Handle with care: Clamps for transporting Blackhawk helicopter blades required strong structural castings with the precision to handle delicate composite material

摘要

Rotor blades for U.S. Army helicopters used to be titanium components that were handled easily with steel blade clamps, which attach to the blades during their removal and transportation. But engineers found a way to design even lighter blades using a honeycomb composite material. These blades, used on the M model of the UH-60 Blackhawk, weigh 250 lbs. and measure 22 ft. long. The blades fit the helicopter, but the old generation blade clamp didn't fit the blades.