NH Industries on 24 November performed the maiden flight of the second prototype of the NH90 Sea Lion being developed for the German navy.
The milestone comes about a year after the initial flight-test vehicle took off from the Donauwörth facility of NHI consortium member Airbus Helicopters.
A phase of development testing focused on avionics and software will now take place, lasting several months.
Further modifications to the aircraft will take place in 2018, says Airbus Helicopters, bringing it to the delivery standard before further qualification testing.
The initial serial production aircraft is now in final assembly, ahead of first delivery scheduled for late 2019.
Germany has ordered 18 Sea Lions to replace its navy's fleet of aged Westland Sea King 41s.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
