Sikorsky S-76D: FAA Certified You Wouldn’T Expect Reliable Service from a Facility Like This…Would You?

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NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 3 Editor’s Notebook Every Day Safety Plan By Andrew Parker [email protected]

n early October Sikorsky Global ship, systems and processes, and patching the aircraft as precisely as Helicopters (SGH) invited Rotor communications. “We had to dem- we were previously. We’ve doubled I& Wing to its commercial pro- onstrate that we are interested, and the number of occurrence reports— duction facility in Coatesville, make sure that what we’re saying is low-level items, but we’ve doubled Pa. The site of the former Keystone happening, is actually happening.” the reports from May 9 until now, in Helicopter, which Sikorsky acquired Initially, “people were—I wouldn’t terms of an average.” in 2005, Coatesville houses the pro- say skeptical, but they had different Other examples of measurable duction of the S-92, the S-76D— reactions, and they weren’t used to results include a case where techni- which received an FAA type cer- the change,” Mintern noted. “But cians noted a small deviation in a tificate on Oct. 12—the S-300C and when we went back a second and HUMS indication. According to airframe assembly for the CH-148 third time, and they realized that this standard procedure, Bond contact- Canadian Maritime Helicopter. (See was very sincere, and we mean what ed the OEM immediately, and the story on page 12.) we’re trying to do, it’s satisfying to see response was that it was safe to fly Since the drive to Coatesville was the changes we’ve made in a short and to monitor for 10 hours before only a couple hours, and because period.” People feel like they’ve “let issuing another report. “We decided my schedule was open—which is the side down if they’ve not deliv- that we felt there should be other rare these days with a two-month- ered,” he continued. “But if delivering barriers in place,” Mintern said. “We old baby at home—I decided to that piece means that they’re putting want to be in a place where if the head north and get a first-hand look additional risk into the business, then guy’s uncomfortable, then we don’t myself. From the outside, the Coates- that’s what we have to manage very go.” So the helicopter in question was ville facility is pretty basic, just a carefully.” Mintern estimated that taken out of service. series of office-type buildings along a Bond has invested around $2 to $3 “It caused delays and inconve- stretch near Chester County Airport million in “both people and systems” nienced people coming back after two (MQS) in Pennsylvania. Inside is a in the effort to improve safety aware- weeks offshore,” Mintern continued, dynamic helicopter production line ness and safety management sysytem “but they took it to the hangar and that is preparing for further expan- (SMS) programs across the company. replaced a small bearing with a total sion. Dorith Hakim, general man- When asked how he measures the delay of 2-3 hours. It wouldn’t have ager of SGH operations, led a tour results, Mintern replied that a head been catastrophic, but actually we of the Coatesville plant, which now of one of the offshore oil companies rewarded that team. Those three includes a customer delivery center asked him the same question about people have been congratulated and among other recent additions. three months ago. recognized.” He added: “Guess what While at Coatesville, I met Rich- “One of them said to me, ‘All the customer reaction was? Fantastic. ard Mintern, president and CEO of this sounds great, but how will you No flight is too important to an oil and Bond Aviation Group, who was there know whether you’re making a dif- gas provider like that. They were real- for first acceptance of two baseline ference? How will you know that ly pleased and said they felt that we S-92s. Mintern was faced with a you’re getting there?’ So I couldn’t are going in the right direction. This is unique challenge in the second week easily answer the question at that where safety should be going.” of his new position back in May, as a point, honestly, and spent a lot of Even with the circumstances lead- Bond-operated EC225 was involved time thinking about it and talking ing up to the 100-day effort, Bond’s in a ditching incident in the North to other people.” After searching for plan is important because it sets Sea. He initiated a “100-day safety answers, Mintern concluded that short-term, company-wide objectives plan” that just wrapped up in late “some of these goals are measured for safety. It’s easy to think of safety September. Mintern explained that around performance, tangible things, as a long-term goal, but it needs to a total of 40 “change agents” across and some are soft targets. But we’ve be considered a daily/all-the-time the company worked to address four experienced a two percent reduction priority for each operation—what key areas, including three “ongoing in our on-time delivery. Is that good? might be termed an Every Day Safety streams” of organization and leader- Yes, because it means we’re not dis- Plan.

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Personal|Corporate Commercial Military Public Service DEPARTMENTS 12 Rotorcraft Report 22 Program Insider Northrop Grumman MQ-8C 26 People 26 Coming Events 27 Hot Products 47 Classified Ads 52 Coming Up in R&W 53 Ad Index COLUMNS 4 Editor’s Notebook 8 Feedback FEATURES 10 Meet the Contributors

46 Public Service 28 ■ Dubai Helishow Preview What to expect during the industry’s third largest helicopter trade 48 Law Enforcement gathering, the Dubai Helishow. By Douglas Nelms Notebook 34 ■ Guarding the Games 50 Safety Watch While the world watched Olympic athletes going for gold in London, guardian angels in the form of helicopters helped keep the UK skies safe. 54 Military Insider By Andrew Drwiega, Military Editor 38 ■ Making Engine Maintenance Count A close look at the importance of proper engine maintenance and how it impacts all areas of an operation. By Mark Robins 38 42 ■ Keeping in Touch While in the Air In-flight connectivity is more than just business-types sending airborne work e-mails, it’s also assisting operators and crew with safety and situational awareness. By Frank Lombardi

On the Cover: Sikorsky Aircraft has obtained the FAA type certificate for the S-76D, which is being produced in Coatesville, Pa. See story in Rotorcraft Report starting on page 12. Photo courtesy of Sikorsky.

6 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Vol. 46 | No. 11 November 2012

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WHAT DO THE EXPERTS THINK? • Ask questions to three experts on the topics of helicopter aerodynamics, AS9100 quality management systems audits and night vision goggle (NVG) certification at rotorandwing.com. Che Masters, certification engineer for NSF-ISR, discusses aerospace quality registration. Frank Lombardi, test and evaluation pilot, provides insights about the science behind helicopter flight. NVG certification expert Jessie Kearby fields questions about NVGs for both military and commercial uses.

DIRECT TO YOUR DESKTOP: CHECK YOUR EMAIL NOVEMBER 1: • Digital edition of Rotor & Wing November 2012. Electronic version with enhanced web links makes navigating through the pages of Rotor & Wing easier than ever. WEEK OF NOVEMBER 19: • Rotor & Wing’s Military Insider e-letter. Get the latest updates from helicopter defense companies around the world, from Military Editor Andrew Drwiega. WEEK OF NOVEMBER 26: • HOT PRODUCTS for Helicopter Operators—Latest in equipment upgrades, performance Get connected: modifications, training devices and other tools for the rotorcraft industry. Become a fan of Rotor & Wing on Follow us on @rotorandwing TO SUBSCRIBE TO ANY OF OUR EXCLUSIVE EMAIL PRODUCTS, GO TO: WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM

The editors welcome new product information and other industry news. All editorial inquiries should be directed to Rotor & Wing magazine, 4 Choke Cherry Rd., 2nd Floor, Rockville, Md. 20850, USA; 1-301-354-1839; fax 1-301-762-8965. E-mail: rotorandwing@ accessintel.com. Rotor & Wing (ISSN-1066-8098) is published monthly by Access Intelligence, 4 Choke Cherry Rd., 2nd Floor, Rockville, Md. 20850, USA. Periodical postage paid at Rockville, Md. and additional mailing offices. Subscriptions: Free to qualified individuals directly involved in the helicopter industry. All other subscriptions, U.S.: one year $89; two years $178. Canada: one year $99; two years $198; Foreign: one year $129; two years $258. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Rotor & Wing, P.O. Box 3089, Northbrook, Ill. 60065-3089, USA. Change of address two to eight weeks notice requested. Send both new and old address, including mailing label to Attn: Rotor & Wing magazine, Customer Services, P.O. Box 3089, Northbrook, Ill. 60065-3089, USA or call 1-847-559-7314. E-mail: [email protected]. Canada Post PM40063731. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to: Station A, PO Box 54, Windsor, ON N9A 6J5. ©2011 by Access Intelligence, LLC. Contents may not be reproduced in any form without written permission. Publication Mail Sales Agreement No. 40558009

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 7 Feedback Personal|Corporate Commercial Military Public Service Training Products Services

