bal-BA). In April 1983, his fifth season at El Mirador,In northern Guatemala,  the director and principal investigator archaeologist Richard  Hansen nearly met them. He boarded Professor Matheny’s single-engine Helio Courier H395 with his wife, Jody, and their daughter Micalena; he was carrying the only two copies of his master’s thesis, which he’d been working on at the camp, and cash for the camp workers’ payroll. When the plane cleared the trees it was suddenly running with the wind, not into it as a windsock had indicated, and struggling for lift. About two miles from the airstrip, the tail hit a tree, the nose pitched down, the wings sheared off, the propeller chewed through the canopy until it snapped and the plane cartwheeled across the floor of the jungle. The H395 crashed to a stop in a tree five feet off the ground, fuel leaking everywhere. Hansen sat in his seat thinking he was dead.“Get out! Get out!” Jody yelled. As they scrambled clear, they heard a tremendous whoosh and were hurled to the ground as a fireball exploded behind them, cresting high above the trees. Everyone on board had survived.

If nothing else its another testament to the crash worthiness of the Helio but not much for or against fuel bladders.

[Doug Johnson]

Liberian Helio EL-TIL looks like an ex JAARS 1400 series Helio with the a cargo pod.

Any one have any history on it especially build number or US registry?

Doug

edit; EL-TIL Liberia, c/n 1476, 1974 H-295, originally N68879 , Jaars, destroyed after war in Liberia '03

[Doug Johnson]

Anybody recognize any of these 4.
the 1st looks like a late 2500 paint scheme.
the 2nd is a U-10D converted to trigear.
the 3rd a 391 or 2500
the 4th a Canadian 391 or 2500 C-F???





Doug

[gearedone]

From Top to bottom,

1) Helio H-250 flown from a ranch out west somewhere..Oregon, I think. The lady who flies it, her husband is an ex-Air America pilot..aviatrix 101

2) N808BD belongs to Alan Sikes in Georgia. HT-295/U-10D

3) N777LF Helio H-250 was in Oklahoma and Dean Jennings once owned it.

4) Helio H-391B with high compression pistons in Northwest Canada, was sold recently but I forgot who owns it now..Jim Danish does!!

[Doug Johnson]

can you get back to me with tail numbers for 1 and 4.
I asked Alan if that was a picture # 2 of his Helio he said he didn't think so do you have inside information that leads you to believe it is or is that just a guess?