Rotor Wing April 2014

April 2014 Serving the Worldwide Helicopter Industry rotorandwing.com

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3APRIL 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE

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EDITORIALAndrew Parker Editor-in-Chief, [email protected]

Andrew Drwiega International Bureau Chief/Consultant, [email protected]

Ernie Stephens Editor-at-Large, [email protected]

Claudio Agostini Latin America Bureau Chief

Contributing Writers: Rick Adams; Chris Baur; Lee Benson; Igor Bozinovski; Keith Brown; Keith Cianfrani; Steve Colby; Dan Deutermann; Peter Donaldson; Ian Frain; Pat Gray; Emma Kelly; Frank Lombardi; Elena Malova; Vicki McConnell; Robert Moor-man; Douglas Nelms; Mark Robins; Dale Smith; Terry Terrell; Richard Whittle.

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4 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | APRIL 2014 W W W. R O T O R A N D W I N G . C O M

[email protected]

Of course its preposterous to think that the worlds larg-est helicopter tradeshow could be summed up in

less than say, 10,000 words, but due to space constraints, theres a lot of material that didnt make it into the April print edition of Rotor & Wing.

Thats why we created our Post-Show Wrap digital edition, for more news and photos from the show. The Wrap can be found at: http://accessintelligence.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vheli14/i1/p1

There were also more than 100 stories, photos and news releases posted online during the week of Heli-Expo 2014, including a selection of headlines below. See the full list at Rotor & Wings Event Coverage page online: www.avia-tiontoday.com/rw/event-cov-erage/

Happy Hunting!

Headlines from the Show (in no particular order):

Enstrom Takes Wraps Off Two-Seat TH180 TrainerThales Group Reveals Avionics 2020 for HelicoptersNew Identity Hallmark of Air-bus Helicopters at Heli-ExpoSikorsky Reaches Deal with Thommen for Searchlights and Laser SystemsUnited Rotorcraft Strikes Agree-ments for AgustaWestland, Bell and Sikorsky CompletionsD ro p C a m Fro m I nte g r at-ed Microwave Technologies Emerges at Heli-ExpoBell Helicopter Brands 505 X With Proven Name: Jet Ranger

All-Metal Moves Into New Las Vegas HeadquartersErickson Air-Crane Shortens Name, Splits Into DivisionsTurbomeca, Ramco Systems Forge Boost AgreementEuroAvionics Purchases Flori-da-based LCX SystemsKamans Legacy K-Max Poised to Rise AgainASU Demonstrates Unfilmed Intensified TubesUniversal Point & Click Func-tion Available on MD ExplorerGuidance Louisiana Becomes Latest Robinson DealerAW109 Trekker Aims at Rug-ged, Reliable OperatorsTilton Fuels De velopment Dreams with Niche Military ContractsAvpro Completes Bell Transac-tion for Jet Ranger X TrioPremiAir, ASU to Sell Night Vision Technology in Europe Legendary Bell 47 Gets New Pair of Boots from ScottsVector, Sunshine Helicopters Ink MRO Agreement AS350 Duo Enters Service with Liberty Helicopters Turbomeca Signs SBH Contract with ADAC Luftfahrt Technik Breeze-Eastern Adds Inventory to Spare Parts NetworkMilestone Buys Five More AW139s, Three AW189s Pr att & W h i t n e y C a n a d a Secures Milestone Engine Sup-port Deal Able Aerospace to Distribute Bell PMA Parts for Northwest DynamicsJeff Pino on Macquarie Rotor-craft Leasing: $100 Million Pro-jected By End of 2014

AS350 Pair to Serve U.S. Heli-copters ENG FleetAW189 Level C Sim Headed to Gulf HelicoptersMD530F Pair Heading to Boliv-ian National PoliceBell Helicopter Continues to Move 525 ForwardFAA Issues STC for Air Comm AS350 Air ConditionerBLR Aerospace Reports Uptick In Government SalesAgustaWestland AW609 Prog-ress Speeds Up DAC International Becomes Regional Distributor for SkyTrac SystemsNorth Flight Wins Approval for CVR/FDR Installs Donaldson Achieves Approval for Bell 407 Filter Shandong Qi Xiang MD500E Order is First in ChinaTrakka Inks 10-Year Agreement with AgustaWestlandPratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-67E Powers EC175 in Certifica-tion EffortAgustaWestland AW189 Dis-play System From Rockwell Col-lins Gains EASA ApprovalFAA Certifies Honeywell Sky Connect Tracker IIIScotts-Bell 47 to Offer Glass Cockpit in 47GT-6 Helicopter A s c e n t 5 0 0 0 1 C H e l i t a n k Achieves FAA ApprovalAero Precision Expands Busi-ness Alliance with UTC Aero-space Systems Los Angeles Police Department Air Support Chooses Helinet Microwave Downlink System Fre eFl ight , U N D Achie ve ADS-B Transceiver Certifica-tion from FAA

Heli-Expo 2014: A700-Word Summary

Editors Notebook

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(Above) Engineering at AgustaWestland facility in Italy. (Below) Enstrom TH180

cockpit on display. (Right) Heli-Expo show floor. Two photos by Frank Lombardi

DEPARTMENTS12 Rotorcraft Report

20 People

20 Coming Events

21 Hot Products

45 Classified Ads

47 Ad Index

COLUMNS 4 Editors Notebook

8 Feedback

10 Meet the Contributors

43 Training News

46 Leading Edge

48 Safety Watch

50 Military Insider

On the Cover: Bell 505 Jet Ranger X unveiling at Heli-

Expo 2014 in Anaheim, Calif. Photo by Andrew Drwiega,

International Bureau Chief. Design by Rob Hudgins.

FEATURES22 New Era of Simulation Training

Around the North Sea and the world, safety and pilot training are under review. A plethora of new-technology simulators should help reduce the risk rate. By Rick Adams

28 Delivering Family to the WorldPart 2 of Rotor & Wings visit to AgustaWestland headquarters facilities in Italy. By Andrew Drwiega

32 GPS: Need One, Get One!The digital world has flooded the market with countless types of smart devices that rely on small GPS receivers to do an ever-increasing list of location-based tasks. By Frank Lombardi

36 Essential EquipmentThis month we focus on Flight Training Devices and Heliport

Lighting. By Rick Adams and Andrew Drwiega

40 Safety Management SystemsImplementing an SMS program into an organization, large or small, will help save lives and resources. By Keith Cianfrani

Public Service


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The editors welcome new product information and other industry news. All editorial inquiries should be directed to Rotor & Wing magazine, 4 Choke Cherry Rd., 2nd Floor, Rockville, Md. 20850, USA; 1-301-354-1839; fax 1-301-762-8965. E-mail: [email protected]. Rotor & Wing (ISSN-1066-8098) is published monthly by Access Intelligence, 4 Choke Cherry Rd., 2nd Floor, Rockville, Md. 20850, USA. Periodical postage paid at Rockville, Md. and additional mailing offices. Subscriptions: Free to qualified individuals directly involved in the helicopter industry. All other subscriptions, U.S.: one year $89; two years $178. Canada: one year $99; two years $198; Foreign: one year $129; two years $258.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Rotor & Wing, P.O. Box 3089, Northbrook, Ill. 60065-3089, USA. Change of address two to eight weeks notice requested. Send both new and old address, including mailing label to Attn: Rotor & Wing magazine, Customer Services, P.O. Box 3089, Northbrook, Ill. 60065-3089, USA or call 1-847-559-7314. E-mail: [email protected]. Canada Post PM40063731. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to: Station A, PO Box 54, Windsor, ON N9A 6J5.

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Vol. 48 | No. 4 April 2014

POST YOUR HELICOPTER PHOTOS Have any breathtaking helicopter photos that can hang with the best of them?

