The Bell 412EPI medium-twin helicopter took on the high-altitude environment around Mount Everest in Nepal last week, demonstrating landings and takeoffs at 15,200 feet, ground effect hover at nearly 18,000 feet density altitude and then flying at up to 20,000 feet. Bell pilots also demonstrated the performance of the 412EPI in the Annapurna Ranges around Jomsom Airfield in Western Nepal.

The 412EPI was introduced in 2013. It improves on the 412EP with the adoption of a Bell BasiX Pro integrated glass flight deck derived from that on the Model 429, a system specifically designed to meet the requirements of twin-engine helicopters and optimized for IFR, Category A and JAR Ops3-compliant operations. The avionics suite also provides high-resolution digital maps, electronic charts and approach plates, ADS-B transponder and optional H-Taws and XM satellite links. The 412EPI is powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6T-9 TwinPac turboshafts, which provide 15 percent more shaft horsepower than on the standard Bell 412, and it has the BLR Strake and FastFin system, which modifies the tail boom to improve airflow, handling, safety and lift.

A plan by New York’s Helicopter Flight Services (HFS) to offer air tours from barges anchored between a Yonkers sewage treatment plant and a Domino sugar refinery on the east bank of the Hudson River is drawing a chilly reception from residents and local politicians. Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano (D) has counseled HFS that he doesn’t think a heliport is a good use for the proposed site, the city council is considering a ban, and some local residents were verbally abusive to HFS representatives at an informational meeting on the proposal in May.

HFS wants to relocate its air-tour operations to the site in response to operational caps imposed on all air-tour operators at New York City’s Wall Street heliport that will slash flights there by 50 percent by January 1 next year. That deal will last only two years, after which further flight cuts or even a total air-tour ban could be imposed on operations from that popular location. Last September, as the political climate for New York City’s air tour operators was rapidly deteriorating under a barrage of negative media stories about helicopter noise, HFS principal John Kjekstad formed Yonkers Heliport. HFS’s plan is to provide van transportation from the Ludlow Street Station to the new heliport and run three to five flights per hour with Bell 407s and Airbus H130s between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.

In a presentation to Yonkers’ Ludlow Park Association in late May, HFS executives outlined the company’s plan for the site, its operations and community relations. HFS pledged to work “in a collaborative partnership with the community” to minimize its operations’ impact and to fly only over the Hudson west of mid-river. It further pledged to donate $1 per passenger, up to $20,000 per year, to the association; work with the association and the county to modernize the water treatment plant; work with the sugar refinery to offer joint land waterfront access for public outdoor space; and make the heliport available for EMS, law enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security.

The Yonkers city code currently permits heliports that satisfy certain conditions: approval of a special-use permit by the planning board and ratified by the city council after a public hearing. Other requirements are a good location to best serve present and potential helicopter traffic, minimum obstructions in the approach and departure path, minimum disturbances to the public from noise and dust and easy access to surface transportation. Rooftop helipads are prohibited. Additionally, Yonkers has a noise ordinance that a helicopter operator could find problematic. It defines a noise disturbance in part as: a sound-level reading taken at a residential property, arising from a commercial property, an industrial property, a public space or a public right-of-way, above 70 dBA during the time period commencing at 7 a.m. and ending at 10 p.m.; or a sound-level reading taken at a commercial or industrial property at any time, arising from any property source, above 70 dBA; or a sound plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from its source.

The FAA published notice May 27 that it is seeking special conditions for certification of Bell’s 525 super-medium twin to address “a novel or unusual design feature associated with fly-by-wire flight control system (FBWFCS) functions that affect structural integrity of the rotorcraft.” The agency noted that “the applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature” and that the “proposed special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.”

Specifically, the FAA noted that current regulations are inadequate to determine the effect of systems and system failures from the FBWFCS and related systems (stability augmentation, load alleviation, flutter control and fuel management) on the structural integrity of the aircraft and structural performance. The problem is that existing standards, according to the FAA, do not account for the fact that active flight control systems provide automatic responses to inputs from sources other than the pilots and that “certification of these systems requires issuing special conditions.”

The FAA observed, “In the past, traditional rotorcraft flight control system designs have incorporated power-operated systems, stability or control augmentation with limited control authority, and autopilots…These systems are integrated into the primary flight controls and are given sufficient control authority to maneuver the rotorcraft up to its structural design limits…The FBWFCS advanced technology with its full authority necessitates additional requirements to account for the interaction of control systems and structures. The regulations defining the loads in 14 CFR Part 29 do not fully account for the effects of systems on structural performance. Automatic systems may be inoperative or they may operate in degraded mode with less than full system authority and associated built-in protection features. Therefore it is necessary to determine the structural factors of safety and operating margins such that the probability of structural failures due to the application of loads during FBWFCS malfunctions is not greater than that found with rotorcraft equipped with traditional flight control systems. To achieve this objective and to ensure an acceptable level of safety, it is necessary to define the failure conditions and their associated frequency of occurrence.”

The FAA further points out, “Traditional flight control systems provide two states, either fully functioning or completely inoperative. These conditions are readily apparent to the flight crew. Newer active flight control systems have failure modes that allow the system to function in a degraded mode without full authority and associated built-in protection features. As these degraded modes are not readily apparent to the flight crew, monitoring systems are required to provide an annunciation of degraded system capability.”

