Rotor Torque

“a Competitive Process is Consistent With the Kinnaird and Mortimer Procurement Reforms,” Minister for Defence Materiel and Science, Greg Combet, Said. “it Will Allow the Companies to Offer Innovative Solutions That Satisfy the Capability, Cost and Schedule Requirements and Detail What Opportunities They Will Offer Local Industry. ” a Decision on the Successful Tender is Due to Be Handed Down in Early 2011.

Coaxial Contenders for Us Army Armed Aerial Scout

Several New Designs and Concepts for the Us Army’s Armed Aerial Scout (Aas) Program Were Revealed During the Army Aviation Association of America’s (Aaaa) Annual Convention in Fort Worth, Texas, Between April 14-17.

The Us Army Was Due to Decide at Presstime Whether to Pursue a Manned or Unmanned Solution, or Combination of Both, for Its Aas Requirement, Which Picks Up From the Cancelled Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter Program, Won by Bell With Its Troubled Arh-70 (a Militarised Bell 407), to Find a Replacement for Its Ageing Bell Oh-58d Kiowa Warriors.

Sikorsky Used the Convention to Announce Its X2 Light Tactical Helicopter (Lth) Concept, an Enlarged Version of Its X2 Counter-rotating Coaxial Rotor Pusher Demonstrator Featuring a Side-by-side Front Cockpit, Nose Mounted Flir, Retractable Tricycle Landing Gear and Mid Fuselage Weapons Pylons.

A Full Scale Mockup Was the Centrepiece of Sikorsky’s Display at the Four Day Convention.

Sikorsky is Hopeful the X2 Lth Concept Will Be Validated by the Time the Army Makes Its Decision During 2011 on Whether to Pursue a New Aircraft Like the X2 or to Go With an in-production Aircraft to Replace Its Oh-58ds.

“using the X2 Technology Features We Are Flying Now on Our Demonstrator Aircraft, We Believe the Lth Will Be Able to Operate at Altitudes and Airspeeds No Conventional Helicopter Can Match,” Said Scott Starrett, President of Sikorsky Military Systems. “it Offers Potential Manoeuvrability and Survivability That Will Dramatically Improve the Way Army Aviation Conducts Combat Operations. ” Sikorsky is Also Collaborating With the Us Army to Develop an Optionally Piloted Black Hawk Demonstrator.

Sikorsky Innovations Plans to Fly a Prototype by Year’s End,and Optionally Piloted Black Hawks Could Be Ready for Service Entry by 2015.

Continuing With the Coaxial Rotor Pusher Theme, Fort Worth Based Avx Aircraft Company Unveiled Radical Plans to Offer a Coaxial Rotor and Pusher Conversion of Existing Oh-58ds.

This Would See the Oh-58d’s Mast-mounted Sight, Rotor Head and Blades, Transmission and Tail Boom Replaced With a Coaxial Rotor Head and Blades, New Transmission, Rotating Controls and Mast, and New Short Tailboom With Pusher Fans.

Avx Says the Conversion Would Improve Hover Performance, Give an Airspeed of Up to 120kt, Reduce Noise Due to the Removal of the Tail Rotor, and Offer the Ability to Make a Nose-down Approach to Reduce Brownout. The Cost of the Conversion is Estimated at Between Us$1. 2 and 1. 5 Million Per Helicopter.

Avx is Seeking Us$30 Million to Fund a Concept Demonstrator and Has Been Talking With the Army, Department of Defense and Congress, as Well as to Several Major Defence Companies on Possible Partnerings on the Program.

On the Conventional Front, Eads North America Announced That Subsidiary American Eurocopter Has Teamed With Lockheed Martin to Privately Fund and Develop Three Aas-72x Armed Uh-72a Lakota/ec145 Demonstrators.

In Addition, Lockheed Martin Has Established a High Fidelity Systems Integration Lab for the Helicopter’s Mission Equipment Package at Its Orlando, Florida, Facility.

The First Aas-72x Technical Demonstration Aircraft is Expected to Be Flying Later This Year and Will Be Used for Mission Equipment and Weapon System Integration, Performance Testing and Survivability Validations.

Meanwhile, Boeing is Planning to Offer Two Helicopters for the Aas Program, a Stretched Version of Its Ah-6 Little Bird, Dubbed the Ah-6s Phoenix, as Well as an Aircraft Reportedly Nicknamed ‘apache Lite’.

Romeo Proposes S-70 Refurbishment

Team Romeo (Lockheed Martin, Sikorsky, Raytheon, Ge and Cae) Has Detailed a Proposal to Refurbish and Resell Army S‑70a Black Hawks and Navy S-70b Seahawks as Part of Its Air 9000 Phase 8 (Seahawk/seasprite Replacement) Bid.

