The venerable S-64 heavylift twin helicopter could get new life under a memorandum of understanding between certificate holder Erickson Air-Crane and several companies in China, including Avicopter.
The MoU, signed on 7 March at the Heli-Expo show in Orlando, calls for Erickson to supply five S-64 heavylift helicopters and kit for use as an incident response system to fight fires and rescue victims.
Officials say it is likely to take eight months or longer to convert the agreement into a contract, signalling the beginning of the ramp-up for deliveries.
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Erickson began developing the incident response system several years ago after receiving interest from customers, including the Los Angeles County Fire Department and others, says programme manager Dennis Hubbard.
Incident response kit for the Chinese includes a hose nozzle and holding tank for firefighting, 50-person rescue basket built by Precision Lift, and an 18-patient aero-medical pod built by Sikorsky subsidiary, Lifeport, that connects to the helicopter in place of the 10,000 litre (2,650USgal) water tank for firefighting.
Under the MoU, the companies will also investigate setting up assembly lines for new aircraft production as well as maintenance and operations facilities in the Kunshan Aviation Industrial Park near Shanghai.
Erickson has constructed from existing hulls 32 of the heavylift helicopters since 1971 including conversions of CH-54s, and in 1992 acquired the type certificate from Sikorsky.
In addition to 17 aircraft that it owns and operates, Erickson also provides support for 12 additional S-64s operating worldwide.
Source: Flight International
