All Helicopters articles – Page 213
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News
Fractional stake
Bell has bought a fractional stake in Heliflite Shares' Bell 430 programme. The Fort Worth-based company has ordered up to 10 430s and plans to be the first to establish a helicopter fractional ownership programme in Texas, from June. Source: Flight International
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Air ambulance training
Norway's state-run air ambulance service, Statens Luftambulanse, has signed a contract with the SAS Flight Academy for the training of around 120 ambulance helicopter pilots. It will provide training for Norwegian air ambulance operators Airlift, Norsk Luftambulanse and Lufttransport. Source: Flight International
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EH101 joins the Tokyo Metropolitan Police
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police (TMP) force has taken delivery of an Agusta/GKN Westland EH101. The medium-lift, multirole helicopter, which is fitted to carry 30 passengers in a standard central aisle cabin configuration, replaces a Kawasaki KV-107. The EH101, which has a rear ramp, will be used to patrol ...
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Premium bond
Bond Helicopters has secured a £10 million ($17 million) three-year contract to supply joint offshore support to UK-based oil and gas companies BHP Petroleum and Hydro Carbon Resources. The Aberdeen, Scotland, UK-based operator will deploy two Eurocopter SA365Ns to transport personnel to and from the oil rigs operating off the ...
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Prime time
The success of Canada's big four aerospace firms has been the spur for growth among other companies Canada's growth as an aerospace manufacturer is mirrored by that of its primes. Now companies are emerging from the industry's mass of smaller firms with hopes of matching, through consolidation and growth, the ...
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In the news
Brazilian helicopter distributor Lumber do Brazil took delivery of a third Robinson R44 Newscopter in February. The first two of the four-seat helicopters are in service with the country's largest television station, Global TV. According to Torrence, California-based Robinson, the R44 was the top-selling helicopter last year, with 143 deliveries, ...
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Merger lifts Westland/Agusta into world league
GKN Westland Helicopters of the UK and Italy's Agusta are to merge, giving the as-yet unnamed venture the critical mass to compete with its bigger rivals in Europe and the USA. The merged company could be the second largest rotorcraft manufacturer in the world by the time the deal ...
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E&S wins contract for AH-1W simulators
Evans & Sutherland (E&S) has won a $7 million contract to produce visual systems for two Bell AH-1W attack helicopter simulators to be supplied by US prime contractor JF Taylor. E&S will supply two six-channel ESIG-4530 image generators, each driving a five-projector partial dome display that provides a 220º horizontal ...
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Tailboom launch
Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters is the launch customer for performance-enhancing tailboom strakes, developed by Boundary Layer Research for the Bell 206 series. The Las Vegas, Nevada-based air tour operator has ordered 22 shipsets for delivery as soon as they are certificated. Flight tests have begun on the 206BJetRanger and 206L ...
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Helicopter flat-panel displays get video and maps
Rogerson Kratos is upgrading its helicopter flat-panel display systems to handle video and moving maps. The improvements are being developed for the Bell 412 and will be incorporated later in the 427. Video input capability will allow the company's integrated instrument display systems (IIDS) to handle forward-looking infrared images, ...
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Accidents put brake on 407
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DCCertification authorities in Canada and the USA have issued a priority airworthiness directive (AD) requiring Bell 407 operators to install a left pedal stop and limit never-exceed speed (Vne) in a bid to prevent the tail rotor cutting through the tailboom. This move to make mandatory an earlier ...
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Eurocopter boosts its sales in USA
Eurocopter's US arm has announced a clutch of helicopter sales to North American air medical operators and law enforcement agencies. Corporate Jets, which operates 36 emergency medical service (EMS) bases across the USA, has taken delivery of its first EC135. Five more will be delivered over the next five ...
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CHC takes 25% stake in Norway's HSG
Canada's CHC Helicopter has acquired a 25% stake in Norwegian operator Helicopter Services Group (HSG). Stavanger-based HSG is the parent company of North Sea operators Helikopter Service and Bond Helicopters, Australia's Lloyd Helicopter Service and South Africa's Court Air Holdings. It also owns stakes in Germany's Wiking Helikopter Services ...
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LTS101 Upgraded
AlliedSignal is offering to improve the LTS101 engines powering Eurocopter helicopters. Upgrades will provide AS350D operators with 6% more power and BK117 customers with improved reliability and 20% more single-engine power. Source: Flight International
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Sikorsky Signs With FSI
Sikorsky has signed an agreement with FlightSafety International (FSI) for helicopter pilot and maintenance training. FSI will establish a site at Palm Beach Airport, Florida, and build Level D simulators for the commercial S-76, S-92 and S-70 international version of the UH-60 Black Hawk. Source: Flight International
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Night Vision
The first civil helicopter night flight using night vision goggles (NVGs) was flown on 5 February by Rocky Mountain Helicopters. The Eurocopter BO105 flew from Asheville, South Carolina, to evacuate a patient in Yancy County, North Carolina. The operator recently won a supplemental type certificate from the US Federal Aviation ...
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Manufacturers are on a high over sales prospects
Helicopter manufacturers are projecting increased deliveries this year, based on their order backlogs. Eurocopter has benefited from a strong US market, says president Patrick Gavin. The company delivered 216 commercial helicopters last year, up from 211 in 1997, and booked orders for 272. These include 32 upgraded versions of ...
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Heli-Flite plans for shared ownership launch in Texas
Heli-Flite is in discussions to link its planned helicopter fractional ownership programme with one of the major US-based business jet shared ownership schemes. The company plans to start operations in April in Texas, with two Bell 430s serving the area within a 450km (250nm) radius of Dallas/ Fort Worth. ...
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Boeing business move claims refuted
Dutch-owned MD Helicopters has reaffirmed its intention to keep the newly-acquired former Boeing commercial helicopter business based in the USA, despite claims to the contrary made by rival Bell. MD Helicopters chief executive Hank Schaeken says: "We will maintain the technical and industrial base in the USA. We decided ...
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Helicopter operators face airspace restrictions
A major challenge facing helicopter operators in the next millennium will be maintaining the freedom to fly in unrestricted airspace, says Helicopter Association International president Roy Resavage. Speaking at the show, Resavage said that a proposed bill before Congress effectively would give US communities the power to control the ...