Rotor Torque

Defence Has Released a Request for Tender (Rft) for the Sale of the Ran’s Remaining Sea King Helicopters After the Type is Retired in December.

For Sale Are Five Complete Helicopters, Three Ex Rn Sea King Airframes That Have Been Used for Spare Parts, a Simulator, and Associated Equipment and Parts. The Sea Kings, Which Have Flown in Excess of 60,000 Operational Hours in Ran Service, Will Be Marketed to Potential Buyers Across the World.

The Five Ran Machines Are Sea King Mk. 50a Serial N16-114 With 8982 Hours Flight Time; Sea King Mk. 50a N16-125, 8191 Hours; Mk. 50a N16-238, 8771 Hours; Mk. 50a N16-239 With 7732 Hours; and Mk. 50b Serial N16-918 With 7988 Hours.

The Three Former Uk Royal Navy Mk. 6 Sea King Airframes Are Serials Xz571, Xz647 and Xv710, While a Number of Rolls-royce Gnome Engines and a Mobile Engine Test Stand Plus a Large Holding of Engine and Airframe Spares Have Also Been Put Up for Sale.

The Announcement Follows the Government’s June Decision to Preserve Sea King Shark 07 at Nowra’s Fleet Air Arm Museum Once the Helicopter is Retired. Rft Submissions Close on November 1.

Third Sikorsky S-76d Prototype Flies

the Third S-76d Prototype Has Flown, Sikorsky Announced on September 8, With the Machine to Serve as the Primary Vehicle for Avionics and Electrical System Certification for the S-76d Program.

Dubbed ‘d3’, the Third P&wc Pw210s Powered S- 76d Prototype Will Be Used for Certification Testing Alongside S-76d Development Machines D1 and D2.

The S-76d Flight Test Program Has Achieved More Than 500 Flight Hours as of Early September.

Certification is Planned for the First Quarter of 2012.

Emergency Ad Issued for Aw139

the European Aviation Safety Agency (Easa) and the Us’s Faa Issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (Ad) for Agustawestland Aw139 and Ab139 Tail Rotor Blades on August 26, a Move Which Was Prompted by Preliminary Findings in the Investigation Into the August 19 Crash of an Aw139 Off the Coast of Brazil.

The Ad Requires the Inspection of Aw139 and Ab139 Tail Rotor Blades Within 25 Flight Hours After the Date of the Ad, and Thereafter at Intervals Not to Exceed 25 Hours. More Significantly, It Imposes a Newlife Limit on the Tail Rotor Blades of 600 Hours in Service or 1500 Fl Ight Cycles, Whichever Occurs Fi Rst. Th is Grounded Some Aw139/ab139s as They Wait on Replacement Blades, Including the Three Machines Operated by Emergency Management Queensland (Emq).

According to the Easa Ad, the Brazil Crash May Have Been Caused by Cracks in a Tail Rotor Blade. Th E Aircraft Crashed Into the Atlantic Ocean After Lifting Off From an Oil Rig, and All Four People Onboard Were Killed.

Both Easa and the Faa Described Their Emergency Ads as “interim Actions,” and Said Further Ads Were Possible.

Sikorsky Helitech Teams With Fsi for P&wc Engine Training

Brisbane Based Sikorsky Helitech Has Announced a Three Year Agreement With Flightsafety International (Fsi) to Provide Maintenance Training on P&wc Aircraft Engines for Its Customers in the Asia Pacifi C Region.

Th E New Agreement Will See Engine Technicians Gain Access to 16 Courses Per Year for Maintenance Training on Four Diff Erent P&wc Engine Types, With Fsi to Provide Sikorsky Helitech With Training Courseware, a Graphical Fl Ight Simulator, and a Variety of Other Training Aids. Sikorsky Helitech Instructors Will Also Be Trained and Certifi Ed by Fsi.

“by Leveraging Our Existing Technical Training School, We Are Able to Add Another Valuable Support Capability to Our Portfolio,” Sikorsky Helitech Managing Director George Cheetham Said.

