Steve Nichols
TRW Aeronautical Systems (Lucas Aerospace) has been awarded a contract by Sikorsky to supply hoists for its new CH-60 helicopter and S-70 helicopter. The contract includes firm orders for 21 hoists, 16 controllers and 34 pendants, with potential options of up to 70 hoist systems in 2001 and 2002 and 34 systems in 2003. Additional hand-held pendant controls and electronic controllers will also be supplied. If additional options are exercised, the potential value of the contract to TRW (H4-H1) is expected to exceed $7 million.
"This represents a substantial agreement for our hydraulic hoist business and positions our group as a major supplier of hydraulic hoist systems to Sikorsky Aircraft for CH-60 and S-70 aircraft," says Bob Hopkins, TRW Aeronautical Systems Hoist and Winch Marketing Manager. Designed and manufactured at TRW Aeronautical Systems' Californian plant, the hydraulic external hoist used for search and rescue missions features cable speed of 250ft/min and an integral heat exchanger. The controller offers optional night vision compatibility, while the hand-held control pendant has cargo hook release and inter-communication system. Sikorsky's CH-60 aircraft is an amalgam of the proven Black Hawk and Seahawk aircraft. It is a baseline Black Hawk configuration with Naval Hawk engines, rotor system and dynamics. The S-70 is the international version of Sikorsky's Black Hawk series.
TRW Aeronautical Systems hoists are used extensively by the US Army, Air Force, Navy, and Coast Guard for air/sea medical evacuation missions on helicopters such as Bell Helicopter's UH-1, 430, 412, 212 and 205; Sikorsky's S-76, S-70, and /U.S. Military Black Hawk UH-60 Series; Eurocopter's EC135 and EC145; and in Japan on helicopters including the JMSDF SH-60J and UH-60J, the JASDF UH-60J and JGSDF UH-60JA.
Source: Flight Daily News