Share them on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/rotorandwing

SIGN UP FOR THE ROTOR & WING COLLECTIVE Subscribe today for our free weekly e-letter for helicopter newsThe Rotor & Wing

Collective, which features an in-depth Story of the Week, Top News Picks, Helicopter Jobs and links to Rotor & Wings Facebook and Twitter pages. Sign up now by visiting: www.aviationtoday.com/rw/collective_form.html

STORIES & PHOTOS ON THE WEB Go to rotorandwing.com to see more photos and read some of the stories that

didnt make it into this months print edition, for example: Aero Precision Expands Alliance with UTC Aerospace Systems All-Metal Maintenance Stands Moves Into New Vegas Headquarters Operator Cooperation Part of Russian Hour at Heli-Expo Universal Avionics Point & Click Available on MD Explorer FreeFlight ADS-B Transceiver Gains FAA Greenlight FlightSafety to Bring Level D S-92 Training to Sao Paulo EuroAvionics Buys Florida-based LCX Systems

DIRECT TO YOUR DESKTOP: CHECK YOUR E-MAILAPRIL 1:

Digital edition of Rotor & Wing April 2014. Electronic version with enhanced web links makes navigating through the pages of Rotor & Wing easier than ever.

WEEK OF APRIL 7:

HOT PRODUCTS for Helicopter OperatorsLatest in equipment upgrades, performance modifications, training devices and other tools for the rotorcraft industry.

WEEK OF APRIL 28:

Rotor & Wings Helicopter Safety & Training e-letter. Get the latest updates from helicopter training organizations around the world.

W W W. R O T O R A N D W I N G . C O M

Get connected: Become a fan of Rotor & Wing on Follow us on @rotorandwing

8 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | APRIL 2014

Do you have comments on the rotorcraft industry or recent articles and viewpoints weve published? Send them to: Editor, Rotor & Wing, 4 Choke Cherry Road, Second Floor, Rockville, MD 20850, fax us at 301-354-1809 or email us at [email protected]. Please include a city and state or province with your name and ratings. We reserve the right to edit all submitted material.

Responses OnlineThe following headlines and responses appeared on www.rotorandwing.com

From Aviation Today(In reference to a story about DAR-PAs X-Plane program)What American aviation needs today is a 1,000 lb, two seat tan-dem, electric/Hybrid motor glid-er, mass produced and sold at the same cost/lb as a compact car...

Neil Cosentino

Robots Building Aircraft(Response to: Will Airbus Futur-assy Robots Build Aircraft?Why not? A robot will not forget a rivet neither tighten a screw to the right binary. After all will not get flu or pain or tendinitis, which its the most frequent disease for repetitive tasks.

Look the automotive indus-tries, they could speed up and reduce manufacturing costs.

Rui Figueiredo

Safety for AllLet everyone take his/responsibil-ity and put in practice the 10 com-mandments of workplace safety to arrive at a 10 score. Let zero accident be our target as from this minute.

Bless Manuel

Air Methods Diversity(In response to Air Methods Diver-sifies with Purchase of Blue Hawai-ian, Sundance Helicopters)[CEO] Aaron Todd has shown shrewd business savvy and is to be commended for navigating through some very difficult times. Todd shows an uncanny insight into future of commercial rotor-craft operations.

Andrew Leonard

Responses Via Social MediaThe following appeared on Rotor & Wings Facebook page at www.facebook.com/rotorandwing

Whats the Coolest Place Youve Ever Flown a Helicopter?Twenty feet over a male Alaskan Brown Bear on the Kenai penin-sula, after the 9,900-foot volcano, bear was much cooler.

Larry Peck

For me it was definitely flight in Grand Canyon to the river and back!

Juraj Krajcirovic

Ozarks in Missouri!!! and blue mountains in Jamaica!

Stacey Henry

The Congo RiverPatrick Heidenreich

Mountains of Kosovo, fresh snow on the ground, flying NVGs witht he fullest, brightest moon I have ever seen. Incredibly beautiful night, visibility must have been 100 miles. Will never forget it!

Jim Furlow

Sydney Harbor... spectacular!

Michael Burton

NYC in the 80s, Florida Everglades and Bahamas.

John Marks

BabylonDaniel Morris

From Sanaa to Hodeida, Yemen, from the plateau where Sanaa is located, down to the Red Sea; passing the mud skyscraper villages clinging to the sides of the mountains, young village kids waving up from the roofs as they hear the 212 approach-ing... like having your own Nat Geo show ... also flying around the island of Socotra... amazing, unspoiled nature.

Tony Beaumont

The football stadium in Nashville, Tenn.

Cesar A Ramos

A trip from Milan, Italy to Antalya then Istanbul, Turkey in an Agusta A109S - amazing!

Christine Lesko

R&Ws Question of the Month: What elements of a safety management system (SMS) work best for your op-eration? What operators have done a good job of implement-ing a strong SMS program? Let us know, and look for your and others responses in

a future issue. Youll find contact information below.

ServicesProductsTrainingPublic ServiceMilitaryCommercial Personal|Corporate

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Meet the Contributors


KEITH CIANFRANI is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, master aviator and Army instructor pilot, rated in both helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. He holds a masters

degree in aerospace safety from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Keith is a certificated flight instructor and has flown commercial aircraft for more than 20 years in and around the New York City area.

ANDREW DRWIEGA, International Bureau Chief, is a senior defense/avia-tion journalist with a specialization in international military rotorcraft. Based in London, he has reported from Iraq and Afghanistan on numerous occasions on attachment with American and British helicopter forces. Andrew is a member of the Army Aviation Association of America, the Royal United Services Institute, the Air Power Association and is an associ-ate member of the Royal Aeronautical Society. He has a BA (Hons) degree in War Studies.

FRANK LOMBARDI, an ATP with both fixed-wing and rotary-wing ratings, began his flying career in 1991 after graduating with a bachelors of science in aerospace engineering, working on

various airplane and helicopter programs as a flight test engineer for Grumman Aerospace Corp. Frank became a police officer for a major East Coast police department in 1995, and has been flying helicopters in the departments aviation section since 2000.

DOUGLAS NELMS has more than 30 years of experience as an aviation journalist and currently works as a freelance writer. He has served as managing editor of Rotor & Wing. A former U.S. Army helicopter pilot, Nelms specializes in writing about helicopters.

MARK ROBINS is an experienced and accomplished editor who has bylined more than 50 full-length feature arti-cles in his career, most dealing with technical and manufacturing devel-

opments. He has written for such technical trade magazines as Quality and Electronic Packaging and Production. He has also worked full-time for the edi-torial departments of the American Society of Civil Engineers and Society of Manufacturing Engineers.

DALE SMITH has been an aviation journalist for 24 years specializing in business aviation. He is currently a contributing writer for Rotor & Wing and other leading aviation magazines. He has been a licensed pilot since 1974 and has flown 35 different types of general aviation, business and WWII vintage aircraft.

ERNIE STEPHENS, Editor-at-Large, spent 27 years with a major county police department, retiring as a deco-rated sergeant and chief pilot of its aviation section in 2006. He began

his flying career in the late 1980s when he earned his rotorcraft license and incorporated a small aviation company as a sideline to his law enforcement career. He has been writing features and columns for Rotor & Wing since 2003.

TERRY TERRELL gained his early aviation experience as a U.S. Navy fixed-wing instructor and U.S. Coast Guard aircraft commander, where his service included SAR in Sikorsky S-61s. Terry served as a cross-qualified captain and safety special projects officer with Houstons Transco Energy, and later with Atlanta-based Kennestone AVSTAT Helicopter Ambulance Program and Geor-gia Baptist LifeFlight.

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advanced and innovative training systems for instruction thats effective, relevant and clearly presented.

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advanced training devices to complement, support and reinforce safety in our training. They replicate the

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PRODUCTS | AIRFRAMES

Bell Revamps Jet Ranger Brand With X for New 505

Bell Helicopter launched, in the words of President and CEO John Garrison, the revitalization of the legendary Jet Ranger during Heli-Expo. The launch of the 505 Jet Ranger X drew a huge crowd with Garrison introducing the new short light single (SLS) helicopter from a podium among the crowd. He reviewed the drive of Bell in terms of pushing forward with the 525 Relentless and on the military side, the V-280 Valor (for the Joint Multi-Role) competition.

The previous day, Garrison had talked about making progress and gaining momentum in our commercial business. The OEM delivered 213 civil helicopters in 2013, up 12 percent from the 188 in 2012. Bell recorded revenues of $4.5 billion in 2013. He had referred

to the Bell 505 short light single (SLS) Jet Ranger X as entering into a market segment that was incredibly price-sensitive and that the SLS would sell for around $1 million. He added that it would be attractive through its tech-nology offering, including the Garmin G1000H avionics and the Turbomeca Arrius T2 engine.