The Team Romeo Proposal Would See the Aircraft Refurbished After They Leave Adf Service and Offered for Resale, With Emergency Services Such as Police or Firefighting Organisations Seen as Possible Customers.

Team Romeo Would Take Responsibility for the De-militarisation and on-selling of the Helicopters, a Process Which Can Often Be Slow and Bureaucratic When Dealing With Us State Department Rules for the Sale of Military Aircraft of Us Origin, but an Area in Which Sikorsky Says It Has Experience.

The Helicopters’ Engines and Dynamic Components Would Be Refurbished, the Airframe Structural Life Extended, and Avionics Upgraded to a Near Common Configuration.

The Army’s 34 Black Hawks Are About to Be Replaced by Mrh90 Troop Transports, While the Navy’s 16 Seahawks Will Be Replaced by Either the Mh-60r or the Eurocopter Nh90 Nfh From 2013.

Eurocopter Gets Into Shape

Eurocopter Will Accelerate Its Shape Efficiency Improvement Program in the Face of the Slow Recovery in the Civil Helicopter Market Following the Global Financial Crisis and an “increasingly Challenging” Competitive Environment, Announcing Efficiency Improvements and Job Cuts, but Also New Research and Development Spending.

Eurocopter Says Cutting 400 Jobs in Support Function Areas Will Save €200m (a$285m) Annually, While Plans to Open a New Integrated Engineering Centre at Its Donauwörth, Germany, Facility by 2012 Will Result in Further Efficiencies. The German Helicopter System House Will Integrate Eurocopter’s Development, Production and Support of Civil and Military Helicopters Activities Currently Undertaken at Donauwörth and Ottobrunn. Eurocopter is Also Studying Relocating Its Rotorblade Factory and Sales Activities at La Courneuve in Paris to a New Site at Nearby Le Bourget Airport, Subject to Approval From French Authorities.

Nonetheless, the World’s Largest Civil Helicopter Manufacturer Has Also Announced Plans to Invest More Than €1. 3bn (a$1. 85bn) in Research and Development Through to 2014 for New Helicopter Programs and an Improved Product Support Program. In Addition, a Further €1bn (a$1. 43bn) Will Be Spent to Improve the Company’s Competitiveness, Worldwide Presence and Global Support and Services. The New Spending is Expected to Create an Additional 400 Positions for Engineers and Technicians in France and Germany.

“our Shape Program is All About Investing in Customer Solutions That Will Strengthen Our Competitive Position, Improving Our Processes, and Creating a Better, Leaner Organisation,” Said Eurocopter Group President and Ceo Lutz Bertling. “this Transformation Plan is Vital for Eurocopter to Ensure Its Leadership in the Helicopter Marketplace. ” Eurocopter Says Its Shape Program, Launched Last October, Addresses Six Key Areas – Investment, Savings, Improvements, Simplifications, People and Engagement, and Customers.

Dutch Nh90 Nfh Delivered

Agustawestland Delivered the First of 12 Nh90 Nfhs in Meaningful Operational Capability (Moc) Configuration to the Royal Netherlands Navy During an Official Ceremony at the Company’s Vergiate Plant in Italy on April 21.

Lacking Tactical Navigation, Weapons and Embarked Operating Capabilities, the Moc Configured Nh90 Nfhs Will Be Used for Training and to Validate the Helicopter’s Suitability for Missions Including Search and Rescue. Fully Operational Nh90 Nfhs Will Be Available From 2012.

Agustawestland Expects to Deliver 24 Nfhs Within the Next Two Years in the Moc Standard With Seven Each to France and the Netherlands, Six to Norway and Four to Italy.

The First Nh90 Nfhs for the French Navy Are Due for Delivery in May, With Deliveries to the Norwegian Navy Expected Mid Year and the Italian Navy Before Year’s End.

Additionally, Agustawestland is Investing Up to €20m (a$28. 6m) in an Effort to Increase Delivery Rates From 13 Aircraft to 20 a Year to Catch Up on Its Backlog of 150 Nh90s Currently on Order for Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal.

Anzac Day Iroquois Crash Kills Three

a Rnzaf Uh-1h Iroquois Fatally Crashed Near Pukerua Bay, Approximately 40km Northeast of Wellington, Shortly Before 6am on April 25 Killing Three of Its Crew and Injuring Another.

Pilot Fltlt Hayden Madsen, Copilot Flgoff Daniel Gregory and Crewman Cpl Benjamin Carson Were Killed When Their Iroquois, Nz3806, One of Three From 3 Squadron en Route From Its Base at Ohakea, Near Palmerston North, to Participate in an Anzac Day Flypast at the Wellington Cenotaph, Crashed. The Sole Survivor, Crewman Sgt Stevin Creeggan, Was Winched Into the Westpac Rescue Helicopter and Taken to an Awaiting Ambulance and Transported to Wellington Hospital in a Serious Condition.

