Kord helicopter makes history

Kord helicopter makes history

Kord’s Helicopter Flies into History as the First Aircraft to Land in Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park

On Tuesday morning, February 26, the skies above Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park (CRP) filled with the sound of thunder as Kord’s newly acquired helicopter roared into view, circled the Park and touched down in the landing zone at Kord’s headquarters. The Bell Helicopter, a UH-1H Iroquois (‘Huey’) decked-out with Kord logos and colors, is the first aircraft to land in CRP according to CRP’s leadership.

Kord acquired the aircraft to support its Fort Hood (Texas) Aviation Training Support Contract and celebrated the new capability by hosting a company luncheon in conjunction with an aerial demonstration and static display. More than 60 Kord employees, along with family and friends participated in this historical event and were treated to an Anaheim Chili lunch, the opportunity to climb aboard the aircraft to explore and ask questions and take pictures in the helicopter sporting pilot gear.

Kord’s Chief UH-1H Pilot, Scott Hudson (retired U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Five), was the Pilot in Command. Scott has more than 10,500 hours of flight time conducting military, commercial, and general aviation operations throughout the world. Rem MacNealy, Kord Senior Vice President (retired Army Lieutenant Colonel) flew as copilot. Rem has almost 4,000 flight hours conducting military, commercial, and general aviation operations. This flight crew flew the helicopter to Huntsville from Henderson, Kentucky where it was overhauled. Kord’s Director of Aviation Programs, Dave Gereski (retired Army Colonel) flew the helicopter out of the Park with Scott. Dave’s background includes being a maintenance test pilot and he has more than 3,000 hours of flight time.

Kord’s Chief UH-1H Pilot, Scott Hudson (retired U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Five), was the Pilot in Command. Scott has more than 10,500 hours of flight time conducting military, commercial, and general aviation operations throughout the world. Rem MacNealy, Kord Senior Vice President (retired Army Lieutenant Colonel) flew as copilot. Rem has almost 4,000 flight hours conducting military, commercial, and general aviation operations. This flight crew flew the helicopter to Huntsville from Henderson, Kentucky where it was overhauled. Kord’s Director of Aviation Programs, Dave Gereski (retired Army Colonel) flew the helicopter out of the Park with Scott. Dave’s background includes being a maintenance test pilot and he has more than 3,000 hours of flight time.

Fort Hood, Kord provides training support, aircraft and ground vehicle maintenance, and logistics services to the 166th Aviation Brigade (MFTB). The Brigade is the US Army’s host unit for a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) training case supporting the armed forces of the Netherlands. Kord develops, supports and executes all aspects of Royal Netherlands Air Force helicopter (AH-64D Apache and CH-47D Chinook) training, Royal Netherlands Army infantry ground maneuver training, and sustainment training to units rotating in and out of Fort Hood from the Netherlands.

Rem MacNealy described the operations, saying “Kord’s Huey, flown by our pilot employees, provides essential capabilities in support of Dutch training missions. The aircraft is powered by a Lycoming 1,400 horsepower engine, has a maximum airspeed of 143 miles-per-hour and can operate up to 2.5 hours per fuel load. We use the helicopter to perform reconnaissance in support of training and live-fire exercises, surveying landing zones and identifying in-flight hazards and obstacles such as antennae, towers, power lines along training routes. We also use it to conduct aerial fire suppression and firefighting operations.”

The Dutch Apache Longbow attack helicopters are equipped with heavy firepower, including a 30-millimeter chain gun, Hellfire anti-tank missiles, and 2.75” folding-fin rockets. When the Apache crews conduct live-fire training, they occasionally start fires on the ranges. These must be put out quickly, or training stops, which costs precious training time. In the past, these fires were extinguished by ground crews using tanker trucks, which had to travel over rugged terrain and often were unable to put out the fires for hours, or even days. Kord’s helicopter dramatically reduces these delays and associated range-time costs by extinguishing range fires from the air in minutes.

To accomplish this, Kord equipped the UH-1H with a 325-gallon Isolair firefighting tank and water-intake snorkel and pump capable of pumping 270 gallons-per-minute of water into the tank from a water source such as a pond or lake. Once the tank is filled (about a minute and 15 seconds), Kord’s pilots maneuver the Huey to put out the fire. Depending on the fire’s characteristics, the pilot can open from one to three hydraulic tank doors to produce a drop pattern appropriate to extinguish the fire.