As far as the Bell 525 Relentless was concerned, Garrison said that first flight is expected by the end of the year and that the super medium helicopter, with its fly-by-wire technology and CAT A operational capability, could be best in class against a very wide range of competitors AW139, AW175, AW189, EC225 and S-92 foremost among them. A strong claim to make

under any circumstances.Garrison acknowledged the stated

intent of the U.S. Army to retire the OH-58 and TH-67 from its fleet, but said that Bell continued to execute on programs that it had. He balanced this by saying that the AH-1Z and UH-1Y were halfway through their delivery schedules (36 and 87 aircraft, respec-tively last year from a total program of record of 349 helicopters 160 UH-1Ys and the rest new and remanufactured AH-1Zs). Two U.S. Marine Corps squadrons are now operational with both aircraft. By Andrew Drwiega, International Bureau Chief

Read the full story and see more photos from Heli-Expo 2014 at www.rotorandwing.com

Before the curtain fell (left) and after (right). Photos by Andrew Drwiega

Rotorcraft Report

13APRIL 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINEW W W. R O T O R A N D W I N G . C O M

At Heli-Expo 2014 in Anaheim, Enstrom Helicopter of Menominee, Mich., pulled the wraps off of a brand new design a two-seat, piston helicopter. The aircraft, dubbed the TH180, shares the same general shape of the larger three- and five-seat Enstrom products, but scaled down to accommodate just two people.

The TH180 is designed primar-ily as a training helicopter, said Orlando Alaniz, Enstroms direc-tor of marketing. In addition, the TH180 will be well suited for other missions, such as patrol, surveil-lance, or personal transport.

A fuel-injected, Lycoming HIO-390 piston engine will drive the TH180s high inertia main rotor. And in the companys attempt to appeal to helicopter flight schools, the designers included an engine governor, shock-absorbing skids, sturdy airframe, and what Alaniz

described as excellent autorotation capabilities. The TH180 is also designed with the flight instruc-tor in mind, Alaniz added. It has a quiet cabin with plenty of head and leg room. Alaniz did not say what the TH180 would cost, but

did say that maintenance would be economical. Enstrom has already received orders from launch cus-tomers Indiana Helicopters in Gos-hen, Ind., and Sharkeys Helicopters of West Lebanon, N.H. By Ernie Stephens, Editor-at-Large

TRAINING | AIRFRAMES

Enstrom Takes Wraps Off TH180 Two-Seater

PRODUCTS | AVIONICS

Thales Reveals Avionics 2020 for Helicopters

One of the most jaw-dropping pieces of technology on display at Heli Expo was Avionics 2020; which c an le g it i mately b e described as a new generation cockpit for helicopters. Basically it is an intuitive, all touchscreen cockpit display that Thales marketing director Richard Perrot demonstrated.

Using only fingertip control, he accessed the avionics and mis-sion management on the large display panels, demonstrating the programming of a route to a search area while selecting the transit path, then the programming of a search pattern.

There is not a single button to press it is all touch-screen alone

and the standby aid is a roll-tracker pointer incorporated as an alternate mode that would be used

exactly the same as a computer mouse and pointer.

Thales Avionics division is designing the suite and Perrot said that it will be based on open sys-tem architecture with a Thales electronic backbone, but that will be compatible with mission soft-ware allowing third-party systems or functions to be added into the architecture. The displays will not be restricted by size and discus-sions are being held with all of the OEMs regarding its introduction date, which will be 2020. Perrot said that part of the system had already been involved in flight trials, but would not say which OEM or event aircraft type. By Andrew Drwie-ga, International Bureau Chief

Enstrom TH180. By Frank Lombardi

Thales Avionics 2020. Graphical image

courtesy of Thales Group


Rotorcraft Report

Erickson Air-Crane is now Erickson Incorporated, but has several divisions, announced Udo Rieder, the organizations chief executive at a media briefing related to Heli-Expo. Following the acquisitions last year of Evergreen Helicopters and Air Amazonia, the companys share price rose from $8 to $21 per share (a 163 percent growth). The group now comprises: Erickson Air Crane; Erickson Helicopters; Erickson Transport; Air Amazonia; Canadian Air Crane; European Air Crane; and Malaysian Air Crane.

We were giving a lot of the mar-ket to light and medium helicopters as well as fixed-wing aircraft, said Rieder, explaining the need to grow the organization. As a consequence Ericksons fleet has expanded from 20 air-cranes to 90 diversified air-craft. Most of the divisions will fly a mix of aircraft.

Prior to the acquisitions, over

50 percent of our revenues came from firefighting and 95 percent of Evergreens revenue came from Department of Defense (DoD) work. Air Amazonia had 100 per-cent revenue from oil and gas, revealed Rieder.

Now, he said, the company had doubled its financial size from $200 million to $400 million in revenues. The total business today comprises around 30 percent DoD, firefight-ing/oil and gas around 25 percent each, with the remainder coming from commercial activities (includ-ing logging). He said the diversity meant that the company could bet-ter withstand up and down cycles in any particular sector.

The MRO side has also been strengthened, added Rieder. We know how to maintain and manu-facture legacy components. We are now the largest Bell 214ST opera-tor and there is no reason why we

shouldnt be the largest provider of third-party maintenance for the Bell 214ST. The new logo repre-sents the new composite rotor blade system developed for the S-64. Its a multi-million dollar investment and we will start fly-ing by the end of the year. It will give 10-15 percent improvement in lift capability and a decrease in MRO and manufacturing costs, and a 3-5 percent decrease in fuel burn, confirmed Rieder.

Erickson is the type certificate holder not only for the S-64 but also has bought the type certificate for the Pratt & Whitney T73 engine used on the Air Crane and the intention is to have its engineers improve engine performance.

Rieder said that there were opportunities in the oil and gas sector within Peru, Ecuador and domestically in Alaska.

The European Air-Crane divi-sion supports four S-64s that are owned by the Italian government, but there are opportunities for expansion, according to Rieder. He said that aircraft operated in Africa and the Middle East could now go to Europe for their repair and over-haul. He also said that there were work opportunities in Switzerland as well as the more traditional firefighting markets of Spain and southern France. By Andrew Drwiega

Erickson Shortens Name, Splits Into Divisions

AW109 Trekker Aims at Rugged, Reliable OperatorsDuring Heli-Expo AgustaWestland introduced what CEO Daniele Romiti called the new member of the AW109 family, the light twin AW109 Trekker. Performers, whose representation of rugged dance, heralded the unveiling of the helicopter.

Geoff Hoon, managing director for international business, said that there had been market pressure for a rugged, reliable and as cheap as it is going to be helicopter. The production aircraft will be based on the cabin of the AW109 Grand.

Bob Price confirmed that the AW109 Trekker would be initially built at the companys Philadelphia facil-ity in the U.S., another addition to the already promised AW169. The aircraft would be certified this year and its first flight would be in 2015. Hoon said that customers had been pressurizing the OEM for a version of the AW109 with skids. By Andrew Drwiega

Erickson S-64. Photo courtesy of Erickson

AW109 Trakker at Heli-Expo. By Andrew

Drwiega, International Bureau Chief

Rotorcraft Report


Exelis F4949s IN STOCK

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Exelis is a registered trademark and The Power of Ingenuity is a trademark, both of Exelis Inc.Copyright 2012 Exelis Inc. All rights reserved.

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the success of the one remaining unmanned K-Max flying with the U.S. Marine Corps should not be underappreciated. The Marines have continually extended their field trials

of the aircraft, which was first taken to Afghanistan in late 2011. Starting with two unmanned K-Max, the second has not operated since an accident in June 2013.

The K-Max production line could be brought back to life if there are enough orders to make it cost-effective, said Terry Fogarty, Kamans general manager for unmanned systems. Although he admitted that the company regularly gets requests for its veteran intermeshing rotor helicopter, which obtained its type certificate back in 1994, Kaman used Heli-Expo to gauge just how serious potential customers were and getting them to state whether they would commit to a deposit.

Unlike many companies who divest themselves of production line tooling, Kaman has kept its K-Max machinery in relative-ly good storage conditions. We could turn on the production line in around 15-18 months, said Fog-arty, adding that a more accurate forecast would depend on how quickly its suppliers could also stand up and deliver to Kaman. The company is believed to be looking for around 10 firm com-mitments for it to make a positive decision by the end of the year.