The FAA went on to publish a detailed list of special conditions for the 525. Significant among them: With the FBWFCS system, fully operative strength requirements of Part 29 need not be investigated beyond limit conditions “when it can be shown that the rotorcraft has design features that will not allow it to exceed those limit conditions.” In evaluating failure conditions shown not to be extremely improbable, loads assume failures begin in 1g level flight and include pilot corrective actions. The special conditions also provide that special periodic inspections, daily checks and pre-flight inspections may be used in lieu of failure-detection and -indication systems, but “must be limited to components that are not readily detectable by normal detection and indication systems and where service history shows that inspections will provide an adequate level of safety.”

In what could be a landmark case for the air ambulance industry, Air Evac EMS is suing Arkansas Blue Cross & Blue Shield (ABCBS) in U.S. District Court for what it claims is a pattern of underpayment of patient claims for helicopter EMS transport amounting to more than $10 million. The Air Evac suit is part of a pattern of helicopter EMS companies pushing back against health insurers who are either outright denying patient claims or reimbursing them at low rates, often below those set by Medicare, leaving patients with large unpaid balances and unable to pay. Last November Air Evac sued health insurer Medical Mutual of Ohio for $3.5 million on similar grounds.

The Arkansas case also charges that the actions of ABCBS are a violation of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) inasmuch as the insurer is denying compensation for an “essential health benefit.” ABCBS pays air ambulance providers a flat rate of $5,000 per transport while the Medicare reimbursement rate in Arkansas is a flat rate of $4,877 plus $34 per mile, according to Air Evac. However, both ABCBS and Medical Mutual maintain that they are under no obligation to compensate Air Evac at any agreed-upon rate as they do not have a contract with the company and it is not in their preferred provider network.

In Ohio court filings. Medical Mutual called Air Evac’s fees “exorbitant.” Air Evac said its average per-transport cost in Arkansas is $30,000 and that in Ohio in 2014 it topped $20,000.

The U.S. House of Representatives has approved $15 million to continue development of a 2.2-pound NASA unmanned helicopter with twin contra-rotating blades designed to fly on Mars. The autonomous helicopter is slated to be included on a 2020 mission to the Red Planet and is designed to fly ahead of a surface rover for two to three minutes per day as a scout vehicle, before returning to the rover to recharge its solar batteries. Accounting for the low atmospheric pressure on Mars, the rotor disc of the proposed prototype spans 3.6 feet and supports a body that resembles a medium-sized tissue box and is hardened against solar radiation. The current design has been tested at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

NASA says the Mars Helicopter could triple a rover’s daily range by delivering visual information that will help engineers on Earth plan the best driving route. The rover will be specially instrumented to detect scientific indications of past or present life on the planet. Images from the helicopter could also be used to look for features for the rover to study in more detail and to select samples of rocks for a cache to be collected by follow-on vehicles.

Scientists have been working on the concept of a Mars Helicopter since the 1990s; however, early efforts were set back by the large size required, available battery technology and lengthy charging times.

Safran Helicopter Engines (née Turbomeca) has designed a new kind of combustor for the Arrano turboshaft, thus allowing for better operability and a simpler arrangement, the engine manufacturer announced in May. Keeping the flow swirling is key, head of combustion department Claude Bérat told AIN. The 1,100- to 1,300-shp Arrano powers the in-development Airbus Helicopters H160 medium twin.

Safran’s engineers in Bordes, southwest France, have managed to stabilize a flame in a swirling flow of mixed air and fuel in the combustor. Without such a swirling flow, the engine requires numerous fuel nozzles (20 on the Ardiden, a previous-generation engine) to reach a homogeneous temperature to protect the components from damage, Bérat explained.

The swirling mix flow, if the originating flame is steady, ensures swift and consistent flame propagation. Therefore, the engineers could reduce the number of fuel nozzles to nine. Only the main fuel nozzles remain and those normally used for start have been eliminated, simplifying the design.

The engine maker cites several additional advantages of the new combustor design. First, the design offers improved operability, according to the company. In May, “we validated engine start at a simulated altitude of 14,700 feet and a temperature of minus 40 degrees C,” Bérat said. In addition, relighting after an engine shutdown is expected to be easier, too. Combustor weight and cost, for a given power, have been halved if compared to a late-1980s engine such as the Arrius, according to Bérat.

A favorable feature of the turbomachinery’s design is that the last compressor stator, just upstream from the combustor, has to “de-swirl” the airflow only partially so that when it enters the turbine it is already rotating. The result, said Bérat, is reduced power loss.

The latest generation of computing hardware and software helped a lot, he noted. Additive manufacturing (3-D printing) made it possible to create the fuel nozzles. “They would have been impossible to machine,” Bérat explained. Finally, at the demonstration stage, the proximity between the design office and the assembly workshop contributed to the success.

