The story
Originally the Hughes OH-6 Cayuse, built for the US Army's Light Observation Helicopter competition, the 500 series became one of the civilian world's favorite small turbine helicopters. Police units, news crews, utility linemen and film crews fly them, and that teardrop fuselage is recognizable from a mile away.
In April 1966 an OH-6 flew nonstop from Culver City, California, to Ormond Beach, Florida: 2,213 miles in about 15 hours, a helicopter distance record that still stood decades later. The type set 23 world records that year.
Quick answers
How do you identify a MD 500?
Tiny egg-shaped cabin with a big wraparound windshield, a skinny tail boom and short skids on angled struts. Four or five rotor blades depending on model, and later 500D/E models wear a T-tail with small fins at each end. The turbine exhaust pokes out the back of the egg, under the boom.
What does a MD 500 sound like?
A quick, busy buzz from a small turbine and a short, fast-turning rotor.
How fast is the MD 500?
Top speed is 152 kts (MD 530F).
How far can the MD 500 fly?
Range is about 223 nmi (MD 530F).
How big is the MD 500?
It is 32 ft 7 in (MD 530F) long and 27 ft 4 in (rotor, MD 530F) across the rotor.
When did the MD 500 first fly?
Its first flight was in 1963.
How many MD 500s have been built?
4,700+ built.
What do crews call the MD 500?
Loach.
How rare is a MD 500 in Bogey?
COMMON. Everyday traffic. You will catch plenty of these, and every first catch still counts. Your first MD 500 catch is worth 25 points.