Of the 35 K-Max originally manufactured, only around 20 are still flying (including that oper-ated by the USMC). Fogarty said that the company would make a decision about whether to restart the production line by the end of the year. I always thought it was going to be a pause in produc-tion, albeit one that has lasted for 13 years, said Fogarty. It will be the same aircraft with the same design, engine and blades, confirms Fogarty, adding that any changes would necessitate a re-certification that the company would not wish to go through: Potential customers want it for exactly what it does now.

While the aircraft is highly valued by civil customers in the firefighting and logging sectors,


Kaman Gauges Interest in Restarting K-Max


Rotorcraft Report

COMMERCIAL | LEASING

Pino on Macquarie: $100 Million By End of 2014Jeff Pino, the ex-president of Sikorsky Aircraft who retired in 2012, is back in the helicopter business, this time as CEO of newly formed Macquarie Rotorcraft Leasing, part of the U.S.-based Macquarie Group.

Leasing reduces risk and improves operator balance sheets, stated Pino. Having served at the pinnacle of one of the world major helicopter manufac-turers, his experience leads him to believe that the growth of the leasing sector should not be seen by OEMs as a sudden growth in the market: The OEMs must not see leasing as an increase in demand. There is a glut in money, not in helicopters. But OEM forecasting models are mature. He believes that the OEMs will ensure that the residual value of helicopters will be maintained.

With the increase in the price of oil, operators can lease equipment but they dont need to own it, he said. With longer range offshore developments poised to expand the type and range of helicopters required, he said that the energy sector could hedge its options with smart risk management over a set period of time. Pino believes that around 75 percent of the leasing business will be in the oil and gas sector, although there are also growing opportunities in the EMS sector.

MD Helicopters owner Lynn Tilton believes, or rather dreams, of taking her once-ailing company forward to rapid manufacturing and production of existing and new helicopters.

A self-confessed obsessive for technology and innovation, Til-ton believes that one of the ways to get her company back into the mainstream of helicopter produc-tion will be through the use of 3D printing. With many companies under her control, she has been particularly interested in the auto-motive sector and other specialist applications.

If we can put out a new aircraft designed in the 3D space it will deliver us a quicker time to market, she stated, reflecting on the prob-lems the company continues to have in logistical fulfillment.

Her ideas for a hybrid helicopter would include the use of electric motors. We may try to do a single-engine helicopter for propulsion and an electric motor for systems, but it is realistic enough to real-ize that such a concept is not just

around the corner. Whatever is the result of her research, she assures that it will be a brand new design.

MD is currently selling between 50-100 helicopters per year and Tilton has directed the company toward its own niche in supplying smaller military customers in the international market.

Down to earth and away from dreaming, the company showed its MD530G on the stand, which is an armed aerial scout helicopter precisely for that foreign market. Tilton acknowledges that it would

not be considered by the U.S. Army (I think I know them pretty well by now), but that if the company can keep selling her armed scout fam-ily to foreign militaries in numbers of around 12-18 helicopters, that would not only please her but give the company much more financial flexibility to spend on R&D. Expec-tations were that the company would deliver 50 or more aircraft in 2014, depending on how success-ful the company is in getting the MD530G to market. By Andrew Drwiega

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MILITARY | AIRFRAMES

MD Helicopters Aims 530G at International Militaries

MD530G at Heli-Expo 2014. Photo by Frank Lombardi

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Rotorcraft Report

SERVICES | FINANCING

Amur Financial to Purchase Bristows Bell 206 FleetAmur Helicopter Financial Services has agreed to a major fleet transaction with Bristow Group Inc. The transaction involves purchasing the entire Bristow fleet of 28 Bell 206-L4 helicopters. As part of completing this transaction, Amur HFS provided short-term operating leases to Bristow for several aircraft still required under customer contracts in the Gulf of Mexico. Bristow may extend these leases as needed to meet its customer obligations. In addition, several of the aircraft will be delivered to and purchased by Amur HFS in the 4th quarter of 2014 when they come off the current contract with Bristow. (Source: Amur HFS)

COMMERCIAL | AIRFRAMES

Milestone Buys Eight More S-92sMilestone Aviation Group has increased its S-92 order book with Sikorsky Aircraft by eight units. The company has increased its firm and option S-92 orders to 37 aircraft valued at more than $1.2 billion. The forward orders are scheduled to deliver over the next five years, with 15 scheduled for completed delivery in 2014 and 2015; more than half of which are already on lease or under letter of intent. Milestone already has 73 Sikorsky aircraft in its fleet, including 45 S-92s and 28 S-76 family aircraft, including four S-76Ds. These aircraft are on lease to operators in Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America serving the offshore oil and gas, search and rescue and emergency medical service industries. (Source: Milestone)


Scotts Gives Bell 47 New Pair of Boots

O n e a n n o u n c e m e n t during Heli-Expo 2014 that brought the past right up to the present was that which saw engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce signing a multi-engine contract with Scotts Bell 47, the owner of the Bell 47 type certificate since 2009.

This brings Rolls-Royces RR300 light turboshaft powerplant to the Bell 407GT-6 light utility heli-copter. We will deliver an engine for the first flight test in June, said Greg Fedele, senior vice president Helicopters for Rolls-Royce. The engine integration only took a small amount of work, he added.

The RR300 was launched in 2007 based on the M250, of which 30,000 engines were produced. It has been optimized for performance between 240-300 shp with a recommended 2,000-hour heavy maintenance inspec-tion (HMI). It also powers Robinsons R66.

With more than 1,000 Bell 47s still flying, despite production being closed 40 years ago, Scotts Bell owner Scott Churchill has positioned his company to be the established OEM with the production of the Bell 47GT-6 and for spare parts for other variants.

With the RR300 we can target the entry level turbine market where few aircraft fit that niche, explained Fedele. It has already enjoyed strong growth through our business with Robinson. When asked whether there was a potential opportunity in the rising aerial unmanned vehicle (UAV) sector, Febele replied: While growth [in this sector] is small it is still a growth area that we will monitor. The Rolls-Royce M250 powered the original Northrop Grumman RQ-8A Fire Scout UAV and is the current powerplant on AgustaWestlands SW-4 Solo (now in a UAV trial program for the UKs Royal Navy). By Andrew Drwiega

(Left) Scotts Bell

47 during Heli-Expo

2014. Photo by

Andrew Drwiega

(Below) Rolls-Royce

RR300 at the engine

makers booth. Photo

by Frank Lombardi

Rotorcraft Report


COMMERCIAL | AIRFRAMES

Airbus Gets Large Order for 37 From Waypoint LeasingTwo major Waypoint Leasing orders with Airbus Helicopters were announced Tuesday as the global helicopter lessor intends to acquire 37 EC225 and EC145 T2 rotorcraft. These key transactions, Waypoints first deliveries in 2014, were detailed at the Heli-Expo in Anaheim, where Airbus Helicopters President Guillaume Faury and Waypoint Leasing CEO Ed Washecka confirmed the bookings. With deliveries planned through 2017, Waypoint Leasing will further expand its portfolio of Airbus Helicopters rotorcraft which already includes two EC225s purchased last year for offshore operations in Australia through sale and leasebacks with oil and gas operator Bond Helicopters Australia. Waypoints EC145 T2s will receive power from Turbomeca Arriel 2E engines, and delivered in a versatile configuration to address multiple markets primarily offshore missions and emergency medical services. (Sources: Airbus Helicopters and Waypoint Leasing)

SERVICES | FINANCING

LCI Inks Deal for 20-Plus Helicopters from AirbusLease Corporation International has reached an agreement to acquire as many as 21 new Airbus Helicopters rotorcraft in a contract involving both the EC175 and the newly unveiled EC225e. The total contract value is estimated in commercial terms to be around $645 million, with delivery scheduled to commence in 2016.

The major commitment marks Lease Corportation Internationals initial transaction with Airbus Helicop-ters. It involves up to six orders for the EC175, along with as many as 15 of the Super Puma familys EC225e version when it becomes available.

New Turbomeca Makila 2B turboshaft engines will power the EC225e for improved performance and a range-of-action extended to 180 nautical miles with 10 passengers. Certification of the EC225e is targeted for late 2015, followed by the start-up of deliveries in mid-2016. (Sources: Airbus Helicopters and Lease Corporation International)


AgustaWestland P h i l a d e l p h i a has appointe d Michael Hotze

as vice president, customer support

and training. He will manage product support engineering, t e c h n i c a l r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s , customer support managers, the fleet operations center (24/7 AOG help desk), Part 145, and customer training. Hotze previously worked in customer support at Bell Helicopter for 24 years, both for the domestic and international markets.

