Mag Spreads Vol.41 No.3:Mag Spreads Vol.40 No · PDF fileHelicopter INTERNATIONAL Page 77 The...

HeliExpo 2018 Preview

HeliExpo 2018Preview

HelicopterVolume 41 Number 4 January - February 2018

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

The Industry’s Leading Commercial & Defence News Journal

In this issue: New Bell Projects - By Elfan ap Rees£4.50/US$6.55

ISSN 0143-1005

Helicopter INTERNATIONAL Page 111

Commercial 114

High altitude trials with AVIC AC312E... Helijet leases S-76C++...

Dutch MD900 finds new life in USA... Kuwait orders H225 purchase investigation...

Airbus to lead... NZCAA issues warning over helicopter maintenance etc...

Tail Rotors 140

News Updates from around the world to 12th January 2018

Regional NewsAsia Pacific 120

Offshore Worldwide 134

North America 133

Parapublic 130

MarketingAccident Spot 136

Bell 525 Accident Report 139

Civil Sales 138

Classified 141

GeneralBook Corner 138

The Collective Column 113

Helicopter History 135

Rotary People 139

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Front Cover Picture:This Leonardo HelicoptersAW109 Trekker conversion,seen a t Verg ia te on 3December has acted as one ofthe prototypes for the newskid-equipped utility helicopter.In its previous life it was anAW109S demonstrator, serial22002 (O. Bernardi).

VOLUME 41 - NUMBER 4 - JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2018

Contents

Military Helicopter News 121

Defence 122

All US funded Russian helos in Afghanistan to be phased out...

Second Sea Lion airborne... Indian Navy presses for Sea King replacement...

Philippines seeks new light attack helos... MRH-90 bedding in with RAN etc...

Censored 126

Military News Updates from around the world to 12th January 2018

FeaturesHeli Expo 2018 - Preview 118

New Bell Projects - By Efan ap Rees 119Member of the

Periodical PublishersAssociation

ASSOCIATIONPUBLISHERSPERIODICAL


The Collective Column

Elfan ap Rees

Publisher/EditorELFAN ap REES

Flinst SMM MBIM Associate RAeS

Managing EditorCLAIRE ap REES

North American EditorKENNETH SWARTZ

EDITORIAL OFFICE75 Elm Tree Road, Locking

Weston-super-Mare,Somerset, BS24 8EL

ENGLANDTel: +44(0)1934 822524

e-mail: [email protected]: www.aviapress.co.uk

Contributing EditorsRashid Ali

Oscar BernardiPhilippe Boulay

Frank ColucciBob Evans

Peter FosterEmanuele Ghiroldi

Pierre GillardToni Heumann

Robert KerrJuri Matvejev

Trevor ReesKiyoshi Sato

Anthony Tsagaratos

PhotographyAlan Norris

Jay Miller

AdministrationLucia ap Rees

Tracey WatkinsAccounts

Lucy Wallis

Advertising SalesHeidi Mueller-Jacobs

FinalisationIan Tasker

Helicopter INTERNATIONAL

75 Elm Tree Road, Locking,Weston-super-Mare,Somerset, BS24 8EL

ENGLANDTel: +44 (0) 1934 822524

e-mail: [email protected]: www.aviapress.co.uk

THE BREAKING NEWS from the USA that Sikorsky Aircraft has sold the TypeCertificate and production rights lock, stock and barrel for the SchweizerS-300/S333 helicopter family to a new company in Fort Worth, Texas backed bythe Rotorcraft Services Group (RSG), will come as welcome relief to the manyowners and operators of the ubitiquous and popular little trainer.

Just why Sikorsky purchased the Schweizer light helicopter business in the firstplace was difficult to fathom, excepting that the then company heads saw goldat the end of a Saudi rainbow and possible big sales via Northrop Grumman ofthe unmanned S-333 derivative, the MQ-8B Fire Scout. But turning a smallfamily run firm into part of a major manufacturer was never going to be easy, andclosing down the original Emira, New York factory and moving production toPennsylvania was not a popular move with the employees. Sikorsky began badlyby struggling to meet an order from Saudi Arabia for eight S-333 helicopters andputting the S-300 on hold, before letting go of what should have been a lucrativespares business. Towards the end of the Sikorsky reign, most S-333s weregrounded due to a lack of parts and S-300 owners were paying inflated prices forcritical spares - that was if they could actually find them.

The new Schweizer RSG, headed up by former Schweizer President DavidHorton, has big plans to revive the S-300 fortunes including a tie up with AVIC inChina (beware the Brantly B2B story!) but we’re sure the rebirth will have thesupport and best wishes of everyone who has ever flown this little long-livedhelicopter.

★

The retirement of the Westland Lynx from Bristish military service in January willhave awoken another wave of nostalgia in all those who have followed thedistinctive whine of this unique helicopter since its first flight on 21 March 1971.

Looking through our log books we find we first clambered into the cockpit inMay 1977, with the Royal Navy HAS Mk.2 variant flying from RNAS Yeovilton. Tobe honest we don’t recall much of that less than momentous introduction, butremember much more from a three day sojourn to Koksdje with Westland chieftest pilot Roy Moxam to show off the company Lynx demonstrator G-LYNX to theBelgian military and public at a local airshow. G-LYNX of course went on to breakthe World Speed Record six years later and now rests in grand retirement notmore than 500m (1640ft) from our office!

Whilst the record breaker was primarily an Army demonstrator, it was anotheryear before we got a true Army Air Corps Lynx AH.1 in the logbook, this timeflying along the East German border in the heady days of the Cold War. Over thespace of several days, we experienced nap-of-the-earth flying and mock TOWmissile firing practice, and at one point landed on the Galgen Ridge close to anEast German border post, to wind up the guards there with fake cap badges toconfuse their intelligence.

Over later years we had many more Lynx encounters but now the only aircraftleft in service are overseas - we’ll certainly miss that distinctive whine.

Elfan ap [email protected]

Helicopter INTERNATIONALPage 114

High altitude trials with AVIC AC312EAVIC Helicopter recently completed highplateau trials with the AC312E civil variant ofthe Z-9 Dauphin helicopter in northern China.The AC312E first flew in July 2016 and isan upgraded version of the AC312, introducingthe Safran Helicopter Engines Arriel 2Hversion of the 2N powerplant.

The trials took place on the YunnanPlateau, operating from Ninglang Luguhuairport at an altitude of 3293m (10,803ftand reaching heights of 6300m (20,700ft)above sea level. The demonstrator, registeredB-OOUP, also flew over the Loess Plateau andthe Qinghai-Tibet Plateau as part of thecertification tests to prove its ability tooperate in China’s more mountainous areas.The maximum take off weight of the AC312E is4.25 tonnes, and the helicopter has a range of500km (310 miles) with a 500kg (1102lb)payload, cruising at an altitude of 5000m(16404ft).

Four AC312E have already been ordered bythe Chinese Ministry of Land and Resourcesfor geological survey support and a letter ofintent has also recently been signed with theTibet Development and Investment Group foremergency rescue missions in the country.

End of EC120B productionAirbus Helicopters has confirmed that it hasended production of the H120 (EC120B) lighthelicopter, with the last delivery being madelast September of serial 1699 to the USDepartment of Agriculture Animal and PlantHealth Inspection Service. RegisteredN260WH, the aircraft is one of two H120sdelivered in 2017 to the organisation’s WildLife Services Division.

The decision to end production, both atthe Marignane plant and at the Harbinfactory in China, came after declining salesof the five-seat single engined helicopterin recent years. First flown in 1995,production began in late 1997, with all theairframes manufactured by Harbin AviationIndustries (HAI) and a final assembly line setup in France. Later part of AVIC, the HAIfacility assembled the aircraft from 2004,primarily for the People’s Liberation ArmyAviation Corps, which ordered 150 HC120variants but is only known to have receivedaround 60-75. Coupled with the Frenchproduction, this took total H120 sales tomore than 750 aircraft.

Airbus Helicopters Chief Executive Officer,Guillaume Faurey, told a meeting of Frenchaviation journalists at Marignane in lateNovember that there are still at least 600H120s in service worldwide with some 400operators, and the company will continue tosupport this fleet with the same level of service

Commercial- INTERNATIONAL

Above: AVIC Helicopter recently completed highplateau trials with the AC312E helicopter innorthern China.

as today. However it will no longer invest in asimilar entry-level helicopter in future and, inthe single-turbine segment, is now focusing onthe H125/H130 range.

In recent years the $2 million Safran Arriuspowered H120 has faced increasingcompetition from lower cost rivals, notablythe new Bell Model 505 JetRanger X whichuses the Arrius 2R variant of the same engineand the new generation Garmin G1000Havionics suite, but sells for almost half theprice. In addition operators have complainedabout a lack of support for the H120 and highoverhaul costs, which made the aircraftexpensive to own.

Helijet leases S-76C++Canadian helicopter operator HelijetInternational in Richmond, British Columbiahas signed an agreement with PHI Inc to leaseup to six Sikorsky S-76C++ helicopters fromthe Louisiana company to add to andupgrade its S-76 fleet. The procurementfollows a two year planning programme byHelijet on options to improve its S-76operations.

The company first introduced the S-76A in1987 and has always utilised this variant for itsscheduled services, adding additional aircraftwhen the company won a contract to flyguests to remote fishing lodges on the BritishColumbia coast for its air ambulance contractshowever Helijet operates the S-76C+.

Initially PHI Inc will overhaul and preparethree S-76C++ helicopters for Helijet,carrying out avionics changes and othermodifications selected by Helijet, beforerepainting the aircraft in the Canadiancompany’s livery. All three S-76C++ areexpected to be delivered by mid-2018. Onarrival in Richmond, Helijet will redesign andrefurbish the cabin interiors to their ownspecification. Additional aircraft deliveries willbe subject to respective company approvals. Itis however expected that the two companieswill continue to work collaboratively to betteraccommodate their respective fleetrationalisation needs in the changing marketplace.

PHI Inc in particular has a number of idleS-76C+ and S-76C++ aircraft in store as aresult of the slowdown in offshore drilling inthe Gulf of Mexico or replacement byLeonardo Helicopters AW139s, and recentlyleased two S-76C+ to Lahak Aviation in Israelfor local offshore support. These aircraft,serial 76-0623 and 76-0655, were both re-registered in Israel as 4X-BEV and EYrespectively in December, following Israelicertification.

Leonardo decline in 2017 deliveriesFollowing internal problems with meeting production schedules and changing customerdemands on lead times, Leonardo Helicopters is expecting to record a year-on-year declinein deliveries for 2017 according to its new managing director, Gian Piero Cutillo.

Cutillo suggests the latter, requiring much shorter delivery times for specific configurationsand variants, has impacted on production planning and resulted in components sometimesbeing out of stock. In addition, introductory problems with AW169 production and delays inEuropean Aviation Safety Agency certification of mission equipment for this helicopter, havealso affected delivery schedules.

Despite the challenges, the new managing director appears confident that the helicopterdivision will recover, once planned performance improvements are fully in place, and believesthis will show up in the 2018 revenue and profit figures in due course.



Dutch MD900 finds new life in USAMD Helicopters has delivered an ex-Netherlands Police MD900 Explorer toCoxHealth in Springfield, Missouri following anextensive overhaul and upgrade to the MD902configuration at the company’s Mesa, Arizonafactory. The purchase of the helicopter, thesecond MD902 to join CoxHealth, wasannounced last April.

Now registered N902CH and kitted outwith a full emergency medical services fit fortransport of a stretcher patient plus amedical attendant, the aircraft has achequered history. It was originally built in1996 as serial 00042 and evaluated by the USCoast Guard during 1999, on lease to support

offshore missions against fast boats runningdrugs into US waters from the south.

In 2001 it was used by UK MD Helicoptersagent Eastern Atlantic Helicopters for anaround the world flight attempt before beingleased in January 2002 to the Dutch Police forlaw enforcement duties. By 2005 however itwas grounded and locked in a hangar atSchiphol airport. This followed a financialdispute regarding payments due, after acontract to purchase 10 Explorers wascancelled on performance shortfall groundsby the Dutch authorities. The dispute wasonly finally settled in 2015, when the aircraftwas released and returned to themanufacturer.

CoxHealth also has an option to furtherenhance the rebuilt aircraft with the new all-glass cockpit retrofit being developed by MDHelicopters for the Explorer. This features theintegrated Genesys Aerosystems advancedIDU-680 cockpit displays.

Kuwait orders H225 purchaseinvestigationThe Kuwait government has ordered aninvestigation into the August 2016 orderplaced with Airbus Helicopters for 30 H225Caracals, following newspaper allegations ofkickbacks in the Euro 1 billion deal. Thecomplaint, first aired in a Paris-based Frenchmagazine “Marianne”, alleges that amiddleman involved in the transactiondemanded Euro 64 million from themanufacturer in commission payments.

The middleman, Farid Abdelnour,chairman of Indeco Holding in bedanon,claims that the company was asked by AirbusHelicopters in 2011 to help with the sale of12 Caracals to Kuwait, with the sales targetlater increasing to 24 aircraft in 2014 andeventually to 30 helicopters in October 2015after Indeco brought in the Kuwait NationalGuard as a new client. According to Indeco,Airbus Helicopters agreed a paymentamounting to six percent of the total salesvalue, calculated at around Euro 1 billion butsubsequently refused to pay the amounddue.

Airbus Helicopters and its parent companyhave yet to release any statement puttingforward their side of the dispute.

The probe by the Kuwait Public Anti-Corruption Authority was ordered by PrimeMinister Sheikh Jaber Mub arak-al-Sabah inmid December. The investigation will also bereferred to the country’s Audit Bureau toscrutinise all data and documents coveringthe contract centre-left political.

Above: CoxHealth in Springfield, Missouri hasput this one-time Netherlands Police MDHelicopters Explorer in service for EMSoperations.

Airbus Helicopters 2017 resultsAirbus Helicopters delivered 409 aircraft last year and received orders for 335 more during the same period. The deliveries represent a slight fallcompared to 2016, when the company produced 418 helicopters. The order backlog now stands at 692 helicopters.

The 2017 orders included 168 H125 (AS350/AS355), 29 H135 and 76 H145 light medium, 4 H155, 19 H175 super medium and 54 H215/H225heavy helicopters. The orders for the latter Super Puma family showed a marked increase over the previous three years when sales were affectedby bad media coverage following accidents. The results gave Airbus Helicopters a 50 percent share of total civil and parapublic sales for the year,with Bell Helicopter securing 18 percent, Leonardo taking 17 percent, Russian Helicopters winning 11 percent and Sikorsky Aircraft having a onepercent share. Three percent of deliveries fell to other manufacturers.

Since 2014 Airbus Helicopters has taken steps to become leaner but stronger in the challenging market environment that exists today, with atransformation of the industrial operations across its main sites and improvements to its products and services. The company is now set to launcha second wave, with increased digitalisation, the introduction of the H160 helicopter to service, and the development of other new aircraft to meetfuture needs. These include the Racer high speed compound design and the VSR700 unmanned helicopter, which is expected to offer “the capacityof a helicopter for the price of a drone”. Based on the Guimbal Cabri G2 two-seat helicopter, the SRR700 is expected to receive military certificationin 2019.

Meanwhile the introduction of the X6 heavy helicopter, touted as a future replacement for the Super Puma family, is being deferred after theconcept studies began in 2015 showed a lack of maturity in the supply chain to deliver some of the advanced features needed. At the time of theconcept launch, the company envisaged the X6 utilising next-generation powerplants and fly-by-sire controls as well as other disruptivetechnologies. The downturn in the prime oil and gas market sector has also contributed to the decision to put back the development timeline.Loan funding totalling Euro 377 million, set aside by the French and German governments, was made available last year but has yet to be allocatedand could be at risk if significant changes to the project take place.

Airbus Helicopters President Guillaume Faury, who began his aviation career as a flight engineer with the company, takes up a new position asPresident of Airbus Commercial at the end of February. His successor has yet to be named, but is expected to continue with the currenttransformation success.

AW109 Trekker receives Type CertificateLeonardo Helicopters has confirmed that the AW109 Trekker was issued with its typecertification by the European Aviation Safety Agency on 26 December, allowing deliveries tobegin to customers in the first quarter of this year. The company already has orders for over 40Trekkers worldwide. I-ESPE, serial 22088 (above) is one of two Leonardo AW109 Grandhelicopters converted to the Trekker configuration for trials.

Based on the AW109 Grand/Grand New and powered by two FADEC equipped Pratt &Whitney Canada PW207C turboshaft engines, the Trekker is equipped with a skid landing gearand the Genesys Aerosystems glass cockpit. The cabin can accommodate up to six passengersor two stretchers with two medical attendants. Alternatively it can carry one stretcher withthree/four medical attendants. As the aircraft is also capable of single-pilot operation, anadditional passenger can be carried in the cockpit if required.

Leonardo has already begun production of the Trekker at its Vergiate facility in Italy and isnow awaiting Federal Aviation Authority certification to begin deliveries in the United States(O. Bernardi).


Airbus to leadMarket analysts expect Airbus Helicopters tolead production of light military helicopters,weighing less than 6804kg (15,000lb), between2017 and 2031 with an estimated 26.1 percentof the market. This represents the manufactureof 420 aircraft over the period. Avicopter inChina is expected to produce 301 aircraft overthe same period, representing an 18.7 percentmarket share, whilst Hindustan Aeronauticswould come third with a 16 percentshare,delivering 225 helicopters in the samelightweight category.

Recent annual production of light militaryhelicopters has defied a general marketdownturn, rising from 160 aircraft built in 2014to 208 in 2016 and a forecast 217 being builtthis year. However this rise is expected to beoffset by a decline over the next six years, withonly 73 aircraft forecast to be delivered in2023, before stabilising at between 75 and 87units annually through to 2030. During thisperiod analysts expect to see Asia continuingto grow in importance as a major market.

NZCAA issues warning overhelicopter maintenanceThe New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority(NZCAA) issued a Continuing AirworthinessNotice (CAN) on 22 December, notifyingowners and operators of aircraft previouslyoperated by either Rick Lucas Helicopters orHelipro Aviation Training, including aircraftpreviously maintained by Helipro AviationSupport, of possible “significant anomalies”with the maintenance and engineeringpractices that may exist. The CAN wasprompted by an investigation into an accidentinvolving an MBB BK117 helicopter flown byLucas, which ditched in Pautahanui Inlet nearPoirua in May 2017.

The aircraft was being flown on an externalload contract at the time of the accident,transporting telegraph poles when the cablesnapped and struck the tail rotor. Thehelicopter ended up on its starboard side inshallow water. Lucas escaped uninjured, but itwas revealed after the accident that he wasalready facing charges regarding careless flyingand flying without a current medicalcertificate. Previously all three companieslisted in the CAN had been placed inreceivership in 2014, owing an estimatedNZ$30 million. Prior to that, Lucas had built upa fleet of 32 helicopters, operating across NewZealand as well as in Fiji and Australia.

The CAN applies to all types of aircraftaffected by the 22 December notice, requiringan engineer with an Inspection Authorisationto review all maintenance actions carried outsince 1 January 2012, with especial attentionbeing paid to any life limited parts, checking

the finite life and the manufacturer’srecommended overhaul life. This includesdetermining that acceptable records areavailable to prove the history of components,as well as checking the physical part numberand serial number of the affected part andensuring that the component is approved forinstallation on the aircraft model.

If any anomalies are identified then theaffected aircraft has to remain grounded untilappropriate corrective actions have beencarried out. The NZCAA has set 28 February as

the deadline for the requirements to be metand has further instructed that an officialdefect report be submitted for every aircraftreviewed, regardless of whether or not anyanomalies are found.

Although the NZCAA has not released thedetails behind the CAN, industry sourcessuggest it may be tied up with the use of time-expired Kawasaki BK117 parts being installedin the MBB BK117. Kawasaki-assembledaircraft have different service life limits to theGerman-manufactured variant.


