Help needed on UV edge cuts in Maya

#1

I am sorry if I sound novice, but I really need to know this.

Is there any way, any single possibility in Maya, which allows me to make an UV cut all around an object, along any particular axis, but without selecting an edge loop in the mesh.

I have a helicopter model (fbx format) imported, and it is completely triangulated all over. ANd it is very high poly as well. So if I try to manually select a loop all around the heli, by selecting edge after edge, I assume it is going to take a complete day for that selection only.
But I desperately need to select an edge loop kind of thing which will basically cut it into equal 2 parts for my UV mapping.

#2

creating good uvs for complex stuff is taking days… yes…

where is this data come from… maybe there is a way to import it non triangulated…
if not you still could select faces an make new projections…

#3

As far as I know it Maya does have the capabilities to make a triangulated mesh be built up from quads. This is called Mesh > Quadrangulate. If this does not work and if you have it, you cna use ZBrush’s ZRemesher, it makes the topology be built up of quads. Other than that, you may retopo by hand.
Once done, you can use Maya’s bonus tools to UVing.