The fatal accident of an Airbus Helicopters H225 (EC225LP), registered as LN-OJF, on April 29 off the coast of Norway, near Turoey outside Bergen, was “most likely” the result of a fatigue fracture in one of the main gearbox's second-stage planet gears. According to AIBN, Norway's accident investigation bureau, the fatigue phenomenon appears to have its origin on the inner surface of the gear, propagating toward the web of the gear teeth.

The failed component shows “clear similarities” with that of G-REDL, an AS332L2 Super Puma that crashed in 2009. At the time, indirect fatigue detection was already in place and measures (using magnetic sensors) were taken to detect the spalling caused by a crack. However, the failure mode seen on LN-OJF“seems to differ from what was expected during certification.”

Norway's AIBN believes that a subsurface crack propagated without creating a significant amount of magnetic debris from spalling. It is now looking for what initiated the fatigue fracture. The gearbox was involved in a road accident in 2015 and, although a repair was conducted before installation on CHC's helicopter, the investigators have not ruled out the event as a factor.

The trio of Hibernia Management and Development Co. (HMDC), Research & Development Corp. (RDC) and CAE inaugurated a new helicopter training and research and development center in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, yesterday. Fully funded by HMDC and RDC and operated by CAE, the facility features the first civilian level-D helicopter simulator with night vision in Canada and hosts five research projects.

HMDC helicopter service provider Cougar Helicopters has started training its pilots at the center. “CAE is proud to offer flight and mission training to offshore and search-and-rescue crews in the province. We also look forward to the research and development projects aimed at making helicopter training more efficient and safe,” said Nick Leontidis, CAE group president for civil aviation training solutions. “We will develop local R&D expertise to support the needs of the Newfoundland and Labrador oil and gas industry.”

R&D will focus on human factors research in areas such as aircrew health monitoring and helmet fatigue.

The Yonkers, N.Y. city council voted unanimously Tuesday night to remove heliports from approved city building codes. This move is designed to thwart a proposed plan by Helicopter Flight Services (HFS), operating as HeliNY, to establish a helitour base from a barge anchored to the shoreline along the Hudson River next to a sewage treatment plant in an industrial zone in the city's Ludlow Park section.

HFS is currently under contract to purchase the adjacent property that is now used for school bus parking. It had proposed a 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven-day-a-week operation there running Bell 407s and Airbus EC130s flying three to six times per hour in what could have amounted to 13,000 to 26,000 flights per year. Tourists would be shuttled to the heliport by bus from New York City or a nearby subway station at Ludlow Street.

The helicopter operator developed the Yonkers plan in response to a plan imposed to cut helitour flights originating in New York City by 50 percent at the start of next year, but it faced immediate push-back from prominent Yonkers politicians and community groups, despite HFS's presentation of a detailed noise-abatement and environmental plan in May.

Helicopter cargo hook specialist Drallim Industries (Hall 3, Stand A61) recently announced that its Hawk 8000-pound cargo hook system has been selected by Bell Helicopters for the new 525 Relentless model. The keeperless hook is based on the company’s core design which has a maximum operating load capacity of 10,000 pounds, and is designed with a safety factor of 4:3, increasing the safety margin and operator confidence, according to the manufacturer.

“We have been supplying helicopter cargo hooks to the rotary-wing industry since 1959,” said Phil Wilson, aerospace divisional manager for the UK-based company. “Our legacy products have a long and successful track record of safety and reliability. Bell Helicopter’s 525 Relentless is chock-full of technology so we feel especially privileged to have one of our leading-edge cargo hook systems installed on such an innovative and prestigious platform.”

Drallim’s Hawk cargo hooks meet U.S.FAR 29.865 standards for human and non-human external cargo loads across the spectrum of light-, medium- and heavy-lift rotorcraft platforms. —C.E.

Mecaer has received U.S.FAA supplemental type certificate (STC) validation for an EMS interior it developed for the Airbus Helicopters H145. Babcock International's Inaer partnered with the Mecaer Aviation Group (MAG) to develop the aeromedical interior and was the launch customer for it, ordering 10 systems. Inaer became the first H145 air ambulance customer for Airbus in 2012 and the launch ship with the Mecaer EMS interior first saw service in 2014.

The system incorporates lightweight components and is certified for 10 different layouts. The interior can be converted quickly without special tools to fulfill various operating needs, ranging from dedicated air medical to search and rescue (SAR) and law enforcement.

“We are pleased to offer the U.S. marketplace a new medical interior alternative,” said Armando Sassoli, MAG's co-general manager. In addition to providing customized interiors for air ambulance providers, MAG also offers cabin interiors for corporate and VIP cabins for Airbus Helicopters, Bell Helicopter and Leonardo Helicopters.”

Another EMS helicopter has reported a near collision with a drone. This latest incident happened May 7 at 1,400 feet over Phoenix, Ore., just after midnight, forcing the Mercy Flights air ambulance to take evasive action. The helicopter was en route to pick up a patient in Yreka, Calif., and none of the crew on board was injured.

The recreational-sized drone was operating with running lights, according to the operator. New FAA rules that take effect August 29 prohibit recreational drone flights at night or above 400 feet agl.