Cornwall to reasses Penzance Heliport plansCornwall County Council is to reassess the planning application for a new public heliport on theoutskirts of Penzance, following the judicial review pursued by the Isles of Scilly SteamshipGroup. The company had challenged the legality of the decision by the County Council planningcommittee, for approval of the new heliport and the proposed passenger services to the Islesof Scilly.

The heliport developers have taken advantage of the enforced delay to submit additionalevidence to support their case, emphasising the importance of the project for West Cornwalland the Isles of Scilly, which they argue will help grown the visitor market and encourage furtherinvestment in the islands. A report measuring the economic impact suggests the project wouldunlock £31 million of investment in the islands and provide a £9 million boost to the region.

The Steamship Company has suggested that the helicopter service could operate from theirown airfield at Lands End but aviation consultants have supported the Penzance location,arguing that visibility at Lands End is often marred by low cloud and fog, reducing importantservice reliability for both island business and residents, as well as tourist visitors. Bycomparison the Penzance site is close to sea level, offering less constrained 152m (500ft)mimima for approaches and landings and therefore a much more reliable operation.


H160 deliveries to begin in 2019First deliveries of the Airbus HelicoptersH160 are now scheduled for 2019, ratherthan the previously targeted date at the endof 2018. The slip in the schedule is reportedto be due to the need to redesign certaincomponents following initial flight testingwith the first two prototypes. HelicopterInternational understands that these changesinclude gearbox modifications after testingshowed some parts were experiencing higherloads than had been expected. The companyis also refining and assessing the settings onthe innovative biplane tail stabliser unit andhas yet to complete certification tests underheavy and wet snow conditions. 2018 willalso see additional hot weather tests beingcarried out above and beyond thecertification requirements as well as testswith a new inlet barrier filter for desert andsnow environments.

The recently flown third prototype, which hadlogged about 20 flight hours by 1 December,embodies a number of modifications as a resultof the lessons learned from the initial 550 hoursof flight testing and will now contribute to afurther 500 hours of planned certification trialsover the next 12 months. Despite thecertification slippage Airbus expects theairframe of the first production H160 to arrive atMarignane during January from the Donauworthfacility and for that aircraft to make its first flightin October 2018.

Airbus is working to obtain simultaneousUS and European certification for the H160 bythe time deliveries get under way.

CALFIRE S-70i order confirmedCalifornia’s Department of General ServicesOffice of Administrative Hearings has upheld arecommendation from the CaliforniaDepartment of Forestry and Fire Protection(CALFIRE), to purchase up to 12 Sikorsky S-70iFirehawk helicopters to replace Bell UH-1HSuper Hueys in a fire fighting and rescue role.The original tender decision has beenchallenged by Leonardo Helicopters.

The announcement came as California wasgripped by multiple wildfires, requiring allavailable fire fighting helicopters, boosted bymilitary UH-60 and SH-60 aircraft, to becalled on to douse advancing scrub andforest fires. Following clearance of the S-70itender CALFIRE is now expected to moveahead with awarding the five year supplycontract to the winning team, headed up byAir Methods and including Sikorsky’s PZLMielec subsidiary which will provide theairframes, and several US-based equipmentsuppliers.

The aircraft will be completed by theAir Methods United Rotorcraft divisioncompletions centre and the first of the newhelicopters is now expected to be delivered inabout 12 months time.

Ehang plans aerial taxi launchAutonomous helicopter manufacturer Ehanghas confirmed that it plans to launch acommercial version of its passenger-carryingunmanned-aerial-vehicle this year, designed toprovide aerial taxi services under the controlof a central air traffic centre and pilotedthrough a plug-and-play Ipad in the passengermodule.

Currently the company is flight testing thesingle-seat Ehang 184, which is weight-limited to a 100kg (220lb) payload, but isconsidering a larger vehicle for productionwhich could feature a second seat. Morethan 20 Ehang 184s are reported to havebeen built for the test programme, with anumber likely written off throughdevelopment accidents. However othershave been used for passenger evaluation inChina, where the design originated, and inDubai which is considering establishment ofan aerial taxi service. Passenger-carryingtrials in Dubai are currently awaiting localpermit approval.

Certification of the autonomous eight-rotor aircraft however is complicated, asthere is no regulation framework under theFederal Aviation Administration or otherairworthiness authorities for a passenger-carrying drone, and the weight exceeds the25kg (55lb) limit set for commercial drones. Italso cannot qualify under the experimentalcategory as it is pilotless. Nevertheless Ehangclaims to have at least $52 million availableto continue development and last yearrecently displayed an Ehang 184 at theExperimental Aircraft Association Air Ventureshow in Oshkosh, Wisconsin to gauge publicinterest.

Based on that interest the company couldoffer a piloted version or an individualautonomous vehicle, priced at around$200,000.


Above: Airbus Helicopters has chosen a newcarbon design livery for the third prototypeH160, which began flight trials in late 2017.

Above: Returning to HeliExpo for the first timefollowing a company shake up and rebrandingexercise, the SH09 now has several ex-Eurocopter senior executives on the team totake development and markeing forward. Athird prototype was due to make its first flightas we closed for press.

Preview

Page 118 Helicopter INTERNATIONAL

THE START of 2018 hasn’t begun especiallywell for many in our industry, with decliningsales reported in the 2017 results and noimmediate sign of an upturn. Belt tightening iscontinuing, with efficiency savings being thebyword at every level. Almost everyoneseems to be still suffering and attendanceat the forthcoming Helicopter AssociationInternational convention in Las Vegas, is noexception.

“Sin City” is always good for a gamble butdespite brave words, the real list of exhibitorsthis year is shrinking, fewer exhibitor staff areattending and fewer visitors, especially thosewho have to travel from afar, seem likely tomake the trip. The knock on effect is of coursealso affecting those of us trying to keep youinformed, with most companies significantlyreducing their advertising budgets and thusthe magazines’ income. With print copies andpostage costs vulnerable, one answer hasbeen for magazines like ours to switch moreto digital circulation, rather than reducingthe hard copy page count. (Check ourwebsite www.aviapress.co.uk to see thelatest copy online). Despite this, HelicopterINTERNATIONAL will have a presence inVegas as will the following companies.

★

With a focus on two of the company’s newesthelicopters and the success of its best-sellingaircraft, Leonardo (booth C3225) isexhibiting the agility and flexibility of itsproducts at HAI’s 2018 Heli-Expo. On displayat the Leonardo stand is the newly certifiedAW109 Trekker, an AW169 in VIP configurationand, boasting 15 years of service and 2 millionflight hours, the AW139.

The latest in the proven AW109 series, theTrekker takes advantage of the large cabinspace afforded to operators of the Grand andfeatures a rapidly reconfigurable, modularinterior with multi-role versatility, combinedwith the utility of rugged skid landing gear andall-new modular avionics allowing singleor dual pilot VFR/IFR. Displaying aninterior suitable for corporate or executivepassengers, the AW169 gives customers aglimpse at the spacious and comfortableinterior with options for modern audio visualequipment and in-flight entertainmentsystems.

The AW139, shown at HeliExpo inoffshore configuration, highlights Leonardo’scommitment to continuously expand theplatform’s capabilities to meet changingmarket conditions and customerrequirements.

For more information on Leonardo, itshelicopters, and the company’s customersupport and training solutions, visit theirbooth.

★

After nearly ten years of developing thesingle-engine SH09 helicopter, MarencoSwisscopter unveiled a new brand name forthe company on 1 February, using the occasionto introduce a new management structure anda change “from an engineering company to ahelicopter manufacturer”. The new companyname, Kopter (booth N4615), using theletter K rather than a C, is intended to bebetter understood internationally, whilst alsoreflecting the strong Swiss-Germanbackground of the business.

To announce the name, Kopter held aribbon-cutting event at its recently completedfinal assembly and flight test centre in Mollis,Switzerland where the second prototype SH09(P2) was on display, before being shipped toLas Vegas for the first public appearance of thenew brand name at HeliExpo. Here thehelicopter, HB-ZKB, will appear alongside a fullscale mockup of the proposed medicalinterior, developed in cooperation with MetroAviation. P2 has previously logged some 70flight hours, testing a new rotorhead and newmain rotor blades to solve resonance andstrong vibration issues. These had plagued thefirst prototype and affected P2 until stifferblades were tested early this year. P1 waspermanently grounded after only 1.5 hoursand is now on display at Kopter’s headquartersbuilding in Wetzikon.

With the completion of the third prototypeP3, HB-ZKC, flight testing will now shift to thisaircraft and a fourth SH09, the pre-series PS4which is due to be rolled out by the middle ofthis year. Both these helicopters will beconcentrating on certification trials, with P3 dueto fly 250 hours on endurance and other testsand PS4 flying 110 hours. Both aircraft areexpected to relocate to southern Italy for someof this work, where the weather is more forgivingthan among the Swiss mountains. European

Aviation Safety Agency certification is expectedby early-mid 2019 with US Federal AviationAgency approval following. In the meantimedesign authority approval is imminent.

Bearing in mind certification promises madeby the previous management for 2015, 2016,March 2017 and then 2018, there will beparticular interest in ensuring this newtimetable is met, not least by the launchcustomers who have already put down depositson the first 27 SH09s, those who have signed120 letters of intent and 19 more that are thesubject of firm orders subject to certification -166 aircraft in all. Kopter confidence hasalready led to the establishment of a salesoffice in Dallas, Texas for the US market and thesetting up of pre-assembly manufacturing andsupply chain facilities in Switzerland at Näfels,with all critical dynamic components also beingbuilt locally and tested by Ennetmoos. Whilstfinal assembly and flight testing will be in thenew Mollis plant, Kopter is not ruling out futureproduction in Asia or in the United States ifdemand warrants it, possibly with a partnercompany.

Certainly Kopter sees a big replacementmarket looming as current single-enginedhelicopters such as the Airbus HelicoptersAS350, Bell 206L and Model 407 come to theend of their lives. The company also sees theSH09 challenging the newer Airbus H125,H130 and Leonardo AW119 for a market share.With double-channel full authority digitalelectronic control matched to the HoneywellHTS900-2 1D turboshaft in its firststandardised application, an eight-seat cabincapacity and a cruising speed of 259km/h(140kt), the 250 strong workforce atKopter believe now the only way is up.

Helicopter INTERNATIONAL 9

Bell Helicopter appears to be beginning 2018with several new in-house projects to followthe JetRanger X, Model 525 and V280 Valortiltrotor.

One of these is the smaller V-247 Vigilantunmanned tiltrotor, which the company isself-funding as a proposed solution to aUS Marine Corps need for a long rangeexpeditionary aircraft. Missions could includeintelligence gathering and surveillance,precision strike and supply deliveries to frontline potst or to ships. Gross weight isexpected to be around 560kg (1320lb) with asix hour endurance and a range of 834km(450nm), whilst the Vee tail aircraft would besized to allow stowage in the hangars of theUS Navy destroyer fleet.

Bell is using V-280 technologies toprogress the V-247, with a similarconfiguration but this may change if andwhen the customer issues a Request forInformation

Meanwhile the company unveiled its newurban air-taxi design at the ConsumerElectronics Show in Las Vegas on 9 January,displaying a four-passenger layout withintended full connectivity, including a videoconferencing capability. The company alsodisplayed a augmented reality simulatorportraying a variety of flight scenarios. Themockup display follows an agreement signedlast year with ride-sharing service Uber, topartner and accelerate the eventual largescale deployment of electric vertical take offand landing air vehicles.

At the time Bell suggested its design wouldbe modular and adaptable, as well as scalableand able to use a variety of powerplants. Itwould also be suitable for both civil andmilitary roles, and is likely to be certifiedunder a new powered-lift category beingdeveloped for tiltrotors. Bell has drawn ondesign elements from its FCX-001demonstrator mockup that it unveiled in2017 for the new project, but says the cabinis just one configuration the company iscurrently exploring. It sees the present designlayout, which allows for a pilot, eventuallymorphing into a fully autonomous variantcarrying only passengers and their luggage oncross-city flights.

Partner Uber believes such air taxis couldoperate for around $1.32 per mile, one-thirdthe cost of an equivalent capacity turbine-engined helicopter.

On the more traditional rotary-wing front,Bell Helicopter registered a new experimentalvariant of the Model 412EP on 8 Decemberwith Transport Canada, leading tospeculation that the company is testing aprototype for the Japanese UH-X programmeor a commercial equivalent. The aircraft,registered C-FYVM, has been allocatedconstruction serial 39101, the first inpossibly a new production sequence,although some suggest the aircraft is beingconverted from the original Model 412EPIflight test prototype. Current Model 412EPIserials are in the 37XXX range.

Subaru, formerly Fuji Heavy Industries, wasawarded a contract by the Japanese Ministryof Defence in 2015 for 150 UH-X aircraft,based on the Model 412EPI, to replace theGround Self Defence Force fleet of UH-1Jhelicopters from 2022. Production of thenew aircraft will be carried out in Japan atthe Subaru plant in Utsunomiya, but Bellis collaborating on the design andindustrialisation of the programme, anddevelopment of a prototype to meet theGSDF specification. The two companies arealso collaborating on an eventual commercialversion for a wider global market, designatedthe Model 412EPI Advanced. Subaruengineers have already been working with Bellat the Fort Worth, Texas plant on the projectfor 18 months.

Whilst the new variant is largely intendedto use off-the-shelf parts, it will incorporatestate-of-the-art avionics, an upgradedtransmission with a longer run-dry endurance,

and a higher gross weight compared with thecurrent Model 412EPI. However the newlyregistered example appears to retain theexisting 5,400kg (11,905lb) maximum grossweight.

Bell has declined to comment on thespeculation, noting only that the Model 412“continues to be an extremely importantproduct in the commercial aircraft portfolio”and that “at this time we have no updatesto announce regarding the Bell 412programme”.

Next, Industry sources have confirmedthat Bell Helicopter Canada is seekingCanadian and Quebec government supportto develop a successor to the Model 407 lighthelicopter. The new aircraft would introduce alarger flat floor open cabin layout, similar tothat designed for the smaller Model 505JetRanger X, with the favoured powerplantbeing an uprated Honeywell HTS900 engine.This was the powerplant selected 13 yearsago to power the ARH-70A military variant ofthe Model 407.

If this new programme goes ahead, itwould be a third project for the Mirabelfactory, alongside the UH-X and a new highergross weight Bell 429 to FAR 29 standards.For sure, no one can accuse Bell ofstanding still.

Above: One of the several projects, BellHelicopter is working on is hybrid propulsiontechnology, for which the company has built aHybrid Aircraft Drive Train Research Aircraft(HYDRA). This small radio-controlled aircraftfeatures a circular wing with nine rotorsaround the circumference to test the conceptfor future use.

New ProjectsBy Elfan ap Rees

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RegionalNews- ASIA PACIFIC REPORT

•Airbus Helicopters has confirmed an order from the Republic of KoreaNational 119 Rescue Headquarters for two additional H225 Super Pumavariants. The Rescue Service already operates two H225 and two smallerAS365N2 Dauphin Helicopters.

The two new H225s will be configured as multi-role aircraft, capableof carrying out search and rescue missions but also able to be re-roledfor fire fighting and emergency medical service work. The 11 tonne classaircraft will also feature state-of-the-art avionics and autopilot systemsto meet the customer’s specific requirements.

•Bell Helicopter has signed an agreement with Chinese distributorReignwood International Investment Group for the purchase of anadditional 50 Model 505 Jet Ranger X light singles over a three yearperiod. Reignwood previously signed an agreement earlier this year for60 Model 505s and is the exclusive agent for the aircraft sales in China.

The company is also establishing a Model 505 delivery andmaintenance centre.

•India’s state minister for aviation has announced that a working groupis to be formed by early January to review proposals for boostinghelicopter services in the country. Whilst plans to introduce changes,including a proposal to allow helicopters to fly free of prior air trafficcontrol clearance at heights below 1524m (5,000ft), were part of a newcivil aviation policy announced in 2016, military objections have so farremained unresolved.

Advocates of the policy changes say that current restrictions on civilhelicopters, including air ambulance and police operations, and bans onsingle-engine operations in many areas, are outdated. There are alsolong delays in permitting rooftop heliports in urban areas and evenclearing helicopter taxi services from major airports, such as DelhiInternational.

Of approximately 300 civil helicopters in India, more than 65 percentare singles, with the majority of the twin-engined types used for offshoreoperations. The working group will now look at the case for extendingthe clearance for single-engined types, as well as current restrictions onmountain flying, airport operations and other issues.

•Russian Helicopters has indicated that the joint venture with India tomanufacture the Kamov Ka-226T locally could include an agreement toallow Indian assembled aircraft to be exported to third countries.Currently the two countries are working on a Request for Proposals forthe Ka-226T with the Indian Air Force, Army and the Ministry of Defence.

The joint venture, signed last May between Russian Helicopters,Hindustan Aeronautics and Rosonboronexport, envisages the supply of200 Ka-226Ts to the Indian Forces, including up to 140 for the Army andthe remaining number going to the Air Force. The first 60 helicopters willbe manufactured in Russia at the Kamov plant in Kumertau, with thesubsequent 140 being assembled in India at an increasing rate of localproduction.

Russian Helicopters is also planning to establish maintenance, repairand overhaul facility for the Kamov helicopters in India, and has alsoselected the Ka-226T to become a pilot project for the use of digitalmanufacturing technology.

•The first Airbus Helicopters H145 to be delivered in Japan, where theaircraft is designated the BK117D2, has been handed over toHiratagakuen, as part of the Doctor-Heli emergency medical service(EMS) organisation. Hiratagakuen signed a contract for two BK117D2 atthe Japan International Aerospace Exhibition 2016 and this first aircraftwill replace an H135 helicopter on EMS missions in Nagasaki prefecture.

Hiratagakuen already operates 14 H135 helicopters across Japan, withthe latest delivered only last October for EMS missions. Since enteringthe specialised market, the company has logged more than 100,000 EMS

flights and has been recognised by the air medical organisation for itssignificant contribution to such missions.

The delivery of the first BK117D2 will now see the company providingair medical services in 11 prefectures this year, and will be followed bydelivery of the second aircraft in September.

•The Indian Air Force officially retired its last Mil Mi-8 helicopters on17 December, marking the occasion with a flypast of four aircraft fromNo.112 Squadron at Yelahanka air base in Bengalru. The aircraft hasbeen replaced by newer variants, including the Mi-17 and Mi-17V5.

The first of 107 Mi-8s ordered by the Indian Air Force were deliveredin 1971, with the type entering service the following year. Subsequentlythe aircraft were operated extensively to support ground forces on theSiachen Glacier and the border outposts with Pakistan and China, as wellas being involved in humanitarian, rescue and disaster relief missionsand VIP flights. No.112 Sqdn, which was dedicated to flight crew training,completed 119 pilot courses, 89 flight engineering courses and 57 airgunner courses and was the last unit to operate the type.

The last Mi-8s will now be used for ground instruction training atvarious educational institutions.

•Airbus Helicopters delivered four new helicopters to Philippinecustomers from its regional completions centre in Singapore in earlyDecember, including a new H155 Dauphin for a healthcare provider andan H145 for a business aviation company, but operated by the PhiljetGroup.

Together with two H130s delivered direct to the Philjet Group inManila earlier in 2017, and a third H130 and second H145 also now inservice, Airbus delivered a total of six helicopters to the Philippinesduring the year, all to be used for passenger transportation.

•The Taiwanese Army had taken delivery of at least 26 SikorskyUH-60M Black Hawk helicopters by the end of 2017, part of a total orderfor 60 aircraft being procured at a cost of about $2.8 million to replaceobsolete Bell UH-1H helicopters used for ground support and rescuemissions.

