Hiller OH - 23 Raven The Hiller OH - 23 Raven was a three - place , light observation helicopter based on the Hiller Model 360 . The Model 360 was designated by the company as the UH - 12 ( " UH " for United Helicopters ) , which was first flown in 1948 . Development . Stanley Hiller designed his first helicopter at the age of 15 , and built and flew his first helicopter , the Hiller XH - 44 , when he was aged 19 . With the help of shipping mogul Henry Kaiser , Hiller established the United Helicopters company in 1946 . In 1947 , United Helicopters developed the Model 360X , the prototype that would become the basis for the H - 23 . A year later , on 14 October 1948 the CAA issued a production certificate for the Model 360 . United Helicopters began producing the Model 360 as the UH - 12 . In 1949 , the UH - 12 became the first helicopter to make a transcontinental flight from California to New York . When Hiller upgraded the engine and the rotor blades , the company designated the new model the UH - 12A . It was the UH - 12A that would be adopted by both the French and United States militaries , as well as being used by civil commercial operators in several countries . Operational history . The H - 23 Raven performed as a utility , observation , and MedEvac helicopter during the Korean War . Model numbers ranged A through D , F and G . The H - 23A had a sloping front windshield . The H - 23B was used as a primary helicopter trainer . Beginning with the UH - 23C , all later models featured the " Goldfish bowl " canopy similar to the Bell 47 . The Raven used Hiller ' s " Rotor - Matic " cyclic control system , with two small servo rotor paddles offset 90 degrees to the main rotor blades . The paddles were attached to the control column , so that movement of the column would cause the pitch of the servo paddles to change , loading the main rotor blade so that the desired cyclic changes to the rotor occurred . The OH - 23 had a top speed of 97 mph ( 84 knots ) . The Raven had a two - bladed main rotor , a metal two - bladed tail rotor . Both the OH - 23B and the OH - 23C were powered by one Franklin O - 335 - 5D engine . The OH - 23D was a purely military version with a 0 - 435 - 23C engine and a more reliable transmission . Most OH - 23Ds were replaced by the OH - 23G , the most common version of the Raven , with a more powerful Lycoming O - 540 - 9A six - cylinder , horizontally opposed , air - cooled 305 hp engine . The OH - 23G could seat three . The MEDEVAC version carried two external skid - mounted litters or pods . The Raven saw service as a scout during the early part of the Vietnam War before being replaced by the OH - 6A Cayuse in early 1968 . A Raven piloted by Hugh Thompson , Jr . played a crucial role in curtailing the My Lai Massacre . The Raven could be armed with twin M37C . 30 Cal . machine guns on the XM1 armament subsystem or twin M60C 7 . 62 mm machine guns on the M2 armament subsystem . The XM76 sighting system was used for sighting the guns . The Royal Navy used Hiller 12E ' s for many years as its basic helicopter trainer - at 705 Sqn based at RNAS Culdrose in Cornwall , England . US Army designation H - 23C . Popular culture . A UK registered civil UH - 12 was seen attacking James Bond in the 1963 film " From Russia with Love " . A UH - 12E4 ( A UK registered civil aircraft with faux U . S . Army markings ) was used in the 1964 Bond film " Goldfinger " . One was also seen in the 1967 Bond film " You Only Live Twice " . The 1978 film " Attack of the Killer Tomatoes " contains footage of a real helicopter crash . A Hiller Aircraft UH - 12E , U . S . civil registry N81959 , suffered a tail - rotor strike during a scene where the helicopter was supposed to have landed in a tomato patch behind police officers . The aircraft spun out of control , rolled over , and burst into flames . The helicopter pilot escaped without serious injury . The type has also been seen in numerous other films .