The Center for the Study of Drones at Bard College reported 921 drone-manned aircraft incidents between Dec. 17, 2013 and Sept. 12, 2015. Bard data from 2014 to 2015 shows that pilots needed to take evasive action in 41 percent of drone-manned aircraft encounters and that 56 percent of encounters happened above 400 feet agl, with an average height of 3,306 feet. It also noted that 58 percent of the encounters happened within five miles of an airport or heliport.

On July 6 at approximately 11:47 a.m. local time, a Bell 525 flight-test vehicle (FTV) crashed and burned while on a test flight from the company's XworX facility in Arlington, Texas, approximately 45 miles south of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Photos from the scene suggest to AIN that the crashed aircraft was FTV1. Bell reports that two crewmembers aboard died.

Local media reports from the scene indicate that most of the helicopter debris is highly compact, though some is hundreds of feet away from the primary crash site. Dallas television station KXAS reports a section of the tail boom was located 1,500 feet southeast of the primary crash site. The crash occurred in rural Chambers Creek, Texas, northwest of Corsicana. A witness on the ground reported hearing a loud twin boom sound before seeing the helicopter make an immediate descent.

Flightradar24 records show that the helicopter departed Arlington at 10:39 a.m. local time (15:39 UTC). It proceeded to the south, where it flew a pattern at altitudes between 2,000 and 3,000 feet. The last data point is at 1,975 feet at a speed of 199 knots at 11:47 a.m.

Bell issued the following statement this afternoon: “On July 6, 2016, a Bell 525 was involved in an accident while conducting developmental flight-test operations south of our Xworx facility in Arlington, Texas. Unfortunately, the accident resulted in the loss of two crewmembers. This is a devastating day for Bell Helicopter. We are deeply saddened by the loss of our teammates and have reached out to their families to offer our support. Bell Helicopter representatives are on site to assess the situation and provide any assistance to local, state and federal authorities. At this time we ask for your understanding as we work through all of the details. We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.”

FTV1 is one of three aircraft currently engaged in the 525 flight-test program. Two more flight-test vehicles were scheduled to be added to the program late this summer. FTV1 made its first flight on July 1 last year.

The 525 is the first civil helicopter designed with full fly-by-wire (FBW) flight controls. In May, the FAA published notice that it intends to seek special certification conditions for the 525 because of its FBW system.

Airbus Helicopters and its predecessors have been highly successful producers of civil helicopters—big, medium and small—over a 50-year period. At the same time, the company’s experience with the dedicated Tiger attack helicopter over the past 25 years has been mixed, with development delays, funding holdups and failed sales campaigns. This helps explain why it is now adapting its commercial range for attack purposes.

The marketing handle for this drive is “HForce,” and the aim is to use a “modular, incremental approach to producing affordable, high-performance multipurpose military helicopters,” according to Christian Fanchini, senior operational marketing manager. The former French Army helicopter pilot described progress in the two-year-old initiative during a mid-June media briefing at Airbus Helicopters’ Donauwörth site in Germany.

Any of the company’s 11 current civil helicopters could theoretically be adapted with the generic HForce weapons system. For now, though, Airbus Helicopters is concentrating on the H125 single-engine machine, the H145 light twin and the H225 heavy helicopter. These were formerly designated the AS350B3, BK117D/EC145T2 and EC725 respectively. As military helicopters, the suffix ‘M’ is added to the new designations.

Fanchini reported on the first HForce firing campaign, which took place in late May/early June on the H225M. The 11-ton, 19-passenger machine was fitted with an L-3 Wescam Mx15 EO/IR sensor/rangefinder turret and a Rockwell Collins FMC-4000 mission computer. Airbus Helicopters developed the software and added special firing grips to the controls. The pilots wore Thales Scorpion helmet-mounted sight displays (HMSDs).

The H225M was armed with FN Herstal 12.7 mm HMP400 machine guns; a 20 mm Nexter cannon; and a 70 mm FZ rocket pod, all on specially-designed mounts. Those weapons are all ballistic, but guided weapons such as Hellfire anti-tank missiles, Mistral air-to-air missiles and laser-guided rockets can be added if customers request them. The latter can help the helicopter stay out of range of hostile 7.62 mm ground fire, but armor has been developed for them, as well as self-sealing fuel tanks.

Pilots can fire the weapons through the HMSD, or a gunner can fire through the turret. This can be slaved to elevation, allowing firing to be done while in the hover.

Airbus Helicopters (Outdoor Exhibits 13, 25) plans to qualify the H225M by the end of next year. Meanwhile, it plans to add the same HForce weapons system to an H145M and fly it early next year.

The H145M has already achieved major sales success in the U.S., where the Army chose it for training and ordered 350. The German Army has bought 15 for special operations, and examples for the Australian and Thai armed forces are currently in production at Donauwörth. It can be variously equipped for medevac, SAR and ISR missions.

It is still “the jewel in the crown” of CAE’s simulation business, according to Ian Bell, the company’s vice-president and general manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa. In the 18 years since the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) tapped the Canadian company to provide the Medium Support Helicopter Aircrew Training Facility (MSHATF) at RAF Benson, the complex has been significantly enhanced. For example, CAE (Chalet B38) networked the six dynamic simulators so that Britain’s Chinook, Merlin and Puma pilots can realistically practice combined operations. And the facility has evolved to provide realistic pre-deployment training. It will soon be offering rehearsal training at short notice for specific missions-to-come.

