Design Development
....of a 'secret' government helicopter that would look like a normal but state-of-the-art
executive helicopter which, when needed, could deploy an arsenal of deadly weapons.
In other words,... A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING.
A Bell 222 [ similar to this one from WestAir Aviation ] was chosen to play the part of AIRWOLF.
Not spending a great deal of time in helicopters, I had to rely on some
photos, from which to start my helo-makover.
My earliest concepts were to change the nose to provide a forward light system and
enhance the look of the helicopter. Our production pilot vetoed that because he was
concerned that it might subvert the ship's flight characteristics. I wanted to place the
two additional jet engines on top of the winglets in order to preserve their lower structural
integrity which contained the landing gear.
(addressing this design challenge as if it were a real-world assignment)
Keeping the basic nose, I added a narrow enhancement to address the beefed-up electronic
goodies. The sides of the ship featured a buldged-out section for a forward-firing weapon
system and a rear laser weapon system for protection back there. Retractable guns were
requested for the winglets but my first idea of a leading edge opening (again, trying to be
real-world practical) was changed to a side pop-out and telescoping (I still shudder at that one)
set of guns. To make room for those guns their ammo feed / shell retrieval systems, I
squeezed the jet engines as close to the body and as high up as I could.
Refinements, here, included a nose job, to make the pilot happier again, while the art
director changed the paint line to a straight line angling up to the tail. These sketches
explore what AirWolf would look like 'closed' and 'open'.
Here, I'm continuing to explore what the main weapons might look like.
1 2 3 4 5
....of a 'secret' government helicopter that would look like a normal but state-of-the-art
executive helicopter which, when needed, could deploy an arsenal of deadly weapons.
In other words,... A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING.
A Bell 222 [ similar to this one from WestAir Aviation ] was chosen to play the part of AIRWOLF.
Not spending a great deal of time in helicopters, I had to rely on some
photos, from which to start my helo-makover.
My earliest concepts were to change the nose to provide a forward light system and
enhance the look of the helicopter. Our production pilot vetoed that because he was
concerned that it might subvert the ship's flight characteristics. I wanted to place the
two additional jet engines on top of the winglets in order to preserve their lower structural
integrity which contained the landing gear.
(addressing this design challenge as if it were a real-world assignment)
Keeping the basic nose, I added a narrow enhancement to address the beefed-up electronic
goodies. The sides of the ship featured a buldged-out section for a forward-firing weapon
system and a rear laser weapon system for protection back there. Retractable guns were
requested for the winglets but my first idea of a leading edge opening (again, trying to be
real-world practical) was changed to a side pop-out and telescoping (I still shudder at that one)
set of guns. To make room for those guns their ammo feed / shell retrieval systems, I
squeezed the jet engines as close to the body and as high up as I could.
Refinements, here, included a nose job, to make the pilot happier again, while the art
director changed the paint line to a straight line angling up to the tail. These sketches
explore what AirWolf would look like 'closed' and 'open'.
Here, I'm continuing to explore what the main weapons might look like.
1 2 3 4 5