OH-23 Raven
The roots of the OH-23 Raven lie in the H-12, a commercial helicopter developed by the United Helicopter Company that first flew in 1948. The OH-23 Raven came into military service just prior to the beginning of the Korean War. Overall, 273 B models were built for the US Army.
While the OH-23 was not organic to Transportation Corps units in Korea, they were used extensively by medical ambulance detachments and in an observation and utility role.
The OH-23, because of the varied missions it could undertake, would have a long service life in the United States Army. In 1962, there were 623 OH-23s in the Army inventory. During the Vietnam War, the OH-23G Raven could be armed with twin M37C .30 Cal. machine guns on the XM1 armament subsystems or twin M60C 7.62 mm machine guns on the M2 armament subsystem. The helicopter would continue to be used until almost the end of the Vietnam War when it was replaced by the OH-6A Cayuse in early 1968. All told, the OH-23 went through si models, A-D and F-G, with the B model being mainly used for training purposes.
The OH-23B on display was used by the Army to train pilots at Fort Wolters, Texas. It was transferred to Fort Eustis in 1960 to help train helicopter mechanics. Seven years later the Raven was again transferred, this time to the US Army Transportation Museum.
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Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Education • War, Korean • War, Vietnam. A significant historical year for this entry is 1948.
Location. 37° 9.855′ N, 76° 34.575′ W. Marker is in Newport News, Virginia. It is in Fort Eustis. Marker can be reached from Washington Boulevard just north of Jefferson Avenue, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 321 Washington Blvd, Fort Eustis VA 23604, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. TH-55 Osage (here, next to this marker); OH-58D Kiowa Warrior (here, next to this marker); U-8D Seminole (a few steps from this marker); Aviation in the Transportation Corps (a few steps from this marker); Cybernetic Walker (a few steps from this marker); UH-1B Iroquois (a few steps from this marker); CH-21C Shawnee (a few steps from this marker); UH-1H Iroquois (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Newport News.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 28, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 205 times since then and 33 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 28, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
