Bell UH-1H Iroquois (Huey): Iconic Helicopter of the Vietnam War

Hey, have you ever heard of the “Huey”? It’s the nickname for the Bell UH-1 Iroquois, a super versatile helicopter that became a big deal during the Vietnam War.

Bell started working on this tough bird back in the mid-1950s, and they ended up making over 16,000 of them between 1955 and 1976. More than 7,000 of these choppers saw action in Vietnam.

They were mainly used for moving troops and cargo, getting injured folks out of harm’s way, and carrying out air attacks. But that’s not all – Hueys also found jobs outside the military, doing things like fighting fires, helping out in disasters, supporting scientific research, and rescuing people.

The Huey story started with the Bell Model 204, which took lessons from the Korean War. Then in 1961, they came up with a bigger version called the Model 205, which most people know as the UH-1D. These helicopters have been used by all branches of the U.S. military, various government agencies, and at least 48 other countries. Many of them are still flying today!

The Museum’s star attraction is a UH-1H model, which was the most popular type of Huey – they made 5,435 of these babies. This particular chopper joined the U.S. Army in March 1970 and saw action in Vietnam with the 101st Air Cavalry and the 158th Attack Helicopter Battalion, B Company. It racked up about 1,400 hours of combat time before heading back to the States in March 1972.

After that, it worked with the Alaska National Guard until 1994, and then helped out with search and rescue for the King County Sheriff’s Office. In 2003, it found its new home at The Museum of Flight. The museum had it spruced up by Northwest Helicopters in 2011 and 2012, so now it looks just like it did when it was serving with the U.S. Army 158th AHB in Vietnam.

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