S-60 | |
---|---|
General information | |
Type | Cargo helicopter |
Manufacturer | Sikorsky Aircraft |
Status | Crashed in April 1961 |
Number built | 1 |
History | |
First flight | 25 March 1959 |
Developed from | Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave |
Developed into | Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane |
The Sikorsky S-60 helicopter, a prototype "flying crane", was derived from the S-56 in 1958. Proving to be underpowered, the development of the S-60 led to the larger, turbine-engined Sikorsky CH-54 Tarhe military transport helicopter, and its civil S-64 Skycrane variant, which were already on the drawing board by the time the sole example of the S-60 crashed on 3 April 1961.[1]
Like the S-56/H-37 it was powered by two Wasp radial piston engines, but it had a radically different fuselage; rather than a fixed cabin it only had a cockpit and an open area in which pods with different tasks could be carried. Although it did not enter service, it was evaluated by the U.S. Army and Navy, and lead further development of this concept.