The Iroquois Came to Rest on Its Right Side in a Gully With Its Nose Cockpit Section Missing.

The Weather at the Time of the Accident Was Poor With Low and Misty Cloud.

This Was Only the Second Fatal Accident Involving the Type in Its 44 Year Rnzaf Service and Happened Almost 38 Years to the Day Since the First Accident.

On April 27 1972 Three Crew Were Killed When Their Iroquois Crashed Into Sandhills Near the Kaipara Harbour, Approximately 90km Northwest of Auckland.

Investigators Will Likely Look at Why the Helicopters Were Flying in Low Cloud and Poor Visibility Over Hilly Terrain Rather Than Over the Adjacent Coastline.

The Rnzaf is Replacing Its Remaining 13 Uh-1hs With Eight Nh90 Medium Utility Helicopters (Muhs), With the First Due to Enter Service Later This Year. Full Operating Capability of the Muhs is Expected During 2013.

Vxx Presidential Contenders Line Up

Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin Have Announced a Teaming Agreement to Jointly Bid for the Us Navy’s Revived Vxx Presidential Helicopter Program.

Under the Agreement Sikorsky Would Act as Prime Contractor, Offering Its H-92 Medium Lift Helicopter, While Lockheed Martin Would Act as Major Subsystems Integrator and Supplier.

Under the Original Vxx Program, Cancelled Last June Due to Program Complications and Cost Overruns, Lockheed Martin Had Been Under Contract to Supply 23 Vh-71a Helicopters, Based on the Agustawestand Aw 101.

Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin, Which Already Cooperate Under the ‘team Romeo’ Banner in Building the Mh‑60r Romeo for the Us Navy, Have Also Signed a Mou to Explore Other Business Opportunities Involving Other Sikorsky Programs.

Meanwhile, Defense Daily Has Reported That Bell-boeing is Reportedly Considering Offering the V-22 Osprey as a Contender for the Vxx Competition. The Report Says a Company Source Said That the Partnership is “preparing a Response to the Rfi Request With a Vv-22 Solution”.

Other Industry Speculation Reports Agustawestland May Team With Bell Helicopter for the Requirement.

Contenders Have Until Mid June to Respond to a Us Navy Vxx Request for Information (Rfi).

The Us Navy is Expected to Award the New Vxx Contract in Late 2011 or Early 2012, With the Replacement Presidential Helicopters Not Expected to Enter Service Until 2017. In the Meantime, the Us Navy Plans to Invest Us$500m (a$556m) to Keep the Current Presidential Helicopter Fleet – of 11 Sikorsky Vh-3ds and Eight Sikorsky Vh-60s – Serviceable Until the Long Awaited Replacements Arrive.

Northrop Grumman and Bell to Develop Fire-x Vuas

Northrop Grumman and Bell Helicopter Are Partnering to Develop a Medium Range Vertical Unmanned Aerial System (Vuas) Based on Bell’s 407 Light Single Helicopter.

To Be Known as Fire-x, the Optionally Manned Vuas Will Integrate the Unmanned Systems Architecture Developed by Northrop Grumman for the Us Navy’s Mq-8b Fire Scout Program. The Fire-x Will Be Designed to Operate With Current and Future Military Standards-based Control Systems Including the Us Navy’s Tactical Control Station and the Us Army’s One System Ground Control Station.

The Fire-x is Expected to Be Able to Carry Payloads of 1180kg Underslung or 1360kg Internal and Offer a 14 Hour Endurance.

Both Companies Are Aiming to Have the Fire-x Concept Ready for a New Medium Range Uas Competition for the Us Navy Anticipated in 2011.

The First Flight of a Fire-x Prototype is Expected Before the End of 2010.

Briefs

• the Brazilian Air Force Received Its First Three of 12 Mi-35ms, Known Locally as the Ah-2 Sabre, on April 17, Becoming the Second Operator of the Type in South America.

• the Us Suffered Its First Operational Loss of a V-22 With the Crash of a Usaf Special Operations Cv‑22 in Afghanistan on April 8, Killing Four and Injured Several Others. Reports Indicated the Aircraft Crashed as a Result of ‘brown Out’ Conditions.

• a Correction to Our Item Last Issue About Vietnam War Raaf Iroquois Pilot Fltlt Cliff Dohle’s Being Awarded the Distinguished Service Medal.

Raaf Historian Dr Chris Clark Has Written to Correct Our Statement That Fltlt Dohle “defied Orders”, Noting “there Was Never an Order Given Against the Mission Being Flown. ” Our Apologies for Perpetuating That Myth – Ed. N