Metro Aviation has selected two new directors. Jim Arthur joins as director of operations while Mark Breton takes up the role of direc-tor of maintenance. Arthur comes from California Shock Trauma Air Rescue (CALSTAR) where he was aviation training manager and, most recently, director of opera-tions. Having recently contracted for six new EC135 helicopters from Metro, Arthurs experience will be valued in customer relationships

and managing flight operations. Breton has over 25 years experience in the aviation industry with a long list of licenses and certifications. Most recently he was vice president and director of maintenance for the Air Medical Resource Group.

Glen Girard has joined the Helicopter Flight Training Center as assistant director of training from Bristow U.S., where he was flight safety manager. His responsibilities will be concerned with instruction for ground and simulators, crew and air medical resource manage-ment, course development and records review. He has over 15,000 hours experience and has trained both military and civil pilots.

Daniel Korte has replaced long-time chief executive officer Ronald Saks after he retired from LMI Aerospace in mid-March. Korte is the former president of defense aerospace at Rolls-Royce. Saks said that as a board mem-ber (non-executive chairman) he would continue to offer advice to Korte and the management team. Under Sakss 30-year leadership,

LMI has grown into a premier sup-plier of complex sheet metal and high speed machined components with revenues of over $400 million and more than 2,400 employees based at several facilities.

Airbus Heli-copters Inc. has restructured its senior manage-ment team mak-ing Peter Cutler

(above) vice president of customer support, reporting directly to presi-dent and CEO Marc Paganini. Cutler will oversee all customer support functions for both the government and commercial busi-

ness segments. Treg Manning b e c o m e s v i c e president of sales and marketing, responsible for all

U.S. sales and marketing for both the commercial and military mar-kets, including sales of aftermarket services and products. Manning had been VP of commercial sales since 2011.

PEOPLEco

min

g ev

ents

Rotorcraft Report

March 31April 2: 2014 CHC Safety & Quality Summit, Vancouver, BC, Canada. For more details visit www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com

April 810: Aircraft Interiors Expo, Hamburg Messe, Germany. Visit www.aircraftinteriorsexpo.com

April 1517: Asian Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (ABACE), Shanghai, China. Contact NBAA, phone 1-202-783-9000 or visit www.abace.aero

May 46: Quad-A Annual Convention, Gaylord Opryland Hotel, Nashville, Tenn. Contact Quad-A, phone 1-203-268-2450 or visit www.quad-a.org

May 1215: Association for Unmanned Systems International (AUVSI) Unmanned Systems 2014, Orlando, Fla. Visit www.auvsi.org

May 2022: European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition, Geneva, Switzerland. Contact NBAA, phone 1-202-783-9000 or visit www.ebace.aero

July 1920: Farnborough International Airshow, Farnborough, UK. Visit www.farnborough.com

July 28Aug.3: Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture, Oshkosh, Wis. Contact EAA, phone 1-920-426-4800 or visit www.airventure.org

Sept. 1719: ATC Global, Beijing, China. Contact ATC Global, phone +44 (0) 207 921 8149 or visit www.atcglobalhub.com

Oct. 1416: Helitech International, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Contact Reed Exhibitions or visit www.helitechevents.com

Nov. 1719: National Business Aviation Association Convention & Exhibition, Orlando, Fla. Contact NBAA, phone 1-202-783-9000 or visit www.nbaa.org

2015:

March 7-10: HAI Heli-Expo 2015, Orange Country Convention Center, Orlando, Fla. Contact HAI, phone 1-703-683-4646 or visit www.rotor.org


for Helicopter Operators

500-32 Series Personal Locator Beacon with SpeechRe-introducing the 500-32 Series Personal Locator Beacons; now available with

full speech capability on the standard frequency of 121.5 MHz. The 500-32 retains

its simple, compact 132mm x 72mm x 34mm lightweight form, weighing in at less

than 370gms, making it one of the smallest and most effective beacons on the mar-

ket. The PLBs are compatible with the majority of search and rescue equipment

including the COSPAS/SARSAT satellite-based survivor location equipment. Ver-

sions are available featuring embedded 12 channel GPS with data burst transmis-

sion on 406MHz, further improving location accuracy and detection time.

The fully certified PLB is a one piece unit with the transmitter housed in a

moulded thermoplastic non-slip compact case, incorporating user replaceable

batteries mounted within the overall package. Standard features include an audible

tone indicating live beacon transmissions with GPS Lat/Long position and a full

self-test capability. An operator may reprogram the PLB using an optional repro-

gramming adaptor.

Find out more online at www.hr-smith.com

ASU Demos Next Step in Night Vision TechnologyAviation Specialties Unlimited (ASU), distributor of NVIS equipment, gave Rotor & Wing a look at the next step

in night vision technology at the companys Heli-Expo booth. ASU demonstrated new unfilmed image intensifier

tubes (made by L-3). The unfilmed tubes provide greater reliability and enhanced low light level performance

with better resolution, smaller halos, and increased clarity. The familiar green image is now more blue-grey due to

the use of white phosphor, improving perception and decreasing eye strain, according to ASU. Its the completion

of a circle that was started 10 or 15 years ago, noted Joe Estrera, vice president and chief technology officer. The

robust nature of the new design will increase the time between overhaul, reducing maintenance costs while at the

same time increasing safety, he added. By Frank Lombardi

DropCam From IMT Emerges During Heli-ExpoIntegrated Microwave Technologies, a business unit within the Vitec Groups Videocom division, has introduced

its DropCam Tx-II/Mini MobilCMDR surveillance kit at Heli-Expo 2014 in Anaheim. The IMT DropCam

Tx-II/Mini MobilCMDR surveillance kit is a rapid deployment video/audio surveillance solution that includes

the DropCam Tx-II Transmitter with integrated camera and microphone, along with IMTs Mini MobilCMDR

receiver/monitor. Using COFDM digital RF transmission enables superior non-line-of-sight performance in

buildings, culverts and urban environments, DropCam gives users a level of performance unattainable with con-

ventional analog or 802.11 (Wi-Fi) products.

EC225e Intended for Extended-Range Offshore OpsThe new EC225e version of Airbus Helicopters Super Puma product line was formally launched Tuesday, offer-

ing an enhanced rotorcraft that responds to operators requirements for extended-range missions particularly

in support of deep-water oil and gas airlift missions. Details on the EC225e were outlined at Heli-Expo 2014, along

with the first orders. Features of the twin-engine EC225e include more payload, an additional fuel tank, a new

cabin layout and new avionics. Certification of the EC225e is targeted for late 2015, followed by the start of deliv-

eries in mid-2016.


TRAININGBy Rick Adams

The North Sea, in many respects, is the epicenter of civil helicopter operations in the world. Since the ignition of the oil exploration boom in the area a half-

century ago, Norway and the UK have become the primary users of helicopters, operating nearly 70 percent of the total fleet in Europe and 95 percent of airframes with more than 18 passenger seats. In the Norwegian and UK Continental Shelf sectors, there are more than 300 helideck-equipped fixed exploration platforms and more than 100 mobile helidecks. In 2012, over helicopter 200,000 sectors

THE NEW ERA OF

TRAINING | SIMULATORS

SimulatiAround the North Sea and

around the world, helicopter

safety and pilot training are

under review. A plethora of new-

technology simulators should

help reduce the risk rate.

FlightSafety International Sikorsky S-92 simulator.

Photo courtesy of Sikorsky Aircraft


were flown, carrying nearly two million passengers mostly plat-form shift workers encompass-ing nearly 150,000 flight hours.

The area can be harsh, no ques-tion, with extremely challenging weather, winds, and waves. One pilot described winds enroute close to 70 knots with drift angles of 25-plus degrees landing on a heaving deck on a black night and violent windshear and tur-bulence when passing through weather fronts.

In the wake of five accidents in four years, the most recent of which in August claimed four lives when a CHC-operated Eurocopter Super Puma crashed into the sea off the Shetland Islands, the civil aviation authorities of the UK and Norway launched a review of the risks and hazards of operating in the North Sea and consider how these can be managed more effectively. Capt. Bob

Jones, the UK CAAs flight operations head, led the review along with Geir Hamre, head of helicopter safety for the Norwegian CAA.