Still, the primary task of the MSHATF remains initial conversion of pilots onto type, through classroom instruction as well as simulator training. Overall, the facility is helping the MoD achieve its cost-saving ambition of increasing the proportion of synthetic versus actual flying training. The ratio has always been 70:30 for the Merlin, and will soon be the same for the Puma now that an upgraded Mk 2 version is coming into service.

Cost Saver

According to Andrew Naismith, managing director of CAE Aircrew Training Services at Benson, the cost of synthetic flying is just 5-10 percent what actual flying costs. It is also more environmentally friendly, and “better than real-world training in many cases,” he said.

Naismith does not accept the contention of Chinook crews that their current synthetic-live ratio of 45:55 is lower than the other two types because their flying is more complicated. The recent move of the RAF’s Chinook Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) to Benson “will hopefully change that within a year, with MoD agreement,” he added.

For sure, Chinook pilots on actual deployment are more likely to find themselves landing in dusty, ‘brown-out’ conditions, and often at night. Thanks to training in the MSHATF, the RAF has only suffered three incidents of minor damage in such landings, Naismith claimed. More graphically, he illustrated the value of emergency training that can only be done in a simulator. A Danish EH101 crew saved their aircraft when all three engines failed on climbout from a confined area. “They relied on the ‘muscle memory’ that they learned here,” he said.

Until recently, the two Merlin (RAFEH101) simulators at Benson were the only ones available for EH101 pilot training. Therefore, aircrews from the other six military customers for this helicopter have all trained here. This has helped the development of standard emergency procedures for the type, Naismith noted.

Four other countries have sent Chinook pilots here for training, and two others for Puma training. They collectively log about 2,000 hours, compared with 9,000 hours ‘flown’ annually by the MoD’s pilots. CAE (Chalet B38) and the MoD share the revenue. More ‘third-party flying’ could be done, but unlike many civilian simulator facilities the MSHATF does not operate on a 24-hour basis.

Joint Exercises

A Tactical Control Centre (TCC) within the building at Benson manages the ‘Thursday Wars’ when trainee pilots in the simulators learn how to fly with other friendly assets against airborne and ground-to-air threats.

During a recent media demonstration, instructors in the TCC generated AH-64 attack helicopters, an AWACS and a Tornado combat jet for the Blue Force. A cyber-MiG-29 supplemented with a surface-to-air missile represented the Red Force.

Naismith said that networking simulators for helicopters is more difficult than for fixed-wing aircraft, but a common database (CDB) is solving that issue. This is related to the introduction of CAE’s Medallion 6000 visual systems, which are replacing less detailed Harmony visuals provided by Rockwell Collins. CAE has made the investment in the CDB, but it’s not proprietary, Naismith said.

CAE first employed the CDB 10 years ago when it won a mission rehearsal contract from U.S. Special Operations Command. Now the CDB allows the MSHATF to offer similar rehearsals. Already, “no British medium helicopter aircrew goes anywhere without pre-deployment training here,” said Naismith.

Simulation training for the rear crews of helicopters is still an ambition for CAE. Naismith said that CAE’s home country, Canada, has taken the lead here. The process is complicated by the number of tasks to be simulated. “We’ll probably start with gunnery training,” he said. “We’ll have to go through the same cultural acclimatization process as we did with the pilots,” he added.

This potential capability will form part of a review–due next year–of CAE’s contract to provide and run the MSHATF. This will be halfway through the anticipated 40-year lifespan of this “private finance initiative” (PFI)-based program. The MoD guarantees a minimum usage and pays by the hour. British company Serco provides the ex-military instructors under subcontract to CAE.

Ahead of the review, CAE has won a contract to upgrade two of the three Chinook simulators at Benson to the Mk 6A standard, including its digital automatic flying control system.

CAE in the Region

CAE has 25 training sites in Europe, 17 of them in the UK, including a large training center in its regional headquarters at Burgess Hill. Some 500 of the company’s 8,000 worldwide employees are in the UK.

According to regional vice-president Ian Bell, the UK is a strategic market because many nations adopt British defense philosophies and practices. CAE has won contracts to provide various systems as part of the UK’s new Military Flying Training System (MFTS), despite this being managed by a company half-owned by rival training systems provider Lockheed Martin.

Contracts in Europe during the past year have included a Predator UAS simulator for the Italian air force, and an upgrade of the German navy’s Sea King helicopter training device to a full-mission simulator. CAE also provides the Medallion 6000 visual system for the German Air Force Eurofighter training devices.

The company has been nominated by Airbus D&S, and Leonardo-Finmeccanica as preferred supplier of simulators for the C295 airlifter and the M346 jet trainer respectively. CAE has a joint venture with the Italian company to offer comprehensive training for its former-AgustaWestland helicopter range.

The gap between the company’s larger civilian business and the defense business is narrowing, Bell said. He said that CAE is seeking to become “a long-term partner for mission readiness.” It established an office in Abu Dhabi in 2012, and subsequently won a contract to support the UAE’s special forces.