EMS Accident Agreement R&W’s Question of the Month Terry Terrell’s comments about the causes of HEMS accidents (See Octo- How do you think that ber 2012, EMS Helicopter Safety 2012 Perspective, page 62) are spot on. I have advancements in in-flight 45 years in the industry and this is a great connectivity will benefit concise description of what makes EMS flying the most dangerous job in the helicopter operators? U.S. Pilots must learn that if they don’t return safely today they can never save anyone again. This could also be applied Let us know, and look for your and others’ responses in a to the U.S. Army. The combat loss vs. future issue. You’ll find contact information below. non-combat loss ratio has not changed in 45 years. Steve Kilbourne then will accidents be mitigated in “Can’t swat that high with my tail. Can Civilian EMS Accident the HEMS community. you? Damn flies!” Reduction CW3 Stephen Harper Erik Adamson In response to R&W’s question about Alpha Company PA Army National Guard HEMS safety in the October issue, I have Instructor Pilot, Safety Officer UH-60 never flown EMS civilian, but I have Abingdon, Md. Modern day cowboys. flown what the Army calls MEDVAC Atif Saeed chase (a non-MEDVAC helicopter From Facebook chasing the MEDVAC helicopter for a The following comments appeared at: Chopper steak. back-up. I did this for my last deploy- facebook.com/rotorandwing Jeremy Batman ment to Iraq and will possibly do it again for my Afghanistan deployment. Deja Moo...... ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Most of the accidents that occurred Stephen John Whitehorn on my deployment were not from enemy fire and mostly due to a lack of Ten feet lower and we’re gonna have training and proficiency. I understand roast beef sandwiches! that the civilian world does not have James Lee Stewart the luxury of doing flight training like the military, but generally speaking a “Who wants chopped brisket?” well-trained crew tends to mitigate Kris Rozett accidents. Reducing accidents is just like any other type of science field, Photo by Ned Dawson you take measurements and adjust. From Twitter It will cost HEMS companies The following comments appeared but to reduce the accident rate time at: twitter.com/rotorandwing money and adjustments will have to be applied to the HEMS. When mea- @NZAircraftFan: One cow to the surements are made to something, Moooooooooooooove, it you two. other: “If we just ignore that R22 it i.e. such as looking at accident rate, Will Bullock will go away.” type of accidents and proficiency and experienced involved; will yield infor- Now hold still, you are just the right @Ginger_of_Tech: Don’t just mation. Once the pertinent informa- distance apart for the skids. gralife by the horns... Grab it by the tion/measurements are taken, only Larry Peck cyclic

Do you have comments on the rotorcraft industry or recent articles and viewpoints we’ve published? Send them to Editor, Rotor & Wing, 4 Choke Cherry Road, Second Floor, Rockville, Md. 20850, USA, fax us at 1-301-354-1809 or e-mail us at rotorandwing@ accessintel.com. Please include a city and state or province with your name and ratings. We reserve the right to edit all submitted material.

8 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM SETTING THE STANDARD OF CUSTOMER SERVICE

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MIKE REDMON LEE BENSON is a retired senior pilot for the is an ATP rated pilot with Los Angeles County Fire Department. Before CFI, CFII, and MEI privileges. He began flying helicopters for the U.S. Army and he was named senior pilot, Lee ran the avia- then moved to civilian fixed-wing flying. tion section’s safety and training programs, After six enjoyable years in helicopter EMS, including organizing the section’s yearly he is back to flying airplanes. Helicopters he has flown are safety meeting with other public agencies and the press. the UH-1, OH-58, AH-64, BK-117, A-109E, BH-430 and BO-105. ANDREW DRWIEGA, Military Editor, is a senior defense journalist with a particular focus on international military rotorcraft. He MARK ROBINS is an experienced and accom- has reported on attachment from Iraq three plished editor who has bylined more than times (the latest of which was with a U.S. 50 full-length feature articles in his career, Manager, Sales Marine Corps MV-22 squadron), and three times with British most dealing with technical and manufactur- forces in Afghanistan (Kandahar and Camp Bastion), as well ing developments. He has written for such as from numerous exercises. He has flown in a wide variety of technical trade magazines as Quality and Electronic Packaging rotorcraft including the MV-22B Osprey, AH-64D Apache, and Production. He has also worked full-time for the editorial Rooivalk and many others. departments of the American Society of Civil Engineers and Society of Manufacturing Engineers. THIERRY DUBOIS is a long-time contrib- utor to Access Intelligence publications. He has been an aerospace journalist for CHRIS SHEPPARD is the Associate Editor 12 years, specializing in helicopters since of Rotor & Wing. Coming from a strong 2006. He writes on technical subjects, background in journalism and public rela- both for professional media and a popular science maga- tions, she was an editor for a leading online zine in France. Follow him on Twitter at @aerodub. newswire for several years. She has covered a wide range of topics, both online and in print since 2002. FRANK LOMBARDI, an ATP with both fixed- Chris is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Journal- wing and rotary-wing ratings, began his flying ism at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. She can career in 1991 after graduating with a bachelor’s be reached at [email protected]. of science in aerospace engineering, working on various airplane and helicopter programs as a flight test engineer for Grumman Aerospace Corp. Frank ERNIE STEPHENS, Editor-at-Large, began became a police officer for a major East Coast police depart- flying in the 1980s, earning his commer- Your mission relies on your aircraft, and at Aeronautical Accessories the success of your mission is our ment in 1995, and has been flying helicopters in the depart- cial pilot’s license and starting an aerial ment’s aviation section since 2000. He remains active in test and photography company as a sideline. In his number-one priority. We’re committed to delivering fast, personalized service backed by an extensive evaluation, and holds a master’s degree in aviation systems-flight regular job as a county police officer, he was testing from the University of Tennessee Space Institute. transferred to the department’s newly established aviation inventory and the expertise you’ve come to expect. That’s why customers rely on our personalized unit, where he served as the sergeant in charge and chief DOUGLAS NELMS has more than 30 years pilot until his retirement in 2006. In addition to regular approach to meeting their unique parts and accessories requirements. of experience as an aviation journalist and contributions in the pages of Rotor & Wing, Ernie (aka currently works as a freelance writer. He has “Werewolf”) has written for Access Intelligence sister pub- served as managing editor of Rotor & Wing. lication Avionics Magazine, www.aviationtoday.com/ A former U.S. Army helicopter pilot, Nelms av. He enjoys meeting our readers and flying a variety of specializes in writing about helicopters. helicopters.

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■ COMMERCIAL | AIRFRAMES FAA Certifies S-76D; Bond S-92 Completions Begin Sikorsky

A line of S-76Ds at Sikorsky’s plant in Coatesville, Pa.

Bond Aviation Group CEO Richard very pleased to be teaming with Sikor- percent to safety and environment, Mintern visited Sikorsky’s commercial sky,” Mintern said on Oct. 4 before a and about 25 percent energy services/ manufacturing plant in Coatesville, Pa. handover ceremony with more than 50 oil and gas. in early October to examine the initial employees, including Sikorsky Global The total fleet across five divisions two baseline S-92s that are part of a Helicopters director of programs Dan amounts to 365 aircraft, with about 16-aircraft order placed during Heli- Hunter and Ed Beyer, vice president 85 percent rotary wing. Mintern, who Expo in February 2012. and general manager. became CEO of Bond Aviation Group Bond Aviation’s group fleet and engi- The partnership marks the first earlier this year, said he has “taken a neering director, Martin Whittaker, time that Bond will operate a Sikor- keen interest in HUMS [health and came along to get a look at the green sky variant. The World Helicopter usage monitoring system] and how they S-92 combo that will go into service with Group subsidiary primarily flies Euro- monitor the aircraft in real-time, and Norsk Helikopter in January 2013 fol- copter types, including the AS332, was very impressed with the intellect lowing completions at Sikorsky Global AS365N3 and EC225, as well as a few and the processes by which [Sikorsky Helicopters (SGH) in Coatesville. AgustaWestland helicopters. engineers] review that data and sup- “I’m excited. Today is a momentous Mintern noted that around 45 per- port us as customers.” He implement- day really, where we come and do our cent of the organization’s fleet is dedi- ed “100-day safety plan” following a first acceptance of the aircraft. We’re cated to HEMS/search and rescue, 30 May 2012 ditching incident involving

12 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Rotorcraft Report Sikorsky

The hangar doors open up at the Sikorsky S-92 area in Coatesville. Bond Aviation Group is due to receive its first two S-92s in January 2013.