Deliveries of the UH-60M began in early 2017, with the aircraftundergoing combat capability trials in Taoguan County, beforeformation of the first platoon in mid December, under Taiwan’sAviation and Special Forces Command. The remaining helicopters inthe order are due to be delivered in further batches by 2020, althoughSikorsky has given an estimated completion date for the order ofOctober 2018.

•The first Bell 505 JetRanger X helicopters to be delivered outsideNorth America have begun operating in mid December with Australianoperator, Nautilus Aviation at Cairns Airport. The aircraft, ordered threeyears ago, have been especially configured for the Australian operationsand will be used primarily for tourism and utility operations.

Nautilus Aviation now has a fleet of 27 helicopters, based at Cairns,Townsville, Darwin and Horn Island, and last year was also awarded acontract to operate the Westpac Life Saver Rescue helicopter insouthern New South Wales.

Above: This Leonardo Helicopters AW139 has recently been delivered toPGM Golf Management in Japan, where it has been registered as JA777R(O. Bernardi).

January - February 2018

MilitaryHelicopter

News

No. 657 Squadron Army Air Corps, whichhas been based at RAF Odiham with theWestland Lynx Mk.9A for Special Forcesoperations, posed one of its aircraft withthree of RAF Odiham’s Boeing Chinookhelicopters last year, before the Lynxended its UK military service.

No. 657 Squadron Army Air Corps, whichhas been based at RAF Odiham with theWestland Lynx Mk.9A for Special Forcesoperations, posed one of its aircraft withthree of RAF Odiham’s Boeing Chinookhelicopters last year, before the Lynxended its UK military service.

Defence- INTERNATIONAL

All US funded Russian helos inAfghanistan to be phased outThe US Army expects to have phased out allUS funded Russian helicopters from theAfghan Air Force by the end of 2020 under itsNATO support programme, replacing themwith a mix of Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk andMD Helicopters MD530 Cayuse Warriors.

Currently the Afghan Air Force operatessome 45 Mil Mi-17 helicopters, supplied underprevious US military aid, alongside about 30older Mi-17 and 4 Mil Mi-35 attack helicopters.Under the new aid programme, four UH-60were delivered last year, with a further eightfollowing in 2018. In 2019 this fleet willincrease to 34 UH-60 and the first four of anew upgunned UH-60FFF variant, with furtheraircraft following for a total Black Hawk fleet of61 UH-60 by the end of 2021 and 58 UH-60FFFby the end of 2022.

In parallel with the Black Hawk deliveries,the Army expects to increase the MD530 fleetto 35 aircraft by the end of 2018 and them to55 helicopters by the end of 2019. The newrotary-wing equipment is part of a broadereffort by NATO to boost the strength of theAfghan Air Force over the next six years,investing some $7 billion to effectively doublethe aircraft inventory.

Second Sea Lion airborneAirbus Helicopters in Germany carried out themaiden flight of the second prototypeNH90NFH Sea Lion, 98 + 56, at theDonauworth facility on 24 November. Finalassembly of the first production Sea Lion hasalso started.

The company is now entering adevelopment testing phase with theprototypes, focusing on avionics and softwareand aiming for eventual qualification of thedelivery configuration. These activities willstart over the course of 2018, once additionalmodifications have been made to theprototypes.

Despite a demanding timetable, AirbusHelicopters is confident that deliveries of the18 Sea Lions on order for the German Navy willbegin by the end of 2019.

Indian Navy presses for Sea KingreplacementThe Indian Navy is putting fresh pressure onthe government to order new multi-rolehelicopters, to replace its ageing Westland SeaKing Fleet. The Ministry of Defence recentlyissued a new Request for Information toprocure 123 helicopters for anti-submarineand anti-surface vessel warfare, withsecondary electronic intelligence gatheringand search and rescue roles, but service entryis likely at least 10 years away.

The Navy argues it needs at least an interimsolution to replace its 17 Sea King Mk.42Bsand is calling for the acquisition of 24 SikorskyS-70B Seahawk helicopters. Trials have alreadyshown the suitability of the Seahawk for therole, but previous negotiations with Sikorskyfaltered when the company refused tocompromise on price, following thedepreciation of the Indian currency against theUS dollar in recent years. The Indiangovernment has also been promoting a “Makein India” policy with recent acquisitions and iswary of any accusations of bribery to securenew orders.

One option now being considered is agovernment-to-government Foreign MilitarySales transaction for 16 S-70Bs, plus options

for a further eight aircraft. This would be seenas more transparent and provide a totalpackage acquisition, including spares, trainingand technical support. If accepted, the S-70Bswould be configured to meet the Indian Navy’sspecific needs, with a weapons managementsystem configured to integrate an advancedsonar, 360 degree radar and new generationair-to-surface missiles and torpedoes. Theaircraft would also be capable of carrying outthe secondary roles.

Above: The Afghan Air Force has begun takingdelivery of the first refurbished Sikorsky UH-60helicopters from surplus US Army stocks. Over100 are due to be transferred by 2020.


MV-22B commonality programme launchedThe US Navy has awarded the Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office $57 million to begin an MV-22BOsprey commonality upgrade programme,aimed at reducing the more than 70 distinct variantsof the tiltrotor to about five. The Common-Configuration Readiness and Modernisation (CC-RAM) effort is expected to simplify maintenance work and improve readiness, whilst alsoreducing costs in the supply chain over the next 20 years.

Production of the MV-22 began in 2004 but various changes and improvements have beenincorporated by the US Marine Corps as the aircraft has matured in service, leading to thecurrent situation where even within a single squadron, flight crews and maintenance personnelfind individual machines have different configurations. These include having electrical wires andswitches in different positions, varying safety and mission capabilities, and requiring differentspare parts.

After a 12 month review of the many modifications, Navy officials have now settled on a bestlist, based on the current production standard. Changes to earlier aircraft will thus includemodifying the fuel dump system, upgrading the electrical generators to support moreequipment, adding weather radar and a traffic collision avoidance system, replacing the missioncomputer and standardising the cockpit layout so that pilots can operate with a common flightmanual. The changes will also benefit maintainers, who should be able to work to a commonset of maintenance instructions.

The initial $57 million contract will cover producing the work instructions for disassembly andincorporation of the upgrades and reassembly, the manufacture of tooling and then a single MV-22 prototype, carried out at Boeing’s Philadelphia plant to prove out the instructions. This isexpected to take at least a year to complete. The next phase of CC-RAM will then cover aproduction contract award to modernise a further two aircraft in Year One, with options for afurther five in Year Two and10 in Year Three, before eventually ramping up to 24 per annum fora total of 51 aircraft.

Eventually CC-RAM is expected to see about 130 MV-22BS passing through the BoeingPhiladelphia production line, with each aircraft spending about eight months in the programme.The entire programme is expected to run until at least the mid 2020s, when a fresh round ofupgrades is likely to follow to keep the aircraft current for continued service into the nextdecade.


Above: The MD Helicopters MD530G is onecontender for the Philippine Air Forcerequirement for up to 24 new light attackhelicopters.

Philippines seeks new light attackhelosThe Philippine Air Force (PAF) is planning topurchase up to 24 new light attack helicoptersfor the counter insurgency (COIN) role in2018 subject to approval by the Philippinegovernment, but faces funding challenges inthe light of the country’s economic crisis.

The PAF currently operates up to 18MD520MG helicopters in a counter-insurgency role, but is seeking additionalaircraft with good hot/high performance tourgently boost the fleet. Previously it wasexpected to purchase new MD530G CayuseWarriors from MD Helicopters, using the USArmy Foreign Military Sales process, but therecent political division between the Duterte-led administration and the United States hasplaced such a sale in doubt.

Other contenders for an order includeLeonardo Helicopters, which has previouslydelivered eight AW109E helicopters equippedfor the COIN role, and Airbus Helicoptersoffering the H145M. However whether thesecompanies will agree to President Duterte’srequest for a long term 25 year soft loan forthe procurement is also open to question.

Other potential suppliers include Russiaand China, but neither of these two countrieshave light attack helicopters in theirinventories and heavier helicopters such asthe Mil Mi-35M or AVIC Z-19 appear to be offthe list. However Russia does appear open todoing a deal based on a long term financialloan and could offer the multi-role Mil Mi-17Shvariant as a gunship/assault transport option.

MRH-90 bedding in with RANThe latest Australian National Audit Officereview of the NH Industries MRH-90 fleet inservice with the Australian Army notes that theflying hours have doubled over the 1,775hours achieved in 2016, whilst maintenanceman hours per flying hour have reduced to 35from the 45 hours previously experienced.

The service improvements have taken placewith No.5 Aviation Regiment, based atTownsville in Qeensland, which was the firstAustralian Army unit to introduce the MRH-90in 2007. Increased training and operationalexperience, coupled with improved back upfrom Airbus Helicopters, have been creditedwith the turn around.

A second unit, No.6 Aviation Regiment is nowplanned to become operational in 2019, whenthe Sikorsky S-70A-9 Black Hawks used forSpecial Forces should finally be retired.However, this change depends on the successfulintroduction of a new self-defence gun mount in

the doorway of the MRH-90, replacing theoriginal which has been found to impede fastroping and rapelling operations when in use.

The new mount, capable of firing the DillonM134D 7.62mm minigun as well as the GeneralPurpose Machine Gun, is expected toovercome this obstacle and allow the fastroping deployment of Special Forces troopswhilst the weapon remains active.

AACUS demonstrationAurora Flight Sciences and the US Office ofNaval Research successfully demonstrated theAurora Autonomous Aerial Cargo UtilitySystem (AACUS) with the Bell UH-1H testbed on 13 December, at the US Marine Corpsbase in Quantico, Virginia. During thedemonstration, the helicopter was flown by afield officer on the ground, using a tablet toinitiate commands, but with a safety pilot onboard in case of problems and to control theengine, which is not autonomous.

The UH-1H flew three test missionsduring the demonstration, beginning with anautonomous take off initiated by the operator,followed by an autonomous landing. Thesecond mission was similar but included aroute with more trees in the line of sight todemonstrate the system’s ability to detect andavoid enroute obstacles. For the third mission,an obstacle was placed in the landing zone,forcing the field operator to instigate a wave-off, after which the AACUS recalculated analternative route to land safely in the zone.

Aurora says the AACUS is designed withportability in mind and uses commercial off-the-shelf hardware and open architecturedesign to allow it to be scaled for use on anyunmanned helicopter platform. The entiresystem consists of lidar-based sensors on thenose, belly and tail boom, along with thetablet-based software equipped with anAndroid app to control the aircraft.Furthermore the company says no specialisedoperational training is required and a fieldoperator can learn how the system workswithin 15 minutes of instruction.


ATEC demonstrates T900 compatibilityThe Advanced Turbine Engine Company (ATEC), which is a joint venture between Honeywell andPratt & Whitney, has demonstrated the installation compatibility of its T900 engine in theBoeing AH-64 Apache and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk airframes. The company successfullyinstalled a high fidelity mockup of the powerplant in the port and starboard engine bays of thetwo helicopters at the US Army Redstone Test Centre, Alabama in December, demonstrating inthe process that the engine can be installed and removed more quickly than the current GEEngines T700 powerplant.

The T900 is ATEC’s offering for the US Army Improved Turbine Engine Programme (ITEP),which is developing a more powerful and efficient replacement for the T700 family. ATEC hasalready successfully tested two demonstrator engines in late 2014 and since then has beenmaturing and further improving the engine through numerous component rig tests, furthervalidating the T900 dual-spool engine architecture.

Over the last 18 months the company has also been carrying out the preliminary designphase under the ITEP programme, which should result in a Preliminary Design Review of theengine with the Army in March this year.

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First flight of Bell V-280Bell Helicopter carried out the first flight of its V-280 Valor tiltrotor aircraft on 18 Decemberat its Amarillo, Texas plant. The one minutemaiden flight comprised of a vertical takeoff and low hovering over an area ofhardstanding, to check basic handling andoscillations before landing again. It followed32 hours of ground runs with the nacellestilted at various angles in a ground rig andfree standing at the plant, including a 90minute ground run immediately prior to theflight.

The Valor is part of Bell’s Joint Multi RoleTechnology Demonstrator initiative, intendedas a precursor to the US Department ofDefence Future Vertical Lift programme incompetion with the yet-to-fly Sikorsky-Boeing coaxial rotor SB1 Defiant helicopter.Additionally the V-280 is capable of beingdeveloped directly into a combat-readymilitary tiltrotor, offering twice the speedand range of conventional helicopters, andat a much reduced production cost andmanufacturing time compared with the V-22tiltrotor.

Bell now plans to explore the flight regimeand functionality of the systems over a fourmonth period, in a series of careful steps as ittakes the V-280 programme forward.

GE competes initial tests of T901engineGE Aviation has completed initial testing ofits new generation T901-GE-900 turboshaftengine prototype, which the company hasbeen developing under the US ArmyImproved Turbine Engine Programme (ITEP).Six months testing of the company-fundedtest engine, together with further compressor,combustor, and turbine component testscarried out subsequently, are claimed to havedemonstrated that the T901 exceeds ITEPperformance requirements and is ready forthe next ITEP Engineering and Manufacturing(EMD) phase.

The single spool architecture, inheritedfrom the successful GE T700 turboshaftengine, enables full modularity and higherreliability but the T901 incorporatesextensive use of advanced manufacturing andhigh-temperature material technologies,previously developed and matured for GE’scommercial turbojet engines. These includeceramic mix components and additivemanufactured components, levering ininnovations that reduce fuel consumptionand lower aircraft operating weight. As anexample, the T901 inlcudes an additive partthat reduces the assembly of more than 50sub components into one part.

By the time the T901 enters production GEestimates that these innovations will havemillions of hours of operating experience,enabling the engine to meet the Army’sperformance targets with field-proventechnologies. Since 2010 GE has investedmore than $9 billion in maturing commercialtechnologies applicable to the T901, ahead ofan Army funded 24 month contract awardedlast year to take the engine to the preliminarydesign review stage. After that the Army plansto select a single supplier to complete theEMD phase.

New side gunner seat for MH-60SThe US Navy is to introduce a new seat designfor the side gunner position in the SikorskyMH-60S Sea Hawk, following growingevidence of chronic back injuries and medicalgroundings among service personnel usingthe current seat. The issue has been thesubject of complaint and a safety priority forseveral years.

The Naval Air Warfare Centre AircraftDivision (NAWCAD) AIRWorks rapidprototyping team has already completed aninitial concept design, using feedback from thefield matched to existing performancecertifications, and built a prototype seat lastautumn. NAWCAD AIRWorks is now carryingout the design/CAD drawing conversion,drafting and final material selection, andproviding the programme management,engineering, test and logistics support for theproject.

The aim now is to flight test a secondprototype gunner seat in March this year,whilst also using a 10-person Gunner SeatFleet Task force to provide real-time inputduring the final stages of development.

Above: Bell Helicopter has begun test flying theV-280 Valor, which features new patentscovering its unique pylon assembly and spinglegearbox.

RfP for Indian LCHHindustan Aeronautics (HAL) received a Request for Proposals from the Indian Ministry ofDefence on 22 December for 15 pre-production Light Combat Helicopters (LCH). Previouslyin November 2016 the Indian Ministry of Defence authorised the purchase of 16 pre-production LCH, although none of these have yet been built.

Powered by two Safran/HAL Shakti turboshaft engines, the LCH inherits the dynamicsystem and other mechanical components from the HAL Dhruv ALH, married to a new narrowprofile airframe with tandem cockpits, armour protection and nose mounted sensors and chinturret. Stub wing pylons can mount a variety of other weapons including anti-tank missilesand rocket pods. Trials with the prototypes included weapons firing demonstrations duringexercises in 2016 and evaluation at high altitude in the Himalayas, involving landing atForward Bases on the Siachen Glacier at 5400m (17,716ft) altitude.

Development of the LCH has been protracted since HAL first began development in 2006,with the first prototype flight delayed from 2008 to March 2010 and a second aircraft,introducing armament but with substantial weight reductions, not flying until June 2011. Thethird prototype, featuring further weight savings, joined the programme in late 2014, followedby the fourth aircraft in December 2015. Both the latter prototypes were heavily engaged inperformance trials and weapons testing, leading to certification of the basic configuration inmid-2016.

The Indian Army has announced a requirement for 114 LCH, whilst the Air Force has anorder in hand for 65 aircraft.


Above: This Kamov Ka-226 has recently joinedthe Ukrainian Navy following restoration afterseveral years in storage.

Kamov Ka-226 for Ukraine NavyThe Ukrainian Navy has taken delivery of aKamov Ka-226 light helicopter to provide atransport and rescue capability for the navalaviation element, which lost most of its fleetduring the Russian-backed takeover of Crimea.

The Ka-226, powered by twin Rolls-RoyceM250 Turboshaft engines, was originallyordered by the Ukraine government in 2007 buton arrival was impounded after the importingcompany, Galaxis, failed to comply with thecontract terms and then in 2011 declaredbankruptcy. The helicopter had been intendedfor the State Emergency Service, equipped foran air ambulance role, but instead had been instorage at the Lviv Aircraft Repair Plant until2015, when a group of volunteers offered torestore the helicopter to an airworthycondition. The Ka-226 is now complete in navalmarkings and serialled 02-03, 41 yellow.

Based on the original piston-engined Ka-26coaxial helicopter with the same detachablemultirole cabin concept but upgraded with

new manufacturing technology and morepowerful turbine engines, the Ka-226 first flewin September 1997 and Ukraine was originallyintending to assemble the type under licence,powered by the MotorSich AI-450 turboshaft.

Lockheed Martin demonstrates RWRfor HH-60WLockheed Martin has successfully demon-strated the technical readiness of its AN/APR-52 radar warning receiver for the US Air ForceCombat Rescue Helicopter (CRH) programme,more than 12 months before the selectedSikorsky HH-60W CRH is set to begin flighttrials. The achievement followed tests by theUS Air Force of the AN/APR-52 at its IntegratedDemonstrations and Applications Laboratoryat Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton,Ohio.

Although extensive contractor testing hadpreviously been carried out, the Air Forcelaboratory trial allowed a unique high-fidelitydemonstration of the system in a trueenvironmental environment, giving confidenceahead of the HH-60W’s flight test schedule.The new AN/APR-52 is all digital and featuresfour channels, giving it the ability to process alarge number of signals simultaneously.

The company says the complete electronicwarfare suite, being developed by LockheedMartin’s electronic warfare team, willsignificantly improve the detection of currentand emerging threats, which will increase thesurvivability of the HH-60W when it entersservice.

More Panthers for MexicoAirbus Systems delivered two more AS565MBePanthers to the Mexican Navy on 13November, with a hand over at the MinatitlánNaval Base in Vera Cruz. The aircraft are theseventh and eighth to be delivered, with twomore due to follow to complete the order.

Mexico was the launch customer for theupgraded AS565MBe variant of the Panther,ordering 10 aircraft in 2014 for search andrescue, disaster relief support, drugenforcement and coastal protection missionson the Pacific coast and the Gulf of Mexico.The aircraft features a four-axis autopilot andstate-of-the-art avionics to provide a 24/7mission capability, including deck landings inheavy seas. It also is fitted with the morepowerful Safran Arriel 2N powerplant, with anew main gearbox and latest generationfenestron tail rotor, enhancing the hot/highperformance and giving a maximum speed of278km/h (150mph).

In service the two new Panthers will joinNaval Air Squadron 622 in Lázaro Cárdenas,Michoacán.

RAN tests MH-60R deck handlingThe Royal Australian Navy (RAN) guided missiledestroyer HMAS Hobart carried out initial deckhandling trials with a RAN Sikorsky MH-60RSeahawk multi-mission helicopter in lateNovember. The trial was carried out with thenewly commissioned destroyer mooredalongside Garden Island in Sydney.

