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A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
Sud Aviation developed the Gazelle as a light helicopter with room for five. The design passed into Aérospatiale's range and combined a streamlined cabin with an enclosed anti-torque rotor. Civil and military operators used the same compact airframe for different tasks; equipment and powerplant details depend on the version.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗Business trips leave room for sharing the view
A sightseeing flight in Belgium started van Zutphen thinking about learning to fly helicopters himself. He eventually trained on an R44 and later owned other types, but the Gazelle became his favourite. Interviewed at Teuge, he spoke about its appearance and the pleasure of flying with an enthusiasm that extended beyond using it as transport.
Up in the Sky interview · June 2016. Owner-pilot of SA341G(S) YU-HVZ, acquired in 2014; preferences and recollections are his own.
Up in the Sky · Read more ↗HeliManager adapts the controls to the user
FlyInside includes HeliManager for joystick configuration and artificial-stability adjustment. The developer describes options intended to make the Gazelle usable with a standard four-axis joystick or controller.
Aérospatiale Gazelle · FlyInside · MSFS 2020
FlyInside · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube jettech7 · 1 min ·
GAZELLE HELICOPTER START UP COCKPIT VIEW
A close view of the Gazelle cockpit during engine start.
Real aircraft · Aérospatiale Gazelle
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Aérospatiale Gazelle
Sud Aviation developed the Gazelle as a light helicopter with room for five. The design passed into Aérospatiale's range and combined a streamlined cabin with an enclosed anti-torque rotor. Civil and military operators used the same compact airframe for different tasks; equipment and powerplant details depend on the version.
Aérospatiale Gazelle
Aérospatiale → · Explore the family →
Aérospatiale Gazelle
Wikipedia contributors · Aérospatiale Gazelle ↗FlyInside · MSFS 2020 →Aircraft type designators
Use the code for the model you are flying. The linked authority lists the applicable aircraft.
History & design
A flight-test engineer remembers the Gazelle
Andrew Cranfield recalled a journey from Yeovil to London with Westland test pilot Don Farquharson, as well as Army exercise flying. His role on those flights is not established as pilot in command.
Hush-Kit · Interview with a human-powered helicopter designer ↗Hush-Kit interview, March 2022
Development milestones
First flight: 7 April 1967 (SA.340)
Developed from: Aérospatiale Alouette III
Wikipedia contributors · Aérospatiale Gazelle ↗Aérospatiale Gazelle · family/variant named by the source · Wikipedia revision 1367964479
Pilot accounts
Business trips leave room for sharing the view
A sightseeing flight in Belgium started van Zutphen thinking about learning to fly helicopters himself. He eventually trained on an R44 and later owned other types, but the Gazelle became his favourite. Interviewed at Teuge, he spoke about its appearance and the pleasure of flying with an enthusiasm that extended beyond using it as transport.
The helicopter also served a practical purpose, taking him to customers in Germany and Belgium. Away from work, he flew for Make-A-Wish and shared rides with people with disabilities. Those trips gave a different meaning to the same aircraft. His technical opinions are personal assessments, not independently verified specifications.
Up in the Sky interview · June 2016. Owner-pilot of SA341G(S) YU-HVZ, acquired in 2014; preferences and recollections are his own.
Read the full account · Up in the Sky ↗A family holiday changes the usual view
Accustomed to seeing the country from a business jet, the writer chose a Gazelle for a family holiday along the California coast. Preparation included helping with rotor-blade installation and checking whether the suitcases would fit. The baggage compartment proved a puzzle, and some belongings later travelled home by parcel delivery as the family made room.
Stops at Santa Barbara and Monterey turned the journey into a series of visits, while the approach to San Francisco offered a view very different from the author’s usual high-altitude flying. Friends shared time in the helicopter during the trip. At home, the family kept talking about the experience and soon proposed another outing. The diary preserves their enjoyment while its historical flying practices remain the author’s account.
First-person diary · August 2003. SA341G identified in the account as helicopter 1831A; the author’s name is not established from the page.
Read the full account · Airplane Driver’s Network ↗Returning to a helicopter after a life-changing injury
After an injury ended his RAF flying career, McQuillan regained fixed-wing flying skills and began working towards helicopters. He recalled developing a pneumatic aid to operate the pedals, with the Gazelle among the aircraft flown during the work. His account also distinguishes the later Schweizer 300 training and check ride from those earlier Gazelle experiences.
Years afterwards, he returned to the type while planning a flight intended to raise awareness of veterans’ needs. A former acquaintance offered two dismantled Gazelles from which the project hoped to prepare an aircraft. McQuillan valued the low cabin height for access and described considerable preparation still ahead. The interview does not document a completed circumnavigation.
AirMed&Rescue interview · September 2024. McQuillan recalls Gazelle flying during development of the Aeroleg and describes preparations for a proposed world flight; completion of that trip is not established.