a Bond-operated EC225 in the North the S-92 and S-76D production lines, endar driven,” Beyer explained, the cer- Sea. The just-completed 100-day as well as the S-300C. FAA issued the tification delays “pushed the icing to the plan covers four key areas, including type certificate for the S-76D on Oct. right. We’re forecasting dry air testing managing HUMS indications “more 12, giving the green light to begin and subsystem qualification activities dynamically,” according to Mintern. addressing a backlog that is estimated on rotor ice protection this winter, and “We’ve worked very hard to put at close to $500 million. Sikorsky also then we will fly behind the tanker and further barriers in place along with reports a full order book for the S-92 find natural icing the following winter. Eurocopter,” he said. “Safety is inher- through 2013, specifically noting So we’d say by the end of next winter ent in everything we do. We cannot agreements with offshore and SAR/ we’ll have full certification for the ice work in this industry without that utility operators. protection.” being at the forefront of our minds.” Sikorsky experienced some techni- Beyer explained that Sikorsky plans Sikorsky’s Coatesville plant is home to cal delays with the certification pro- to deliver 10-14 baseline S-76Ds this gram for the S-76D, year. Coatesville will produce more after the first proto- than 30 S-92s during 2012, a 60 percent type took flight in increase in production over 2011. The 2009. The S-76D uptick will help address the demand for features Pratt & the S-92, according to Beyer. Whitney Canada SGH also carries out airframe PW210S engines, assembly for the CH-148 Canadi- Thales TopDeck avi- an Maritime Helicopter before final onics, HUMS and assembly occurs in West Palm Beach, all-composite main Fla. The Coatesville location is a silver Sikorsky rotor blades. Achieving Competitive Excellence According to (ACE) site, according to standards from Sikorsky officials, all parent company UTC. of the various con- Beyer noted that SGH is seeing “a figurations for the lot of metrics that are hitting gold stan- S-76D will be avail- dard,” adding that gold certification is able with first deliv- anticipated in another year or two. eries in early 2013, “Our focus has been to do what including VIP, off- we’ve done—get control of completions shore and SAR. One so that we can deliver a very high qual- of the only excep- ity product to our customers, and then tions is certification also creating a truly commercial piece for the rotor ice of the business. And that’s been very Sikorsky has obtained the S-76D type certificate. protection system. successful,” Beyer said. —By Andrew “Because it’s so cal- Parker, Editor-in-Chief

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 13 Rotorcraft Report

■ SERVICES | CERTIFICATION FAA Decides Against Bell 429 Weight Increase Bell Helicopter

Despite approvals from 11 other countries, FAA denied a request to increase the weight of the Bell 429 to 7,500 lbs.

Going against the grain of other regulatory agencies around The FAA ruling followed a series of petitions from Bell, the globe and the requests of Bell 429 operators in the U.S., 429 operators, other helicopter manufacturers and regula- FAA has denied a request from Bell Helicopter to increase tory agencies. Many of the 429 operators noted the increased the max gross weight of the variant from 7,000 to 7,500 operational capabilities and safety benefits from being able lbs. Transport Canada approved the weight increase in to install more equipment such as H-TAWS, digital engine January 2012, with several others nations giving the go-ahead controls, radio altimeter, wide area augmentation system through the course of 2012. In July, Argentina joined 10 other (WAAS), night vision goggles (NVGs) and wire strike protec- countries that have approved the weight increase, including tion, among others. One of Bell’s arguments centered around Brazil, Ecuador, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines an estimate of creating 400 new jobs, with 300 of those in the and Vietnam. United States. Bell estimates that “429 ship sales in the next Bell was seeking an exemption from 14 CFR section 27.1 five years will go from 150 to 500 ships and $150 million in (a) for the 500-lb increase. The FAA found that the granting direct supplier sales will be generated to support production” the exemption “would not be in the public interest.” The with the approval, adding that another 1,600 indirect jobs ruling followed an analysis that concludes “while the level would be created long term, according to FAA. of safety may be enhanced by the approved installation of But the manufacturer and 429 operators were unable to additional certified equipment, the FAA does not agree that convince FAA to approve the exemption. “We agree that jobs this can or should be accomplished through the granting of a in the United States could be created with the sale of more blanket exemption from the applicability of a Part 29 rotor- than 300 new helicopters. If there is a demand for that many craft weighing more than 7,000 lbs.” helicopters, then helicopter manufacturers will fill that need.” FAA also pointed to an “economic advantage” that Bell FAA added that, “ we believe jobs will be added regardless of Canada and other 429 operators would receive over other the manufacturer… However, it is important to remember Part 27 competitors that are limited to 7,000 lbs, and noted that a decision to exempt an applicant from FAA safety stan- that it could upset the “FAA and EASA harmonized type dards is, and should remain, primarily a safety decision.” The certification and airworthiness standards.” agency also noted that it has received a number of requests Describing Bell Canada’s application for the increase as for exemptions related to section 27.1, typically denying a “business decision” that would directly benefit Bell 429 the requests. FAA has only granted an exemption “in one operators, the FAA argued that comparable Part 29 helicop- situation, directly related to rulemaking that increased the ters in a similar weight class would be “at a disadvantage since weight limitation for all Part 27 helicopters.” FAA also agreed they were required to meet more costly Part 29 certification to examine whether the take-off weight standard for Part 27 requirements.” aircraft should be updated.

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■ SERVICES | FLIGHT TESTING Designer of Electric Helo Reflects on 2011 Flight Tests After having been virtually absent Hard work—seven days a week, 10 simulator early in the program. He from the media for more than one year, to 12 hours a day, Chretien said—led trained “every day from September Pascal Chretien, the designer and pilot to the first ground tests in March 2011. 2010 to July 2011.” of the world’s first electrically powered However, the following month, a motor Power never was a problem. Two helicopter, accepted an interview with incident delayed the program. The Agni DC motors supplied a total 32 Rotor & Wing. He reflected on the flight delay had some positive outcome. It kilowatts (43 hp). This was enough to tests that took place in the summer of gave Chretien time to rethink several hover, at a takeoff weight of 545 lbs. For 2011 near Aix-en-Provence, France. safety issues. For example, “I had started energy storage, Chretien chose Kokam There, with help from Solution F, a small the ground tests without a helmet or a lithium-ion polymer pouch cells—128 company specializing in motorsports, safety belt,” he said. Also, he installed lbs of them, located under the pilot seat. he managed to do what no helicopter additional controls on the cyclic stick to He used a honeycomb frame and an manufacturer has done so far. Chretien disengage the drive in case of emergen- Aerogel-based firewall. A battery man- sees his feat as just one step towards cy. Besides, the aircraft was fitted with agement system, supplied by Lithium a more ambitious goal—persuading a new set of blades using asymmetrical Balance, provided battery management the industry that the time has come for profiles. They raised out-of-ground- and charger control. It was a key ele- hybrid helicopters, where a combination effect lift from 570 to 680-lbs force. ment to success, he said. of an internal combustion engine and Safety was not always Chretien’s Why did Chretien choose a dual, electric motors would revolutionize top priority. To limit the risk of battery- coaxial main rotor? “I wanted to avoid safety. induced fire in case of crash, common wasting power,” he answered. A tail The first flight, under its own power, of design practice would suggest install- rotor uses an estimated 8-10 percent of a manned electric helicopter happened ing distributed fuses along the chain of the total power available. The designer on Aug. 12, 2011, as witnessed by a cells. But fuse weight was “unacceptably was essentially pursuing lift. court bailiff. During the following high,” at 3.3 lbs per fuse. So Chretien Chretien, who has engineering weeks, the aircraft logged a total 99.5 decided to “trade safety for weight.” degrees in electronics and aerospace, minutes of flying time in 29 flights. Piloting the first-ever electric rotor- in addition to its commercial helicop- A typical flight lasted four minutes, craft was inherently challenging. Con- ter pilot license, sees further than his with a demonstrated maximum of six ventional cyclic controls were replaced single-occupant demonstrator. He and minutes, Chretien said. Actual forward by a weight-shifting system. This saved Solution F have filed patents relating to flight above translational speed (15 to weight. However, this arrangement a “serial hybrid” helicopter concept. The 20 knots) was never experimented. required flying with reversed roll and principle is built around an engine that Although very low speed was tried, pitch controls. To get used to such produces electric power via a generator. the test flights were just hovers, outside tricky controls, Chretien had built a The generator feeds batteries, which ground effect. Chretien and Solu- To avoid “wasting” relatively scarce power, the designer tion F’s managing direc- of the world’s first electric tor, Eric Chantriaux, helicopter chose a coaxial agreed to work togeth- main rotor configuration er in 2010. Design instead of a conventional work actually started single main rotor and accompanying tail rotor. in August, Chretien recalled. It turned out Photos courtesy Solution F Sikorsky introduced its electric Firefly almost simultaneously at EAA Air Venture Oshkosh, late in July that year. Chretien was under pressure, as he wanted to fly first. The Firefly, a modified S-300C, eventually never took off.