The trial was overseen by the RAN AircraftMaintenance and Flight Trials Unit. It includedan approach and deck landing by theSeahawk, followed by testing of the ship’sintegrated secure and traverse system to movethe aircraft in and out of the hangar, followedby a subsequent launch. The drill alsoincluded flight deck clearance assessments,communications and lighting checks, chainlashing patterns, fuel connections and hangarclearance for maintenance and damagecontrol. The Australian Defence SafetyAuthority is expected to provide HMS Hobartwith an Aviation facilities certificationfollowing the trial’s completion.

No.816 Sqdn RAN, which parents theMH-60R Flights, is expected to deploy anaircraft aboard the ship in early 2018, in orderto continue trials and aid the development ofsafe Ship Helicopter Operating Limits.


First retrofit Tiger HAD for ALATAirbus Helicopters handed over the first of 36 retrofit Tiger HAD attack helicopters to theFrench Army Aviation (ALAT) on 21 December, having previously completed the formalacceptance process with the Defence Procurement Agency. The retrofit from the former HAPversion involves over 100 airframe modifications on each aircraft and installing over 1500 newparts and 250 electrical cables.

The ALAT already has over 20 new-build Tiger HAD variants in service, featuring an increasedmaximum take off weight, enhanced MTR390E engines and a new Strix roof-mounted sightsystem, with a laser designator to support Hellfire II air-to-ground missile firing. The retrofitprogramme on the earlier HAP aircraft will now bring all the ALAT Tigers up to a common multi-role attack helicopter standard, capable of carrying out armed reconnaissance, air-to-groundescort, air-to-air combat, ground fire support and anti-tank warfare, day or night and in adverseconditions.

Together with the aircraft operated by Spain, Germany and Australia, the global Tiger fleethas now logged over 92,000 flight hours and seen combat in Afghanistan, the Central AfricanRepublic, Libya and Mali.

The RNLAF currently operates 11 CH-47Dand six CH-47F aircraft, with the older Dmodels due to be replaced by 14 CH-47F overthe next three years. The upgrade programmewill increase the CH-47F fleet to 20 aircraft,all equipped with the Common AvionicsArchitecture System cockpit and its IntegratedDigital Automatic Flight Control System.

Deliveries of the six modernised Chinooksare planned to begin in 2021.� The Greek Army is expected to take deliveryof 70 Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicoptersfrom retired US Army stocks this year forscout/reconnaissance and border controlduties. The aircraft are being supplied underthe US government’s Excess Defence Articleprogramme for a total price of $47 million.� 10 former Italian Navy Agusta-SikorskySH-3D Sea King helicopters recently turned upin a scrap yard in Rome, together with fourAgusta-Bell AB212ASW aircraft. All had beenpreviously based at Catania in Sicily, wherethe SH-3Ds had been stored since retirementin 2013 after 45 years in service. A smallnumber of AB212ASW helicopters remain inservice, pending replacement of the lastexamples by the NH90NFH.� The US Army has published a Request forInformation (RfI) for the supply of up to 150Bell helicopters for transfer to other USgovernment agencies and Foreign MilitarySales (FMS) customers. Issued on 20December, responses to the RfI are due by 19January.

Several different types are listed in theposting, including the Bell 505 JetRanger X, theModel 407GX, the twin-engined Model 412EPIand the Huey II, with deliveries to be madeover a five year period. Apart from the Model505, which is new to the market, all the typeslisted are already in service with multipleforeign military customers.

Censored- DATELINE: 12th JANUARY 2018

� A partnership between ENCIE Ineo andNHV has been awarded a four yearmaintenance and repair contract by theFrench Ministry of Defence to supportAS565/AS365 Panther/Dauphin Pedro heli-copters operated by the French Navy state.

ENCIE Ineo will provide operationalmaintenance checks and spares logisticssupport for the aircraft as well as accessoryand engine repair and overhaul services, whilstNHV will provide on-site technical assistanceand periodic visits to the entire Navy Dauphinfleet, as well as providing a similar service forAS565Ns operated for state officials. � Russian Helicopters has confirmed adelayed contract for two additional MilMi-17V-5 helicopters was recently signed withthe Royal Thai Army, to transport militarypersonnel and cargo. The aircraft will also beavailable for disaster relief and search andrescue operations.

The Royal Thai Army already operates threeMi-17V-5 helicopters from its base at U-Tapao.� The Fleet Air Arm is witnessing a steadydecline in the recruitment and retention ofhelicopter pilots, according to statisticsrecently released by the Royal Navy. In themost recent fiscal year, FY2016-17, 17 newRegular Service pilots joined, including five forthe Commando Helicopter Force (CHF), whilst33 left, 13 of whom were CHF pilots.

In previous recent years the figures havealso shown more pilots leaving the servicethan joining. In FY2015-16 for example onlyseven pilots were recruited, whilst 35 left andin FY2013-14 although 23 pilots joined, 37retired from the service. Concerns are nowbeing expressed regarding the ability of theFleet Air Arm to fully man the helicopter fleet,despite the recent reduction in strength andthe likelihood of further reductions in activenumbers of piloted aircraft in future.� Boeing and the Netherlands Ministry ofDefence signed an agreement on 14 Decemberthat will see six early Royal Netherlands AirForce (RNLAF) CH-47F Chinook helicoptersbeing upgraded to the latest CH-47Fconfiguration.

� The Indian Air Force (IAF) has approachedHindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for a retrofitprogramme to equip 60 Mil Mi-17 helicopterswith a Tactical Air Navigation (TACAN) system,as well as VHF omni-directional radio range(VOR) equipment and instrument landingsystems.

The IAF operates around 70-75 older Mi-17salongside more than 150 newer Mi-17V-5helicopters in general transport and attackroles.� Russian Helicopters has overhauled fourMyanmar Air Force Mil Mi-24P helicopters at aplant in St. Petersburg, as part of a contract toreturn the Myanmar attack helicopter fleet to aserviceable status. The company plans todeploy a specialist repair team to the countryto overhaul three more aircraft.

Myanmar currently has 10 Mi-24P onstrength, alongside 20 Mi-2 and 28 Mi-17,although the serviceability of some of the latteraircraft is in doubt. In addition the governmenthas been negotiating with Rosoboronexport forthe purchase of up to 50 Mi-35 helicopters tostrengthen its attack capability.� The Fleet Air Arm has re-commissionedNo.1700 Naval Air Squadron, previously de-commissioned in 1946. The sqadron will nowrepresent the Maritime Aviation Support Force(MASF), which provides specialist teams tosupport the operation and protection of theRoyal Navy’s air assets worldwide. Based atRNAS Culdrose the new squadron wascommissioned on 31 October.

In its previous wartime role No.1700 NASsupported various Navy escort carriers withsmall teams and assets to carry out air sea andreconnaissance operations.� The Airbus Helicopters plant in Albacetehanded over five helicopters to the SpanishMinistry of Defence at the end of November.The aircraft comprised two Tiger HAD and oneNH90TTH for the Army and two H215 forsearch and rescue duties with the Air Force inthe Canary Islands.

The handovers also coincided with thetenth anniversary celebrations of the Albacetefactory.� The Russian Air Force received a new batchof five Kazan Ansat-U helicopters inNovember, to be based at the Zhukovsky-Gagarin training academy in the Saratovregion, some 840km (522 miles) south-east ofMoscow.

The light twin Ansat-U is a variant of thecivil Ansat helicopter, with a wheeled landinggear and other changes to suit it for pilottraining and military support missions. At least17 aircraft have now been delivered to theRussian Air Force, replacing the obsolete MilMi-2 helicopter, with a further batch due to bedelivered by the end of this year.

Above: The penultimate Boeing ICH-47FChinook, MM 81792 for the Italian Army, wasrolled out at Leonardo’s Vergiate assemblyfacility in November. All 16 aircraft have nowbeen completed at the plant.


� Sikorsky Aircraft demonstrated a dual pointexternal load and the auto-jettison capabilityof the CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter for the firsttime on 5 December. The test, using a 2268kg(5000lb) load slung beneath the first of thefour prototype Engineering Development andManufacturing (EDM) aircraft, was carried outat the company’s Development Flight TestCentre in West Palm Beach.� The US Marine Corps has begun deployingBell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters withMarine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 367in Hawaii, replacing the AH-1W Super Cobra.The first three upgraded AH-1Z flew into thebase at Kaneohe Bay on 19 December fromthe Pearl Harbour-Hickam airfield, where theyhad been re-assembled following shipmentfrom the US mainland.

The new capability will allow the squadronto further project Marine Corps power andreach in the Pacific region, offering newgeneration glass cockpit avionics and turretsighting and sensor systems as well asincreased weapons loads, including 16 Hellfiremissiles, and a better hot/high performance.� The Montenegro government is to purchase three Bell 412EPI helicopters for multi rolemissions, including border patrols, lawenforcement and rescue work in a deal valuedat Euro 29.9 million.

Bell secured the order in competition withAirbus Helicopters, offering the H145M, andthe Leonardo Helicopters AW139.� Lebanon has been named as a newcustomer for the MD Helicopters MD530GCayuse Warrior, with six aircraft to be suppliedthrough the US government foreign militarysale route. The helicopters will be allocatedfrom the bulk order already placed with MDHelicopters by the US Army for overseassales.

The helicopters are being delivered to boostborder security along the 305km (205 mile)mountainous frontier with Syria, where the

Above: The first three Bell AH-1Z Viper attackhelicopters were delivered to the PakistanArmy in December. Six more should follow thisyear.

Lebanese Army has been increasingly engagedrepelling incursions by Jihadist terrorismgroups fleeing Syrian forces.� Polish sources have revealed new details ofthe Leonardo Helicopters AW249 attackhelicopter proposal, based on the AW189dynamic system but with an airframe designcloser to that of the AW129 Mangustahelicopter.

According to the new information theaircraft would have a maximum take off weightof 7-8 tonnes, carrying an 1800kg (3968lb)payload and be capable of cruising at 140kt(161mph) with an endurance of up to threehours. Weapon loads could include 16 anti-tank missiles or laser-guided rockets, or four70mm rocket pods, or up to eight anti-aircraftmissiles.

Leonardo already has a developmentcontract from the Italian Army for the newdesign, which is planned to enter service in2025.� An early Bell Boeing MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor,used by the US Naval Test Centre at PatuxentRiver, Maryland for the past 15 years onexperimental flight trials has found a new leaseof life at the Naval Medical Research Unitin Dayton, Ohio. The aircraft flew into WrightPatterson Air Force Base on 19 December for anew dual ground-based role.

Housed in a hangar at the Air Force Schoolof Aerospace Medicine and with the enginesand other components removed, the MV-22Bwill be used by aviation medical personnel fortraining to load patients into the cabin. At thesame time the Navy and the Ohio StateUniversity Spine Research Institute will carryout ergonomic research aboard the aircraft, totry and identify causes of aircrew neck andback pain.

Mitigating such pain, either by designchanges to the aircraft or changing howpeople move within the aircraft, couldsignificantly reduce musculoskeletal stress andback pain injury.� The Brazilian Navy is likely to purchase theBritish helicopter assault carrier HMS Oceanfor a reported £84 million when the ship retiresfrom the Royal Navy this year. The 20 year old

vessel is capable of carrying 18 helicopters,including aircraft up to the size of theLeonardo Helicopters Merlin and BoeingChinook.

The 21,500 tonne carrier has recently actedas the Royal Navy flagship and was deployedlate last year to the Carribean for disaster reliefoperations, following hurricanes in the region.The ship returned to her home port ofDevonport, Plymouth at Christmas and is nowbeing readied for decommissioning. � The Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) tookdelivery of a new Airbus Helicopters H125 inearly December, to be used for healthcaresupport, transporting educational materialsand preventing stock theft. The aircraft joins amixed fleet of mostly larger twin-enginedhelicopters in service with the LDF.� The first UK Boeing Apache AH.Mk.1(Westland WAH-64) helicopter to be shipped tothe Boeing for upgrading to AH-64E standard,has left storage at RAF Wattisham and is nowreported at the Mesa, Arizona factory. Theaircraft, serial ZJ202, will be used for AH-64Emodification trials.

The UK Ministry of Defence announced a$3.2 billion deal to remanufacture 50 ApacheAH.Mk.1 airframes to an AH-64E/ApacheAH.Mk.2 configuration in July 2016. The firsthelicopters are due off the US production linein early 2020 and should begin entering servicewith the Army Air Corps in 2022.� Despite plans to retire the type fromservice, the US Air Force has awarded acontract to Tyonek Global Services to installhealth and usage monitoring systems in itsfleet of Bell UH-1N helicopters. Tyonek willcarry out engineering design and kitmanufacturing at its Madison, Alabama facilityfollowed by test and validation trials at itsaircraft modification centre at Stennis airportin Mississippi. Contract field teams will thencarry out the fleet-wide modifications to thehelicopters, at their bases across thecontinental United States and elsewhere.� Lockhead Martin is to deliver ModernisedTarget Acquisition Designation Sight/PilotNight Vision System (M-TADS/PNVS) kitsto Egypt under a foreign military salesagreement with the US Army for installationon Boeing AH-64E Apache helicoptersoperated by the Egyptian Air Force. The $25.2million contract is due to be completed by 30April 2020.

The M-TADS/PNVS system was firstintroduced to service with the US Army in2005 to enhance targeting and missioneffectiveness and safety at night and inadverse weather conditions. Since thenLockheed Martin has delivered more than1,350 to the Army and internationalcustomers.

Censored- DATELINE: 12th JANUARY 2018



First Indonesian Apaches arriveThe first three Boeing AH-64E ApacheGuardians for the Indonesian Army arrived incountry on 18 December, air freighted in toSemarang on the main island of Java.Indonesia ordered eight AH-64Es under the USForeign Military Aid programme in September2012, together with associated equipment andspares including 140 Lockheed Martin AGM-114R3 Hellfire anti-armour missiles.

The aircraft have been purchased to provideborder protection and for counter terrorismoperations, as well as protecting shippingusing the strategic Straits of Malacca againstpiracy. At least some of the helicopters areexpected to be based on the Natuna Islandsbordering the South China Sea, where thewaters around the islands hold large reservesof natural gas, and where fishermen fromneighbouring countries have illegally operatedwithin Indonesia’s exclusive economic zone.

Separately the government is alsodiscussing with Boeing the possibleacquisition of Boeing CH-47F Chinookhelicopters to provide the Army with heavylift support. However this has yet to developinto confirmed numbers.

New CH-148 problemHigh Sea State Landing Trials with the Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone, carried out by the RoyalCanadian Air Force aboard HMCS Montreallast year, have uncovered a new operationalproblem with the latest batch of aircraft whenusing the ship-installed assisted recoverysystem in high sea state conditions. Testsshowed that in this situation, the helicopterlong range active sonar (HELRAS), whichprotrudes slightly below the fuselage whenstowed, can hit the deck as the helicopter isbeing winched down. As a result, the aircraftare restricted to land-based operations whenthe tethered sonar is installed.

The RCAF has had at least three differentCH-148 batches delivered to date, with varyingmod states as Sikorsky introduces plannedupgrades. Approximately half of the 28 aircrafton order have been handed over to date,but early aircraft will return to the factoryto be updated before eventually enteringoperational service. The fix to the sonar issueis expected to see the unit repositioned on thenext delivery batch of six aircraft, which shouldbe delivered by June this year. After that,deliveries of final standard aircraft should takeplace at the rate of one per month. In themeantime the current aircraft can still usesonar buoys to transmit acoustic informationback to the helicopter if necessary.

The Cyclone is due to fully replace theobsolete CH-124 Sea King on East Coastoperations at the end January, with the last

official CH-124 flight at 12 Wing Shearwater inNova Scotia planned for 26 January. WestCoast operations with the Sea King willcontinue until December 2018, when theCyclone will officially take over as Canada’snew maritime helicopter. Full operatingcapability however is not expected until2025.

Airbus versus Poland-Round TwoAirbus Helicopters has stepped up thepressure in its dispute with the Polishgovernment over the cancelled deal to supply50 H225M Caracal helicopters for thecountry’s military forces. Both parties havebeen discussing the issues for the past sixmonths without reaching an agreement.

The H225M was selected by the previousPolish government in early 2015 and industrysources suggest Airbus Helicopters hadalready begun work on the programme,before the incoming Law and Justice Partycame to power and eventually ended thecontract negotiations in October 2016. Sincethen the government has gone back outto the market with a reduced requirementfor only 16 new helicopters, with bidsfrom Airbus, Sikorsky/PZL Mielic andLeonardo/PZL Swidnik. All three competingteams are offering local assembly to meetoffset demands. A final decision on theselection is due this year, with first deliveriesdue in 2019.

However Airbus Helicopter remainsaggrieved over the cancellation of the originaldraft contract and in letters to various Polishgovernment departments and to the Polishprime minister is now seeking internationalarbitration to settle the dispute.

Esterline provides upgraded displaysfor Sikorsky CH-53GEsterline Corporation has signed a contractwith Airbus Helicopters to supply its CMCElectronics CMA9000 Flight ManagementSystem and Esterline MFD-3068 Smart Multi-Function Display for the German Air ForceSikorsky CH-53G/GE upgrade programme.Airbus Helicopters at Donauworth is the primecontractor for this work.

The German Air Force is planning to extendthe life of its CH-53G heavy lift helicopterfleet until at least 2030 and the CMA9000/MFD-3068 combination will reduce the pilotworkload during mission critical operation,as well as enhancing navigation and com-munications management in a more flexibleand modernised cockpit. 26 CH-53Gs are dueto be upgraded with the new avionics overthe next five years as part of the widerprogramme to address obsoleservice in theCH-53G fleet.


Above: The first Boeing AH-64E ApacheGuardian helicopters for the Indonesian Armyarrived in country on 18 December 2017.

Airbus support for RAF Pumas...The UK Ministry of Defence has signed a follow-on support arrangement with Airbus Helicoptersfor the Royal Air Force fleet of Puma Mk.2 helicopters, extending the support potentially overthe planned service life of the aircraft to March 2025.

The initial contract, valued at £100 million, is the first of two pricing periods, which will seeAirbus Helicopters provide full technical support and logistics until March 2022. The agreementthen has the facility to extend the contract through the second pricing period to 2025, subjectto the agreement of both parties. The contract includes the provision by Airbus of repair andoverhaul services in addition to a parts-by-the-hour programme, as well as providing training forall RAF Puma avionics and mechanical technicians and engineering managers.

The RAF operates a fleet of 24 Puma Mk.2 helicopters, all upgraded from older Mk.1 aircraftand with the lead helicopter recently reaching 20,000 flight hours.


...but the fleet could be retiredThreatened defence budget cuts by the UK Ministry of Defence included the early retirement ofthe Royal Air Force fleet of 24 Aerospatiale SA330 Puma HC.Mk.2 helicopters, recentlyupgraded from older Mk.1 aircraft at a cost of £260 million and only fully entering service threeyears ago.

At the time it was envisaged that the upgrade would extend the life of the 24 aircraft until atleast 2025, providing the Royal Air Force and Joint Helicopter Command with continuingprovision of a medium class asset for utility roles, alongside the much larger heavy lift BoeingChinook and the Royal Navy Merlin HC.Mk.4 commando helicopter. The recommendation toretire the Puma Mk.2 early is listed in all three options being put to the new Defence Secretaryas part of a plan to find £20 billion of savings.

Other options add the retirement of the Merlin HC.Mk.3/4 fleet to the list, alongside thewithdrawal of Leonardo Wildcat helicopters and various Royal Navy vessels, including the twoamphibious assault ships, HMS Albion and Bulwark, as well as personnel from all four services.

Germany launches heavy helicoptercompetitionThe German Ministry of Defence officiallylaunched the competition for between 45 and60 new heavy lift helicopters on 14 December,initiating the contract bidding process toreplace the current Sikorsky CH-53G fleet.Both Boeing and Lockheed Martin areexpected to bid with the Advanced CH-47Fand CH-53K respectively.

