Rotor Torque

This would offer the entire industry the opportunity to meet with its wide ranging clientele at the one event and would allow significant savings to the hara pressed marketing departments of large and small firms alike. Looking at the potential for joint participation at Avalon would be the Helicopter Association of Australia, the General Aviation Association and the Australian Business Aircraft Association.

RAF Chinooks Receive Update

Boeing has commenced updating the Royal Air Force’s Chinook HC. 1 fleet to the new HC. 2 standard, similar to the US Army’s CH-47D.

The mid life update program will last four years, with the first Chinook HC. 1 having entered Boeing’s Philadelphia facilities during February. The heavy lift chopper will remain with Boeing until about November 1992, when it will return to the RAF as the first HC. 2. The HC. 2 incorporates several CH-47D features including the improved T-62T-2B auxiliary power unit, hydraulics system, an improved drive system and a fully uprated electrical system. At least 30 RAF Chinook HC. 1s will be updated to HC. 2 standard, and will soldier on in service for at least a further 25 years.

Light Attack Helo Axed

The European Light Attack Helicopter (LAH) program has officially been ended as a result of budgetary difficulties, government indecision and the signing of the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty.

The LAH was to be produced by the Joint European Helicopters (JEH) consortium, comprising Agusta, Fokker, CASA and Westland. However none of the four companies was willing to inject funds into the project when requested to do so last December, a reaction which effectively made cancellation of the project a mere formality. This is despite the fact that the governments of Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK had declared that the LAH was the helicopter that best suited their anti tank attack helicopter requirements. It would appear that the CFE Treaty limited the number of such helicopters that would be required by European armed forces, and this made the project less financially attractive to the consortium’s four aerospace companies.

This now leaves the way clear for a contest between the McDonnell Douglas AH-64 Apache and the Franco/German Eurocopter Tiger to fulfill European attack helicopter requirements, though it is possible that a low cost, two seat variant of the Westland Lynx may also enter the fray.

Aerospatiale Studying Japanese Assembly

Aerospatiale is studying a plan to establish a civil helicopter assembly line in Japan, in cooperation with four Japanese companies.

The French manufacturer’s sales to Japan have soared to over 350 helicopters in the last two years, Japan being its most lucrative helicopter market. The move is believed to be linked to the company’s marketing priority to sell military helicopters to Japan’s armed forces, in which it has so far had no success. Besides the plan to set up Japanese assembly plants for the Ecureuil and possibly the Super Puma at a later date, Aerospatiale will also establish a helicopter training school in Japan to tap into this huge market.

Meanwhile, Aerospatiale has joined with MBB – with whom it will be merging later this year under the Eurocopter name to jointly market helicopters worldwide – to compete for a Turkish defence requirement for some 200 military helicopters. Through MBB’s Turkish subsidiary, MBB Kutlutus, Aerospatiale is offering its AS. 532UC Cougar helicopter while MBB is offering its BK. 117. Competition comes from theAgustaAB. 412HP and the Sikorsky S-70 Black Hawk.

Apache Faces Production Break

The McDonnell Douglas Helicopter (MOH) AH-64 Apache production line could face a long production break following further delays in the AH-64C Longbow Apache program.

The production dilemma has arisen because the USArmy has put back the development and delivery schedule for the Longbow Apache. Under current Apache delivery schedules, is a worst case break in production of 20 months between the final AH-64 Apache delivery in June 1994 and the first AH-64C Longbow Apache delivery in April 1996. This, the US Army notes, would increase the AH-64C unit price by about $US400,000, meaning either additional funding will have to be procured from Congress or the planned 227 Longbow Apache purchase will have to be cut back to within project budget limits.

However, both MOH and the US Army are hopeful that foreign orders will either lessen the production break or even plug the gap. Both the UK and the Netherlands are considered possible Apache customers, while the chopper’s performance in the Gulf War may sway Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and/or Abu Dhabi to purchase the attack helicopter. An additional 100 foreign sales would provide around 18 months of additional production.

Meanwhile, US Defence contracts worth $US334. 6m have been signed for the full scale development of the Longbow Apache’s targeting and missile system. A joint Martin Westinghouse venture will develop the new system, which will combine millimetre wave fire control radar mounted above the main rotor mast and a millimetre wave seeker on the nose of a fire-and-forget Hellfire missile

Strong 1990 Performance by Aerospatiale

Aerospatiale recorded 289 helicopter orders during 1990, up from 283 orders during 1989. Some 92% of orders (and 71% of monetary value) were for export customers, strengthening the Prench manufacturer’s position as the world’s number one helicopter exporter.

Of the 289 orders, 206 were for Ecureuils, 32 for Dauphin/Panthers and 51 for Super Puma/Cougars. 51% of Aerospatiale’s sales were to civilian customers, the remainder to military. A substantial amount of spares was also sold, as well as 20 second hand helicopters. Income was also generated from repairs, licences, research and development work. Japan remained the company’s strongest foreign customer, with 80 helicopters sold to the civilian market. In value terms, Aerospatiale achieved a 30% penetration of the Asian/Australasian market, 45% of the European market and 24% of the North American civil market.

Besides healthy orders, 259 helicopters were actually delivered to customers (83% for export), with 173 being delivered to civil customers and 86 to military air arms worldwide.