16 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Rotorcraft Report

On the contrary, gearbox at EUR250,000 ($325,000) “you can design a versus EUR145,000 ($188,000) for the stack of redundant entire distributed electric motor unit. of motors,” he said. In the future, superconduction This brings a true might help. Chretien mentioned redundancy up demonstrated superconductive tem- to the rotor mast. perature as high as 95 Kelvin (minus Hence a major 289 F). “Even considering the weight enhancement in of the cryocooler, such drive systems safety, if one thinks would be much lighter, with a power of the mind-bog- density way above 15 kilowatts per Solution F gling problems kilogram,” he told Rotor & Wing. By gearboxes have contrast, common aircraft-grade caused to helicop- gearboxes with their oil circuit and ter manufacturers. cooling accessories are around 6.7 Moreover, an kW/kg. electric system A major obstacle remains, though. would be much Major helicopter manufacturers draw more durable— a large part of their revenues from Chretien’s helicopter design features four rotor blades. “about 12,000 to maintenance, repair and overhaul. This enable a distributed stack of electric 15,000 hours of service life, compared to market would be much smaller, should direct drives to turn the blades. 2,000 to 4,000 hours with a main gear- rotor power get rid of gearboxes. Heli- “Gears are medieval technology; box,” Chretien asserted. Price would be copter makers may soon have to decide you can’t have a redundant main gear- a factor, too. On a five-seat turbine sin- on a paradigm shift. —By Thierry box on a helicopter,” Chretien insisted. gle, he estimated the price of the main Dubois, on Twitter: @aerodub

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 17 Rotorcraft Report

■ COMMERCIAL | TOURISM ■ MILITARY | UNMANNED First EC130T2 Joins Maverick Fleet Telephonic Tests American Eurocopter has Radar on Fire Scout handed over an EC130T2 Farmingdale, N.Y.-based Telephonics to Las Vegas and Grand Corporation has completed flight Canyon tour operator, tests of its AN/ZPY-4(V) Maritime Maverick Aviation, Surveillance Radar on the U.S. Navy’s which is one of seven Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire launch customers for Scout unmanned aerial system. The the airframe, including testing was performed with ground neighboring tour operator moving target indicator (GMTI) The EC130T2 performed a flight demo tour in Europe. Photo by Anthony Pecchi Papillion Airways, EMS mode upgraded radar. According to provider Enloe FlightCare and Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. Unveiled at this year’s Kevin McSweeney, chief operating Heli-Expo in February, the helicopter is the first EC130T2 to enter service and officer of Telephonics, the AN/ZPY- is part of a Maverick order for up to 50 rotorcraft. The helicopter is part of an 4(V) uses a “single sensor to address upgrade and replacement program for Maverick’s current fleet of EC130s. The the changing conditions over land EC130T2 prototype also recently completed a demo tour through Europe, where [and] over water” while in GMTI guest pilots were afforded the opportunity to fly the helicopter with Eurocopter mode.

pilot Olivier Gensse. Evian, Maverick Helicopters (L to R) Brad France was the inaugural stop, Guzman, Bryan ■ MILITARY | AIRFRAMES before flying to Switzerland, Kroten, Dan Flores, John Buch, Italy, the Netherlands and John Mandernach, Navy Adds Sikorsky Sweden, wrapping up its final Greg Rochna, VH-3D Option demo in Norway. Marc Paganini and Todd Powers The U.S. Navy has exercised a $41-million option involving its VH ■ PRODUCTS | MISSION EQUIPMENT Presidential Helicopter contract with Sikorsky Aircraft. The modifications Curtiss-Wright to Provide Flight include integrated logistics support, Recorders for AW169 security, project engineering, technical AgustaWestland has selected the Curtis-Wright Controls Avionics & Electronics manual updates and training. Sikorsky (CWC-AE) division to provide the AW169 with accident data and voice recorders. will also perform modifications on The “black boxes” were installed for the flight-testing phase of the new helicopter three of the VH-3Ds in service. Work variant, “mounting directly to the airframe,” according to David Adams, co-chief on the Presidential Helicopters is operating officer for CWC. Shipments for the series product line are set to begin scheduled to run through September in 2013. Adams added that this is the first CWC-AE division’s technology in use 2013. for the AW169. The CWC Penny + Giles business unit will manufacture the products under this contract at its Christchurch, UK facility. ■ TRAINING | MILITARY ■ SERVICES | MAINTENANCE Bell to Produce Russian Helicopter Service Center Opens Venom, Viper FTDs in CIS, Europe The U.S. Marine Corps has issued a Russian Helicopters has established an after-sales support facility, Helicopter Service $44-million contract to Bell Helicopter Center. Customers in the Commonwealth of Independent States and Europe will for the procurement of two UH-1Y now have access to components, modifications, repairs and upgrades for Russian Venom flight training devices (FTDs). Helicopters. The center will implement a new web-based service for ordering parts The agreement also contains a and provide electric documentation for operators. Russian Helicopters also secured provision for the baseline configuration teaming agreements with Denel Aviation for a service hub in Africa. The sub- upgrade of one AH-1Z Viper FTD. Bell Saharan center will provide support for commercial and military helicopters in the will divide the work among its facilities region, with plans to expand and perform complete overhauls. in Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.

18 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Rotorcraft Report Photos by Sgt. Keonaona Paulo

U.S. Marines with the Marine Light Helicopter Squadron (HMLA) 469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3D Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward) stationed at Camp Bastion, Helmand province, Afghanistan perform routine maintenance on a Bell UH-1Y Venom. Mechanics repaired the rotor and washed the helicopter as part of aviation readiness for the 469.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 19 Rotorcraft Report

■ PUBLIC SERVICE | LAW ENFORCEMENT ■ MILITARY | AIRFRAMES FAA Approves R66 Police Variant Helibras Opens Robinson Helicopter EC725 Plant, Adds has secured approval Suppliers from FAA for the police variant of Eurocopter subsidiary, Helibras, its R66 turbine. has established a manufacturing The police model plant in Itajuba that will focus is outfitted with on the production, assembly and FLIR Ultra 8000 maintenance of the EC725 in Brazil. w w

thermal imaging Robinson Helicopter The initial production at the facility cameras, Spectrolab will focus on a 50-aircraft order w SX-7 searchlights from the Brazilian Armed Forces. a n d a d d i t i o n a l Helibras has delivered four French- law enforcement produced EC725s so far, with the u p g r a d e s . T h e Itajuba plant to build the remaining Fo n t a n a Po l i ce helicopters. The new facility will D e p a r t m e n t i n also have the means to produce southern California civilian versions of the EC225 to will receive the first meet demand from offshore oil and R66 police model gas operators in the region. Helibras in October 2012. has also struck an agreement with Robinson plans on InbraAerospace involving composite expanding the R66 armor protection on the EC725. The line to include an company currently equips Helibras’ electronic news Robinson R66 police variant, which includes FLIR cameras Ecureuils with armor protection. gathering (ENG) and Sprectolab searchlights, has received FAA approval. Through early October, a total of variant in 2013. 15 suppliers have agreed to provide Brazilian-produced components for ■ MILITARY | SERVICES the EC725s. Boeing to Provide PBL for Chinooks ■ PRODUCTS | ENGINES The U.S. Army has awarded Boeing a series of contracts in support of the CH-47 Chinook, including a five-year, $185-million contract for performance- Carson, Pall Join based logistics (PBL). The PBL agreement includes production, overhaul and for S-61 Upgrade distribution of the Army’s Chinook rotor blade inventory. The PBL contract differs from a traditional agreement in that the Army will pay for an agreed-to Port Washington, N.Y.-based Pall readiness level, instead of paying for parts and services. The Army also granted Corporation has teamed with Carson two additional Chinook contracts, including a $17-million deal for improved Helicopters to upgrade the Centrisep vibration control systems and an $8.6-million award for cargo-platform health engine advanced protection system environment field demonstration kits on the CH-47F. (EAPS) for the Sikorsky S-61 Sea King. Carson holds the supplemental type ■ COMMERCIAL | AIRFRAMES certificate (STC) for Pall’s Centrisep EAPS, with this latest upgrade available Erickson Purchases San Diego ‘Sun Bird’ for commercial-use S-61 operators. The previous S-61 model was only approved Portland, Ore.-based Erickson Air-Crane has bought back an S-64F Air-Crane for use on Westland and government “Sun Bird” from the San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E). Erickson Air- Sea Kings. The updated Centrisep Crane originally sold the helicopter to SDG&E in 2009. As part of the purchase EAPS design is lighter and aims to agreement, Erickson will provide an Air-Crane to San Diego County for fire improve performances and operational suppression support. efficiency, according to Pall.

