Abstract: An improved airborne hoist for use in lifting a load, particularly by means f a helicopter, comprising a pair of rotatable drums, each drum being rotatable in an opposite direction, a drive unit intergeared through a series of shafts for providing rotation to the drums, a cable holding device, in the configuration of a supplemental drum surrounding each of the first said drums, and each cable holding device provided for rotating simultaneously in unison with the rotation of its respective drum, while at the same time being axially shiftable for providing a winding or unwinding of its held cable from a constant location. The pair of drums each hold, respectively, its own cable, thereby providing a pair of cables that furnishes an inherent safety factor in that a single mechanical failure of a drum does not result in a loss of its held load.