Kopter has restarted the flight-test program for its SH09 light single turbine helicopter. Having struggled with technical issues and multi-year delays since its first flight in 2014, the Leonardo group company resumed flying in January. Its sole flying P3 prototype has been refitted with a new main rotor head design, a new main gearbox with an extended mast, new flight controls configuration, and Garmin G3000H avionics.
Kopter plans to add minor aerodynamic improvements to the cowling before test aircraft PS4 (pre-series) joins the program in the third quarter, followed by PS5“some months later.” However, the program still has a variety of commercial and distribution issues to work through, as well as the industrialization of components. The retrofitted P3 aircraft flew 25 hours between mid-January and early March, with the test pilots reporting handling much improved.
The full test program is expected to require another 500 flight hours and will use aircraft PS4 and PS5 for the majority of those activities. For now, flight testing is focusing on expanding the flight and c.g. load envelopes.
At present, Kopter does not expect any changes to previously-announced performance targets for the eight-passenger helicopter, including 140-knot maximum cruise speed and 430-nm range.
- General Aviation