20 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM

Navy Gears Up for MQ-8C Fire Scouts Northrop Grumman Northrop

The upgraded MQ-8C Fire Scout will use a Bell 407 airframe and Rolls-Royce 250-C47B dual-FADEC engine.

The U.S. Navy has scheduled delivery The MQ-8C will use a Bell 407 payload. Smith also noted that the pay- of the first two MQ-8C Fire Scout airframe, making it larger than the load could go up to 1,250 lbs., although unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for the MQ-8B it will replace. The airframe that would require a tradeoff with fuel February 2013 timeframe, with first flight includes both 407 rotor systems plus capacity and a subsequent reduction scheduled for next August, according to the transmission—although the main in range and loiter time. Capt. Patrick Smith, Program Manager rotor hub will be replaced to allow the The additional payload will also for Navy and Marine Corps Multi- blades to be folded for ship deploy- allow growth in areas such as radar Mission Tactical UAS Program Office. ment. It will also initially have the same and weapons capability. “There have Beta testing on a Bell 407 test bed with Rolls-Royce 250-C47B dual-FADEC also been discussions about whether both software and hardware is already engine supplied with the standard 407. (the 8C) can carry weapons pylons,” being conducted in Yuma, Ariz. However, the Navy plans to take that he said. The Navy signed a $262-million back to Rolls-Royce for an upgrade. Although the airframe is totally contract with Northrop Grumman as “The biggest advantage of the different from the earlier model, the prime contractor for the upgraded Fire MQ-8C [over the B model] is more payload has roughly 90 percent com- Scout in April (see Rotor &Wing, April fuel,” Smith said. “It will be able to carry monality with the MQ-8B for both 2012). The contract covers the two test over 2,600 lbs. of fuel. The require- hardware and software. aircraft, which will be based at Webster ment given Northrop Grumman was Northrop Grumman has already Field, part of the NAS Patuxent River to enable it to go out 150 nm, remain been flying a Bell 407 out in Yuma complex, plus six additional aircraft for on station eight hours and return.” The “for about the past 12 months, using delivery designated for fleet support for 8B can only go out 110 nm and stay on the baseline software off the MQ-8B, deployment in the fall of 2014. station just over three hours, he said. adjusting it for center of gravity and Another contract is expected later Gross takeoff weight (GTW) for the B weight, and doing flight envelope this year for an additional six MQ-8Cs. model is 3,150 lbs., while the C model expansions,” Smith said. “So we’ve At this time, the Navy is anticipating a is 6,100 lbs. Both the B and C have already shown that the software is requirement for a total of 28 Fire Scout payload capacities of just under 300 transportable from the B model over 8C models for delivery through 2015, lbs., although the C variant will have to the new airframe.” Both the ground Smith said. the capacity to grow to about 700 lbs. of and shipboard control stations also

22 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM have about 90 percent commonality specific waypoints in space. stantly up on the deck to either launch for both software and hardware. “However, changes in the flight path or recover a Fire Scout,” Smith said. “So With the primary mission of the can be changed while the aircraft is air- when you are able to give someone MQ-8C Fire Scout being to support borne,” Smith said. “So we can pre-plan back literally hours in their day, that is a maritime-based intelligence, surveil- a flight, but then execute a maneuver great thing to be able to offer a sailor.” lance and reconnaissance (ISR) requests airborne if needed to move right or left, The MQ-8B Fire Scouts are cur- from the U.S. Special Operations Com- up or down. rently being operated off the fantail of mand (SOCOM), the primary mis- But to change altitude is not nec- guided missile frigates, and have been sion equipment package item is the essarily adding or reducing power. tested on the Littoral Combat Ship FLIR electro-optical infrared (EOIR) Changes are made on a keyboard (LCS). “But with the C, we’re looking Bright Star II sensor. This is integrated rather than dialing in a change. Even to grow to additional ship classes to with a weapons payload system called firing the weapons is done from either include DDG-51 Arleigh Burke class APKWS, for Advanced Precision Kill a keyboard or scroll ball with a graphic destroyers. We’ve also been asked to Weapon System, developed by BAE interface to execute what it wants to investigate a Joint High Speed Vessel. Systems. The APKWS is compatible happen.” The controller does, however, And further down the road the Navy with the Hydra 70 unguided rocket have a joystick to use if necessary, “and has a ship called the DDG 1000 (Zum- system, allowing the 2.75-inch Hydra we’re also looking into a two-handed walt class) guided missile destroyers. 70 rockets to be converted into laser- or one-handed controller (device) to Regarding two accidents involv- guided missiles. control the payload. The joystick is ing MQ-8B Fire Scouts, Smith said Both the EOIR and APKWS are not used by the air vehicle operator that the two incidents involved total- directly transportable from the B (AVO—or pilot), but is for the mission ly separate issues. The first was in model to the C, Smith said. payload operator (MPO). Afghanistan and involved a naviga- Some of the translated payload Currently, all but one of the AVOs tional failure. “There was a very low will consist of systems that are being are pilots, while MPOs are enlisted spe- probability of the navigational failure enhanced, to include a new Tactical cially trained to handle the mission pay- occurring, but corrections are now in Common Data Link, integrating an loads. Both the AVOs and MPOs come place to reduce that probability even L-3 system providing better reliability from the Navy’s MH-60 Squadron. lower.” The second accident occurred and more robust data linkage, Smith Another advantage the MQ-8C on the USS Simpson and is believed said. The 8C will also have an upgrad- gives the Navy is reduced workload on to have involved the UAS Common ed Litton LN-250 inertial navigation the flight deck, Smith said. A recent Air Recovery System, or UCARS. system with interferometric fiber study was done comparing the two “We were not able to make recov- optic gyro technology, providing a Fire Scout variants on a continuous ery (on board) the ship, so decided laser-ring gyro GPS-INS system. 24-hour mission. The 8B required four to terminate the flight off the side of Smith noted that unlike most aircraft with eight to 10 launches and the frigate. The aircraft was recov- fixed-wing drones, the Fire Scout is recoveries. ered and is currently at Cherry Point not a remotely piloted aircraft “flown” Because of the greater endurance awaiting disposition. We believe by ground controllers who actually of the 8C, the study showed that it we’ve resolved that problem also. maneuver the drones in flight. Instead, would require only three launches and Both of those accidents occurred the MQ-8 has pre-programmed flight recoveries using two aircraft. “That within seven days of each other. It plans inserted into its computer’s takes a lot of workload off of our flight was just a very bad week.” —By Doug- database, automatically directing it to deck crews, not having to be con- las Nelms

CONTRACTS

The U.S. Navy has exercised an $11.9- engine and site support under the contract related to work on the AH-64 Apache. The million option with Indianapolis-based extension. The engine work is split between re-tooled agreement covers the conversion Rolls-Royce for maintenance services on Indianapolis and Oakland, Calif., with a of AH-64As into AH-64D models. Boe- the AE1107C engines that power the Bell- completion date of February 2013. ing’s facility in Mesa, Ariz. will carry out Boeing V-22. Rolls-Royce will perform low- Boeing has received a $136-million the work, which is expected to continue power engine repairs as well as turboshaft contract modification from the U.S. Army through December 2013.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 23 Rotorcraft Report

■ PUBLIC SERVICE | SAR Canadian Forces Win 2012 Cormorant Trophy $0//&$5 t &/("(& t 46$$&&% at Canadian Forces Base Gander in Newfoundland. The Rescue 915 crew was recognized for their October 2011 -BT7FHBT t .BSDIo &YIJCJUT0QFO.BSDIo rescue of two walrus hunters that were stranded on an ice flow in the Arctic Sea. While the AgustaWestland AW101 was en route to the hunters, the crew received word that two SAR Techs from the 424 Squadron at Canadian Forces

Base Trenton in Ontario— Photo by AgustaWestland which had parachuted from a CC-130 into the water to assist the hunters—had activated their personal locator beacons. Upon arriving, Rescue 915 was greeted with wind gusts The Rescue 915 crew of the of 55 mph and 32-foot-high Canadian Forces’ 103 Search waves that tossed large chunks and Rescue Squadron. Photo by AgustaWestland of ice into the air. Using a hoist Canadian Forces used an AgustaWestland AW101 during an Arctic and rescue horse collar, both the hunters and 424 SAR Techs rescue in October 2011. were rescued from life rafts. The Guild of Air Pilots and Air AgustaWestland has awarded the 2012 Cormorant Trophy to Navigators (GAPAN) recognized both SAR teams with the the Rescue 915 crew of the 103 Search and Rescue Squadron Guild Award for Gallantry.

