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| Rotorcraft |
More delays announced for BA609
July 15, 2008
Bell Helicopter (Chalet L3-7) here in a press conference yesterday strongly hinted the company is about to transfer more work to partner AgustaWestland in the protracted BA609 Tiltrotor program. “We are looking for the most efficient way to get the aircraft certified and we’ll possibly find some efficiencies in Italy,” Mike Blake, executive v-p for customer...
moreRussian helicopter sector to get big funding boost
July 15, 2008
Russia’s helicopter business received a boost with an announcement by the country’s vice premier, Sergey Ivanov, that production rates for both civil and military models should be increased. Next January, the government is due to issue draft plans that will call for almost $6.4 billion of fresh investment in the industry through 2015, with half of the sum...
moreSikorsky completes X2 prototype build
July 15, 2008
Helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky (Hall 4 Stand F14) has nearly finished building its X2 coaxial compound helicopter demonstrator in Elmira, New York. Although additional ground tests are needed there, first flight is “within arm’s reach,” according to Jim Kagdis, Sikorsky’s manager of advanced programs. He would not commit to a specific time period,...
moreBell Joins Calgary Stampede
July 15, 2008
Bell Helicopter on July 5 opened its new 38,000-square-foot Canadian supply center at Calgary International Airport in Canada. “Our alignment with the front runners in the Canadian airport business development market certainly lends itself to strong OEM representation for years to come,” said Colin Bartole, manager of the new center. The Calgary Airport...
moreTiltrotor delay expected
July 14, 2008
Bell Helicopter will likely confirm another one-year delay for the civil BA609 Tiltrotor program during a press conference here today, judging by a new development schedule released by program partner AgustaWestland. This year, the company expects a postponement of certification from “2010/2011,” as announced in June 2007, to “2011/early 2012.” Despite the...
moreBell Helicopter Still Committed to Civil Tiltrotor
July 10, 2008
A Bell Helicopter spokesman denied speculation that the company plans to pull the plug on the Bell/Agusta BA609 civil tiltrotor or sell its entire stake in the program to Italian development partner AgustaWestland. Speculation about Bell’s future in the program escalated earlier this week after Bell CEO Richard Millman told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, “We...
moreAeromed Helos Collide, No TCAS Aboard Either
July 01, 2008
The two aeromedical Bell 407s involved in a fatal midair over Flagstaff, Ariz., on Sunday afternoon were not equipped with traffic collision avoidance systems or cockpit voice or data recorders, an NTSB spokesman told AIN. Both medevac helicopters were en route to the Flagstaff Medical Center when they collided in uncontrolled airspace less than a half mile...
moreRotorcraft News Update: Eurocopter sues Bell
July 01, 2008
Eurocopter has filed a lawsuit in Canada against Bell Helicopter alleging that the Texas company improperly used a patented landing-gear design on the Bell 429. According to Bell’s publicity, the 429 features an energy-attenuating sled-type landing gear. “Our lawyers are looking at the lawsuit,” a Bell spokesman told AIN.
moreRotorcraft News Update: NTSB: Robinsons need NDT testing
July 01, 2008
The NTSB has issued a Safety Recommendation calling for the development of nondestructive testing techniques for Robinson main rotor blades after approximately 596 hours time-in-service to check for bond defects in areas between the skin and spar at the tip of the blade and between the skin and tip cap on all R22s and R44s. The Board also wants stricter...
moreRotorcraft News Update: So, did I pass?
July 01, 2008
A Sikorsky S-76A crashed onto a helipad at Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids, Mich., during an FAA check ride on May 29, seriously injuring the pilot and the FAA inspector aboard. The helicopter was operated by Aero Med Spectrum Health. Video from a surveillance camera shows that the helicopter backed into a tower adjacent to the helipad while lifting...
moreRotorcraft News Update: EC objects to Eurocopter buy
July 01, 2008
The European Commission (EC) has sent a formal complaint to the Spanish government regarding two framework agreements that open the door for Eurocopter to supply helicopters to the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The Commission objects on the grounds that no tender was advertised in the Official Journal of the...
moreRotorcraft News Update: S-76 vertical stabilizer AD proposed
July 01, 2008
A proposed airworthiness directive for the Sikorsky S-76 would require inspections of the tail rotor vertical stabilizer aft spar assembly every 50 hours after an assembly has 1,000 hours time-in-service. It would also require track and balance of the tail rotor within 30 days and every 200 hours thereafter. The AD would affect an estimated 216 S-76A/B/Cs...
moreRotorcraft News Update: FAS orders first EC 135 Hermes
July 01, 2008
Abu Dhabi-based operator Falcon Aviation Services (FAS) has inked the first firm order for the “l’Hélicoptère par Hermès” version of the Eurocopter EC 135 light twin. The ?5.8 million ($9 million) helicopter features an exclusive cabin layout with the signature French firm’s canvas used to cover surfaces from floor to ceiling.
moreRotorcraft News Update: Eurocopter still fighting noise
July 01, 2008
Eurocopter is flight-testing low-noise approach, takeoff and cruise flight procedures with an EC 135 light twin. The trials are also serving to develop a software program for noise footprint prediction. Similar tests were conducted with an EC 130 last year.
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