StingBat LHX

"user314" (user314) 04/07/2020 at 15:41 • Filed to: modelopnik, scale models, Stealth, Helicopterlopnik, Testors, 1980s

2

22

In the early 1980s, the US Army began a program to replace the UH-1, AH-1 and OH-58 helicopters in the scout/reconnaissance role. Known as the LHX (later LX) program, the Army requested proposals for a stealthy copter that could designate targets for the new AH-64 Apache, as well as attacking targets on its own. Boeing & Sikorsky teamed up for one proposal, while Bell Helicopters and McDonell Douglas put up another design. Boeing/Sikorsky eventually won, though the RAH-66 was later canceled.

Jointly released by Testors and Italeri in 1989, the ‘StingBat LHX’ is loosely based on the Bell/McDonell Douglas design, featuring weapons stowage in sponsons and a NOTAR system. The retractable skids and curved, three-bladed rotor is unique to the model though, as is the retractable three barrelled gun.

This is the second LHX I’ve built, having gotten one in 1990 or 1991. Pretty sure I did the olive drab Army chopper, so this time around I wanted to do something different. I picked up a sheet of markings for USMC AH-1Z Cobras, and painted the LHX in the appropriate shades of gray. Marine Cobras appear rather dirty, so I weathered the frame with dark gray around the panel lines and black around the exhausts. One weapons loading door is posed open, while the launch door is open on the other. The gun door is also open, and the turret extended.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > user314 04/07/2020 at 15:52

0

Looks quite futuristic!

Did it have those curved blades in the 80s?

OPPOsaurus WRX > user314 04/07/2020 at 15:52

1

how did that work with no tail rotor?

UserNotFound > OPPOsaurus WRX 04/07/2020 at 15:54

2

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NOTAR

UserNotFound > OPPOsaurus WRX 04/07/2020 at 15:56

1

See: MD 900 series

user314 > ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability 04/07/2020 at 16:00

1

Well, the Bell/McDD LHX proposal this model kinda resembles only ever existed as sketches, but they all had 4-bladed rotors:

The StingBat as presented by Testors probably wouldn’t have flown at all, and was more Rule of Cool than anything else. 

OPPOsaurus WRX > UserNotFound 04/07/2020 at 16:01

1

wierd, cool

Future next gen S2000 owner > OPPOsaurus WRX 04/07/2020 at 16:06

0

Witchcraft....or science. One of the two.

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > user314 04/07/2020 at 16:07

1

Aah!

Both of them are real cool tho :)

They would look right at home in a Clancy novel

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > OPPOsaurus WRX 04/07/2020 at 16:09

0

I remember doing a little report thingy on NOTAR during my undergrad, lemme see if I can find it.

user314 > ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability 04/07/2020 at 16:16

1

Off the cuff I’d say more Dale Brown than Clancy, but then Tom did write the F-19 into Red Storm Rising , not to mention the RAH-66 (The helicopter that actually won the LHX program, but was then canceled) was used in Debt of Honor .

user314 > Future next gen S2000 owner 04/07/2020 at 16:17

1

Little of column A, little of column B...

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > user314 04/07/2020 at 16:21

0

I need to read Dale Brown...

WasGTIthenGTOthenNOVAnowbacktoGTI > OPPOsaurus WRX 04/07/2020 at 16:32

2

user314 > ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability 04/07/2020 at 16:50

2

Dale’s the guy who wrote (extensively) about the B-52 ‘Old turbo Dog’:

Take a B-52, add an SST-style nose, a v-tail, replace the eight turbojet engines with four turbofans, add air-to-air missiles under the wings and a turret that shoots Stingers out the back. Oh, and it’s also stealthy, has and ESM/ECM suite that can shut down cities, and the flight crew is insane ...

God, I miss reading Dale Brown....

Brickfoot Ginger > user314 04/07/2020 at 17:21

2

Flight of the Old Dog.  Day of the Cheetah.  Hammerheads.  and a handful of others.  I miss those too.  I donated all my old Dale Brown to a local lending library.   JC Powell was my all time favorite character.

ttyymmnn > user314 04/07/2020 at 18:37

3

Meanwhile, over at Bell, the more things change, the more they stay the same. 

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > user314 04/07/2020 at 22:50

1

i used to do airplane models. but have been spending too much time looking at all the neat ship models

user314 > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas 04/08/2020 at 09:54

0

I do a little bit of everything, though this is the first kit I’ve completed in about a year. I have an 1/700 LHA 70% complete, though it’s missing pieces and is more or less abandoned, as well as a partially painted 1/72 SR-71C kitbashed out of Testors YF-12 and SR-71 kits that I will hopefully finish once the weather improves. Next on the desk though is a 1/700 Nimitz that I’m spicing up with a 3d printed, a lternate history air wing...

Wheelerguy > user314 04/08/2020 at 10:41

1

Ace Combat should consider a helo game.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > user314 04/08/2020 at 23:07

0

Interesting. With everything closed, do you know of a good model site to get supplies? I try to avoid amazon as much as I can.

user314 > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas 04/09/2020 at 07:44

0

I haven’t had to buy anything so far, but my go to's are usually Amazon, eBay, Michaels and Hobby Lobby. 

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > user314 04/28/2020 at 16:43

1

I finished reading the old dog a couple of days back.

Started reading at 10pm on a Friday and planned to read for an hour or two, ended up finishing the book at 4 5am ish.

What a rush! The refueling stuff was just amazing lol, so was the MIG chasing the old dog out of USSR air