A Request for Information is expected to beissued in the second half of 2018, followingcompletion of a fleet capability study, with acontract award likely in mid-2020 and initialdeliveries beginning in 2023. The Ministry hasbudgeted almost Euro 4 million for thecontract, which will include both themanufacturing and the maintenance elementsof the order, despite calls by domestic firms todivide these into separate bid elements.

Danish Lynx retiresThe Royal Danish Air Force officially retired thelast four Westland Lynx Mk.90B helicopters inservice on 15 December following a farewellceremony at the Karup air base, and the initial

deployment of the replacement Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk aboard the Navy FrigateHvidbjømen the previous day.

Eight Lynx were originally ordered in 1977as Mk.80 aircraft for fishery protection andsearch and rescue duties, with four survivorsplus two later purchases later re-airframed asSuper Lynx Mk.90Bs for continued service.Rundown of the aircraft began earlier in 2017with only four Lynx still operational by mid-year, as crews began to work up on the MH-60R. Offering a greater range and with a muchimproved sensor and radar package, the newhelicopter will be capable of detectingshipping movements much further from thebase ship, giving better coverage especiallyaround Greenland and the Faroe Islands.

Nine MH-60R Seahawks were ordered byDenmark in 2012, with the first being deliveredin May 2016 and the last due to arrive this year.At sea the MH-60R will operate from the fourThetis class ships, which are fitted withhangars, but will also be capable of using thesmaller Knud Raswussen class for landing andrefuelling stops.

ACF to market UH-1H compositebladesAdvanced Composite Structures Florida(ACSF) recently received a US Federal AviationAdministration exemption, allowing the

company to market foreign military surpluscomposite main rotor blades suitable forinstallation on restricted category Bell UH-1Hhelicopters.

The blades were originally manufactured forthe German armed forces fleet of UH-1Dhelicopters and had been produced to an FAAapproved design, with the same part numbersas similar blades produced in the UnitedStates by the design and production approvalholders. The surplus blades were subsequentlypurchased in 2014 by Stone AviationInternational but, because they had not beendeclared surplus by the US Military, failed tomeet FAA regulatory criteria. Despite repeatedefforts to persuade officials to develop anapproval route and testing of the blades toprove their authenticity, it took four years andmultiple rejections before the exemption wasfinally granted.

The approval states that “ACSF has requisitedesign and production data and historicalrecords, to enable it,-and the FAA, to makecompetent airworthiness determinations (and)the FAA agrees with ACSF that this exemptionwould be in the public interest becausemany restricted category type-certificatedhelicopters fly missions under contract forfederal, state and local governments”.

ACSF is now working to fulfil the obligationsof the exemption, to allow delivery of thecomposite blades to the market.

SRSC begins Saudi fleet overhaulsThe Saudi Rotorcraft Support Company(SRSC), a joint venture set up in Riyadh as partof an offset agreement with Boeing to providemaintenance, repair and overhaul work for theSaudi helicopter fleet, was expected to receiveits first aircraft by the end of December. Thehelicopter, a severely damaged AH-64 attackhelicopter, will undergo a full strip down andassessment of structural damage before adecision is made on whether to return it toflight or cannibalise it for spare components.

The SRSC facility in Riyadh consists ofover 3000sq.m (32,292sq.ft) of maintenancespace at the Industrial Zone of King KhalidInternational Airport and is due to be followedby a second similar centre next year, located atJeddah and focusing on component overhaulwork. More than 300 helicopters, representing16 different types operated by the main ninerotorcraft operators in Saudi Arabia, areeventually expected to be supported by SRSC.Meanwhile the next aircraft likely to enter theMRO system will be either a group of AirbusHelicopters AS532SC from the Saudi Navy,which need in-depth overhauls or possibly oneof the Sikorsky platforms. Saudi Arabiaoperates both the S-92 and variants of the H-60 helicopters.


Above: Sikorsky Aircraft recently carried outexternal load trials with the CH-53K helicopter,being proposed for the new German heavy liftprogramme.

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•A long awaited report into the NationalPolice Air Service (NPAS) by Her Majesty’sInspectorate of Constabulary and Fire &Rescue Services appears to vindicate thosewho criticised the establishment of sharedhelicopter operations across England andWales 10 years ago and the consequentdecline in aircraft availability and responsetimes. Driven by budget cuts but arguablyfinancially ineffective in the overall policingpicture, the report notes that the savings haveprimarily been made by cutting the servicesprovided to the police forces rather thanimproving efficiency.

Prior to the creation of NPAS the variousforces each operated their own aircraft orshared with just one or two neighbouringforces. Now the number of bases has beenhalved and a third of the helicopters taken outof service altogether. Despite this cutback, thereport notes that there is no clear evidencethat the current arrangements are financiallyany more or less efficient than when forcesmanaged their own individual air support, andcosts are not shared equally between forces.

In 2008/09 the police service was operating33 aircraft for an annual revenue cost of £45million, and initial calculations were that NPAScould maintain a fleet of 29 helicopters for acost of £37.5 million. In fact, in 2016/17 thecost of operating just 19 helicopters had risento £39.6 million and, with each aircraft flyingfewer hours on average, the cost per flyinghour has doubled.

Furthermore the Inspectorate says that theservice reductions by NPAS have resulted in anaverage response time of more than 30minutes to respond to a crime in action, withthe result that police forces have cancelledcalls for support in 40 percent of casesbecause the helicopter would take too long toarrive. Even for the most urgent calls, involvingthreat to life, it took more than 10 minutes onaverage to despatch an aircraft to the scene.In two individual worst case studies theInspectorate found that, on average theCumbria Constabulary had to wait for over anhour for a helicopter to arrive on task for anoperation, whilst the Dyfed-Powys police forcehad to wait over 50 minutes for a helicopter toreach incidents, despite contributing anannual cost of £891,000 for the service.

Ironically NPAS does meet its response timetargets but, says the report, only because thetargets are too lenient and not fit for purpose.In one force officers reported that the numberof pursuits had risen from 100 in 2014 to 336in 2016, with prisoners suggesting that part ofthe reason was the criminal perception thatthe police no longer had ready access tohelicopter support. The report also notes that

a number of forces are now independentlyoperating unmanned air vehicles for searchand surveillance missions previously carriedout by NPAS, but there has been insufficientevaluation to decide what capabilities theycould add to operations.

NPAS currently operates a fleet of 19helicopters, mostly made up of AirbusHelicopters EC135s that have been upgradedand a small number of E145s covering theMetropolitan Police area. The report says thatcurrently there is no fleet replacement plan forthe older aircraft that are nearing the end oftheir service lives, whilst plans to add fourfixed-wing aircraft have already beenchallenged by critics. Despite the criticism,the Inspectorate suggests that a singlecollaboration between the 43 forces acrossEngland and Wales remains an appropriate wayof providing effective and efficient police airsupport, but recommends that the currentagreement should be replaced with improvedarrangements within the next three years toaddress the shortfalls.

In an initial response to the critical reportNPAS says many of the areas identified arealready recognised and there have beenongoing efforts to address the shortcomings,however unsuccessful.

•A Former US Army Bell UH-1H is now inservice with the Collier County Sheriff ’s Officein Florida, after being overhauled to provide arescue and fire fighting capability for the localarea. The aircraft, originally delivered to the USArmy in July 1970, was registered to its newowners as N205LE at the end of June, beforebeing customised for the new mission, at atotal cost of around $750,000.

•Novant Health in Winston-Salem, NorthCarolina has taken on its first helicopter forcritical hospital transport missions across a241km (150 mile) radius from the company’sRowan Medical Centre in Salisbury. The aircraft,a new Airbus Helicopters EC135P2+, N556MT,operated by MedTrans will transport patientsto hospitals in Charlotte and the metro areafrom the surrounding rural communities.

•Brunei Shell recently passed the 10,000flight hours milestone with their search andrescue configured Sikorsky S-92A helicopterV8-SAR.

The aircraft, the 39th production S-92 andregistered V8-SHL, was originally delivered tothe company in January 2007 as a standardoffshore transport. It was converted to theSAR configuration by the Sikorsky Australiasubsidiary, Helitech in Brisbane betweenOctober 2013 and January 2015 before re-entering service in its new role.

•The Los Angeles County Fire Departmenttook delivery of two Sikorsky S-70i helicopterson 13 December, for conversion over the nextseveral months to the specialised Firehawkconfiguration.

The aircraft will boost the LACFD airoperations fleet for fire fighting and carryingout rescue work in the area. The two S-70iFirehawk conversions were ordered last July ina $29.4 million deal, supplementing the threeS-70A Firehawks and five Bell 412 helicoptersalready in the fleet.

•The Irish Aviation Authority has admittedthat errors and anomalies exist on its currentaeronautical charts, leading to suggestionsthat similar chart errors may have contributedto the fatal accident involving an Irish CoastGuard Sikorsky S-92 helicopter which struckhigh ground on Blackrock Island off CountyMayo during a night mission in March 2017. Allfour crew aboard the helicopter lost their livesin the incident.

In December the authority conceded thatlight houses in the wrong locations, missingspot heights and obscured symbols are amongthe errors in the latest VFR 1:500,00 chartpublished in June 2017, and has asked pilotsto report any errors or make suggestions forfuture editions. It also plans to hold a chartingworkshop before the next edition is published

Above: The San Diego City Council has ordereda Sikorsky S-70 helicopter for conversion to theFire Hawk configuration to combat wild fires.


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in April. The 1:500,00 charts are popular withsearch and rescue, helicopter transport andrecreational pilots.

CHC Ireland has also admitted that it maybe subject to legal and regulatory proceedingsas a result of the Blackrock Island crash,noting in its most recently filed accounts thattwo investigations are still underway with theRepublic of Ireland Air Accident InvestigationUnit and the police and Health and SafetyAuthority.

•More than 30 helicopters are beingdeployed by FAASA Chile and CalquinHelicopters in Chile and Uruguay to meet firefighting needs over the next four months in thetwo countries. January-April is the wildfireseason in South America.

Various helicopter types will be included inthe fleet mix, including the Airbus H125, Bell412, Leonardo AW119K and the PZL-SwidnikSokol, with aircraft spread across more than25 base camps. Supporting the helicopters willbe more than 200 Chilean and Spanishsupport personnel.

•Bell Helicopter handed over its 20th airmedical configured aircraft of 2017 to aEuropean customer on 14 December, with thedelivery of a Model 429 to Heliand from thePrague completions centre. The aircraftwill support helicopter emergency medicalservices and search and rescue missions in themountainous Pyrénées region of Andorra innorthern Spain.

The aircraft previously visited Andorra inHeliand colours last October before returningto Prague, presumably for final completionwork.

•Russian Helicopters has confirmedcontracts signed with the State TransportLeasing Company for the delivery of 31helicopters over the next 12 months. The

agreement includes 12 Ansat lightutility helicopters configured for the airambulance role, 13 Mil Mi-8AMT and sixMi-8MTV-1.

•The Italian Guardia di Finanza (Customsand Border Protection Service) has orderedsix more Leonardo AW139 helicopters forpatrol and rescue operations, under anongoing plan to replace ageing AB412aircraft. In addition the Italian Coast Guardhas ordered two more AW139s for a similarreplacement programme.

The two contracts represent a total value ofapproximately Euro 112 million with theCustoms aircraft to enter service by 2020 andthe Coast Guard deliveries to be completed bythe end of this year. The Coast Guard recentlypassed the 10,000 flight hour’s milestone withits AW139 fleet, having saved many lives inoperation.

With these deliveries both operators willeach have a fleet of 14 AW139s in service, apart of a total fleet of 53 AW139s in service oron order by the various Italian governmentoperators.

•The Latvia State Border Guard has signed acontract for two Leonardo AW119Kxhelicopters, with an option for a third, to carryout search and rescue, transport, fire fightingand disaster relief missions. The aircraft willoperate alongside the two A109E Powerhelicopters which have been in service withthe Border Guard since 2007.

The new AW119Kx will be delivered fromthe Leonardo Helicopters assembly facilityin Philadelphia in 2019, with a customisedconfiguration and supported by aircrewand maintenance training services. Onceoperational they will replace two ageingAgusta-Bell AB206B Jet Rangers. TheAW119Kx will offer an enhanced cabin size,able to accommodate up to six passengersand enjoys a state-of-the-art avioncs systemand redundancy of all critical systems,typically only available on twin enginehelicopters.

Nearly 300 AW119 helicopters have nowbeen ordered to date, in almost 40 countriesby over 120 customers.

•The San Diego City Council voted on 13December to purchase a Sikorsky S-70Firehawk to supplement the city’s Fire-Rescue Department’s Bell 212 and Bell 412helicopters, originally delivered in 2005 and2008 respectively. The Firehawk is also likely toeventually replace the older aircraft, which wasoriginally built in 1980 before being purchasedsecond hand, and is becoming increasinglydifficult to maintain. The decision to spend$9.8 million to buy the Firehawk came at atime when the existing helicopters were beingused extensively to combat wildfires in thearea.

The council has also approved theconstruction of a new $13.7 million facility atMontgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport for theFire Rescue Department’s helicopter fleet,including hangarage, office and rest space.

•Airbus Helicopters has continued itsprotest against the decision by Travis County,Texas to award a $34 million STAR Flightreplacement helicopter contract to LeonardoHelicopters. Travis County selected the AW169for the multi-role contract, ruling out the rivalAirbus H145 mainly on the grounds of cabinlayout and patient accessibility, where theAW169 scored much better.

Airbus Helicopters originally protestedthe decision last October, claiming that theH145 bid at $21,681,433, compared with$23,547,831 for the AW169, was cheaper afteraccounting for trade-in values against thecurrent EC145 fleet. The company alsoclaimed that the spare parts and tools costwould be lower because the County alreadyhas an existing inventory from the EC145s.Airbus also claimed the H145 operating andmaintenance costs are lower and that certainfunctions of the AW169 were not yet FAAcertified. However the County rejected theprotest on 30 October.

Since then Airbus has lodged an appealto the Commissioners Court, which is dueto be heard during January. Meanwhile theTravis County authorities remain confidentregarding the AW169 selection, noting thatthe AW169 offers best value for money forSTAR Flight’s existing missions whilst alsoexpanding the service to include longer rangepatient transports.

•The Netherlands Police confirmed anorder for a third Leonardo HelicoptersAW139 on 4 January, to be operated byits aviation department, the Luchtvaartaftdeling van de Politie. LeonardoHelicopters signed a contract agreementfor the additional helicopter on 15December last year.

Above: This Leonardo AW139 is one of the latestdeliveries to the Italian Guardia di Finanzaand seen here at the Vergiate factory on 3December (O. Bernardi).



New US Army RfI for more UH-72AsblockedThe US Army issued a new Request forInformation (RfI) in early January, asking forsources that could provide 35 AirbusHelicopters EC145s for training and supportroles. The Army already operates over 400EC145/UH-72A Lakota helicopters out of 412ordered to date, but is seeking the additionalaircraft primarily for the training role at FortRucker, Alabama and other training and testcentres.

The RfI followed a long-drawn out legalconflict with Leonardo Helicopters, whichchallenged in 2014 an Army proposal topurchase 155 additional Lakotas to replaceBell TH-67 and TH-1H helicopters in thetraining role, without opening up therequirement to competition. Leonardo arguedthat the Army could save over $330 millionby purchasing 255 AW119Kx helicopters,rather than the lesser number of EC145s.Subsequently Army officials attempted tocircumvent the challenge by announcing anintention to buy just 16 Lakotas, but this wasrejected by the judge in August 2016,especially as the Army had already advised thecourt in May 2016 that it actually hadidentified a need for 97 aircraft.

The Army then appealed the ruling butwhilst a final legal judgement was awaited, theArmy used specific language in the DefenceAppropriations Act as reason to circumventthe legal argument and go forward with thepurchase. In the event the appeal court foundin favour of the Army in a ruling issued on 23January. Just days later Leonardo filed a newlawsuit, further blocking any acquisition andforcing the Army to stop negotiations withAirbus until the new case is heard.

The UH-72A lacks a military airworthinesscertificate since it is limited by choice topeacetime support roles, so whilst in theoryany company could bid to supply EC145s tomeet the Army requirement, the technicaldata package is owned by Airbus and anyoneelse would have to show they could producethe aircraft as a new FAA certified helicopterwithout adding significant costs to acontract.

For Airbus Helicopters, the further delaythreatens its Columbus, Mississippi factory,which now could face the closure of the UH-72A assembly line within a matter of weeks.

Belgian NH-90s groundedOperational trials by the Royal Belgian AirForce with the NH Industries NH90NFHCaiman helicopters, due to take over thesearch and rescue role from the Westland SeaKing Mk.48 in 2019, have allegedly uncoveredradar failures on three aircraft which could

take several months to put right. Belgium haspurchased four Caimans for the SAR missionbut, according to local sources only one has afully operational radar.

The fault is claimed to lie in the RadarEuropean Navy (ENR) with the ISAR modeautomatically switching itself off, requiring theunits now needing to be returned to themanufacturer for repairs and modifications.Based on the Selex Galileo APS-784 andThales Ocean Master systems, the ENR ismanufactured by a consortium of AirbusDefence and Space and Leonardo. It isdesigned to provide 360 degree track-while-scan surveillance with a target recognitioncapability.

Although initially expected to be a periodof three-six months for each radar to bereturned to an operational condition, themodification is now thought to take eachhelicopter out of service for a much longerperiod. Together with other identified teethingproblems, the Air Force now doesn’t expect tohave all four aircraft fully operational beforemid-2019.

In the meantime crews are taking it in turnsto fly the serviceable helicopter in order toretain currency, pending the availability ofadditional aircraft.

India donates Mil Mi-35s toAfghanistanThe Indian government is reported to beconsidering the purchase of a number of lowhour Mil Mi-35 attack helicopters for donatingto the Afghan Air Force, following discussionsbetween senior Indian and Afghan officials inDelhi aimed at increasing cooperationbetween the two countries. India previouslydonated four Mi-35 and three HindustanAeronautics Chettal high altitude lighttransport helicopters to Afghanistan in 2015-16, but all are now grounded and in need ofrepairs.

Indian officials have already visited Moscowto discuss the new proposal with Russianofficials and are expected to be followed by anAfghan defence team early this year. Russiahas a large fleet of older Mi-35s which could beavailable on the second hand market as theyare gradually replaced by new Mi-35M and Mi-28 attack helicopters. Other possible sourcesinclude former Warsaw Pact countries ineastern Europe, which also still includeMi-24/35 helicopters in their inventory.

Above: Leonardo has again blocked a US Armygo-ahead to buy more Airbus HelicoptersUH-72As.


Surplus Super Cobras for saleThe US government is to market surplus Bell AH-1W Super Cobra attack helicopter on theinternational market, offering the aircraft through both Foreign Military Sales and DirectCommercial Sales options to customers. The aircraft are becoming available as the US MarineCorps (USMC) takes delivery of new-build AH-1Z Viper helicopters.

The USMC took delivery of over 160 AH-1Ws, with some lost through attrition in service useand others modified to AH-1Z configuration, before it was decided to abandon the conversionprogramme and purchase new-build aircraft instead. The number of AH-1Ws to be sold isestimated to add up to close to at least 100 aircraft by 2020 when the last aircraft are due tobe phased out of USMC service.

The intent now is to upgrade the helicopters with a new glass cockpit for customers. Insupport of this the Naval Air Systems Command, PMA-276 attack helicopter office, is holdingan Industry Day on 24 January for companies interested in this upgrade work.

Despite having first entered service over 30 years ago, the AH-1W remains a very capabletwin-engined attack helicopter and would be a suitable replacement for the many single-engined Cobra variants that continue in service with 10 countries worldwide. The Super Cobrascould either boost these fleets or offer an opportunity to a new customer seeking a dedicatedattack helicopter, with pilot and maintainer training as part of the deal.