In February, the results were published, titled, Safety review of offshore public transport helicop-ter operations in support of the exploitation of oil and gas. They included recommendations heav-ily focused on water ditching situ-ations. The UK CAA, for example, plans to prohibit flights in the most severe sea conditions to improve the chances of accident survivor recovery. The review urged the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to make safety and survival

training for passengers a require-ment. And they suggested that heli-copter operators worldwide imple-ment lightning forecast systems.

The British Air Line Pilots Association (BALPA), which incor-porates professional helicopter pilots, had criticized the planned review when it was announced in September, questioning the cred-ibility of the governments regulator to review itself. But once the find-ings were released, BALPA general secretary Jim McAuslan lauded it: The CAA has recognized that independently setting and pro-tecting decent helicopter flight safety standards in the North Sea is more effective than a light touch approach. Pilots particularly wel-come the ban on flying in adverse conditions and the recommenda-tions on how the chances of surviv-ing an incident can be improved.

The UK/Norway CAA review scrutinized pilot training, not-ing that 44 percent of accidents between 1992 and 2013 were attributable to operational causes, the majority of which the reviewers labeled pilot performance issues.

One area of significant weak-ness: training/checking require-ments are heavily biased to run-way-based, one-engine inoperative flight, and this does not adequately prepare a pilot for the environment in which the types are to be oper-ated. Likewise, the annual license proficiency check and six-month operator check perpetuates this historical focus.

Instead, training should reflect the offshore operating environ-ment. Some operators who input to the review suggested an alternative training and qualification program that would draw on flight data monitoring (FDM) information to align the curriculum to real-world line operations.

Another area of concern, which

has afflicted the commercial fixed-wing pilot community as well, is reliance on automation. There is a well-recognized dichotomy affect-ing both airplane and helicopter operators known as automation dependency, which affects those who operate these highly complex types, the review stated. BALPA had expressed concerns about new helicopter pilots joining the indus-try who rely too much on auto-mated systems, and tend to focus on managing the systems rather than flying the aircraft.

The CAA promised to review, by second quarter 2014, all helicop-ter recurrent training programs to ensure that basic instrument flight skills are maintained so that crews can readily deal with manual flight if required.

A third area of pilot training concern is recency. Currently, there are no explicit requirements for pilot recency in helideck oper-ations. The oil and gas industry does, however, place recency con-tractual obligations on helicopter operators. Pilot requirements for helideck operations are incorpo-rated into the draft EASA require-ments specific to offshore helicop-ter operators.

Not surprisingly, the northeast shore of Scotland and southwest coast of Norway have likewise become the axis of the helicopter simulation world.

Airbus Helicopters (formerly Eurocopter) installed a new Indra-built EC225 full-flight simulator at its new North Sea Service Center in Aberdeen, Scotland at the worlds busiest heliport, three years ago. They also established a long-term training agreement with CHC Helicopter. Sufficient space is avail-able to add another simulator in the future, perhaps for the Airbus-AVIC EC175 helicopter.

The Airbus-Indra EC225 full-

Simulation Era

tion



motion simulator features a visual system field-of-view of 210 degrees horizontal and 80 degrees vertical, including 50 degrees below the hori-zon look down capability for search and rescue (SAR) and night helideck landing training. The visual database covers one million square kilome-ters from Scotland to Norway, and is compatible with forward-looking infrared (FLIR) and night vision goggle (NVG) operations.

CAE operates a simulator in Aberdeen for the Airbus AS332 L2 variant of the Super Puma, inher-ited as part of its 2011 acquisition of CHCs training operations.

Frasca International has deliv-ered two EC225s and a Sikorsky S-92 Level B simulator to Bristow in Aberdeen.

Rotorsim, a joint venture of AgustaWestland and CAE, will install an AW189 simulator in Aberdeen in 2015, designed spe-cifically to support Bristow Heli-copters and other operators. We are excited to introduce AW189 simulator training in the United Kingdom to support search-and-rescue operations, said John Pon-sonby, AgustaWestlands senior vice president of customer support and training.

Airbus Helicopters and CAE are collaborating on an EC225 simula-

tor to be deployed in Stavanger, Norway, where Montreal, Canada-based CAE already has devices for the AS332L/L1 and Sikorskys S-61 (also via the CHC partnership). Airbus and its local representative, stnes, intend to also install an AS350 helicopter FFS at the facility.

CAE has a further presence in Scandinavia with EC225 and Sikor-sky S-92 simulators in Oslo, Nor-way, and a Bell 212/412 trainer in Stockholm, Sweden, owing to their mid-2012 acquisition of Oxford Aviation Academy.

In September, Sikorsky and FlightSafety International opened a new FlightSafety Learning Center at Aircontact Aviation Center at the Stavanger Airport in Sola. Bristow Norway has signed on to train its S-92 pilots there. The fact that our pilots will no longer have to travel abroad for training entails signifi-cant efficiencies for us in terms of reduced time-consumption and travel costs associated with train-ing, noted Renee de Jong, CEO of Bristow Norway.

Flightsafety also has an S-92 simulator in Farnborough, UK.

Paris, France-based Thales is planning a new helicopter training center in southern Norway as well, scheduled for the second half of 2015. The Reality H simulator may

feature training for multiple aircraft types using roll-on/roll-off technol-ogy which allows different cockpits to use the same base motion and visual systems. According to Thales Norway CEO Glenn Pedersen, Norwegian oil and gas helicopter pilots operate in one of the worlds most challenging airspaces for rotorcraft, requiring outstanding skills, response times, and attention to ever-changing weather patterns.

Further afield, the oil and gas industrys trend toward deepwa-ter drilling further from shore is fueling demand for longer-range, large transport helicopters, and the training industry is ramping up deployments of simulators to address demand.

FlightSafety will install a Level D S-92 simulator in Sao Paulo, Brazil in third quarter 2014. CAE and joint venture partner Lider Avia-cao are servicing S-76C++ pilots of state-owned Petrolio Brasileiro (Petrobas) who traverse offshore platforms in the 350,000-square-kilometer Santos Basin. CAE is planning an S-92 device in Sao Paulo, and also has a Bell 412 simu-lator in Toluca, Mexico.

Helibras (Helicopteros do Brasil), an Airbus-owned helicopter manu-facturer, is building a new train-ing center in Rio de Janeiro with a combination simulator for the civil EC225 and EC725 military version.

In Asia, Airbus Malaysia Train-ing Center recently installed the first EC225 FFS in the region. The company also has an EC225 Level B device in Beijing. CAE has a new S-76C++ simulator in Zhuhai, China, and is planning an S-92. They will also deploy an S-92 in Rimba, Brunei, as part of a broader government-military-commercial training complex.

CAE has a presence in India in a joint venture with Hindustan Aero-space Ltd (HAL), including AS365


Frasca Airbus Helicopters AS350 trainer. Photo courtesy of Frasca


N3 Dauphin, Bell 412, and HAL Dhruv simulators in Bengaluru. In Dubai, CAE offers a Bell 412 device at its JV with Emirates.

The AgustaWestland-CAE Rotorsim collaboration, which began in 2001, features simulators for several models at a relatively new training academy and support cen-ter in the historic old SIAI Marchetti plant in Sesto Calende, Italy, north of Milan. Simulators for the A109E, Nexus, and Power variants are avail-able, as well as AW139 and AW189.

The joint venture has further AW139 capability in Morristown, N.J., near New York City. The part-ners have discussed AW169 and AW189 training in North America.

AgustaWestland is also expand-ing its global network of authorized training centers with AW109 train-ing in Zurich, Switzerland and AW139 courses in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A joint venture with Mubadala Aerospace intends to launch AW139 training in Abu Dhabi this year.

FlightSafety dominates the U.S. Gulf Coast and corporate helicopter markets with its training centers in Lafayette, La., West Palm Beach, Fla. and Dallas, Texas. At Lafayette: AW139, Bell 206, Bell 407, S-76C+/C++, and a new Sikorsky S-92 Level D qualified simulator by Q3 with the new Vital 1100 visual system and Crewview glass mirror display. At West Palm: S-70, S-76C/C++, and a new S-76D. In Dallas: a new EC135 in April with Garmin avionics suite, Bell 212, Bell 412, Bell 430 (close to Bell Helicopters Fort Worth head-quarters), S-76B, and in 2014 a new NVG-capable Bell 212/412EP Level D full flight simulator.