Read the full account · AirMed&Rescue ↗In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
Compare simulator versions →MSFS 2020Aérospatiale Gazelle
FlyInside · Released
Aérospatiale Gazelle
FlyInside · Released
X-Plane 12SA341B / SA342J Gazelle
JRX · Released
SA341B / SA342J Gazelle
JRX · Released
Aircraft specifications
Published figures for the named real-aircraft variant. Simulator equipment and performance can differ.
| Specification | Published value |
|---|---|
| Length | 11.97 m (39 ft 3 in) including rotor |
| Height | 3.15 m (10 ft 4 in) overall; 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in) to top of rotor hub |
| Empty weight | 917 kg (2,022 lb) |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,800 kg (3,968 lb) |
| Powerplant | 1 × Turbomeca Astazou IIIA turboshaft , 440 kW (590 hp) |
| Main rotor diameter | 10.5 m (34 ft 5 in) |
| Main rotor area | 86.5 m² (931 sq ft) NACA 0012 section |
| Maximum speed | 310 km/h (190 mph, 170 kn) at sea level |
| Cruise speed | 264 km/h (164 mph, 143 kn) max cruise at sea level |
| Range | 361 km (224 mi, 195 nmi) at sea level with maximum fuel |
| Service ceiling | 5,000 m (16,000 ft) |
| Rate of climb | 9 m/s (1,800 ft/min) max at sea level |
Manuals & resources
Find your next read
Choose a topic for a short introduction and a link to the original source. Simulator references identify the developer and edition they cover.
Simulator documentation
HeliManager adapts the controls to the userAérospatiale Gazelle · FlyInside · MSFS 2020
FlyInside includes HeliManager for joystick configuration and artificial-stability adjustment. The developer describes options intended to make the Gazelle usable with a standard four-axis joystick or controller.
FlyInside Gazelle 341 listing · captured September 2026
FlyInside · Read the source ↗Open the aircraft to explore its machineryAérospatiale Gazelle · FlyInside · MSFS 2020
The model includes opening inspection hatches and visible turbine, transmission and hydraulic components. Doors and covers can also be manipulated, alongside cockpit lighting and ventilation controls.
FlyInside Gazelle 341 listing · captured September 2026
FlyInside · Read the source ↗The package has its own flight-dynamics systemAérospatiale Gazelle · FlyInside · MSFS 2020
FlyInside describes a custom dynamics engine and simulated failures, including engine and rotor-related events.
FlyInside Gazelle 341 listing · captured September 2026
FlyInside · Read the source ↗Pilot account
Business trips leave room for sharing the viewUp in the Sky interview · June 2016. Owner-pilot of SA341G(S) YU-HVZ, acquired in 2014; preferences and recollections are his own.
A sightseeing flight in Belgium started van Zutphen thinking about learning to fly helicopters himself. He eventually trained on an R44 and later owned other types, but the Gazelle became his favourite. Interviewed at Teuge, he spoke about its appearance and the pleasure of flying with an enthusiasm that extended beyond using it as transport. The helicopter also served a practical purpose, taking him to customers in Germany and Belgium.
Peter van Zutphen
Up in the Sky · Read the source ↗A family holiday changes the usual viewFirst-person diary · August 2003. SA341G identified in the account as helicopter 1831A; the author’s name is not established from the page.
Accustomed to seeing the country from a business jet, the writer chose a Gazelle for a family holiday along the California coast. Preparation included helping with rotor-blade installation and checking whether the suitcases would fit. The baggage compartment proved a puzzle, and some belongings later travelled home by parcel delivery as the family made room.
Airplane Driver’s Network author
Airplane Driver’s Network · Read the source ↗Developer documentation
SA341B / SA342J Gazelle — product listingSA341B / SA342J Gazelle · X-Plane 12
Product listing captured 2026-09-24; edition scope from the reviewed catalogue
JRX · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Aircraft background
Aérospatiale GazelleWikipedia contributors · Research background · retrieved 2026-09-12 Interview with a human-powered helicopter designerHush-Kit · Andrew Cranfield · 8 March 2022Product
Gazelle 341CFlyInside · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 SA341B / SA342J Gazelle catalogue sourceJRX · Product listing captured 2026-09-24; edition scope from the reviewed catalogueType designator
ICAO Doc 8643 — aircraft type designatorsInternational Civil Aviation Organization · Public search data retrieved 2026-09-14; authority update 2026-09-03Built-in force-feedback profiles
Read the documentary basis, editable starting settings and remaining questions for the aircraft you fly. Each explanation refers to the exact profile revision shown.
Catalogue programme-20261022-v1 · 3 profile choices
JRX SA341B Gazelle
JRX · Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
JRX SA341B Gazelle: The profile provides cyclic resistance for the selected Gazelle; JRX friction controls and FlyInside dynamics remain separate simulator implementations.
JRX SA342J Gazelle
JRX · Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
JRX SA342J Gazelle: The profile provides cyclic resistance for the selected Gazelle; JRX friction controls and FlyInside dynamics remain separate simulator implementations.
Aérospatiale Gazelle
Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Partial review
MSFS 2020
Aérospatiale Gazelle: The profile provides cyclic resistance for the selected Gazelle; JRX friction controls and FlyInside dynamics remain separate simulator implementations.
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