•Westcan Aviation in Kamloops, British Columbia imported intoCanada two former US Federal Bureau of Investigation Bell 412EPhelicopters from Florida in November. Both aircraft previously registeredas N37GR (serial 36209) and N223JC (serial 36106), came via AircraftAssociates and were delivered by road.

•Helicopteres Guimbal has received approval from the US FederalAviation Administration (FAA) to uprate the power available from the G2Cabri helicopter Lycoming 0360-J2A engine. The approval follows asimilar clearance by the European Aviation Safety Agency in June 2017.

Service Bulletin 17-009 allows the pilot to increase the power from theprevious 145hp maximum to 160hp, with no negative implications tooperating costs or additional inspections. Previously Helicopteres Guimbalhad deliberately restricted the power through the on-board enginemanagement computer (EPM), but changes to the software will now allowpilots to make full use of the available power in the engine. Although thein-ground effect hover numbers remain unchanged, this will be especiallybeneficial in hot/high areas, during takeoffs from tight areas and duringflight training, where the extra power will improve safety margins. T h eCabri G2 fleet has now logged almost 140,000 flight hours worldwide, withno serious injuries to date and the 215th aircraft was on the production lineat Aix-en-Provence in early November. Over 10 percent of the fleet hasbeen exported to the United States since FAA certification in 2015, with themajority finding their way to training schools and more on order.

•Long established Idaho utility operator, Timberline Helicopters, isplanning to relocate from its current base at Sandpoint by 2020 to alarger 93 acre site in the Athol area and adjacent to the US 95 highway.The new $3 million base would meet Timberline’s expansion needs formaintenance and conversion programmes of ex-military aircraft.

Currently the company operates a mixed fleet of helicopters, usuallydispersed across the western United States on powerline and skiliftconstruction, fire fighting and logging contracts, only returning toSandpoint for overhaul and maintenance. However in 2016 Timberlinereceived FAA approval to convert surplus Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawksfor commercial utility operations and growth of this programme isdriving the relocation. The conversion process takes about 6,000 manhours per aircraft.

Timberline would also like to convert and operate surplus BoeingCH-47D Chinook helicopters, but space constraints at Sandpoint makethis difficult.

•The Airborne Law Enforcement Association, which organises anannual conference and exhibition at venues in the United States,changed its name to the Airborne Public Safety Association (APSA) witheffect from 1 January 2018. The title change follows the expansion of theairborne law enforcement role by many agencies to include fire fightingand search and rescue.

The change will also allow more dedicated rescue and responseorganisations to join APSA in the future, whilst also being included in theannual convention. Retitled APSCON 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky, thenext event is scheduled for 9-14 July 2018.

•Revolution Aviation in California, which operates a mixed fleet ofRobinson and Guimbal Cabri light helicopters for flight training, hasopened a second base at Long Beach airport in Los Angeles Countyunder a lease agreement with the Aeroplex Group. The company alreadyoperates helicopter and fixed-wing instruction at John Wayne airport inOrange County.

The expansion means that Revolution can offer training across a widegeographical footprint in the Los Angeles area, meeting a perceivedgrowing demand for pilot training in the region. The new Long Beachlocation has space for four classrooms, reception, briefing andconference facilities, as well as airside access for several helicopters tocarry out one-to-one flight training.

•Trans Canada PipeLines has put a second Airbus Helicopters H125 inservice, based in Toronto, Ontario. The aircraft, registered C-CTCX, willcontribute towards the monitoring and maintenance of the company’snetwork of natural gas and oil pipelines.

The H125 has been enhanced for the role, with supplementary typecertificated squirrel baggage cheeks and a cargo mirror to view externalloads.

•The families of two people on board an Airbus Helicopters H145 thatcrashed last September killing all four people on board whilst on an airmedical flight have filed a lawsuit against the estate of the deceasedpilot, and the helicopter and engine manufacturers.

The helicopter, operated by Duke Life Flight, was en route in NorthCarolina when an engine fire forced the pilot to attempt an immediateforced landing. This resulted in the aircraft impacting the terrain almostvertically on a wind farm. The cabin roof then collapsed and thehelicopter was partially consumed by fire. Lawyers for the families of thepatient and flight nurse, who are the plaintiffs in the case, argue that thepilot was at fault for not continuing forward flight and executing anautorotative landing, whilst also claiming that the engine fire was causedby a blocked engine drain line. This was a known problem with the typeand had previously been brought to regulatory and company officialsattention.

As a consequence, the Missouri based lawyer handling the plaintiffscase, a known specialist in handling helicopter-related litigation, saysthe crash was “absolutely preventable”. None of the companies namedin the suit have commented on the case.

•A review of Transport Canada fines for aviation violations in BritishColumbia in 2017, carried out by local media, has revealed that Helijetreceived the highest total, costing the company C$26,250 on six countsover four days for failing to operate its Sikorsky S-76C+ air medicalhelicopters in accordance with the operating limitations set out in theaircraft flight manual. The transgressions were in relation to previouslyreported landings at elevated hospital helipads

Helijet had immediately suspended use of the helipads by theS-76C+ and eventually Transport Canada approved a supplemental typecertificate to overcome the restriction.

Regional News- NORTH AMERICA

Above: This ex-Canadian Coast Guard MBB Bo105, c/n 726 found a newowner in Abbotsford in early November and has been re-registered asC-GCFT (B. Newbery).





with CHC using a Sikorsky S-92 helicopter flying from its base atKristiansund.

The Fogelberg gas and condensate field was discovered in 2010, some200km (124miles) from the Norwegian mainland and 170km (106 miles)north east of the Froan archipelago. Centrica holds 50 percent ofinterest in the field, while non-operating partners are Faroe Petroleumand E.ON Norge with a 25 percent interest each.

The Centrica drilling programme is expected to last for an initialperiod of 100-150 days, with the company hoping to continue drilling for12 months until mid-2019, and with production from the field scheduledto start in 2020.

•A militant UK trade union, Unite has threatened oil and gascompanies that it would ballot its offshore members for strike action ifthe Airbus Super Puma helicopter were to make a comeback in the NorthSea. The move is the latest chapter in a long running argument overSuper Puma safety since the fatal crash offshore Norway in April 2016.

Unite made the statement in mid December, ahead of a meeting withmembers of the Scottish Parliament to discuss the opposition to theaircraft and to present a 10,000 signature petition from North Seaworkers opposing all commercial flights with the aircraft. The trade unionsays a strong unionized work force taking collective action is the bestway to stop the Super Puma returning to offshore service in the area.

Unite has ramped up its opposition despite safety modifications tothe aircraft and renewed airworthiness approval by the UK andNorwegian regulatory authorities. Unite representatives have alsorefused to participate in demonstration flights offered by AirbusHelicopters last year. The company has accepted that restoringconfidence among the North Sea offshore work force will take time andpatience, but points out that it has been willing to explain the safetymeasures that have been put in place.

It also notes that worldwide the type is in service with over 160operators in 143 countries, and has logged over 5.3 million flighthours.

•Lease Corporation International (LCI) has taken delivery of its firstAirbus Helicopters H175 and placed it on lease with CHC Scotia for oiland gas production support operations out of Aberdeen, Scotland. Theaircraft is the first of its type to join the LCI helicopter fleet, which nownumbers approximately 60 aircraft in service and on order.

The new H175, registered G-EMEB and the 30th production aircraftfrom the Marignane production line, is the second of the type to enterservice with CHC, joining G-EMEA c/n 5024 which entered service in theNorth Sea on a contract with Shell last September. There are now 17H175 in service with North Sea operators including the former Mexican-registered c/n 5009, which has been transferred from a Pegaso contractin the Gulf of Mexico to Heli Holland Offshore and taken up a Dutchregistration (PH-OSF).

•The Italian oil and gas firm Eni became the first company since 2015to begin work on a new well in US waters off the north coast of Alaskaat the end of December, when it began a 10km (6 miles) deep drillingproject in the Beaufort Sea, working from an artificial island. Theoffshore exploration follows a decision by the US Administration toextend offshore drilling to areas in the Arctic and other places thatpreviously were off limits.

Eni is working in partnership with Royal Dutch Shell to tap aformation on the outer Continental Shelf and plans to drill twoexploration wells plus two potential side track wells over the next twoyears.

•Heli-Union has taken delivery of an additional leased LeonardoHelicopters AW139 aircraft for a new contract in Gabon, operating fromPort Gentil airport to support offshore passenger crew changes. Thecompany currently operates eight AW139 helicopters in Africa and inAsia.

•Royal Dutch Shell is to redevelop the Penguins oil and gas field in theUK sector of the North Sea, constructing a new manned productionstorage and offloading facility with eight new wells being drilled tosucceed the current Brent Charlie complex. The new installation will bethe first for Shell in the northern North Sea in almost 30 years.

The Penguins field lies some 241km (150 miles) north east of theShetland Islands in 165m (541ft) of water and was first discoveredin 1974. However development didn’t begin until 2002 under a50/50 joint venture between Shell and ExxonMobil.

•The first two Airbus Helicopters H175s to arrive in Australia, includingserial 5027, now registered VH-NYJ, were delivered to Darwin Airport inan Antonov AN-124 Freighter on 27 November. The super mediumhelicopters have been imported by Babcock Offshore ServicesAustralasia for an offshore support contract in the Timor Sea, 499km(310miles) northwest of Darwin.

Following reassembly the two aircraft will be flown to their new baseat Dili, Timor-Leste for a contract start on 1 January, providing personeltransportation, search and rescue support and medevac for ConocoPhillips Bayu Undan production operations in the Joint PetroleumDevelopment Area. The Babcock operation will be governed from a newjoint operations centre in Adelaide, opened last April to oversee andsupport all 13 Babcock bases and 31 aircraft across Australia.

Babcock has been training 27 pilots and engineers to support the Dilioperation and is employing a further 19 Timorese staff, including fourengineers who will attend training courses with Airbus Helicopters inFrance in early 2018.

•Oil giant Statoil, is to purchase all the Total offshore assets on theNorwegian Continental Shelf for $1.45 billion. The Total interestscomprise 51 percent of the Martin Linge field and 40 percent of theGarantiana field.

The transaction which has an effective date of 1 January 2018, willinclude the transfer of all relevant employees and follows a decision byTotal to review its portfolio in the area, as a result of its forthcomingacquisition of Maersk Oil. The Martin Linge field in particular was Total’sonly operated asset in Norway, with limited scope to optimiseoperations.

Statoil is in a far better position to develop the field, which holdsestimated recoverable resources in excess of 300 million barrels oilequivalent and a production life extending into the 2030s. Likewise theGarantiana field also has renewable resources potential, althoughdevelopment concepts for this field are still currently being evaluated.

Statoil is also continuing its exploration activities offshore in 2018,with plans to drill between 25 and 30 wells in Norwegian waters,including up to six in the Barents Sea despite poor results from the fivewells drilled there in 2017. Plans for 2018 also include at least three wellsoffshore Brazil and one offshore Tanzania.

•National Helicopter Services Ltd (NHSL) in Trinidad and Tobago hasbegun operations with two new helicopters, operating from thecompany’s base at Camden, Couva. Both aircraft will be utilised forenergy support, as well as being available for disaster relief and airmedical support in outlying areas.

One of the helicopters, an Airbus H135 registered 9Y-1HL, is the firstof its type in the country and wil be flown on pipeline patrols, as well asbeing able to land on smaller sites and platforms than the largerhelicopters in the NHSL fleet.

The second aircraft is a Leonardo Helicopters AW139, again the firstfor NHSL which previously has flown only the Sikorsky S-76C and S-76Dvariants on offshore support services.

•ExxonMobil has announced that its Hebron oil project off the coastof Eastern Canada has begun producing oil after an eight yearconstruction phase. The offshore platform, located 350km (200 miles)off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in 92m (300ft) deep waters,contains living quarters, drilling and production plant, and storagecapacity for 1.2 million barrels of oil equivalent. At its peak the projectis expected to produce up to 150,000 barrels of oil per day.

Provision of the helicopter service between St Johns Airport inNewfoundland and the Hebron field is contracted to Cougar Helicopters,operating the Sikorsky S-92.

•CHC Helicopter has confirmed a contract with Centrica to providehelicopter support for a drilling project at the Fogelberg field in theNorwegian Sea. The operation is expected to begin in February/March,

Regional News

- OFFSHORE WORLDWIDE

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) hasdonated a former Royal Australian Navy(RAN) Airbus Helicopters AS350BA helicopterto the Australian War Memorial in Canberra,following its retirement from service withNo.723 Sqdn at Nowra, New South Wales.

The aircraft, N22-017 coded 864, was oneof six AS350BAs originally delivered to theRAN in 1984 and tasked for Ship’s Flights,range control support and utility flying,before joining eight others transferred fromthe Royal Australian Air Force in 2000 for pilottraining. N22-017 was delivered on 24 March1984 and served during the 1990 GulfWaraboard the guided missile frigate HMASDarwin, with a 7.62mm machine gun in thecabin doorway, and HMAS Success, areplenishment oil vessel, supporting theAustralian contribution to policing the GulfWaters.

The final deployment of the AS350B withNo. 723 Sqdn took place in late October, with

four aircraft taking part in Exercise Taipanoffshore Tasmania. Immediately afterwardsthe squadron put up its last six-shipformation at Nowra on 1 November, prior tothe squadron disbandment on 1 Decemberand the replacement of the AS350 by 15Airbus Helicopters EC135T2+.

In a second transfer the ADF has passedthree Bell 206B Kiowa helicopters over to theAustralian National Aviation Museum inMoorabin. The aircraft, A17-006, A17-045and A17-055 entered service with theAustralian Army in the mid 1970s. A17-055,the penultimate 206B assembled locally bythe Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation is tobe restored and put on static display.


HelicopterHistory

•A former Irish Air Corps AerospatialeSA316B Alouette 3 has found a new home atthe Wings Over the Rockies Air and SpaceMuseum in Denver, Colorado following itsdonation by Airbus Helicopters. The aircrafthas been repainted by United Rotorcraft torepresent an early civil air medical helicopterin the local St Anthony Flight for Life coloursfrom 1986, following shipment from Europe,where it was in storage after being traded into Airbus Helicopters by the Irish Air Corps in2007.

•The Spanish Army finally retired the last ofits MBB Bo105 helicopters on 31 December,after 37 years in service in the anti-tank,ground support and observation roles.Assembled under licence by CASA, anddesignated the HA-15 in service, 113 Bo105swere delivered to the Army before eventuallybeing replaced by a much reduced number ofAirbus Helicopters Tigers in the attack role inmore recent years.

During its service the Army logged over113,000 flying hours with the HA-15, whichtook part in many national and multi-nationalexercises as well as overseas peace-keepingmissions, for example in Bosnia-Herzegovina.The fleet also enjoyed a remarkably lowaccident rate, with only three aircraft writtenoff over the 37 years of service. The gradualretirement of the type led to only a handful ofaircraft remaining operational by 2016,reduced to only three in early 2017.

The final official flight took place at theCoronel Sánchez Bilbao base in Almagro on21 December, when a single HA-15 wasaccompanied in a flypast and final landing bytwo Tiger helicopters.

•The UK Army Air Corps officially retires itsWestland Lynx helicopter from service on 31January following a farewell tour on 16th byfour Mk.9A aircraft from No.657 Sqdn, flyingfrom RAF Odiham around the southern UKand the various bases and manufacturingsites that contributed to its 40 years ofoperations.

First flown in 1971, the original LynxAH.Mk.1 became operational with the BritishArmy on the Rhine at Detmold, Germany in1978 providing a utility and anti-tank roleduring the Cold War. Subsequent variantswere deployed by the Army to Iraq during thefirst Gulf War in 1991 and the second Gulf Warin 2003, and later in Afghanistan from 2006.The aircraft also operated in Northern Irelandduring the long running IRA troubles and insupport of NATO forces during the conflictbetween Serbia and Kosovo. In total 144 Lynxentered Army Air Corps service.

The final version of the Army Lynx wasthe Mk.9A, which introduced a wheeledlanding gear and more powerful LHTEC

CTS800-4N engines replacing the originalRolls-Royce Gems, to meet the hot/highperformance requirements of Afghanoperations. The last seven aircraft havebeen operated on special forces missionsby No.657 Sqdn.

Now replaced by the Leonardo HelicoptersAW159 Wildcat AH.Mk.1, the surviving Mk.9Asare expected to follow the previously retired

Mk.7s and Royal Navy Lynx variants byproviding donor components for their successor.

Above: The Royal Australian Navy put up asix-ship formation with its last AirbusHelicopters AS350BAs at Nowra, New SouthWales on 1 November 2017.

Below: Westland Lynx Mk.9A, ZG917, which ledthe Army Air Corps farewell tour on 16December in a one-off celebrationary colourscheme, may be allocated for preservation atthe Museum of Army Flying at Middle Wallop.


Accident Spotand starboard skid went over edge. Helicopterthen rolled onto its right side and impactedground below before coming to rest.

16 Robinson R44 N820DF of Mauna LoaHelicopters destroyed during night IFR trainingflight from Daniel K Inouye airport, Hawaii after itimpacted sea off Molokai island, broke up andsank. 2 fatal.

17 Sikorsky UH-60J 58-4596 of Japan Air SelfDefence force written off during night search andrescue training exercise when it impacted sea inPacific Ocean and sank approx 30km (18 miles) offthe coast near Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture.4 fatal.

17 Boeing AH-64D of United Arab Emirates AirForce destroyed in crash during mission againstHouthi militia forces in al-Jawf province, Yemen. 2fatal.

18 Bell Huey II EJC-542 of Columbian Armysubstantially damaged in forced landing atCopacabana, Antioquia following take off for flightto Tolemaida military base. Aircraft came downhard in scrub area, with consequent collapsedskids and tail boom strike damage.

20 Sikorsky MH-60R N48-020 of No.725 Sqdn.Royal Australian Navy substantially damagedwhen it broke free of lashings in hangar aboardfrigate HMAS Warramunga whilst crossing theGreat Australian Bight in heavy seas en route fromPerth to Gulf deployment.

21 Airbus Helicopters H125 5Y-NMJ of Flex AirCharters written off when it crashed into LakeNakuru, Kenya shortly after take off from localhotel and broke up. 5 fatal.

24 Robinson R22 N8537J of E Stark written offduring low flying over King Lake near Arlington,Washington State when skids hit surface andhelicopter nose dived into water. 1 fatal.

24 Bell 206B N60EA of Plains Aerial Leasingsubstantially damged in forced landing followingtotal loss of power whilst on approach to landingzone near Groom, Texas following 30 minuteagricultural aerial application sortie.

26 Mil Mi-8AMT RA-22312 of Kanvers Avia writtenoff in ditching whilst on approach to BarentsburgHeliport at end of flight from Pyramiden,Spitsbergen. Helicopter suffered damage to mainrotors and tail boom separated but with nofloatation gear, aircraft sank to seabed near CapHeer, at depth of 209m (686ft). 8 fatal.

26 Unknown Type damaged when it rolled overfollowing an emergency landing at dusk in a fieldat Salterford Farm, Calverton, Notts.

26 Airbus Helicopters H130 N22TZ of KestralHoldings substantially damaged at La Palama,Texas when main rotor blade struck by objectduring animal control sortie.

27 Boeing MH-47G of 4-160th SOAR, US Armysubstantially damaged after it struck a tree andcrashed during night mission in Logar province,Afghanistan as part of NATO Operation ResoluteSupport. 1 fatal.

27 Robinson R44 EC-XXX written off in post-impactfire after night time crash at Villablanca, Huelva,Spain. 1 fatal.

November 20175 Sikorsky S-70A of Saudi Ministry of Interior

destroyed in crash and post impact fire in theAsir region, Saudi Arabia, whilst returning fromVIP inspection of coastal projects near Abha. 8fatal.

