Aerotranstornados: AEROTRANSTORNADOS Nº62 - Sikorsky H-19A/H-19B Chickasaw

Sikorsky H-19A/B Chickasaw [1952 - 1961]

FAP	Serial	remarks
9101 [1]	51-7139 MSN 55137	1952.04.29 - built date - delivered to USAF; 1952.06.20 - acceptance flight USAF, 1952 – delivered FAP to Esquadra Mista de Busca e Salvamento, BA4 Lajes; 1952 - assembled on base, suffered an accident to main rotor blades – to OGMA for repairs; 1954.09.21 - test flight at OGMA after repairs; 1954.09.21 - 10.05 - total of 12 test/training flights (160 landings); 1954.10.06 - 1st operational mission after repairs w/ President Craveiro Lopes [Tancos to Santa Margarida]; 1954.10 until 1955.02 - four months of training flights based at Portela airport, included flights to Sintra and Espinho; 1955.02.22 - flight from Portela to USS Tripoli (docked in Lisboa); 1955.03.10 – flight from USS Tripoli to Lajes – carrying a sick seaman to hospital - first medical evacuation! 1955.07.23 - two recon flights for marine biology studies on wales, by Robert Clarke of National Institute Oceonography; 1956.07.31 - training flight (2nd H-19 pilot qualification); 1956.10.15 - training flight (3rd H-19 pilot qualification); 1957.09.11 - last flight; 1958 – wfu (replaced by a exUSAF H-19B); 1959 – to BA6 (?); 1960.12.15 - reactivation of this H-19, by then stored in Alverca, with another test flight on the 17th; 1960.12.19 - transfered to BA6 Montijo; 1960.12.27 - operational training flight; 1960.01.06 to 12 - 10 flights recorded in this period; 1961.01.13 - last flight (photographic mission as well as on the 12th; 1961 - wfu; ? - scrapped?;
9101 [2]	?	The MSN/ and USAF s/n of this aircraft is unkown, for sure one en USAF H-19B's form the batch 51-3896 to 51-3968 [see note 1]. Odd is the fact that this maintained the previous FAP tail number, 9101. ? – delivery to USAF; 1958 – arr. BA4 reg. 9101; 1958.01.28 - oper. at Esquadra Mista; 1958.09.19 – noted oper. rescue of the passengers of the ship Arnel that ran aground in Santa Maria together with another H-18B of the USAf forces based also at BA4; 1959 – to Esquadra (de Busca e Salvamento) nº41; 1959.02.09 – last flight at BA4 (12 min.test flight)– transferred to BA6 Montijo; 1959.06.03 - flight test at BA6 (from 3 to 12. June took place 12 test flights); 1959.06 (Summer) - noted operational Sagres 1959.07.17 - noted oper. 1959.09.29 - noted oper. 1959.10.04 - noted oper. BA5 during base anniversary - suffered an incident damaged landing gear -- to OGMA for repairs; 1960.01.20 - noted oper.; 1960.08.06 and 07 – noted oper. Sagres and Lagos; 1960.08.19 – noted oper.; 1960.10.23 - last oper. mission MEDEVAC mission to Berlengas; 1960.11.04 - flight from BA6 Montijo to Alverca; 1960 - wfu? 1962 – SoC FAP - scrapped; 1967.08.21 – noted DGMFA scrapyard; ? – scrapped – parts to Museu do Ar (main rotor and tail section);
‘9101’	57-5979 MSN 551237 H-19D-SI	1958.10.17 - delivered to US Army Aviation; ? - to Italian AF as MM57-5979, reserialled MM80119. After Italian service, abandoned at port of Antwerpen following a frustrated attempt at export in late 1960s, possibly connected with civil war in Biafra. Transported to Musee Royal de l'Armee, Brussels by Belgian AF Mar 3, 1976. 1980's - To Portugal in exchange for Junkers Ju-52/32 in mid 1980s. 2004 - noted in Museu do Ar, Alverca, as '9101' – l/n 8Sept2024;