Added Fsi Maintenance Training Business Development Director, Mike Lee, “technicians Who Maintain and Support Pratt & Whitney Canada Engines in Australasia Will Benefi T From Our in-depth Classroom and Hands-on Practical Technology Based Training Curriculum That Sikorsky Helitech Will Provide. ”

Elbit to Supply Hmd for Usaf Cv-22

Th E Usaf Has Contracted Elbit Systems of America to Supply Colour Helmet-mounted Displays (Hmd) for the Us Air Force Special Operations Command’s (Afsoc) Bell Boeing Cv-22b Tiltrotor Aircraft Fl Eet.

Based on Elbit’s Anvis/ Hud System Already in Service on Us Helicopter and V-22 Fl Eets, Elbit’s Us Subsidiary Will Provide Its Hmd and Tracking System Technology With New Colour Symbology for Day and Night Operations, Including With Night Vision Goggles, Under a Contract to Boeing.

“th E Contract Will Allow Elbit Systems of America to Provide the Usaf With a Colour Hmd That Includes Full Helmet Tracking Capability, and Eff Ectively Meets Afsoc Objectives in the Near and Long-term,” Said an Elbit Statement, Adding That the Hmd Will Boost Crew Situational Awareness by Allowing Them to Fl Y “heads Up and Eyes Out. ” in Other V-22 Osprey News, Bell-boeing Has Received a Us$34 Million Contract From the Usaf for Three New Cv-22 Training Devices and Upgrades to Three Others.

Th E Three New Devices Comprise One Fuselage Aircrew/ Maintenance Trainer, and Twoadditional Full Fuselage Cabin Operational Flight Trainers (Coft). The Cofts Will Be Made From the First Cv-22 Flight Test Vehicles Which Have Been Retired.

K-max Completes Afghan Assessment

the Unmanned Lockheed Martin/kaman K-max Has Completed an Assessment Designed to Assess Its Suitability for a Deployment to Afghanistan.

The Assessment is the Final Step in an Eight Month Program Which Saw the Co-axial K-max Pitted Against the Boeing A160 Hummingbird for a Quick Reaction Unmanned Support Aircraft to Resupply Forward Bases Autonomously.

Both Were Subsequently Selected for the Demonstration Phase, and the Us Navy is Expected to Select the Winning Aircraft, Which Will Be Deployed to Support Us Marine Corps Units in Afghanistan, Later This Year.

The Unmanned K-max Has Been Adapted From Kaman’s Heavy Lifting Manned Logging Helicopter of the Same Name.

Briefs

• Flight Training Adelaide (Fta) Has Announced the Signing of a New Contract With the China Rescue Service (Crs) to Train a Fourth Intake of Crs Cadets at Its Parafield Airport Facilities. The Contract, Which Was Signed by Both Parties in Shanghai on August 25, Will See Crs Cadets Once Again Train for a Casa Commercial Pilots Licence Cpl(H) Under Fta’s Chinese Civil Aviation Authority Approvals.

• According to the Us Army’s Aviation Applied Technology Directorate (Aatd) Division Chief, a Fourth Team Will Conduct Studies on the Joint Multi Role (Jmr) Medium Utility Rotorcraft That Could Replace the Us Army Uh-60 Black Hawk Helicopters.

Current Teams, Which All Received an 18 Month and $4 Million Configuration Trades and Analysis Contract at the End of June, Are Boeing, Bell-boeing and Sikorsky.

• Indonesia Took Delivery of Six More Mil Mi-17v5 Transport Helicopters on August 26 to Add to the 12 Mi-17s and Six Mi-35 Attack Helicopters Already in Service.

• Boeing Has Announced a Contract From the Uk Ministry of Defence for 14 New Build Ch‑47 Mk6 (Ch-47f) Chinooks, in a Deal Worth Us$1. 64 Billion. The Contract, Which Will Also See Boeing Provide Associated Support to the New Chinooks for the First Five Years, Enables the Royal Air Force to Expand Its Current Fleet of 46 Ch-47s to 60.

• Bell Helicopter Has Received Faa Approval for New Vision and Lighting Accessory Kits for Its 407 Models. The Aeronautical Accessories Branded, Stc Certified Kits Comprise a Preflight Lighting Kit, a Courtesy Lighting Kit, a Baggage Compartment Lighting Kit, and a Tail Rotor Camera Kit.