Bell Restarts UH-1Y Venom Production for International Customers
Bell restarted UH-1Y Venom helicopter production for its first international operators after delivering the final USMC unit in April 2018. Crestview Aerospace completed manufacturing the first of eight cabins at its Crestview, Florida facility, with final assembly taking place at the Bell Amarillo Assembly Center. The helicopters were part of a 2020 US Department of Defense contract awarded to Bell for the production and delivery of eight UH-1Y and four AH-1Z helicopters for the government of the Czech Republic.
“Crestview Aerospace is honored and grateful for the opportunity to team with Bell on the continued production of the UH-1Y cabin for the first international customer,” said Paul Kohlmeier, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at Crestview Aerospace. “Crestview continues to build the same high quality and reliability into the international Venom helicopters that underpin the aircraft currently operated by the United States Marine Corps around the world.”
Prior to the international program, Bell had maintained AH-1Z Viper production as part of the H-1 contract for 349 aircraft — consisting of 160 UH-1Y and 189 AH-1Z — keeping critical component supply chains active. Bell anticipated completing USMC production through early 2022, followed by continued production for two signed Foreign Military Sales (FMS) cases: Bahrain and the Czech Republic.
The UH-1Y is a combat-proven utility helicopter first deployed with the USMC in 2009, designed to operate in the most extreme environments, from Arctic cold to desert heat. It engages threats, delivers or exfiltrates personnel, and performs under the most punishing operating conditions. Both the Venom and the AH-1Z Viper trace their lineage to the Vietnam-era UH-1 Iroquois and AH-1 Cobra, with the modern variants sharing 85 percent of their parts — including a common tail boom, engines, rotor system, drivetrain, avionics architecture, software, and controls.
“Time, logistics, and man-hours are all strategic resources,” said Mike Deslatte, Vice President and H-1 Program Director at Bell. “Commonality helps ensure everything between the Viper and Venom, from manufacturing, maintenance, and upgrades, remains seamless while simultaneously providing lower program and life cycle costs. It’s a real tactical advantage on multiple levels.”
On the collectors’ market, a completely restored 1966 Bell UH-1 Huey (S/N 66-1080) was listed on eBay for static display purposes. Restored to near-completion at the time of listing, the helicopter came with transmission and rotor components but without the engine, 42-degree gearbox, and shafts, which are not required for static display. The seller noted the aircraft was suitable for museum placement or parade use, and that the buyer would only need to install the main rotor blades upon delivery.