In Shreveport, La., FlightSafety installed a Level 7 AS350 flight training device in November at Metro Aviations center. The high-end FTD includes night vision goggle (NVG) and inadvertent

instrument meteorological condi-tions (IMC) training.

Airbus Helicopters plans a Level D EC175 FFS by 2016 at a location to be identified in North America, citing the rotorcrafts introduction in the Gulf of Mexico.

Frasca will be delivering a 407 GX FFS to the Bell Training Acad-emy in Alliance, Texas.

The proliferation of new-tech-nology simulators, which is in its relative infancy, should pay off with improved flying skills and situational awareness in the com-ing years, traits the civil helicopter needs to help reduce the accident and incident rate.

Several decades after the air-line industry embraced high-end simulation for the bulk of pilot training, its difficult to understand why theres a need for the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to issue a Safety Through Helicopter Simulators alert but it is. Far too much train-ing is still done in the aircraft, and one-quarter of helicopter accidents occur during the training phase.

FAA issued new rules in Febru-ary, among them a requirement that pilots are tested to handle flat-

light, whiteout, and brownout con-ditions, as well as and demonstrate competency in recovery from inad-vertent IMC. The agency will also require that aircraft be equipped with a flight data monitoring sys-tem by 2018, and (in what seems a no-brainer) the FAA wants pilots to identify and document the highest obstacle along their planned flight path before departure.

Coming sometime over the next few years is the expected implemen-tation by various national aviation authorities, such as FAA, EASA, and others, of new helicopter flight simulation training device (FSTD) guidelines published last year by ICAO. Unfortunately, ICAOs role is only advisory, and it is up to each NAA to work the often excruciat-ingly slow process to convert the guidance into regulation.

The International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST) says that from 1997 thru 2005, the average num-ber of annual civil helicopter acci-dents worldwide was trending upward at a rate of 2.5 percent. Since 2006, the average has been trending downward at about 2 percent. Thats good, but no one considers it good enough.


AgustaWestland flat panel trainer. Photo by Rick Adams

COMMERCIAL | PRODUCTS


By Andrew Drwiega, International Bureau Chief

Ag ust aWestland C EO Daniele Romiti wants to keep the speed of the company at the

highest value possible but like when you drive a car, if you start exceeding its performance, then there must be a safety device to ensure you do not lose control. We have to ensure that we have the ability to keep the company safe. Romiti made the remarks while explaining the need to bal-

ance innovation and the need to cooperate with other industries on the world stage, while provid-ing increased customer service and support. We have a compli-ance officer to monitor ongoing our relationships. We want to be a responsible company, he adds.

At the beginning of the 1990s, Romiti was part of a team that looked into the future to plan where the company was heading. They foresaw competition that was beginning to rise from coun-tries that were looking to increase their own industrial capability to

become players in the aerospace sector. Their ambition was not just to complete and assemble their own orders, but to grasp a slice of the technology cake and create their own competencies that could be sold into the interna-tional market.

We put all our effort into keep-ing control of the jewels of the family dynamic components, avionics, integration and this was the core of the company, reveals Romiti. Every time some-one wants some of this technology then our aim is to keep a step ahead

In the second of a two-part feature from AgustaWestlands home in northern Italy, the companys attitude toward world markets is examined, along with the importance of introducing technology to improve responsiveness and availability to the customer.


AgustaWestland Visit


in what we have. For example, the new generation of gearboxes is not similar to the old ones, so I may accept to offer the old technology outside the company as part of a larger agreement. In this way, he explains, AgustaWestland can incorporate the lessons learned from correcting mistakes made in previous systems, or simply add in a new generation of design or aspect of manufacture that allows the company to retain and protect its position as a knowledge owner for future developments.

You cant always apply the 50

minute run dry capability [as in the AW189] across all the existing gearboxes, but knowing the ingre-dients to shape the architecture is the key factor for future transmis-sion development. You may take pictures of it but you still cant repli-cate how it works, he said.

Roberto Garavaglia, senior vice president of strategy and business development, is quite certain of the companys corporate technol-ogy plan. There are a number of technologies being explored with the idea of fielding them over time. If it is an airframe technology it is something we would mature; if it is a technology component or a piece of a sub-system we can make agree-ments with others.

Emphasizing Romitis earlier point, Garavaglia notes: We see a growing number of countries who have an appetite to create their own technologies. Up to 20 years ago they simply bought something sophisticated now they buy and have a share [in the technology]. The value chain has been split we all [OEMs] now have differ-ent approaches. The U.S. is more restricted because of their activities in military markets, although the civilian sector is marginal in the composition of their revenues. In Europe we cannot sustain the size we are through military sales so we need growth in the civil market, together with support and train-ing. But even in support you will compete with other players the battlefield changes in terms of actors [in each sector].

The growth for AgustaWestland is clearly going to come from the continued enlargement of the civil market, particularly with the fam-ily approach to operators gathering momentum. He acknowledges the strengthening of the energy sector and is also aware of the numbers of aircraft in the replacement market:

We are second [in terms of civilian aircraft sold] and can grow further.

Although all of the OEMs have experienced a decline in potential military sales Garavaglia says the business is solid and that mili-tary operators have moved from modularity of inventory to capa-bility. While there may be fewer helicopters in number, he considers that there is a longer value chain of services associated with increased capability. We can also penetrate into training which adds to that value chain.

In terms of both the military and civil markets, Garvavalia states that it is no longer about just delivering airframes. We will grow less from big contracts, but more though our wider ability to serve our custom-ers, he concludes.

In terms of international coop-eration, one of the most significant is the joint-venture agreement with Russian Helicopters over Heli-Vert, the organization that will assemble the AW139 helicopter for the Rus-sian and CIS markets. Russian Helicopters comes from a different culture. They are very good build-ers of helicopters but are cultur-ally different to the attitude of the west and the U.S. approach, said Garavaglia. Russia has tradition-ally been more driven by military requirements and folding back into civil as needed. They can have very long prototype lives. We have much respect for their different approach and helicopter manufacture is part of their culture.

At the end of January, HeliVert gained a Certificate of Approval from the Aviation Register of the Interstate Aviation Committee (AR IAC) allowing it to begin produc-tion of the AW139 as a commercial helicopter. The certificate is valid for two years.

Russian Helicopters CEO Alex-ander Mikheev stated that the

AgustaWestlands booth at Heli-Expo 2014.

Photo by Frank Lombardi


COMMERCIAL | PRODUCTS

HeliVert project has enabled us to create one of the most modern and high-tech production facilities in Russia, referring to the Tomilino plant near Moscow.

The success of the AW139 and the establishment of HeliVert has allowed AgustaWestland access into a market that ripe for this medium twin helicopter. Romiti said that the expansion of the cus-tomer base into this new region with its own operating challeng-es would ultimately benefit all AW139 operators.

The first Tomilino-produced AW139 flew in December 2012, one of the first five built after the initial AR IAC audit in May of that year. The second audit, conducted in November 2013, resulted in the approval for com-mercial production.

A joint venture in China with the Chinese Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC II) has also been established in the form of Jiangxi Change Agusta Helicopter (CAH). This aims to license the production, sale and support of the AW109 Power for the Chinese commercial market. However, the slowly evolving legislation to open up airspace and allow the interna-tional helicopter community to up gears on this potentially huge mar-ket has been frustrating. We have a joint venture but we are in a wait and see situation, Romiti observes.

Think Customer and TrainingApart from designing new air-craft, AgustaWestland is grasping technology in a variety of different ways; from training though logis-tics support and on to its direct interaction with its customers.

At the Training Academy Aes-sandro Marchetti, Rotorsim cus-tomer training manager Michele Sorice explained that the vision

is to establish the worlds premier training facility for AgustaWestland aircraft. The training and simulator facility at Sesto Calende can trace a history of pilot training back to the mid 1960s and even further back to the beginnings of SIAI (Societa Italiana Aeroplani ed Idrovolanti the original seaplane company). However now Rotorsim, a co-development company between AgustaWestland and CAE, is devel-oping Level D full f light simu-lator (FFS) for the new range of AgustaWestland helicopters.

With a CAE Series 3000 AW189 simulator already in place, as well as the AW139 simulator, during Heli-Expo AgustaWestland announced that they would be joined by a similar Series 3000 FFS AW169 simulator that would be available by mid-2015. In addition, a second

AW189 simulator would be pur-chased and located in Aberdeen to serve the UKs Search and Rescue helicopter crews.

