(taken
from: F-40 #20 "Bristol 171 Sycamore Mk.52")
The
british Bristol 171 Sycamore had it's first flight on 27th july
1947. The five-seated helicopter was produced until 1959 and 50
of these were sold to the Bundeswehr. Delivery took place between
may 1957 and march 1959.
46 helicopters went to the Luftwaffe, while four samples arrived
with the Seenotrettungsstaffel (later MFG 5) at Kiel-Holtenau in
june 1958.
(taken
from: F-40 #20 "Bristol 171 Sycamore Mk.52")
The
helicopter was used in the Search and Rescue role at the Navy,
but results were not really satisfying. The Sycamore could only
be used close to the shores, due to it's limited range, so it
had to be supplemented by Grumman HU-16 Albatross flying boats.
A six additional airframes poured into naval service, as additional
helicopters were needed to fullfill the SAR task. These Sycamores
came from Faßberg's FFS-S (Flugzeugführerschule "S")
and Ahlhorn's HRVst 1 (Hubschrauber Rettungs- und Verbindungsstaffel).
The Sycamores were finally superseeded by Sikorsky H-34G, which
started to arrive at Kiel from 1963 onwards. 1966 saw the the
retirement of the type from Navy service, while Luftwaffe Sycamores
continued to fly with HTG 64 until the middle of 1969.
(taken
from: F-40 #20 "Bristol 171 Sycamore Mk.52")
