Paul Derby
GKN Westland and Agusta will submit a bid for European Commission funding "imminently" in a bid to step up their studies into an advanced civil compound helicopter.
The two companies are pursuing both a military and a civil research programme and plan to use a Lynx airframe with Rolls-Royce Turbomeca RTM322 powerplant to develop a demonstrator on which to test the technology.
Manufacturers have been invited to apply for large scale integrated platform funding by the EC which wants to encourage new and innovative aerospace projects. Westland has been involved in compound helicopter research for the last 10 years, the military side of which has attracted some funding from the UK Ministry of Defence. Included in that work has been computer-aided and wind tunnel modelling. Advancing to a demonstrator is the next crucial step.
Operational
If successful, the aim is to have aircraft operational between 2006 and 2008. The key benefit of a compound aircraft would be its ability to take off and land without the need for a runway and to travel at greater speeds than a conventional helicopter. "We wouldn't have the problems with landing slots, for example, and the customers would reach their destinations quicker than by traditional rotary-wing craft," says Westland.
The company sees a market in feeder operations for the main hub-and-spoke aircraft operators, while there are numerous military applications which continue to attract interest.
The UK's future organic airborne early warning (FOAEW) aircraft is one example, as the Royal Navy seeks a replacement for its carrier-based Westland Sea King AEW fleet.
Funding
Meanwhile, Eurocopter is set to seek similar EC funding for its long-term plans to grasp advanced tiltrotor technology. The manufacturer says it is some way off an entry into the market though, claiming that building an aircraft using current technology "makes no business sense".
Eurocopter is far behind other manufacturers who are already driving ahead with their tiltrotor programmes. Bell Boeing has just delivered the first military MV-22B and Bell Agusta will begin deliveries of the civil BA609 in 2002.
Westland's impending merger with Agusta means a study into a compound helicopter is far more viable than ploughing funds into tiltrotor research.
Source: Flight Daily News