The U.S. Army is developing a Version 6 update of the Boeing AH-64E Apache that by 2018 will enhance its fire-control radar, expand its ability to communicate with unmanned aircraft and soldiers on the ground, and increase onboard processing speeds. The work was underway as the service sought approval for its first multi-year procurement of the fearsome attack helicopter.

The “heavily software dependent” Version 6 capabilities will be implemented on the latest-model Apache by April 2018 at a cost of $298.5 million, according to a “Justification and Approval” document signed in April 2015 by Heidi Shyu, the Army’s senior procurement executive.

The technology insertions can be retrofitted at Apache unit locations, said Apache project manager Col. Jeffrey Hager, who briefed reporters on the project last month at the Boeing Defense manufacturing facility in Mesa, Arizona.

“We want to capture the best that technology has at that time; rather than build the airframe all at once, we’re going to make these incremental updates,” said Hager. “We did such a good job on putting the mission processors in the airplane that we can upgrade the software as we go along.”

Enhancements to the Apache’s AN/APG-78 Longbow fire-control radar will extend its range, improve its ability to recognize threats and enable over-water maritime targeting. “Current and potential future conflicts mandate the need for the Apache to counter enemy anti-access/area denial [threats] such as unmanned aircraft, amphibious assault vehicles and hovercraft, at extended ranges and under adverse weather conditions,” according to the project justification document.

Version 6 also calls for integrating soldier waveform radio voice and data capability “using the second channel” within the Apache’s Link 16 airborne terminal. This will “better support the warfighter while meeting the net-centric requirement to provide direct voice communications with supported soldiers and exchange individual position information to increase situational awareness and prevent fratricide within the joint fight.”

New multi-core mission processors will provide more memory and faster processing speeds. A cognitive decision aiding system will be integrated, helping to decrease pilot workload and improve decision making efficiency. Also integrated will be a modernized rocket launcher, and the capability to deploy the advanced AGM-114R “Hellfire Romeo” air-to-surface missile.

Manned-Unmanned Teaming

The update will also introduce the next-generation capability of Manned-Unmanned Teaming-Extended, or “MUMT-X” enabling Apaches to interoperate with a wider range of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and other platforms.

Already, the crew of an AH-64E equipped with a tactical common data link (TCDL) can control the General Atomics MQ-1C Gray Eagle and the Textron Systems Shadow V2 in flight—so-called Level 4 capability. (Level 1 is the receipt and transmission of secondary imagery; Level 2 is receipt of imagery directly from the UAS; and Level 3 is control of the UAS payload.) MUMT-X calls for TCDL capability to be expanded to include C, L and S-band communications, Hager said.

Last September, L-3 Communications was awarded a subcontract from Science and Engineering Services for the MUMT-X upgrade, which it described as a wideband, high-speed video and data communications suite.

In addition to operating in multiple bands, the system was to include a Rover 6 modem for the remotely operated video enhanced receivers used by soldiers and forward air controllers, and an “innovative directional antenna capable of relaying multiple video streams back to the command center,” the company said at the time.

“When that comes out in the latter part of fiscal 2018, the [Apache] Echo model will be able to talk with any system that’s out there on the battlefield,” Hager said. “Right now, the requirement that was written for us was to talk to tactical common data link systems, which is the Gray Eagle and the Shadow V2. We can talk to those systems today; in a few short years, we’ll be the first airframe to talk to any systems out there on the battlefield, and that includes naval security assets, the Marines—anything that’s flying out in the airspace, they’ll be able to capture that data.”

During the press trip to the Mesa facility, the Army and Boeing (Chalet B6, OEG4) were negotiating a multi-year procurement for 275 AH-64Es—which are remanufactured from earlier versions—with options for up to 450 total helicopters, to include foreign military sales and additional U.S. Apaches.

According to Hager and Kim Smith, Boeing vice president of attack helicopter programs, the multi-year buy was approved by congressional oversight committees and the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, Frank Kendall.

The contract would extend from Fiscal Years 2017 to 2021, providing “the capability to come back quickly to Boeing and ask for more airframes,” said Hager. “That’s really what it comes down to—we want speed and agility in how we do contracting operations. We’ve procured anywhere from 35 to 56 aircraft [annually]. It’s been very volatile over these last several years. That’s why we want to take on the stability of a multi-year contract.”

The parties expected to conclude the multi-year contract no later than the second quarter of FY2017, or between January and March next year. Boeing wanted to do it sooner. “We’ve been working very hard to see how we can pull that schedule to the left,” said Smith.

Bell is continuing to work on its V-280 Valor Joint Multi Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR-TD) third generation military tiltrotor. A mock-up of the aircraft is on display here at the Farnborough International Airshow (Textron, Outside Exhibition area L2).

In April it successfully joined the wing and Israel Aircraft Industries nacelles to the Spirit AeroSystems-built fuselage at its assembly center in Amarillo, Texas. Late this fall Bell will begin installation of GE Aviation T64-GE-419 engines and main gearboxes prior to tether tests, leading up to a planned first flight in September 2017.

