Bell has dropped plans to develop a substantially improved version of its Model 412 medium helicopter. Instead, the company will introduce a modestly upgraded version later this year.
"Two things happened to make us decide not to make the 412Plus," says Bell chairman, Terry Stinson. Firstly, the Agusta-designed AB139, for which the 412Plus was intended to bridge the gap, is likely to enter service earlier than Bell expected, following the medium twin's February maiden flight.
Secondly, the long-awaited Saudi air force order for the upgraded 412s, eight from AgustaWestland and eight from Bell, has been signed. Upgraded with Rogerson Kratos flat-panel glass cockpit and uprated Pratt &Whitney Canada PT6T engines it "allows us to offer a better 412 for not much more money [than the current 412EP]," says Stinson.
Meanwhile, Canadian and US authorities have lifted the airspeed restriction imposed on Bell 407 helicopters following a fatal crash in the Gulf of Mexico. The action, lifting the 110kt (203km/h) limit on never-exceed speed (VNE), comes after an investigation of the crash, in December last year, revealed no evidence of a tailrotor strike on the tailboom.
Similar airspeed restrictions were imposed after three previous instances of tail strikes, but VNE was restored to 140kt after Bell redesigned the tail rotor and its control system.
Bell, which opposed the airspeed limit, welcomed restoration of the 407's 140kt VNE. The light single-turbine helicopter is the company's best-selling model.
Source: Flight International
