Rotor Torque

The S-76d is Powered by Two Pw210s Dual Fadec Controlled Engines and Features All-composite and Flaw-tolerant Main and Flexbeam Composite Tail Rotor Blades, an Integrated Thales Topdeck Avionics System, Four-axis Fully Coupled Autopilot, Dual Speed Rotor With Active Vibration Control, and an Optional Rotor Ice Protection System.

It Has an Increased Useful Load and Extended Range Versus the C+ and C++.

The D is Scheduled to Enter Production Following Certification by the End of the Year With First Customer Deliveries Likely During 2010.

Heli-expo 2009 Highlights

the Hai Heli-expo 2009, the World’s Largest Annual Helicopter Trade Exhibition, Was Held in Anaheim, California, Between February 21-24. News Highlights Include: • Eurocopter Displayed Its New Ec 135 Touch Screen Avionics Trainer Designed to Fill the Gap Between Computer-based Training/computer-assisted Instruction (Cbt/cai) and Full Flight Simulators. Eurocopter Also Displayed Its Ec 175 Mockup in a 10-seat Corporate Configuration.

• Eurocopter Launched Its Palmsized Flight Data Recorder. Called Alerts (Aircraft Logging and Event Recording for Training and Safety) Vision 1000, the System Records Cockpit Images and Cabin Sounds Combined With Gps and Flight Data.

Weighing 300 Grams, Alerts Vision 1000 Can Be Installed on Any Helicopter and Requires Only a Connection to Aircraft Power.

• During a Rolls-royce Press Conference It Was Inadvertently Revealed Eurocopter is Working on a High-speed Helicopter Program Called X3. Rr Has Been Contracted to Supply Rtm322 Engines for a Demonstrator.

• Rr Launched Its New 500shp (373kw) Rr500ts Engine – Its Sixth New Engine Program in Under Three Years.

• Agustawestland Ceo Giuseppe Orsi Announced the Company’s Aw149 Prototype Will “make Its First Flight in Months”. The Aw149 is Thought to Be an Enlarged Version of Its Popular Aw139 Optimised for Military Operations, Designed to Carry Up to 15 Troops.

• Absent From the Expo Display Was the Much Anticipatedrobinson, Founder and Ceo, Told a Press Conference That the R66 Was Unlikely to Be Fully Faa Certified for the Better Part of Another Year.

• Bell’s Business Development Senior Vice President Robert Fitzpatrick Noted “bell Helicopter is Not for Sale” During a Press Conference. Parent Company Textron is Experiencing Financial Difficulties, With Reports Suggesting It May Have to Sell Either Its Bell or Cessna Divisions.

• Asap Avionics and Specialized Helicopters Displayed Its First Faa Approved Glass Cockpit R22-gt (Glass Trainer) Ifr Trainer. Similar to Its R44 Grand (See June ’08 Aa) Package the R22 Features Two Sagem 21cm Screens.

• Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation Has Been Rebranded as Sikorsky Global Helicopters.

• Honeywell Announced Its Hts900 Turboshaft Has Received Faa Type Certification. Heli-expo 2010 Will Be Held in Houston, Texas, Over February 21-23.

Eurocopter Has Strong 2008 – Invests in R&d for 2009

Eurocopter Released Its Financial Report Card for 2008 on January 20, Revealing an Increase in Turnover of 7. 5 Per Cent.

During 2008, the European Helicopter Manufacturer Delivered 588 New Civil and Military Helicopters, Representing a 20 Per Cent Increase in Production Compared to 2007, Helping Lift Its Turnover to €4. 5 Bn (a$8. 9bn).

Eurocopter Also Managed to Book Orders for 715 New Helicopters During the Year, With Almost Half Being for Its as 350/355 Ecureuil/fennec/ Ec 130 Family.

Eurocopter Ceo Lutz Bertling Said That the Company’s Strong Turnover Was Aided by a Major Increase in Support Services for Civil and Military Clients. “it is Our Aim to Raise the Contribution of Support and Services to 50 Per Cent of Our Turnover by 2020. ” Eurocopter Said It Was Closely Monitoring the Effects of the Worldwide Financial Crisis, and That It Will Increase Its Research and Development Activities as a Major Objective for 2009.

Meanwhile, on February 18 Eurocopter Opened is Second Customer Service Centre (Csc) in Hong Kong. Csc Asia- Pacific Will Take Customer Calls From the Asia Pacific Region, Attending to Urgent Parts, Contracts and Warranty Claims Enquiries.

Army Black Hawk Hard Landing

an Army S-70a Black Hawk Badly Damage Its Tail Rotor Drive as the Result of a Hard Landing During a Night Training Exercise in East Timor on February 9. No One Was Injured.

The Black Hawk, One of Three Conducting Operations With the International Stabilisation Force as Part of Operation Astute, Was Reportedly Landing at Dili Airport in Good Weather Conditions When the Incident Occurred.

A Defence Spokesperson Told Australian Aviation That the Damage to the Black Hawk Was Serious but Repairable and That the Helicopter Will Shortly Return to Australia for Repairs.

An Investigation Into the Hard Landing Has Commenced.

Casa Implements Nvg Rules

Casa Has Completed Its 17 Month Trial of Night Vision Goggles (Nvgs) and Has Implemented Standards and Requirements for Their Use in Civil Helicopter Operations.

In 2007 Casa Released for Public Comment a Notice of Proposed Rule Making for the Use of Night Vision Goggles in Helicopter Operations. The Authority Also Launched a Trial to Ensure the New Rules Suit the Operational Requirements of Civil Operators in Australia.

During the Trial Casa Held Regular Industry Workshops Throughout the Country to Review and Refine the Standards Through a Working Group That Comprised Representatives From Night Vision Goggle Operators and Representatives From the Haa.