But the depth of pilot and main-tenance training at Sesto Calende is impressive. Operators of the AW189 can train their employees on a virtual maintenance trainer, ground maintenance trainer, vitu-al interactive procedural trainer, flight training device and of course the full motion FFS. The detail of the virtual maintenance trainer is particularly proactive, allowing the trainee to open maintenance bays, plug and unplug items that they would do on the real aircraft, but all in a virtual environment.

Alongside the physical training aircraft, whether it is an AW189 or AW109, instructors or students can use the electronic board that is

AW139 training maintenance simulator. Photo courtesy of AgustaWestland


AgustaWestland Visit


the Multimedia Interactive Main-tenance Environment for Training (MIMET). This board provides students with immediate access to coursewear, technical publica-tions and other information as they stand beside the aircraft.

AgustaWestland has also been designing training scenarios to run on its 3000 Series simulators. Through four different Visual Databases (VDBs) urban and mountain (summer and winter), Caribbean area and desert area there will be four types of mission for various user profiles. These include: HEMS mission; police chase; battlefield, search and res-cue; and oil rig operations.

The logistics and distribution center at Lonate Pozzolo is one of three around the world the other two being in Yeovil, UK and in Philadelphia, Pa. The centers are in continuous operation with three shifts working 24/7. Alessandro Baricci, vice president of customer support and services said that the real impact in the way AgustaWest-land addressed logistics came with the success of the AW139. That changed our perspective on how to serve the market. The growth of

the product has been so impressive over the last six years, he said.

At the time of Rotor & Wings visit, the average closing time on a customer service requirement was 24.78 hours. He said the ambition was to ship to customers within 24 hours, but delivery times still depended on the type of product being shipped and the country the receiver was based in. Baricci said that they were achieving a 92.5 percent delivery of goods within 72 hours. However, that could slow significantly if the part was a fire extinguisher or bottle of air for a life raft to cite a couple of examples.

The center breaks its track-ing down to items sent within 24 hours, up to 72 hours and then over 72 hours. Some customers are served within a few hours, others take longer.

Leonardo Whats in

a Name?Another technology upgrade can be seen in the newly launched Leonardo customer portal, revealed at this years Heli-Expo, which is the next step forward from the MyFleet web application. Designed with the participation of customers, it is

intended to allow operators to cre-ate online profiles of all users from the same organization.

It has several access areas with several features that include: a f low of documents published by AgustaWestland; a Myprofile area for customers to manage and update their details; a Myfleet option where customers list their helicopters and can access rel-evant information on them from AgustaWestlands database; and Mycommunications, which lets customers create service requests directly into the companys SAP Customer Relationship Manage-ment (CRM) system, then monitor the progress of the request through a tracking number including tech-nical queries, support requests, warranty claims and other reports and job requests.

John Ponsonby, senior vice president, customer training and support said that the Leonardo portal offered a wider range of web-based services which should deliver faster response times and quicker solutions. Further enhancements including e-com-merce options are expected dur-ing the coming year.

Screens at AgustaWestlands facility in Italy. Photo by Andrew Drwiega

SERVICES | AVIONICS


GPS ApproachNeed One? G


GPS Approaches


The digital electronic world has flooded

the market with countless types of

smart devices which rely on small GPS

receivers to do an ever-increasing list

of location-based tasks.

ch: ? Get One!

By Frank Lombardi,Technology Editor

Peek into the cockpit of any aircraft on the ramp today, and you will be hard-pressed to find one

whose panel does not contain a GPS, the common reference to global positioning system.

At a time seemingly not long ago, GPS was a new device that, to the pilots on the front end, was not much different than the terrestrial-based LORAN navigation systems they were replacing.

But as the sun rises on airports all over the globe these days, the digital electronic world has flooded the market with countless types of smart devices which rely on small GPS receivers to do an ever-increasing list of location-based tasks, such as geo-tagging the location at which you snapped some photos, finding the nearest coffee shop, helping you find your car, your spouse, or even just keep-ing really accurate time. Oh how far weve come.

With all the new uses that advances in GPS technology have given us, its easy to overlook the fact that we also have improved the ability to navigate from point A to point B in the safest most accurate manner ever possible.

What GPS Is

The Global Positioning System is a constellation of 24 satellites placed in orbit around the Earth at an altitude of approximately 12,000 miles, and a world-wide network of ground facilities that track the GPS satellites, monitor their transmissions, correct errors, and send commands and data to the constellation.

It was put in place by the U.S. Department of Defense in the 1980s

Garmin booth at Heli-Expo 2014. Photo by Frank Lombardi


SERVICES | AVIONICS

for military purposes, but eventu-ally was made available for public use. From their precise orbits, GPS satellites circle the globe twice a day and transmit signal information to Earth. The satellites contain very accurate atomic clocks.

Essentially, the GPS receiver compares the time a signal was transmitted by a satellite with the time it was received. This time difference tells the GPS receiver how far away the satellite is. The GPS receiver needs to be locked onto at least three satellites to calculate the two-dimensional position of latitude and longitude, and track movement. Locking onto four or more satellites allows the receiver to calculate the third dimension of altitude.

In 2000, the gover nment turned off what they termed Selective Availability, which was a Department of Defense inten-tional degradation of the GPS signal designed to thwart potential military adversaries. This greatly improved the accuracy of the GPS signal to its current average of about 15 meters.

What GPS is NOTGPS receivers are passive. They do not transmit signals. While GPS receivers may contain a database of obstructions, they do not pro-vide standalone ground proximity warning (GPWS) or terrain aware-ness (TAWS). These awareness systems use GPS location data along with their own database to look ahead of the aircraft and warn the pilot of impending impact with the ground.

Avoiding controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) is still the pilots job and remains as such regardless of any of these systems.

GPS and WAASAs if the accuracy of standard

GPS isnt impressive enough, the advent of the Wide Area Aug-mentation System, or WAAS, improves on the current accuracy by about five-fold. Whereas basic GPS gets you within 15 meters of accuracy, WAAS brings that num-ber to within 3-5 meters. It accom-plishes this by doing even more error correction of atmospheric disturbances via multiple ground stations with very precise known locations. These corrections are sent via ground to a WAAS master station, where they are beamed to two geostationary satellites over the equator, which in turn send the more accurate position updates to GPS WAAS receivers.

So WAAS the Big Deal, You Say?Ok, so that wasnt very funny. But neither is the seriousness of flight in Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). The ability to operate under instrument flight rules (IFR) is the mainstay of the U.S. National Airspace System. For years, the system has seemed to cater to aircraft of the fixed-wing variety. There are literally thou-sands of departure, enroute, and instrument approach procedures designed for airplanes that are flown by helicopters. Although this has continued to work as helicopters gain ground in the world of instrument flight, the true advantages of the helicopter

as an IFR platform are only begin-ning to be realized. WAAS will surely change all that.

Instrument approaches are usually grouped into one of two categories: precision and non-precision.

The precision approach is one that incorporates vertical guid-ance as well as lateral. The tradi-tional non-precision approach offers only lateral guidance via a VOR, NDB, or DME, and without the vertical portion, is accom-plished with a step-down proce-dure, beginning from the Final Approach Fix, and halting at a Minimum Descent Altitude, flown to the Missed Approach Point. Pilots like to call this approach the dive and drive technique. Because of the inaccuracy and length of time exposed to low alti-tudes, the possibility of controlled flight into terrain is increased, and so the Minimum Descent Alti-tudes of non-precision approaches are decidedly higher than preci-sion approaches. The lowest non-precision approaches terminate at about 500 feet AGL.

For years, the Instrument Land-ing System (ILS) has been the most recognized method of providing a precision approach procedure to an airport. Its sensitive electronics can bring an aircraft down a sloped path, providing obstacle clearance while tracking the localizer and glideslope, and terminate at a Deci-sion Height (DH) of as low as 200 feet AGL.

A key point here is that these forms of instrument approaches all rely on ground-based equipment and infrastructure to operate. This makes them expensive, inconve-nient, or impossible to incorporate at locations suited specifically for helicopter operation, such as hos-pitals, government facilities, or private helipads.


GPS Approaches

Rotor Wing April 2014

Documents

Transcript of Rotor Wing April 2014