■ PUBLIC SERVICE | EMS ■ TRAINING | SIMULATORS Utah AirMed, Charlotte Police Select Air Methods Opens Becker Avionics DVCS6100 HEMS Training Becker Avionics has obtained a contract to equip the University of Utah Center AirMed’s Eurocopter EC145 with its DVCS6100 digital audio system. The Englewood, Colo.-based Air Methods helicopter replaces an older Bell 407. Air Methods, which operates AirMed’s Corp. has opened the doors of its 14,000- HEMS fleet, is completing the helicopter at its United Rotorcraft facility in square-foot center dedicated to aviation, Denver, Colo. medical and maintenance training Becker has also installed the system in a pair of Bell 407s in operation with the technology. The facility, JTUIFQMBDFUP Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Aviation unit in North Carolina. The upgrades located in nearby Aurora, were made in advance of the aviation unit’s role in providing security for the features a Eurocopter Democratic National Convention in September. Kearney, Neb.-based Rodgers EC135 training device 0&.øTFOJPSNBOBHFNFOU Helicopter Services also recently selected the DVCS6100 for its new EMS- equipped with an Air equipped Bell 429. Rodgers has provided Good Samaritan Hospital’s AirCare Methods cockpit that Photo by Air Methods FTUBCMJTIFETVQQMJFST5IF unit with air ambulance services for 30 years. allows for scenario-based training. The clinical OFUXPSLJOHPQQPSUVOJUJFT ■ PRODUCTS | WHEELS & BRAKES section of the facility BSFHSFBUBTøXFMMw includes an adult human Air Methods’ X4 Stops with Messier-Bugatti-Dowty patient simulator (HPS) new EC135 0XOFSBOE0QFSBUPS Messier-Bugatti-Dowty, part of the Safran group, has contracted with and a TraumaMan skills trainer. Eurocopter to provide brakes and wheels on the X4. The company currently trainer. The HEMS outfits additional Eurocopter variants, such as the Dolphin, Super Puma and operator will use the center to train new Tiger. In addition to the two main wheels and two electric brakes, Messier- pilot hires and conduct pilot assessment Bugatti-Dowty will supply electric brake controllers (EBCs) and four brake interviews. The facility includes office pedal transmitter units (BPTUs) for the X4. Safran Electronics Canada will space in addition to the classroom develop and produce the EBCs for Messier-Bugatti-Dowty. and simulation areas. SPUPSDPNIFMJFYQP

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PEOPLE ■ IN MEMORIAM Rockwell Collins has appointed Kelly He will oversee the business and gen- Ortberg as president of the company. eral aviation sales of the Asian Pacific Helicopter Rockwell Collins also established the region and the government and busi- Aerodynamics office of the chief executive position, ness services of the southern Asian Authority Dies where Ortberg will join Clay Jones, Pacific sector. Chiang comes to BBA chairman and chief executive. Ortberg from Jet Aviation Singapore, where he Howard “Pat” Curtiss has worked for Rockwell Collins since was the director of regional sales. Jr., widely regarded 1987 as was formerly chief operating Susan Sheets as an expert in the officer of government systems. Brogan has come field of helicopter Keystone Med- on board as the a e r o d y n a m i c s ,

Flight has named director of special Photo by Betty Curtiss passed away on Sept. Heidi Ames as programs at JET- 20. He was 82. Curtiss taught mechanical chief pilot for the NET iQ. Sheets and aerospace engineering at Princeton company. Ames Brogan spent 20 years as the president University for more than 30 years. was previously the of the National Aircraft Resale Asso- During the late 1970s through the Southeast regional manager and pilot ciation, prior to joining JETNET iQ. An early 1980s, Curtiss and his students hiring manager for Med-Trans Corp. advocate for business aviation, Sheets performed experiments on the “ground She has more than 20 years of flight Brogan has served as the president effect” aerodynamics of spinning rotor and management experience with of the International Aviation Club in blade wake as it rebounds from the commercial air medical operators 1998, president of the Aero Club of ground and goes through the rotor again. and the military. Washington in 2008, and secretary of Curtiss worked with several manufac- Mike Barbee has joined Proxy the International Aviation Women’s turers—including Bell Helicopter, Boeing, Technologies as chairman of the board Association in 2011. Northop Grumman and Sikorsky—to of directors. He currently is the presi- Metro Aviation has added Amy test new designs and to lend his aerody- dent of Barbee Executive Management McMullen as a customer configuration namic knowledge to vertical takeoff and and served as president of Wamnet coordinator. She will assist clients with landing (VTOL) aircraft projects. Government Services. Before working aircraft configuration, equipment selec- In 1998, Curtiss collaborated with with Wamnet, Barbee was vice presi- tion and support during completions. Carson Helicopters to produce new rotor dent at Lockheed Martin. Prior to joining Metro, McMullen worked blades for the Sikorsky S-61. The design BBA Aviation Engine Repair and for Allegiance Health Management where that Curtiss developed now helps power Overhaul (ERO) has hired Luke she was vice president of finance and COO the VH-3Ds of the Marine One helicop- Chiang as a regional sales manager. for a critical access hospital. ter fleet.

2012: March 25–28: 56th Annual AEA International Convention & Trade Show, Las Vegas, Nev. Contact Aircraft Electronics Assoc., Nov. 6: High-Rise Aerial Firefighting & Rescue, Dubai, phone 1-816-347-8400 or visit www.aea.net UAE. Contact Tangent Link, phone +44 (0) 1628 660400 or visit www.tangentlink.com/events April 10–14: Quad-A Annual Convention, Fort Worth, Texas. Contact Quad-A, phone 1-203-268-2450 or visit www.quad-a. Nov. 6–8: Dubai Helishow 2012, Dubai, United Arab org Emirates. Contact Mediac Communications and Exhibitions, April 16–18: Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition phone +44 (0)1293 823 779 or visit www.dubaihelishow.com (ABACE 2013), Shanghai, China. Contact NBAA, phone 1-202- 2013: 783-9000 or visit www.abace.aero May 16–18: 6th International Helicopter Industry Exhibition, Feb. 20–21: Avionics Europe 2013, Munich, Germany. Call Moscow, Russia. Contact HeliRussia, phone +7 (0) 495 958 1-888-299-8016 or visit www.avionics-event.com 9490 or visit helirussia.ru/en coming events

March 4–7: HAI Heli-Expo 2013, Las Vegas, Nev. Contact HAI, May 21–23: AHS International 69th Annual Forum and 1-703-683-4646 or visit www.rotor.com Technology Display, Phoenix, Ariz. Contact AHS, phone 1-703- 684-6777 or visit www.vtol.org March 18–20: 9th Annual CHC Safety & Safety Summit, Vancouver, Canada. Contact CHC, phone 1-604-232-7424 or visit www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com

26 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM for Helicopter Operators