5 Bell 407 N522RL of RLC Helicopters damaged inbird strike whilst en route to rig MP281 offshoreGalliano, Louisiana.

6 Robinson R44 N7085M of Ride The SkyHelicopters substantially damaged whilst locatingloose cattle near Larchwood, Iowa when tail hitpower lines whilst turning in a hover. Helicopterfell to ground and came to rest on starboard sidein corn field with tail boom separated fromfuselage.

6 Bell 407 RA-01927 of Basma LLC written offwhen it impacted terrain whilst en route nearInnopolis, Tatarstan. Aircraft broke up andsuffered fire damage. 1 fatal.

7 Hughes 369D N138WH of Winco Inc involved inaccident near Sulphur, Louisiana when externalcargo long line severed a shield wire suspendedbetween power transmission towers. Twolinesmen being hoisted on the long line fell about30m (100ft) to ground. 2 fatal.

7 Bell 206B N93PH of Provine Helicopter Servicelanded hard in field near Rolling Fork, Mississippiafter pilot experienced unexpected yaw and lackof power whilst spraying bayou. Main rotor bladessevered tail boom on impact with terrain andhelicopter rolled onto starboard side.

7 Robinson R44 PR-JNY of Parque Das Fores EILsubstantially damaged when it flew into powerlines on take off at Boa Vista de Aparecida, Paraná,Brazil and crashed into open field.

7 Airbus Helicopters AS350BA VH-BAA ofRotorlift Aviation written off at Hobart airport,Tasmania during endorsement training flightincluding simulated hydraulic system failure. Pilotreduced speed for run-on landing but wasovercome by control feedback forces. Helicopterslowed down to a high hover but then it nosedived into ground from approx 9m (30ft) altitude,impacting in left nose down attitude. Cabincrushed and tail section separated on impact. 1fatal.

7 Airbus Helicopters AS332L JA9672 of Toho AirService written off at Ueno, Tachigi prefecture,Japan after wire strike and attempted emergencylanding before damaged tail rotor blade separatedand helicopter crashed on road bridge and caughtfire. 4 fatal.

8 Bell 206L3 N275AE of Air Evac substantiallydamaged during attempted landing for PR event inUnion City, Tennessee. Pilot had been previouslybriefed on landing zone and advised duringapproach it was clear but instead descendedtowards an adjacent church parking lot. Pilot thensaw wires and decided to land on nearby grassarea instead, thinking it was flat terrain. As skidstouched the ground pilot began to lowercollective but tail continued to fall, helicopterbegan sliding backwards and tail rotor struck theterrain after stinger embedded in soft mud. Pilotapplied forward cyclic but tail came up rapidlysome 60 degrees before helicopter slammedviolently back down onto slope before shakingviolently when main rotor separated from mast.

8 Robinson R44 VH-WRR of Whitsunday AirServices substantially damaged after enginefailure forced ditching offshore Hook Reef nearHayman Island, Queensland. Helicopter remainedupright on flotation bags.

11 Robinson R44 N744BS of R44 White LLCsubstantially damaged when it crashed at end ofrunway at Page airport, Arizona.

11 Mil Mi-17 of Iraqi Air Force, crashed after take offfrom Kut air base, Wasit province followingtechnical malfunction during training flight. 3fatal.

13 Boeing AH-64D Q-29 of Royal Netherlands AirForce landed into field near Zoelmond after powerline strike during low level training flight.

October 20171 Brantly B2B N2284U of Attitude Toys

substantially damaged during landing from localflight in field near Midland, Michigan when pilotlost control and helicopter began descendingmore rapidly, before impacting ground and rollingonto its port side. 1 fatal.

1 Robinson R66 S2-AGT of Square Air Ltdsubstantially damaged at Pabna, Bangladeshfollowing crash landing in bad weather and rollover onto starboard side. Tail boom separatedand main fuselage and dynamic system damaged.

1 Robinson R44 C-FMBO of ASAP AvionicsServices written off in crash in dense bush onVancouver Island during local training flight fromCampbell River airport, British Columbia. 1 fatal.

5 Robinson R22B N878MC of Cass Aviationdamaged at North Las Vegas airport, Nevadawhilst landing during training flight.

6 Mil Mi-17V-5 of Indian Air Force destroyed incrash and post impact fire near Tawang, ArunachalPradesh whilst delivering supplies to Armyobservation post near Tibet border. Accidentfollowed suspected loss of control whilstparadropping jerry cans of fuel from rear of cabin,parachute fouled tail rotor. 7 fatal.

6 Mil Mi-28N of Russian Air Force reportedlydamaged in forced landing in Hama Province,Syria after experiencing a technical problem whilstescorting Mi-8 transporting Russian officials.

6 Bell 412EP 1211 of Mexican Air Force crashedon ranch land near Santa Isabell, Pueblo Nuevoand burned out in subsequent fire. 7 fatal.

8 Robinson R44 YL-HBH written off in crash afterimpacting powerline following take off nearGramzda, Latvia, whilst following European RallyChampionship. 1 fatal.

8 Robinson R44 OO-FLY of Lore Helicopterssubstantially damaged in take off accident atNamur-Temploux airport following loss of power.Helicopter impacted terrain and rolled ontostarboard side.

9 Airbus Helicopters AS350BA TI-AZA writtenoff during relief operations in Costa Rica afterHurricane Nate, when it struck a cable andcrashed into the Savegre River in Quepos,Puntarenas.

10 Bell 206B C-GCDM of Essentials Helicopterssubstantially damaged during autorotationtraining at North Bay airport, Ontario whenstudent lost control and helicopter landed hardbefore bouncing and main rotor severing tailboom. Helicopter began to spin but came to restupright on its skids.

11 Sikorsky CH-53E 163078 of HMH-462, USMarine Corps destroyed by engine fire after smokeentered cabin and cockpit inflight and forced anemergency landing near Higashi village, Okinawa.

12 Airbus Helicopters H145 of BB & T EquipmentFinance substantially damaged in Canton, Illinoisduring training, when it force landed hard from thehover.

13 Bell UH-1H N247PV of J.Miller substantiallydamaged at Arbuckle, California when collectivemalfunctioned during attempted landing ontrolley following return from maintenance.Helicopter impacted trolley pad hard andbounced but on second attempt bounced again





Accident Spot

Reports in Accident Spot are drawn from a number of sources,and the detail given may be provisional only, pendingconfirmation and official investigation. These factors should betaken into consideration when analysing the data provided.

[email protected]

13 Aerospatiale SA342M 4019 of 3rd RHC FrenchArmy Aviation substantially damaged in hardlanding at Bar-le-Duc-les-Hauts in north eastFrance, when main rotor blades collapsed, tailboom partially separated and cabin structuredeformed on impact with terrain.

14 Robinson R66 S2-AHY of Partex Aviationsubstantially damaged in emergency landing onbeach at Rupganj Upazila, Bangladesh followingtechnical malfunction during test flight. Skidscollapsed and tail boom partially separated.

14 Breda-Nardi NH500E of 72 Stormo, Italian AirForce substantially damaged in forced landing atRipi, when it rolled over following touch down.

15 Airbus Helicopters AS355F2 9M-SSZ ofLayang Layang Aerospace substantially damagedat Kota Kinabalu airport when autopilotmalfunctioned during test flight and helicopterdropped from about 6m (20ft) and collided withterrain.

15 Robinson R22B ZS-SRV of BenchmarkHelicopters written off when it struck powercables whilst herding buffalo at Clocolan FreeState, South Africa. Helicopter crashed to groundand overturned on starboard side. 2 fatal.

16 Dynali H3 SP-HELI of Autokomplekssubstantially damaged when it rolled over shortlyafter landing at Warsaw-Modlin airport.

17 Guimbal Cabri G2 G-JAM of Helicopter Serviceswritten off in mid-air collision with fixed-wingCessna 152 over woodland at Waddesdon, Bucks.4 fatal.

18Bell 206B VH-SDZ of Helistar Aviationsubstantially damaged in roll over near Emeraldafter detecting abnormal noise and makingprecautionary landing during aerial workmission.

18 Mil Mi-17-IV FAP-614 of Peruvian Air Forcesubstantially damaged whilst landing by riversidein the Valle de los Rios Apurimac, Eney Mantarowhen main rotor blades struck stone river bank.Helicopter remained upright but with severedamage to all five main blades and severed tailsection.

19 Bell 407 N620PA of Air Methods destroyed innight time post impact explosion and fire afterimpacting terrain on bank of reservoir nearStuttgart, Arkansas. Several geese carcasses werefound in the wreckage. 3 fatal.

19 Leonardo Helicopters AW159 HMA.Mk.2ZZ378 damaged in landing incident aboard RFAArgus, when it ended up overhanging edge ofdeck.

20 Robinson R22B N4179M of CarmichaelHelicopter Service destroyed in post impact firefollowing wire strike and crash whilst herdingcattle near Electra, Texas. Helicopter was firstobserved over power lines at low, when rotor rpmhorn warning sounded and aircraft descended innose low altitude, striking wires and cross armssupport before impacting terrain and separatingtail boom, both skids and one tail rotor blade. 1fatal.

22 Hughes 269C N9685F of Charlottesville Aerosubstantially damaged at Woodlawn, Virginia whenit rolled over on landing.

22 Hughes 369HS XC-TIJ of Municipal Dept ofPublic Security (SSPM) destroyed in crash on roadat La Morita, Tijuana, Mexico during policesurveillance of robbery. Helicopter burst intoflames following impact with terrain. 2 fatal.

24 Leonardo Helicopters AW101 Mk.612 0268of Royal Norwegian Air Force substantiallydamaged at Sola air base, Stravanger when itrolled onto starboard side during taxiingmanoeuvre.

26 Robinson R44 N48WF of Earlybird AerialServices damaged in hard landing near ComlaraPark, Hudson, Illinois following a wire strike duringan agricultural spraying sortie.

27 Airbus Helicopters H120 RA-07226 of Stal-Mwritten off in crash near Shinovka, Tambov region,Russia whilst en route on corporate flight.Helicopter impacted snow-covered terrain, brokeup and caught fire. 2 fatal.

28 Bell 407GX 1302 of Mexican Air Force crashedand written off in post impact fire 29km (18 miles)northwest of Chilpancingo, Guerro whilst sprayingto eradicate illegal poppy field. 1 fatal.

29 Robinson R44 N744WT of New OrleansHelicopters substantially damaged at Lakefrontairport, New Orleans, following loss of tail rotorauthority whilst landing and subsequent impactwith airport terrain and wing tip of parked aircraft.

29 Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 YR-DEX of DuncaExpediti substantially damaged when it was blownover after pilot landed on snow-covered groundnear base of ski run at Muntele Mic ski resort,Romania whilst he briefly left helicopterunattended to retrieve something from hisvehicle.

30 Robinson R22B N47WH of Tumbleweed Leasingsubstantially damaged in training accident atTruckee-Tahoe airport, California. Helicopterrolled onto port side and tail boom severed bymain rotor.

December 20171 Mil Mi-25 of Syrian Air Force written off in crash

at Beit Jinn, Western Ghouta when it was shotdown by rebel forces using a 9K38 Igla system. 3fatal.

1 Heli-Sport CH-7 of G.Masserini written off whenit impacted ground on side of Mount Alben,Bergamo in cloud and rolled onto port side.

5 Robinson R44 N99RW of Atlas Aviationsubstantially damaged in roll over accident onhard standing at Treasure Coast airport near FortPierce, Florida, detaching main rotor blades andtail section and coming to rest on port side.

5 Robinson R44 RA-04308 of Barkol Airlineswritten off during pipeline survey flight near Kian,Andropov region when it crashed in level field andoverturned on starboard side. 2 fatal.

6 Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 HB-Z01 of Heli-TV substantially damaged when it crashed duringan external load mission in rough terrain nearGordola, Locarno and rolled onto starboard side.

7 Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 RA-07277 of CHPHolding written off when it crashed into frozensurface of Angara river near Chisty, Bratsk district,during attempted emergency landing, followingtechnical problem. Helicopter believed to havesunk, fragments only discovered four days later. 2fatal.

7 Robinson R44 OK-EIN written off in heavylanding at Brno-Turany airport, Czech Republicwhen main rotor sliced tail boom and landing gearcollapsed.

10 Denel Oryx M-1 1236 of South African NationalDefence Force written off in crash on N1 highwaynear Paarl following a wire strike whilst en route.Helicopter came to rest on starboard side with tailrotor detached and substantial damage to mainblades and fuselage.

12 Robinson R44II ZS-ZZF of Big Game HeliServices written off at Vaalwater, Limpopo when itcrashed among trees and brush in rough terrain,separating tail boom, skids, cockpit glazings anddamaging other components before coming torest on starboard side.

13 Robinson R44 II N441ML of Paratus Air writtenoff in take off accident at Newark-Heath airport,Ohio, crashing onto starboard side.

13 PZL-Swidnik SW-4 of Polish Air Forcesubstantially damaged in forced landing onapproach to Deblin airfield following enginefailure.

14 Airbus Helicopters AS350B2 C-GOHS ofHydro One written off in crash near Tweed,Ontario whilst on approach to a staging area, afterpicking up three maintenance crew from the baseof a transmission tower along the right of way.Bags carrying tools and supplies were placed onstarboard side external platform, and fasteneddown with carabiners but one bag blew off theplatform along with its attached carabiner andstruck tail rotor. Shortly after, as pilot attemptedto land, he lost control and all three passengersbecame separated from the helicopter, which was

still airborne, before it crashed nearby in woodedterrain. 4 fatal.

14 Sud Aviation SE-3130 TU-HAH of InternationalAircraft Services substantially damaged when itcrashed onto roof of shanty store in Port Bouët,near Abdijan, Ivory Coast following suspectedengine failure.

15 Robinson R22B EC-JSC of European FlyersSchool written off at Cuatro Vientos when it fellfrom several metres during landing on a trainingflight, ending up on starboard side.

15 Sikorsky S-76A++ N911FK of Trauma Starsubstantially damaged by an engine compartmentupper deck fire after landing on a football pitch atCoral Shores High School, Plantation Key, Floridaon an air ambulance mission.

16 Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 FAH-905 ofHonduran Air Force destroyed when it flew intoterrain on Yerbabuena Mountain in adverseweather conditions, whilst en route to Soto Canoair base. 6 fatal.

17 Robinson R22B D-HZZZ substantially damagedwhen it overturned onto port side whilst onground in snow at 1350m (4429ft) altitude nearTodtnauberg, Baden-Wurttemberg.

17 Rotorway Exec N716JB of J Robert Graysubstantially damaged in heavy landing followingloss of engine power and autorotational landingonto grass terrain at Caldwell airport, Ohio.Helicopter touched down hard, spreading skidsand causing damage to fuselage and tail boom.

18 Bell Boeing CV-22B of 352nd SOW US Air Forcedamaged by vehicle driven by infiltrator, whocrashed through security gate at RAF Mildenhalland reached the parked aircraft on the flight line.

19 Schweizer 269C OH-HWM of First Investsubstantially damaged at Helisinki-Malmi airportduring solo take off by student when it struck ice-covered terrain, partially collapsing skids anddamaging main rotor blades but remainingupright.

21 Bell UH-1D ZS-HLI of Working on Firesubstantially damaged in crash landing duringtraining exercise at Bredasdorp, Western Capewhen skids collapsed, main rotor and gearboxpartially separated from airframe and fuselagedamaged.

21 Sikorsky S-701A-21 of Egyptian Air Forcesubstantially damaged by anti-tank missile whilston the ground at Al-Arish military airport, SinaiPeninsula during attack by Islamic rebels.

25 NH Industries NH90TTH of No.14 Sqdn RoyalAir Force of Oman substantially damaged inimpact with terrain at Musannah air base duringtraining mission. 1 fatal.

30 Bell 412SP EC-MMC of Babcock (Inaer)substantially damaged at Mutxamiel airfield,Alicante when it was struck from behind byJungmann biplane whilst on final approach.Aeroplane struck and detached tail rotor andhelicopter also suffered significant damage tomain rotor blades, tail cone and skids as it forcelanded with high vertical speed component inautorotation. 1 fatal (pilot of biplane)

31 Mil Mi-24P of Russian Air Force written off incrash 15km (9 miles) from Hama City, Syriafollowing a suspected wire strike and technicalmalfunction. (2 fatal).

31 Mil Mi-8 of Russian Air Force destroyed inmortar attack by rebel forces whilst parkedat Latakia-Khmeimim air base, Syria.


Region Type c/n Owner/RemarksAustraliaVH-AUT Robinson R66 0335 M.A.JurgensVH-CHO Airbus Helicopters AS350B2 2092 Aerial AgricultureVH-HOA Robinson R22 Mariner 0562M Cobb & Co HelicoptersVH-NSB Robinson R44 Raven II 1742 BondtraceVH-NYX Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 3312 J.A.OsborneVH-OIZ Aerospatiale SA341B WA/1682 Boomerang AviationVH-RZD Robinson R22 Beta II 3882 Australian Helicopter GroupVH-ZYW Agusta-Bell AB206B 8702 Heli-Go Holdings

AustriaOE-XHH Airbus Helicopters EC135T3 1265 Heli AustriaOE-XIK Robinson R44 Raven II 10573 I.KollseteOE-XMP Robinson R22 Beta 2476 Helikopter Club VoralbergOE-XRH Robinson R44 Raven II 11134 M.Reithelshofer

BelgiumOO-VER Robinson R44 Raven II 13066 Roecuit

CanadaC-FXEA Robinson R44 Raven II 14125 Chinook HelicoptersC-FXYK Bell 407 53125 Eagle Copters C-GDAL Bell 427 56039 Foxair HeliserviceC-GFKH Robinson R66 0817 F.KelnerC-GISN Guimbal Cabri G2 1180 Ottawa Aviation ServicesC-GSWS Airbus Helicopters AS350B2 4435 Heli-Fix Maintenance

ChileCC-AAA Bell 505 65020 F.M.Vercellino DellafioriCC-AAB Bell 407GX 54697 S.E.Cummins MarinCC-ATE Bell 505 65019 Eagle Copters SACC-AUJ Bell 206L-1 45322 Eagle Copters SACC-AUP Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 4589 Turismo El Barraco

ChinaB-70UG Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 8415 Lhasa Snow EagleB-70UH Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 8416 Lhasa Snow EagleB-70VL Airbus Helicopters AS350B3e 8394 Beijing Capital HelicopterB-70VM Kamov Ka-32A11BC 510016 Jiangsu HuayuB-70VW Airbus Helicopters EC135P2 0195 Zhejiang De ShongB-70WA Kaman K-1200 A94-0040 Guangdong Jixiang

DenmarkOY-HMV Airbus Helicopters EC175B 5016 DanCopterOY-HPV Airbus Helicopters EC175B 5026 DanCopter

FranceF-AYEP Aerospatiale SE313B 1322 HelidanF-GXXJ Bell 206L-3 51083 Touraine Helicoptere

Region Type c/n Owner/RemarksF-HHMC Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 8447 Azur HelicoptereF-HSOV MBB BK117C-2 9189 Babcock MCS FranceF-OFUN Airbus Helicopters EC120B 1586 Corail HelicopteresF-OXMH Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 8434 Mafate Helicopteres

Great BritainG-CKRK Guimbal Cabri G2 1210 European Helicopter ImportersG-CSMD Leonardo Helicopters AW109A 7107 JetcomG-DIGZ Hughes 369D 1111D Mackinnon ConstructionG-LINY Robinson R44 Raven II 12356 Helicentre AviationG-MRLZ Robinson R44 Raven II 10396 Catedra ServiceG-OPOT Leonardo Helicopters AW109S 22027 Sundorne Properties

IndiaVT-GVY Bell 412EP - Global Vectra HelicorpVT-GVZ Leonardo Helicopters AW169 69050 Global Vectra Helicorp

IrelandEI-GCR Leonardo Helicopters AW189 49021 Portrush AviationEI-ICS Sikorsky S-92A 920259 CHC Ireland

ItalyI-AHTD MBB BK117D-2 20155 Babcock MCS ItaliaI-BKUP MBB BK117D-2 20158 Babcock MCS ItaliaI-ECTW Bell 427 56075 Elicompany

LuxembourgLX-HSR MDH MD900 00053 Luxembourg Air Ambulance

Montenegro40-HCG Robinson R44 Raven II 11308 Montenegro Helicopters40-MAE Leonardo Helicopters AW109S 22019 Monte Rock

New ZealandZK-HAM Airbus Helicopters EC120B 1300 The Alpine GroupZK-HEM MBB BK117B-2 1073 Airwork (NZ)ZK-HGQ Airbus Helicopters AS350B2 3140 HelilinkZK-HHN Rotorway Exec 6973 D.S.BuchananZK-HJW Airbus Helicopters EC130T2 8372 North Shore HelicoptersZK-ICY MBB BK117B-2 7177 HelilinkZK-IIL Schweizer S.269C S-1618 Mountain View Helicopters

NorwayLN-ODJ Leonardo Helicopters AW189 49029 Vici HelicopterLN-OQQ Sikorsky S-92A 920284 CHC Helikopter ServiceLN-OXJ Leonardo Helicopters AW169 69035 LCI Helicopters

South AfricaZT-RBY Robinson R44 Raven II 14074 Bushveld Game CaptureZT-RCR Airbus Helicopters AS350B3 8424 Booysendal AviationZT-REX Robinson R44 Raven II 14104 Arnold de Bruin & AssociatesZT-RLR Bell 206L-4 52178 G.D.GallowayZT-RMU Aerospatiale SA342L 1273 Paramount Aerospace SystemsZT-RMX Aerospatiale SA342L 1887 J.C.BurgerZT-RMZ Aerospatiale SA342L 1423 Invicta Konstruksie

SwitzerlandHB-ZNY Airbus Helicopters AS350B2 4303 Mountain Flyers 80HB-ZOY Airbus Helicopters AS350B3e 8426 EuropaviaHB-ZTR Airbus Helicopters EC130B4 4746 Helialpin

Marketing Data- CIVIL SALES

Book CornerHoverhawk by J.W. McKenzie-Hall MVO. Published by J. McKenzie-Hall, 8 Herstmonceux Place, Church Road, Herstmonceux, EastSussex, BN27 1RL. Price: £18.99 (UK) (incl p & p). In 1957 the author ofthis 100-odd page book was a helicopter pilot with the Royal Air Force, fairlyfresh from taking part in the ill-judged Anglo-French Suez campaign andflying Westland Whirlwind helicopters with the Joint Helicopter ExperimentalUnit. This and previous experience flying Whirlwinds, dating back to severalyears, led to him being invited to join The Queen’s Flight at RAF Benson,where he spent the next seven years prior to retirement organising the newrotary-wing element.

