Bell 412EPI Ascends Near Everest
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...
View ArticleYonkers Helitour Base Debated
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...
View ArticleFAA Sets Special Certification Conditions for Bell 525
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...
View ArticleAir Evac Sues Health Insurers
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...
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NASA Helicopter Could Fly on Mars
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...
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New Combustor Design Simplifies Safran's Arrano
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...
View ArticleMain Gearbox Fatigue Likely Cause of Airbus H225 Crash
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...
View ArticleNew Helicopter Training and R&D Center Opens in Canada
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,...
View ArticleCity Council Votes Down Yonkers Heliport
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...
View ArticleDrallim Tapped for Relentless Hook
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...
View ArticleMecaer EMS Interior for Airbus H145 Gets FAA Nod
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...
View ArticleMercy Flights Helo Takes Evasive Action To Avoid Drone
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...
View ArticleBell 525 Flight Test Vehicle Crashes; Two Crewmembers Dead
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...
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Airbus HForces Civil Helicopters Into Military Roles
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...
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RAF Benson CAE Heli Training Facility Enhanced
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...
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U.S. Army Develops Apache ‘Version 6’ Update
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...
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Bell Advances Next Generation Tiltrotor Development
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...
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Bell, Mag, Unveil Luxe Interior For Relentless
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...
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Boeing Starts ‘Little Bird’ Deliveries To Saudi Arabia
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...
View ArticleFLIR Unveils New Star Safire Targeting System
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...
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