Helicopters Australia Inks New Deal With Rio Tinto

HNZ has provided helicopter services to Rio Tinto since 1992.

Under the new 10-year contract, HNZ will continue to provide a marine pilot transfer service to Rio Tinto’s iron ore carriers at Dampier and Cape Lambert

Ports. The addition of the third helicopter will provide additional capacity to support expansion plans at Cape Lambert.

All three helicopters are expected to be in service by September 2013.

Helicopters Australia is a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Helicopters Group.

Inquiry Hears Chinook Safety Concerns

The CH-47D Chinook helicopter crash that killed Army LT Marcus Case resulted from a mechanical glitch that has nearly caused three other crashes, an inquiry into the incident has been told.

A aeronautical engineer from the Defence Science and Technology Organi-

sation (DSTO) told the inquiry that the D-model Chinook’s analogue Advanced Flight Control System (ACFS) was prone to becoming overloaded in Afghanistan’s demanding high-altitude flight conditions, causing the helicopter to “porpoise,” or tilt onto its nose, as occurred in the May 30 2011 crash that killed LT Case.

The scientist, Rhys Lehmann, told the inquiry that the digital ACFS of the new F-model Chinook reduced or eliminated the problem, Fairfax Media reported.

Australia had been scheduled to begin receiving CH-47Fs last year but the upgrade plan was pushed back to 2014.

Lehmann told the inquiry that Australian Chinooks had started to “porpoise” on three other occasions in Afghanistan but in each case pilots were able to regain control.

Defence said “minor adjustments” had been made in Chinook operations in response to the problem, Fairfax reported.

Weather, Disorientation Blamed For Fatal Longranger Crash

Disorientation amid poor weather has been blamed for the fatal helicopter crash that killed a Sydney businessman and his pilot in July 2011.

A mechanical failure had initially been suspected as the cause of the crash after witnesses reported seeing parts of Bell LongRanger VH-CIV’s tail section flying loose moments before it went down in bushland in the Sydney suburb of South Turramurra on July 22 last year.

But an ATSB investigation found that the helicopter’s main rotor struck and severed the tail boom, likely after the pilot became disoriented amid heavy clouds and rain and lost his sense of which way was up. This likely led to “inappropriate control inputs, the main rotor blades striking the tail boom and loss of control,” the ATSB said.

The helicopter had ascended from 700 to 1,300ft in the moments before the crash, the report said.

Businessman Bruce Campbell, 65, and pilot Col Greenwood, 35, were killed. Mr Campbell, who owned the helicopter, was on his way from his property in Rosehill to the Sydney Adventist Hospital near South Turramurra for a medical appointment.

According to the investigation, other pilots who had flown for Mr Campbell said he had a “strong expectation that flight would be continued in meteorological conditions that the pilots considered as marginal. ” Mr Campbell had been advised to drive to the hospital that morning but was “insistent that the helicopter flight go ahead as planned,” the ATSB said.

Chinook Turns 50

Boeing has marked the 50th anniversary of its CH-47 Chinook helicopter and says it believes the workhorse transport – already its longest running production program – will be around for another 50 years.

More than 1,200 Chinooks have been delivered to 18 operators since the ¥rst was handed over to the US Army on August 16 1962. Some 800 Chinooks are currently in service, including seven CH-47Ds operated by the Australian Army. e ADF plans to replace those with newer-model CH-47Fs from 2014.

Boeing says it is nearing completion on a $130 million renovation of its Chinook production line near Philadelphia, which the company says will help it meet demand for the CH-47F. Boeing is scheduled to deliver nearly 60 Chinooks this year and has submitted a multiyear, firm fixed-price proposal to the US military to provide 155 CH-47Fs beginning in 2015.

“The Chinook has served as the backbone of US Army aviation since the Vietnam era, revolutionising how we move troops and supplies in combat, and save lives and deliver aid in times of need,” said Col Bob Marion, US Army Cargo Helicopter program manager.

“The latest F-model has ushered in a new era of heavy-lift capability for the US Army. With continued technology insertions, I fully expect that 50 years from now there will be a centennial celebration for Chinooks still in service. ”

Careflight Welcomes Aviation Australia Partnership

RACQ CareFlight Rescue has welcomed a partnership with Aviation Australia that will see the Queensland non-profit organisation reimbursed for $15,000 per year worth of underwater escape training at Aviation Australia’s Brisbane Airport facility.

In addition, CareFlight said 50 Aviation Australia employees had donated another $15,000, bringing the total value of the partnership to $30,000. “We rely largely on agreements of this nature to continue providing our world-class medical service to the communities of southern Queens-

land,” CareFlight’s Leanne Angel said.

“CareFlight is thrilled to welcome Aviation Australia on board as a partner and we thank them for their pledge of ongoing support. ” CareFlight said its underwater escape courses train thousands of aviation, marine, defence and emergency services professionals each year, with revenues supporting the organisation’s aeromedical services.

Eurocopter Signs Mou For Chinese Completion Facility

Eurocopter has signed an agreement with the Tianjin Free Trade Zone to explore the creation of a completion facility for its AS350 Ecureuil family of light helicopters in the Chinese city.

The deal for the Ecureuil completion and customisation centre was signed at a ceremony marking the completion of the 100th Airbus A320 produced at Airbus’s Tianjin facility. Airbus and Eurocopter are both owned by Euro giant EADS, which is looking to expand its footprint in China.

“The new Chinese industrial centre will mark an important step for Eurocopter’s global strategy of being in close proximity to customers within key markets, while also offering tailored, flexible solutions adapted to local market requirements,” Eurocopter president Lutz Bertling said.

Eurocopter said the Tianjin facility would be designed to accommodate other helicopter models in the future.

Reef Pilots Lease Aw109

Australian Reef Pilots has leased a new AugustaWestland AW109 helicopter to help guide ships through the Great Barrier Reef.

The Mackay-based helicopter will be used to meet incoming coal ships and other vessels at Hydrographers Passage and Blossom Bank on the Reef. ARP provides specialist marine pilots who guide ships through the Reef ’s passages. Typically the pilots are transported by fast launch but the Blossom Bank entry point is too far out, ARP said.

The helicopter will also enhance pilots’ ability to get out to ships quickly, in bad weather, and at night, ARP said.

Germany Gets 4th Afghanready Tiger

The German Army has taken delivery of the last of four Tiger helicopters specially outftted for use in Afghanistan, where they could be deployed by the end of the year.

The helicopters were modified to include a sand filter, additional defensive systems, a mission data recorder and enhanced communications equipment, Eurocopter, said. A second batch of four modified Tigers is set to be delivered by the end of the year.

Germany’s Tiger program has faced a series of setbacks, with the German government suspending the program in 2010 over problems with wiring and performance.

Germany last year halved its total order of Tigers to 40.

Australia’s Tiger ARH has also faced significant delays. Australia’s 22-strong Tiger fleet is scheduled to reach full operational capability by the end of the year.

France also operates a Tiger variant, which it has deployed to Afghanistan and Libya.

Briefs

• The Italian army has become the first to deploy the NH90 helicopter to Afghanistan, with the helicopter arriving in Herat on board a USAF C-17 in mid-August. According to Defence Helicopter, the NH90 is one of six that will be deployed for six months commencing in September. Germany is also planning on deploying NH90s to Afghanistan to be operated in a medevac role.