Initially The Queen’s Flight borrowed a Westland Dragonfly for a few RoyalFlights, although more frequently it was used to survey landing sites for alarger Royal Navy Whirlwind Mk.22 helicopter which was much preferred bythe Duke of Edinburgh, who frequently piloted the aircraft in and out of theBuckingham Palace gardens. During this period the author acted as navigatorand second pilot, when the Duke was not in the cockpit, whilst also liaisingwith the ground staff at the various venues.

Pressure from The Captain of The Queen’s Flight supported by the RAFhierarchy eventually saw a pair of modified VVIP Whirlwind HCC.Mk.8s beingbuilt specifically for the Royal role with the author now becoming much moredirectly involved in their operation. Whilst the helicopters now flew variousmembers of the Royal Family to and from engagements, their single-engineconfiguration meant that they were never allowed to fly Queen Elizabeth IIherself - that didn’t occur until much later, after the author had finally retired.

This is very much a personal account of life with The Queen’s Flight,offering a fresh insight into this unique operation. Self-published in hardback

form, it includes many rare photographs from the time and is available directfrom the publisher.

Vertical Horizons by Douglas Grant. Published by Harbour Publishing.Price: £38.50 (UK) C$39.96 (Canada). Subtitled “The History ofOkanagan Helicopters”, this heavy weight 256 page A4-size hardback isexactly that, covering the pioneering and swashbuckling use of civilhelicopters in Canada and later elsewhere from the birth of the company byCarl Agar and friends in 1947 through to its eventual take over with the fleetof 126 helicopters and 600 employees by upstart Canadian HelicopterCorporation 40 years later.

Over the intervening years Okanagan had its cyclical ups and downs intune with the world economy, but became a major onshore and offshoreoperator, vying with the likes of Bristow for a share of the world market andoften operating in areas almost devoid of civilised occupation.

The author, who worked as an engineer for the company for at least adecade, has sensibly broken the chapters up on a yearly basis, usingcompany annual reports, contemporary house magazine articles andinterviews with past employees to present the history. The result is afascinating tale of the physical and financial hardships endured by theemployees and the company over the years, well illustrated throughoutwith several pages of colour plates in the centre and various black/white photographs throughout (although the latter of dubious sizeand finish). That apart, definitely one for the bookshelf.

Books reviewed in HELICOPTER International are available by mail order from The Helicopter Museum.Please fax +44-1934-645230 for cost and postage details or e-mail: [email protected]

Bell 525 Accident ReportThe US National Transport Safety Board (NTSB) has issued its finalreport into the investigation of the Bell 525 prototype crash that killedtwo pilots during a test flight near Fort Worth, Texas in July 2016. Thereport concludes that severe 6-hertz airframe vibration led to the pilot’sinability to maintain sufficient rotor speed, which led to excessiveflapping of the main blades and a tail boom strike, followed by an in-flight break up.

The flight test crew were carrying out progressive one-engine-inoperative (OEI) flights, about 48km (30 miles) south of the Bellexperimental centre at Arlington airport when the accident happened.The aim was to carry out the OEI tests at increasing airspeeds, whilstevaluating engine loads at maximum power, simulating the failure of oneengine and, with the loss of power simulated, to monitor the decliningrotor speed and delay the response by about one second beforelowering the collective to reduce the power needed and thus increasethe rotor speed back to normal. Simulated engine failures weresuccessfully tested at 102, 131, 145, 155, 160, 165 and 175 knots trueairspeed, with the latter tests requiring the helicopter to be in a shallowdescent. The final OEI test was at 185kt, when the pilot stopped therotor speed decline at about 91 percent before beginning to initiate therecovery. Almost immediately the lead lag movements of main bladesentered an excited scissoring mode, causing the 6-hertz verticalvibration of the airframe so severe that it transmitted even to the pilotsseats and peaked at 3G in the cockpit. This almost certainly led tounintentional control movements on the collective that furtheramplified the problem.

The report notes that the investigation was hampered by theabsence of cockpit audio or image recording, which made it impossible

to determine exactly what actions the flight crew may have taken tohandle the vibration problem, but does suggest contributing causes.These include the collective biomechanical feedback and the attitudeand heading reference system response, both of which occurred due tolack of protection in the flight control law “against the sustainment andgrowth of adverse feed back loops” when the vibration began. Therewas also no automated safeguard in the software being used duringflight testing and an absence of distinct unambiguous cues for low rotorspeed.

As part of the report the NTSB has recommended that guidanceshould be issued for the use of recordings during flight testing, and forBell to share “lessons learned” from the incident with othermanufacturers. Prior to the report being issued, the US Federal AviationAdministration (FAA) had proposed a special condition for certificationof the Bell 525, requiring a suitable mode annunciation for events thatsignificantly change the aircraft’s operating mode. The requirement isconsidered necessary due to the Bell 525’s fly-by-wire flight controlsystem, which is the first to feature on a US designed civil helicopter.Current airworthiness regulations “do not include adequate orappropriate safety standards for this design feature” according to theFAA and the proposed special condition is expected to establish a levelof safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthinessstandards. In the Bell 525, the pilot control initial mechanically linkedinputs are transmitted electrically to the flight control computers, whichthen process and transmit the signals, depending on the flight controlmode in effect, to the hydraulic control actuators for the main and tailrotors.

Comments on the FAA proposal were deadlined for 22 January, butBell is still aiming for Model 525 certification by the end of thisyear.


One of the East Anglian Air Ambulance founding members, GerryHermer, received the 2017 Eric Brown Award from the British HelicopterAssociation in November. Hermer led the establishment of the airambulance and later became a consultant for the charity before retiringearlier this year... In a shock announcement on 5 January Leonardoconfirmed that John Ponsonby, managing director of LeonardoHelicopters in the UK, is leaving the company for personal reasons afterserving in a number of roles over the past 10 years. He has beensucceeded with immediate effect by Geoff Munday, most recentlyFinance Director with the company and previously serving for more than12 years as Chief Financial Officer with Leonardo’s predecessorcompanies, including SELEX ES and SELEX Galileo... Airbus HelicoptersChief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury is to move to a new position asPresident of Airbus Commercial Aircraft in February. Faury was appointedas CEO of the helicopter division in March 2013, following a three yearspell with car manufacturer Peugot as executive vice-president researchand development. Prior to that he had been with Eurocopter for 10 yearsin various engineering and development roles. In his new position he willsucceed Fabrice Brégier, also a former Airbus Helicopters CEO... CAEhas appointed Andrew Naismith as managing director of CAE UK Plc,giving him overall responsibility for the company’s defence and securitybusiness in the United Kingdom. Naismith has been with CAE for the pastfour years as managing director of CAE Aircrew Training Services, whichmanages the helicopter aircrew training facility at RAF Benson, and willcontinue to oversee this operation in his new role... The HelicopterAssociation International has announced its 2018 Salute to Excellenceawards, including long-time Bell Helicopter test pilot instructor JohnWilliams, who receives the Certified Flight Instructor of the year award,former Turbomeca USA chief executive Russell Spray who receives theLifetime Achievement award and Claude Vuichard who receives theSafety award for his ongoing commitment to safe helicopter operations,and in particular his work on refining the Vuichard recovery technique fortraining pilots to recover from the vortex ring state. Maria Rodriguez ofCaribbean Buzz has received the Pilot of the Year award for her supportmission flying during and after Hurricanes Irma and Maria in the US VirginIslands last September, and longtime aviation journalist and Vertiflite

senior contributing editor Frank Colucci has received theCommunications Award... The CHC Group has appointed Scott Thanischas senior vice president and chief financial officer (CFO). Thanisch hadserved as CHC’s interim CFO since October last year with responsibility forthe company’s global finance organisation... Rob Dyas has beenappointed as Managing Director of Babcock MCS Offshore, succeedingMichelle Handforth who has left the company. Dyas was previouslyDirector of Operations with Babcock for five years and prior to that wasManaging Pilot for Bond Offshore... The controversial Polish DefenceMinister, Antoni Macierewicz has been replaced in a governmentreshuffle by the former Interior Minister Mariusz Blaszczak. Macierewiczhad served as defence minister since the Law and Justice Party tookcontrol of the government in 2015 and has been a strong advocate ofbuilding Poland’s military strength in the face of perceived Russianthreats… Erickson Inc has recruited three new executives to work underits Chief Executive Officer Douglas Kitani, who has been in post since lastSeptember. Kevin Cochie is the new Vice-President of defence andnational security responsible for leading sales, operations and growth andmanaging the company’s Washington DC office. He is an ex-US Armyhelicopter pilot and officer working in procurement and acquisition areas.Most recently Cochie worked in Washington for Nammo, a companyspecialising in munitions products. Hayden Olson is appointed Vice-President of strategy and human capital, returning to the company after aperiod running his own consultancy business. Previously Olson wasdirector of finance business operations and interim VP and generalmanager for government aviation at Erickson. Chris Schuldt is appointedChief of Staff and Senior Director of DNS Special Programmes, havingmost recently served as senior director of commercial sales at thecompany, focusing on S-64 Aircrane contracts. His new role includesmanaging key initiatives and assisting the executive leadership withstrategic priorities… Safran Helicopter Engines has appointed Oliver LeMerrer as Executive Vice-President, Support and Services, succeedingFranck Saudo who has moved to Chief Executive of Safran TransmissionSystems. Le Merrer has been with the Safran Group since 1982, serving arange of management positions and most recently as Executive Vice-President Engineering for Safran Electronics and Defence… George Xu,who began working for Airbus China in 2005, has been appointed ChiefExecutive Officer for the company, which encompasses all AirbusCommercial activities in the country, as well as leading the Airbus helicopter, defence and space business in China.

ROTARY PEOPLE

significantly reduce the environmental impact,whilst offering other benefits in terms ofreliability, safety, maintenance and fuelconsumption.

The electric tail rotor technology is part ofan endeavour to increase the use of electricalequipment in aircraft systems and propulsion,leading to lower emissions both in terms ofnoise and pollutants, and greater fuelefficiency.

•Waypoint Leasing has signed a transactionin Brazil with CAF Taxi Aereo for the lease of anAirbus Helicopters H145, to be used forprivate charter transportation in São Paulo.The deal marks Waypoint’s 15th H145 deliveryand the company’s first lease in the privatecharter sector.

Founded in 2008, CAF provides aircrafttransportation across the São Paulo regionand sells fractional rights to aircraft as well asprivate charter capabilities. São Paulo providesthe largest urban helicopter market outside ofthe United States, with over 500 flights dailyand more than 200 heliports in themetropolitan area, giving unprecedentedopportunities for the two partners to grow inthis sector.

•PDG Aviation in Scotland hired a Sikorsky S-64E Air Crane helicopter, N158AC, fromErickson Inc in mid-January for a contract withconstruction company Balfour Beatty, erectingelectrical power transmission pylons.

•The Babcock Onshore completions centreat Gloucestershire Airport recently carried outthe first in-house upgrade of an AirbusHelicopters EC135T2 to the latest 73configuration for a new contract. Previouslythe work was carried out by the manufacturer.The upgrade programme required a number ofexternal modifications to the helicopters,including the use of composites to relocate airintakes, as well as installing new flight controlsand main rotor blades.

•UMS Skeldar has introduced a new rotaryunmanned air vehicle, the R-350, designed tobe ITAR-free and with an ability to carry apayload of over 30kg (66lb) for more than twohours. The new drone is also powered by aturbine engine, using Jet A1 and JP8 heavyfuels and making it compatible with shipboardoperations.

UMS Skeldar is targeting the R-350 at arange of civil and military missions alongsideits existing V-200 drone and, being under150kg (331lb) maximum take off weight, thecompany says it only requires nationalcertification. Designed to be simple tomaintain, the helicopter includes a completepropulsion unit that can be replaced in 45minutes and an engine unit that can bereplaced in just 15 minutes.

It can also deploy multiple payloads, forexample an electro-optical/infra-red cameratogether with laser imaging detection andranging (LIDAR), or a chemical sniffer.

•Robinson Helicopter has delivered the firstutility R44 Cadet helicopter fitted with floats.The aircraft, temporarily registered N7166Gbefore delivery, has been purchased by aMexican company and will be used tosupport tuna and fishing fleet operations.


Tail Rotors- DATELINE: 12th JANUARY 2018

•The 35th production Airbus HelicoptersH175 was on the production line at theMarignane factory at the end of November, asthe company continues to slowly ramp upproduction of the seven tonne classhelicopter. A total of 11 H175s are due to becompleted this year, building up to 30 perannum by 2020-21 to meet expected demand.

•Waypoint Leasing has confirmed the placingof an Airbus H145 helicopter with Chileanoperator, Ecocopter, to be used for utilitywork. The aircraft is the first H145 to enter theChilean market and Waypoint’s 14th H145delivery.

Founded in 2003, Ecocopter isheadquartered in Santiago and provideshelicopter passenger transport and cargoservices both onshore and offshore, as well ascarrying out fire fighting and other utilityoperations. The company operates a fleet ofsix Airbus Helicopters AS350B3, one EC130B4and one EC135T2.

•UK light helicopter company Heli Air, whichspecialises in helicopter sales, training,maintenance and general charter operations,and is a Robinson Helicopters distributorappears to be retrenching in the London area.Having previously closed its base at Fairoaks,the company is now moving out of Denhamairfield and concentrating its operations in thearea at Wycombe Air Park.

•Leonardo has won a national award forinnovation from the Italian governmentNational Foundation for Technical Innovation,for its development of an electric tail rotor forhelicopters. Developed under the European“Clean Sky” programme, which seeks to bringforward sustainable solutions for future airtransport, the electric tail rotor is designed to

Above: Always innovative the Kamov designbureau is now promoting its Ka-90 high speedfolding-rotor helicopter project.

Classifieds - Classifieds- TO ADVERTISE IN THIS SECTION, TELEPHONE HEIDI: +44 (0)1934 822524OR E-MAIL YOUR COPY TO [email protected] FOR AN IMMEDIATE PRICE.


Want to sell your helicopter?

Contact

Eastern Atlantic Helicopters

+44 (0)1273 463336 /

[email protected]

We buy, sell and broker helicopters worldwide

SUNRISEHELICOPTER INC.

Rolls Royce 250 Series andPT6T Series engines, modules

and accessoriesfor sale/exchange.

Contact: John Peacocke

[email protected]

Tel: 281-251-4005

www.sunrisehelicopter.com

2017. TTAF: 25 hoursDescription: Enlarged cockpit floor window, Dualcontrols, Cargo swing. Located: Sweden

2016. TTAF: 900 hoursDescription: Dual front seat installation, Enlargedcockpit floor window, Dual Controls.Located: Sweden

2017. TTAF: 890 hoursDescription: Enlarged glass cockpit, Cargo swing,Dual controls, Passenger interphone.Located: Sweden

Airbus Helicopters H125 Airbus Helicopters H125 Airbus Helicopters H125

Asking Price: 2.400.000 EUR Asking Price: 2.200.000 EUR Asking Price: 2.050.000 EUR

2004 - EC130B4 1364 hrs Blue with white stripes, VIP beige leather seats, Located Sweden 1.180.000 EUR1999 - AS350B2 4404 hrs Black, Grey leather, Cargo Swing, Heli Access Steps, Located Sweden 725.000 EUR1995 - AS350B2 7226 hrs Black, Grey Seats, Cargo Swing, Sand Filter, Located Sweden 725.000 EUR1999 - EC120B 8907 hrs Red, Black interior, Cargo Hook, Dual controls, Located Sweden 755.000 EUR2000 - EC120B 8340 hrs Red, Black interior, Cargo Hook, Dual controls, Located Sweden 725.000 EUR


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Reader Enquiry ServiceFor Further information on the product/services advertised inthis issue enter your name/address/business position belowand mail direct to the company address listed. For multiplerequests please feel free to photocopy this form.Name and Address Page No.

Aircraft Fuelling Supplies Ltd. 140Lasham Airfield, AltonHampshire, GU34 5SP. UK

Alpine Air Support 141PO Box 61CH-8311 Bruetten. SWITZERLAND

Eastern Atlantic 141Shoreham-by-SeaWest Sussex, BN43 5FF. UK

Kopter AG 110Binzstrasse 31ZH-8620 Wetzikon. SWITZERLAND

LEONARDO Helicopters BCPiazza Monte Grappa N.400195 Rome. ITALY

Lowland Aerospace 117Ridder van Montfoortlaan 42391 BZ Hazerwoude. NETHERLANDS

Robinson Helicopter Corporation 1122910 Aircraft Drive, TorranceCA 90505. USA

Savback Helicopters 141Storgatan 42582 23 Linkoeping. SWEDEN

Sunrise Helicopters Inc 14120803 Stuebner Airline 12Spring, Texas 77379. USA

World Aviation Events Ltd. 143Cowleaze House, 39 Cowleaze RoadKingston-upon-ThamesSurrey, KT2 6DZ. UK

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