Boeing Vertol 107
The Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight uses two overlapping tandem rotors rather than a single main rotor and tail rotor, a layout that gives it excellent lift capacity and stability without needing a separate tail rotor to counter torque. That tandem-rotor design let it carry heavy loads and remain stable even with an uneven load distribution, valued for the US Marine Corps' ship-to-shore troop and cargo transport missions it flew for decades. It served continuously from the Vietnam War until finally being retired by the Marine Corps in 2015, an unusually long service life for a military helicopter. Its larger tandem-rotor cousin, the CH-47 Chinook, remains in frontline service using the same basic rotor-layout philosophy.
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Did you know?
The CH-46 Sea Knight's twin tandem rotors give it a distinctive silhouette shared with its larger cousin, the CH-47 Chinook.
Specifications
| Length | 13.9 m (46 ft) |
|---|---|
| Height | 5.1 m (17 ft) |
| Rotor diameter | 15.2 m (50 ft) |
| Maximum passengers | 25 |
| Persons on board | 28 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 11 t |
| Range | 590 NM (1,093 km) |
| Service ceiling | 14,000 ft (4,267 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 9,000 ft (2,743 m) |
| Rate of climb | 8,440 ft/min (42.9 m/s) |
| Fuel capacity | 1,325 l |
| Engines | 2x General Electric T58 |
| Units built | 524 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
In CatchFlights
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