In an interview ahead of this week’s show, Bell Helicopter CEO Mitch Snyder argued that the V-280 is in pole position to win the U.S. military’s Future Vertical Lift Program for a next-decade to replace the Army’s Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks and the Bell UH-1 operated by the Marines. Bell is competing against the Boeing Sikorsky Defiant. “We have the proven technology—a straight wing with no gearboxes and the nacelles completely tilt so everything stays level,” he said. “This aircraft offers tremendous reliability and provides higher performance.”

First flight will provide Bell engineers with the data needed for the full-scale engineering, manufacturing, and development phase of the program. Concurrent to this activity, development is continuing in the company’s flight control systems lab in Fort Worth, Texas. The lab integrates pilot inputs with flight control computers and flight controls, providing data for software that works with the hardware controlling flight loads and hydraulic performance. 

The V-280 includes the extensive use of monolithic honeycomb and carbon-core composite components in the fuselage, wings, tail structures, ruddervators, and the widespread use of chemical bonding in place of traditional fasteners to affix substructures. “We have improved the manufacturing processes to arrive at a revolutionary aircraft with reduced sustainment costs and simplified maintenance procedures,” said Bell executive v-p of military business development Lisa Atherton.

The JMR-TD program could involve deliveries of as many as 4,000 aircraft by the year 2030 under a contract potentially worth $100 billion. The UK’s Ministry of Defence has shown interest in the program, which will likely lead to significant foreign military sales.

Bell (Outside Exhibition L2-L5) designed the V-280 to have a cruise speed of 280 knots and a 500- to 800-nautical mile combat range with 11 to 14 troops; a 2,100-nm ferry range; a 12,000+-pound useful load; and the ability to take off in 6K/95F conditions (up to 6,000 feet pressure altitude and up to 95 degrees Fahrenheit).

Differs From V-22

It differs in design substantially for its older V-22 cousin, which has now logged more than 300,000 flight hours and is reportedly the busiest aircraft in service with the U.S. Marines. Rather than a rear ramp, it has a V-tail and two six-foot-wide sliding fuselage side doors for faster ingress/egress. Next-generation troops also will be able to wirelessly recharge their various high-tech, battery-powered gear from power sources built into the seats.

On the V-22, the engines, gearboxes and prop-rotors all rotate as thrust direction is changed; on the V-280 only the gearboxes and prop-rotors rotate. The V-280 will have 50 percent more flapping capability in its rotor system than that on the V-22, giving it greater agility in all axes.

While a final avionics configuration is still many years away, Bell is displaying a single-screen touchscreen instrument panel in the V-280 mock-up designed to use the foundation of the PDAS (pilot displayed aperture system) currently flying in the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighter and developed by Northrup Grumman. PDAS in the F-35 provides 360-degree situational awareness by sending high-resolution real-time imagery to the pilot’s helmet from six infrared cameras mounted around the aircraft, while the system’s software prioritizes threats, and provides “data fusing.” 

 “The screen behaves like a tablet, with pinch, zoom and swipe capability,” explained Bell V-280 project engineer Jeremy Chavez. “This cockpit will be operational in 10-15 years. The pilots who will be flying this are eight years old today. They are growing up with smartphones and tablets, so this kind of interface would be highly intuitive for them and that is what we want to implement in the design. We want them to be able to absorb as much information as they can, but display it in an intuitive way that is aiding the flight—not going through subsystem after subsystem to locate the information, but having it where you need it, when you need it; and then you close it out when you don’t need it.”

The screen itself would be constructed from a series of small “plug and play” display modules that fit together into one giant mosaic, thus insulating the whole system from failure in the event of a ballistic impact or other cause. Data from a dead module would automatically transfer to the live part of the mosaic, ensuring no data was lost. “If you take a ballistic impact, 95 percent of the screen is still intact,” Chavez said, while admitting that Bell engineers have a way to go before the system is ready to fly. “But we’re very excited,” he said.

Bell Helicopter (Chalet L2) and interiors specialist Mecaer Aviation Group (MAG, Hall 1 Stand A140) unveiled here at Farnborough the Grandeur luxury interior for the Bell 525 Relentless, on display at the show in a full-scale cabin mockup. Featuring the latest advances in ergonomic design, noise perception, functionality and comfort, the Grandeur interior offers multiple choices for finishings and seating configurations. An in-flight Entertainment Enhanced Lounge (I-FEEL) incorporates Wi-Fi, moving maps, ambient light controls and audio/video functions, all controllable via smart device or smart watch. Large cabinets provide plenty of storage space, and the monitors mounted on them can retract into the consoles. Electro-chromatic controls change cabin windows from clear to full tint, while a Speech Interference Level Enhanced Noise System (SILENS) with limousine-style privacy window quiets the cabin, allowing passengers to converse without using headsets.

Cabin configuration options allow customers to choose a layout best suited to their needs. With oversize windows, large individual swiveling seats and options like a wrap-around divan, the design brings rotorcraft interiors to a level previously associated with high-end business jets.

Armando Sassoli, co-general manager of Italy’s MAG, called Grandeur “the perfect blend of style and technology,” while Bell’s Patrick Moulay, executive v-p of global sales and marketing, asserted the interior “is taking luxury helicopter transport to a new level.”

