UH-1Y Venom

The Bell UH-1Y Venom twin-engine multi-role helicopter, referred to as the Yankee in NATO code, was developed by Bell Helicopters as part of the H1 helicopter upgrade programme for the US Marine Corps. Along with it was developed a sister helicopter, the AH-1Z Viper, with which it shares 85% of its parts, making maintenance of these machines much easier.

The Venom has better engines than its predecessor UH-1N Twin Huey, namely two General Electric T700 turboshafts with 2x 1363 kW. As a result, it is capable of higher speeds than the Twin Huey, while also having a longer range and a 50% increase in payload capability. In addition, the helicopter is also fully compatible and optimized with the TopOwl sight and display system and has extremely high resistance to salty environments.

The Venom is a flexible multi-purpose helicopter that can be used for attack, escort, search and rescue or aerial reconnaissance missions. The helicopter can also carry smaller teams, making it suitable for special operations and, with its advanced communications equipment, can also serve as a Command and Control platform. On offensive missions, the Venom can be equipped with Hydra 70 supersonic missiles, M240 machine gun and M134 cannon with 7.62 mm calibre. Apart from the U.S. Marine Corps, only the Czech Republic has Venom helicopters.

► Aviantion Archive - UH-1Y Venom