Aviation Maintenance Software CORRIDOR is industry-proven software developed to streamline the aviation maintenance process. Created by aviation professionals more than 15 years ago, CORRIDOR continues to improve efficiency, reduce errors, increase control and visibility, reduce costs, and elevate customer service levels for rotor and fixed wing service providers. CORRIDOR handles all functions in real time. CORRIDOR’s modular design allows each organization to tailor the application to their specific needs. Modules include those for Inventory Control, Procurement & Logistics, Maintenance & Shop Management, Part Sales & Retail Distribution, Customer & Vendor Management, Aircraft Maintenance Record Keeping, Accounting Integration, and more. CORRIDOR is backed by an experienced staff to support each business throughout training and implementation and continued user support. Contact us today for more information or to request a demo: 512-918-8900, www.corridor.aero From the Cockpit to Your iPad GDC64 Tablet Aircraft Interface Unit (TAIU). Type design approved Product PMA Pending • Apple approved MFi licensee • Allows weather and aircraft position on iPad (weather application required) • Library of data • SDK (Software Development Kit) for other applications • Wired connection provides safe and approved power and aircraft interface leaving Wi-Fi connectivity available for other uses • Four Arinc 429 input ports • Eight discrete inputs from different sources • Aircraft power keeps iPad fully charged Connect today at [email protected] or via phone at 1-512-331-5323. Programmable Location & Identification Beacon Available from FEC Heliports FEC Heliports has added a new range of innovative Programmable Location and Identification Beacons to their range of heliport lighting equipment. These medium intensity beacons, which are available as three or single color units, use high brightness LEDs and advanced micro-electronics to provide a range of pre- programmed and user field-selectable operating modes. The beacons can be programmed without any special knowledge, skills or tools, by means of on-board switches either before or after installation. Additional on-board switches enable different maximum light output levels to be set and control which quadrants of each light are active. These new beacons are housed in FEC’s existing, field-proven range of robust cast aluminium and glass housings, providing simple installation and upgrade. Depending on beacon type, the modes which may be selected include: • FAA L-802H Civil Helipad Beacon - 36 Flashes per Minute [FPM], 75ms pulse width • FAA L-802M Military Helipad Beacon - 17.3 FPM, 100ms pulse width Two Location beacon modes: • Modified ICAO pattern (short [2mS] and long [ 25mS] pulse) - 30 FPM • 25 FPM UK CAA and Transport Canada timing compliant Two Morse beacon modes: 4 - 6 WPM (Words Per Minute): • 1, 2 and 3 character code options (defined at time of ordering) • Rotating (simulated) and flashing beacon modes For installations requiring light shielding to prevent pilot glare or distraction, arrays are individually selectable enabling any combination of 90-degree quadrants to be enabled or disabled. The Beacons are powered from a 48V DC source making them safe to install and operate and suitable for powering from a suitable 110/240V AC power supply or batteries. Custom versions of the beacons are available (e.g. IR, non-standard modes, automatic night-time switching). For more details, prices and to download the user manual visit www.fecheliports.com or www.heliportsequipment.com, email [email protected] or call Fraser Mackay at +44 1494 775226 to discuss your needs.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 27 MILITARYDUBAI | COMMERCIAL SERVES AS MIDDLE EAST HEL

UAE Sikorsky Black Hawk on display at the 2011 Dubai Airshow. Photo by Douglas Nelms

Biennial Middle East helicopter tradeshow has grown into the third largest behind Heli-Expo and Helitech UK. By Douglas Nelms

28 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM AS SOUK FOR ROBUSTDubai Helishow HELICOPTER MARKET

hile much of the rest military markets analyst for Forecast countries are making major com- of the world worries International. mitments, with the UAE expected to Wabout where its next For 2013 alone, the six states of spend $11 billion while Iraq will spend meal is coming from, the Gulf Cooperative Council (GCC), an estimated $15 billion. The GCC the petro-rich Middle East is still plus Jordan, are expected to commit consists of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, a robust market, particularly in some $80 billion to military expendi- Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United the realm of military sales, accord- tures. The bulk of that will be Saudi Arab Emirates. Jordan has been invit- ing to Dan Darling, Middle East Arabia, with $50 billion. Even smaller ed to join.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 29 MILITARY | COMMERCIAL Photo by Douglas Nelms

The Bell 429 will be on display during Dubai Helishow 2012.

The military helicopter market is years, with a steady progression of With roughly 1,500 aging, daylight particular robust, with “virtually all of growth as the importance of the show only, attack/reconnaissance helicopters the GCC countries modernizing their has become apparent. Exhibitors have worldwide that need to be replaced, military equipment, much of which increased by almost 40 percent, going Boeing is very actively promoting was purchased in the ‘90s following the from 80 in 2004 to 110 signed up so far its AH-6i, according to Mike Burke, first gulf war,” Darling said. this year. Visitors to the show are antici- director of global strike rotorcraft. The “Some of those countries are still pated to be around 2,000, compared to AH-6i is the international version of doing some fixed-wing fighter pro- 1,500 at the 2004 show. the AH-6 and MD Helicopters MH-6 grams, but for the most part they’ve The venue has also changed, mov- Little Bird. already gone in that direction and are ing from Dubai International Airport’s moving to helicopter platforms.” Of Exhibition Hall using 1,153 square Commercial particular interest are attack and trans- meters (12,410 square feet) to a 1,660- Despite the emphasis on military port helicopters, he said. square-meter (17,868-square-foot) sales in the Middle East, the civil side In just the first part of 2012, Qatar space in the Grand Stand, Meydan will be well represented to serve the has requested an estimated $30 billion Racecourse of Al Meydan City. growing market for commercial and government-to-government sale of personal helicopters. 24 Boeing AH-64D Block III Long- Military Aerogulf, a leading commercial bow Apaches and $2.5 billion for 10 With military sales expected to be a helicopter operator in Dubai for Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawks and 12 major consideration in the Middle more than 36 years, will be display- MH-60S Seahawks. The Saudis had East, both Boeing and Sikorsky will ing a Bell 212 and 206L as well as already requested 70 AH-64Ds and 72 have a presence at the show. Sikorsky offering attendees discounted tours UH-60M Black Hawks to help boost signed a estimated $300-million order over Dubai during the show. A Bell their National Guard. This explains for 60 Black Hawks with the UAE 429 will also be on static display why the biennial Dubai Helishow has Air Force at the 2010 show, and has from Hawker Pacific, the Bell sales become the major marketplace, or arranged for one of the UH-60s to be representative for the region. The 429 souk, for the helicopter industry serv- on display in the aircraft park during will be available for demonstration ing the Middle East. Located in what this year’s event. flights, said Alan Parsons, vice presi- has become the primary business hub Boeing said it would not have an dent of aircraft sales. Following the for the region, the Helishow has now aircraft for display, but will have a booth show, the 429 will be taken on a sales grown to be the world’s third largest with representatives there to talk to key tour of the region. Hawker Pacific is a international show for the helicopter members of Middle East militaries about major repair station in Dubai for heli- industry, behind only HAI’s Heli-Expo its military programs. These include the copter parts such as hydraulics and and the UK’s Helitech. AH-64D Apache, AH-6 light attack/ avionics; while a sister company, RBI With the first Dubai Helishow held reconnaissance helicopter, CH-47F Chi- Hawker, is an authorized rotor blade in 2004, this is the fifth show in eight nook and the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor. repair station.

30 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Dubai Helishow

Moscow-based Russian Helicopters crew and maintain,” Darling Photo by Douglas Nelms will have a booth, while a Mil Mi-8MSB said. “This makes it a better will be on display by Sharjah-based market for the producers, Motor Sich Middle East, representing because they can provide the Ukrainian airline. aftermarket services. That Enstrom Helicopters will partici- is why everybody angles for pate for the first time at the 2012 show, this market, because there is displaying its 480B. Although a major no self-production, there is manufacturer of helicopters for the no offset agreements.” civil market, ranging from personal to When Qatar put in its law enforcement to electronic news- request to the U.S. to pur- gathering (ENG), Enstrom has also chase its 24 AH-64D Block entered the military market with the III Longbow Apaches, it 480B, selling it to the Royal Thai Army also asked for night vision and Japanese Ground Self Defense goggles, AGM 114R Hellfire FLIR system on display at the 2011 Dubai Airshow. Force. Dennis Martin, Enstrom’s inter- II missiles, Stinger missiles national sales program manager, said with launchers, 2.75-inch that the success of the aircraft in the Hydra rockets, Apache aviator inte- say, major markets for parts and service international market led to their deci- grated helmets, training devices, simu- providers. Joe Garland, vice president sion to evaluate the Middle East. One lators, support equipment, tools and of international business development aspect of selling to the Middle East test equipment, U.S. government and for Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire military market is that they tend to contractor engineering, technical and Control, said that his company will overbuy when procuring a fleet of heli- logistics support services, “and other be exhibiting “several of its interna- copters, “buying more than what they related elements of logistics support.” tionally field Precision Engagement, have an infrastructure or manpower to Orders such as this are, needless-to- Fire Control and Situation Awareness

