World record with Robinson R22

On September 22, 1990, in Red Bluff, California (USA), a "speed challenge" took place - an attempt to set a speed record in a helicopter with a take-off weight of less than 500 kg.

Pilot Wayne Mulgrew tried his hand at the controls of Robinson R22 HP (serial number 0199) with the landing gear removed!

The entire process was supervised by a representative of the National Aeronautical Association from Washington, who represented the Federal Aeronautique International from Paris, where all the world aviation records are kept.

In order to break the record, Mulgrew had to fly faster than the machine could allow him to.

In order to achieve the goal and make the pilot's task easier, a minimum amount of fuel on board was necessary, as well as the removal of the landing gear to reduce weight and wind resistance.

Due to regulations stating that no equipment can be thrown during the flight, Murglew piloted the dismantled ship to a makeshift platform 15m away, allowing the helicopter to rest on it.

The record attempt began only after the helicopter had lifted off the platform and flown away.

In the captured photo, note that the helicopter was refuelled while the pilot kept the ship in a hover without its landing gear, which was incredibly dangerous!

Murglew's team had practiced this task many times.

That day, pilot Wayne Mulgrew flew the 100km route in 29 minutes and 18 seconds at an average speed of 203.4km/h. The maximum speed reached by the Robinson pilot during the flight was 213.91km/h, thus setting a world record.

Wayne Murglew had many other aviation achievements, including on March 4, 1989 in Redding, California (USA) he set the world altitude record for an unladen helicopter weighing less than 500 kg. He achieved the record by flying a Robinson R22 HP to an altitude of 5,937 m.

Unfortunately, the talented pilot died in 1998, at the age of 46, in a plane crash in Colombia during training, piloting a T-65 Turbo Thrush.