More details have emerged about the planned six-month operational evaluation of the Bell 525 to be carried out later this year in Guyana by offshore operator Omni Helicopters International and funded by the airframer.
Speaking at the Verticon trade show in Dallas on 11 March, Duncan Moore, Omni’s group chief operating officer, said the vision behind the trial “was that we believe in this helicopter and believe it is needed in the market”.
Omni has “designed an operational availability programme” that will “ensure the aircraft can get up and go to work” and is able to sustain a “true operational tempo”.
A total of 500h will be flown over the six-month period by a mix of Omni and Bell crews using the programme’s initial production aircraft – displayed at Verticon fresh from the manufacturer’s Amarillo, Texas final assembly line.
Several evaluation phases are planned, progressively building to match Omni’s typical operation of three return flights per day “shadowing our flying programme”.
Eventually more complex scenarios will be added, such as diversions and offshore refuelling, Moore says. The 525’s maintainability will also be assessed.
Although not a participant in the trial, ExxonMobil, Omni’s customer in Guyana, will support the effort through allowing landings on its rigs.
Overall, the testing will ensure the 525 has a “really smooth introduction to service”, he says, describing the agreement with Bell as “very much a collaborative effort” with a “shared benefit”.
It will, he says, “move the aircraft from the certification environment to the live flying environment”.
Despite the mutual benefits, Bell will be picking up the bulk of the cost for the trials. “We have an agreement that structures some shared contribution, but the financial support is coming from Bell,” says David Martin, the company’s senior product manager of commercial helicopters.
Although Moore says the company is “clearly very interested” in the 525, he adds, “We don’t have a purchase agreement in place today”.
“We do see a lot of potential to be first mover on this aircraft,” Moore says.
There is no immediate requirement for the 525 in Omni’s operation but Moore says the trial has been driven by a “seven- to 10-year look ahead in our fleet strategy”.
Before the trials can start Bell needs to secure certification for the 525, a milestone anticipated this year.