The Regulations Will Allow for the Use of Nvgs by Approved Air Operators Conducting Emergency Medical Services, Law Enforcement, Search and Rescue, Marine Pilot Transfer, Aerial Firefighting and Night Vision Training. Nvgs Have Not Been Approved for Use in Private Operations, Except for Training.

Throughout the Remainder of the Year Casa Says It Will Be Carrying Out Safety Oversights on Operations to Ensure They Are Being Conducted Properly and in Accordance With the Legislation.

The Oversight Will Look at Issues Such as Operational Manual Procedures Versus Actual Night Vision Operations, Training Course Outcomes, Airworthiness and Pilot and Aircrew Proficiency. Casa Worked Closely With Regulators in Canada, New Zealand, the Uk and Usa on Developing Its Standards.

Cool Air for Us Army Uh-72a Lakotas

American Eurocopter Has Chosen Air Comm Corporation (Acc) to Install a Vapour Cycle Air Conditioning System in the Us Army’s Growing Fleet of Uh-72a Lakota Light Utility Helicopters.

The Need for Cooling Arose After Trials in Southern California During Mid 2007 Revealed Temperatures in the Uh-72a’s Cabin Reached 40 Degrees C, With the Us Army Later Reporting the Helicopters as “not Effective for Use” in Hot Environments.

The Acc System Features Dual Cockpit Evaporators Installed Forward of the Antitorque Pedals Providing a Large Volume of Cold Air Directly Into the Cockpit, and a Headliner-integrated Rear Cabin Evaporator.

Military Helicopters Generally Do Not Include Air Conditioning Because They Reduce Available Engine Power and Increase Maintenance Overheads.

Deliveries of Air Conditioning 52986_aussie Hummingbird the First of Two Australian Registered 260l Hummingbirds, Vh-nos, Made Its Maiden Flight on February 22 at the Gold Coast Airport in the Hands of Andy Pollard. Several Hummingbirds Are in Various Stages of Construction With a Second Due to Fly Shortly. (Andrei Shinkarenko) Units for Retrofit and Installation During Manufacture Have Already Commenced.

Colin Mcrae Accident Investigation

Investigators From the Uk’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (Aaib) Have Determined That the Eurocopter as 350b2 Squirrel Owned and Flown by Former World Rally Champion Colin Mcrae Was Manoeuvring Fast and Low in a Narrow Wooded Valley When It Struck Trees and Was Destroyed on September 5 2007.

Mcrae, an Adult Passenger and Two Children, One His Own Son, Died When the Squirrel, G-cbhl, Burst Into Flames on Impact.

The Accident Occurred Less Than a Kilometre From Mcrae’s Home While He Was Flying From a Friend’s Farm.

“available Evidence Indicated That the Helicopter Was Intact When It Struck the Trees and That the Engine Was Delivering Power,” the Aaib Report Said.

“the Aircraft’s Trajectory Suggested That the Pilot Was in Control of the Aircraft at the Time of Impact and Was Attempting to Recover From a Significant Deviation From His Intended Flightpath. ” Investigators Recovered a Video Camera From the Wreckage and Its Footage Showed the Helicopter Flying Fast and as Low as 155ft Over Farmland With High Angles of Bank. Audio From the Video Suggested the Passengers Were in Good Spirits and Were Enjoying the Ride.

The Aaib Recommended Eurocopter Include Additional Information in the Type’s Flight Manual on the Causes and Procedures Associated With the Servo Transparency Phenomenon (Jack Stall) Which Arises When the Hydraulic System Cannot Meet the Demands Being Placed on It Because of a Combination of Control Inputs and Loads on the Main Rotor.

Briefs

• the Bell Boeing Program Office Was Awarded Phase One of a Us$581m (a$893m) Two-phase Performance Based Logistics Contract From the Us Naval Air Systems Command on January 22. The Five Year Contract Will Support the Us Marines and Usafspecial Operations Command Providing Integrated Logistics Support for the V-22.

• in 2008 Robinson Helicopters Broke Its Own Manufacturing Record by Producing a Total of 893 Helicopters, Surpassing Its Previous Record of 823 Set in 2007. The R44 Raven Ii Accounted for 60 Per Cent of the Company’s Aircraft Sales in 2008.

• a Clever Video Clip, Titled Bathtub Iv, by Sydney Based Tilt-shift Photographer Keith Loutit Featuring the Greater Sydney Region’s Westpac Life Saver Bk 117b2 Performing a Rescue of a Rock Fisherman, is Now Online. Visit Www. Vimeo.

Com/3156959.

• Sikorsky’s X2 Technology Demonstrator Completed Ground Testing With Its Pusher Propeller Spinning for the First Time on January 23.

• Sikorsky Has Selected Northrop Grumman’s Navex Air Navigation System to Be Installed in Its Uh-60l Black Hawk Helicopters for Export.

Under the Contract Ng’s Italybased Subsidiary, Northrop Grumman Italia, Will Supply Sikorsky With an Initial 15 Navex Systems and Installation Kits With a Follow-on Contract for an Additional 17.

• Two Canadian Forces Ch-146 Griffons (Militarised Bell 412s) Completed the First Sorties by Canadian Military Helicopters in a Theatre of War on January 6 When They Flew a Group of Soldiers to a Forward Operating Base in Afghanistan. Both Helicopters Belong to the Canadian Helicopter Force Afghanistan, Part of the Joint Task Force Afghanistan (Jtf-afg) Air Wing.

• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (Hal) Flew a Dhruv Powered by Two Ardiden 1h1 Shakti Series Production Engines for the First Time on January 12.

• Aa is Interested in Hearing From Anyone Who Has Taken Photographs of Helicopter Activity During the Recent Victorian Bushfires. Please Contact Paul Sadler at [email protected].