iscover
Bell 47G ex VH-SKU lives on in New Zealand as ZK-HUN. The all-white Bell 47 features its registration letters "UN" on its tail, deceptively giving it the appearance that it is in United Nations peacekeeping service. Helicopters in New Zealand commence their registrations with an "H," but this does not have to be displayed so long as the aircraft is operated in New Zealand. The "ZK" prefix also does not need to be displayed on either fixed or rotary-wing aircraft, so long as they are operated domestically. (Peter Clark)
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Eurocopter Increases Market Share But Posts Loss
The Eurocopter Group posted an operating loss of 324m French Francs ($A81m) for 1993 on revenues of 10.05bn FF ($A2.5bn), although it did boost market performance in both commercial and military sectors. During the year the Eurocopter Group recorded sales of 9.32bn FF ($A2.3bn), on par with 1992 (excluding NH 90 development contracts). Eurocopter claimed 56% market share in the civil market by value (not units sold) compared with 51% in 1992, and 26% of the military market by value, compared with 7.5% in 1992. The results make the group the world’s largest manufacturer of civilian helicopters, and the second largest helicopter manufacturer overall, in terms of sales value. Large sales of Cougar helicopters to Turkey and the Netherlands boosted military revenue significantly. Other project highlights for the year included the first flight of the third Tiger prototype, and the delivery of the first Super Puma Mk II. On top of the operating loss, extraordinary losses incurred involved with the Eurocopter Group’s formation amounted to 138m FF ($A34m).
Comanche Engine And Production Programmes Fine Tuned
The US Army and the manufacturers of the RAH-66 Comanche’s T800 engine, LHTEC (the AlliedSignal/Allison Light Helicopter Turbine Engine Company) have reached agreement to shave almost one year off the engine’s development programme. The time, and hence cost, savings will come about through combining the T800-801 powerplant’s preliminary flight rating and qualification testing programmes. The engine will also be initially tested to FAA certification standards, which, while also certificating the engine for civil use, will further cut down on time and cost. Specific testing for the more demanding Army operating environment, such as sand ingestion and electromagnetic interference will be conducted later. The US Army sought the changes to the development programme to ward off potential funding threats to the Comanche programme down the track, particularly in 1996 when a number of programme development and construction tasks will require funding.
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