The “super medium” category Relentless is the only commercial helicopter to incorporate fly-by-wire technology, and is on track to become the fastest, having exceeded 200 knots in high speed testing. No price for the Relentless has been announced, but it’s expected to list for between $20 million and $24 million.

Bell has cancelled a scheduled press conference here at Farnborough on the 525 program following the July 6 crash of a Bell 525 flight-test vehicle, which claimed the lives of the two test pilots onboard. It remains to be seen how the tragedy will affect the certification program, which had been scheduled for completion next year. The prototype that crashed was the first of three flying in the test program. Two more are in production, expected to join the program later this summer.

By the end of this month Boeing will—if everything goes to plan—have delivered the first AH-6i Little Bird light attack/reconnaissance helicopter to inaugural customer Saudi Arabia, which is the recipient of a new wave of U.S. weaponry. The manufacturer has also established a contract outline with the U.S. Army to quickly supply up to 72 Little Birds to unspecified foreign buyers.

During a press trip Boeing (Chalet B6, Outdoor Exhibit G4) hosted at its helicopter assembly facility in Mesa, Arizona, on June 7, reporters viewed the first AH-6i planned for delivery to the Saudi Arabia National Guard (SANG). The helicopter—numbered 61001—was undergoing the final week of the build process, prior to being flight tested and delivered. The expression “God Bless You” was painted on its fuselage, which is typical for Saudi aircraft.

Seven of 24 AH-6is specified in a 2014 foreign military sale (FMS) were cycling through assembly. Fuselages for the first AH-6is manufactured for Saudi Arabia are being provided by Mesa-based MD Helicopters, with sub-assembly taking place in Monterrey,Mexico.

The Defense Contract Management Agency, a component agency of the U.S. Department of Defense, will perform acceptance flight testing of the helicopters before turning them over to the Saudi government. It is expected that several Saudi pilots will train in Mesa, as well as pilots who will then serve as instructors in SaudiArabia.

Single-engine AH-6is can be fitted with a combination of: semi-active laser Hellfire missiles; 70 mm rockets; M-134 mini gun; and .50 caliber GAU-19B machine gun. The aircraft’s integrated digital cockpit and mission computer were derived from those in the AH-64 Apache, and it carries an L-3 Wescam MX-15Di sensor turret with laser rangefinder/designator and laser pointer.

In April, the U.S. Army issued a “sources sought notice” requesting information on industry’s capability to produce 72 AH-6is over a three-year period. The first 12 production aircraft, spares and equipment would likely be directed to Boeing “through a binding FMS letter of offer and acceptance (LOA) executed bilaterally between the U.S. government and the foreign country customer who is funding the effort,” according to the notice. The remaining 60 aircraft would be subject to “foreign country customers” executing LOAs for their production and delivery.

Mark Ballew, Boeing director global sales and marketing for attack helicopters, said the notice sets out to establish a contract vehicle to expedite FMS sales of the helicopters. He acknowledged that Jordan has previously expressed an interest in acquiring Little Birds, but he declined to identify other potential customers.

The first AH-6i deliveries originated in a series of U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia announced in October 2010. The largest component of the package—valued at $29.4 billion—called for the supply of 84 Boeing F-15SA fighters and the upgrade of 70 existing F-15S strike fighters to the SA standard. Boeing rolled out the first F-15SA from its St. Louis facility in April 2013, and U.S. Air Force plans called for delivering the fighters to Saudi Arabia between 2015 and 2019.

Simultaneous with the F-15 announcement, the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of an estimated $25.6 billion sale to Saudi Arabia of 36 AH-64E Apaches, 36 AH-6is, 72 Sikorsky UH-60M Blackhawks and 12 MD Helicopters MD-530Fs for operation by the SANG. Separate sales for $3.3 billion and $2.2 billion called for supplying 24 AH-64Es to the Royal Saudi Land Forces, which has operated Apaches since the 1990s, and 10 to the Royal Guard.

Boeing started delivering AH-64Es—the latest model Apache—to Saudi Arabia in early 2014. The Army awarded the manufacturer a $234 million FMS contract in August 2014 to supply 24 AH-6is to the SANG, the first customer of the light attack helicoptervariant. Boeing started final assembly of the Little Birds in December 2015.

FLIR Systems (Chalet B26) has released the new Star Safire 380-HLDc high-definition compact airborne electro-optical infrared targeting system. The system combines the latest FLIR sensor technology with precision laser designation for helicopters and other platforms.

Developed under FLIR’s Commercially Developed, Military Qualified (CDMQ) model, the Star Safire 380-HLDc provides significantly longer range positive ID than previous systems of comparable size and weight. Weighing only 65 pounds, the system incorporates an internally developed long-range laser designator for precision engagements and advanced laser spot-tracking and decoding.

Applications of the Star Safire 380-HLDc include close air support, air interdiction, armed reconnaissance, combat SAR, light attack and force protection. The system can also be mounted on remotely piloted aircraft.

“As governments look to expand the mission portfolio of their rotary- and fixed-wing platforms, the Star Safire 380-HLDc delivers extraordinary performance in a uniquely compact product,” declared Andy Teich, FLIR president and CEO. “Our unique CDMQ model allows us to bring products like the Star Safire 380-HLDc to our military customers quickly and cost effectively.”