NH Industries (NHI) is confident that it has the correct solutions in place to counter the corrosion problems discovered on board the Royal Netherlands Air Force's NH90 maritime helicopters.
Deliveries of the seven remaining aircraft on order were halted earlier this month after examination of two deployed aircraft – one in aid of anti-piracy missions off Somalia and one on patrol in the Caribbean – were found to have noticeable areas of galvanic corrosion.
The Dutch National Aerospace Laboratory in May reported its findings from an investigation into the 92 instances of corrosion, concluding that the aircraft did not allow for sufficient draining and the required protective coatings and insulation had not been properly applied.
“Every programme has teething problems – that’s normal,” the company says. “We have analysed the situation and set up a task force.
“Flight safety is not and never has been at stake, but we were sorry to have a customer report problems like this.”
NHI has acquired “special materials” that can provide protection against corrosion, including a surface coating to prevent water adhering to the metal fuselage. Another way to stop metal-on-metal corrosion is to place plastic inserts between pieces of metal.
“The engineering team are already implementing the solution,” NHI says. “The aircraft that we deliver today are protected from corrosion – this is important. It was our top priority and still is.”
NHI is now in discussions with the Dutch government on the resumption of deliveries, while retrofitting operational aircraft may also be an option.
NHI Industries - a three-way consortium comprising Airbus Helicopters, AgustaWestland and Fokker - has now delivered 205 NH90s, it says.
Source: Flight Daily News