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systems and solutions.” These include rescue, EMS, offshore operations and Canada’s CAE, offering both rotary the Hellfire and direct attack guided other areas. and fixed-wing training. Helicopter rocket (DAGR) missiles, Arrowhead One such company is Breeze-East- training is conducted using a Bell 412 advance electro-optical fire control ern, an industry leader in the design, simulator. system, and electronics supporting development, manufacture and prod- Australia is represented at the Longbow system. uct support of helicopter rescue hoists, show by Chopperline Flight Training Arma-Global, based in Tampa, Fla., cargo hooks, special application hoists Academy, which provides training in will also be promoting its MRO inte- and cargo winches, restraint systems, Robinson R22 and R44 trainers. gration of spare parts, repairs, major weapons handling and motion control The Helishow will also provide a overhauls, upgrades and maintenance. devices for the aerospace, defense and forum for conferences on “High-Rise It also serves the military by providing commercial marketplaces. The com- Firefighting and Rescue,” and “Heli- solutions for the procurement, inspec- pany said it would be focusing on both borne Intelligence, Surveillance and w w tion, delivery and support of “numer- the military and civil markets during Reconnaissance.” The first of these w ous weapon systems and ammuni- the show, talking directly to govern- will look at emergency services first tion,” the company said. ments, the OEM aircraft companies responders to fires in high-rise or FLIR Systems will be returning to and the end users. mega-buildings, while the second will the 2012 following a successful 2010 Training will also be emphasized cover the effectiveness of manned and show, displaying its thermal imaging during the show, with companies unmanned air assets operating in the and stabilized EO/IR systems used such as Bakersfield, Calif.-based SRT airborne ISR role. for surveillance and reconnaissance, Helicopters and Emirates-CAE Flight A totally new aspect of the show search and rescue, border and mari- Training in attendance. SRT Helicop- will be the ability of attendees to time patrol and—particularly for the ters provides training from private scan smartphones across QR codes military application—targeting, fire pilot ratings up to certified flight for each exhibitor listed in the Show control and laser weapons designa- instructor-instrument (CFII). They Guide and receive information on tion programs. also offer recurrent and operational that exhibitor. Attendees will be able The show will also see exhibitors night vision goggles training. to download a free app provided by promoting products for civil and para- Emirates-CAE is a joint venture London-based Showcase to access military operations such as search and between the Emirates Group and the exhibitor information.

Bell-Boeing V-22 flies past the Burj Al Arab in Dubai. Bell-Boeing

32 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NATIO NAL TRAINING AND S IMULATIO N A SSO CIATION THE WO RLD ’S LARGEST MODELING & SIMULATIO N EVENT

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DECEMBER 3-6, 2012 w ORLANDO, FLO RIDA PUBLIC SERVICE | MILITARY LONDON’S OLYMPIC Eurocopter

While the world watched the athletes giving their all to achieve gold, silver and bronze at the London Olympics, other airborne eyes were focusing on a different goal—keeping the Games safe. Rotor & Wing’s UK-based Editor reviews the role helicopters played in securing the Olympics.

Three Metropolitan Police Air Support Unit EC145s flying over London’s Tower Bridge adorned with the rings of the Olympic Games.

34 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Olympic Helicopters IC GUARDIAN ANGELS

By Andrew Drwiega, Military Editor

hen London won the right to host the 2012 summer Olympics in Sin- gapore on July 6, 2005, coming from Wbehind to “win by a nose at the post” from what had been considered the favorite bid city, the French capital Paris, most of the country was overjoyed. But with celebrations getting into full swing in cities across the nation, security planners must have been plunged deep into thought trying to come to terms with the immense challenge of keeping such a world event safe. The potential threat was mas- sively underlined only one day later on July 7 when a series of coordinated suicide attacks (known as the 7/7 bombings) caused mayhem during the morn- ing rush hour. Four bombers detonated devices on three underground trains and a double-decker bus, resulting in 52 civilians being killed and over 700 more injured. While the London Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) was the entity responsible for overseeing the planning and development of the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games, overall security planning lay with the National Olympic Security Coordinator (NOSC), an assistant commissioner who was responsible for overseeing the planning, development and implementation of policing for the Games and for cross-agency (including military) coordination. The scale of security needed for the summer Olympic Games was going to be huge and was outlined by the NOSC, Assistant Commissioner Chris Allison: • 14,700 athletes from 205 countries will compete over 28 days of competition • Approximately eight million tickets will be sold for

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 35 PUBLIC SERVICE | MILITARY

the Olympic Games, with another two airport, north of Luton and Stansted were brought forward. This allowed million for the Paralympic Games airports and out beyond Heathrow in Eurocopter’s MRO facility to pre-book • 11 forces will police Olympic venues the west and over the Thames Estuary some emergency slots within its job or villages between Kent and Essex. schedules for unforeseen aircraft MRO • Around 12,000 officers will be on duty needs during the Olympics. across the venues on peak days Pre-planning Police Eurocopter UK also worked with • 26 Olympic sports will take place in MRO its suppliers to create a stockpile of the 34 venues However, way before any of the secu- most frequently required items, from • 20 Paralympic sports will take place rity measures were put into place, one rotor blades and mission equipment in 21 venues company was addressing challenges down to the smallest items. “We dou- • 800,000 people are expected to use that it foresaw in simply allowing a bled our stock for the Olympics—and public transport to travel to the Games selection of those forces to reach the that also included having replacement on the busiest day, more than the entire starting line. engines on standby,” revealed Steinke. population of Leeds Eurocopter UK was responsible for It was also deemed necessary to • 20,000 members of the world’s media supporting 20 police air support unit increase a number of critical resourc- are accredited with access to the Games. EC135 and EC145 helicopters from dif- es including the aircraft-on-ground A further 20,000 non-accredited media ferent police forces during the Olympic hotline and technical services, the are anticipated. and Paralympic Games, as well as the implementation of a 24/7 maintenance One of the first measures taken Royal Air Force Puma helicopters that duty roster, the management of ven- was to draw up two airspace restric- were on-call for use principally by the dor support for systems ranging from tion zones covering central London. special forces during events. engines to mission equipment, and the One was a prohibited zone and cov- In addition, a company called Arena deployment of a fleet 20 GPS-tracked ered the airspace surrounding the TV provided aerial coverage of not mobile vehicles. These vans, only intro- major sites involved in hosting Olym- only the Olympic Games but also duced at the beginning of the year, were pic events, while a wider restricted the procession of the Olympic torch fully equipped and were ready to be zone covered a large area of airspace around the UK. They had five AS355s despatched to customer sites or police that stretched south of Gatwich that would also be extensively used helicopters that may have performed throughout the tournament and would emergency landings away from their eventually fly more than 600 hours dur- home base or any airfield. ing the period. The pre-planning paid off hand- MoD Eurocopter UK’s managing direc- somely. Steinke states that there was tor Markus Steinke told Rotor & Wing only one significant “intervention” that the preparations for the Olympics to repair a helicopter, three logistics represented a “major effort in pre- requests and two requests from cus- planning with Eurocopter taking con- tomers for technical support through- certed action with police forces before out the Olympics and Paralympics. the Olympics.” Steinke was justifiably pleased as Steinke said that Eurocopter was the result of his company’s pre-plan- able to call on its experience in sup- ning and preparations: “It has been porting other major tournaments demonstrated that Eurocopter is the worldwide such as soccer’s FIFA UK’s backbone for national security (in World Cup in 2006. The process to terms of providing the police helicop- prepare the UK’s police helicopter ters with dedicated MRO support).” fleet for intensive operations during the Games began one year before with Military Muscle the company contacting individual The military’s air contribution towards police air support units to alert them securing the Olympic Games and Para- to the fact that this would be a busy lympics included fast-jet interceptors period for all concerned. and helicopters. Aircraft of both types As the EC135 and EC145 helicop- were moved into the London area to ters conform to a different maintenance give them the shortest possible reaction A Royal Air Force 230 Squadron Puma HC1 helicopter based at RAF Benson, Oxfordshire regime an intensive maintenance plan- time to any airborne threat. is pictured over the 2012 Olympic Stadium ning and logistics structure had to be RAF Typhoon fighters and Royal during a training flight in London. devised. Some of the EC135 schedules Navy S-61 Sea Kings were based at

36 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Olympic Helicopters

RAF Northolt in the west of London (a prised 60 aircrew, base more used to the Royal Flight and engineers and private jet traffic). Being situated inside support staff who London’s orbital motorway, the M25, were all relocated

this meant that reaction time was down from their home Eurocopter to minutes. base at the Royal A pair of Mk 2 Puma helicopters Naval Air Station complete with onboard sniper teams (RNAS) at Yeo- were located at Ilford in east London. vilton. According The snipers provided a final resort if to the RN Lynx unidentified light aircraft could not be detachment com- turned back and were heading to one mander Lt. Com- of the Olympic venues. mander Nigel A helicopter intercept procedure Cu n n i n g h a m , was established for light aircraft or who was respon- other unidentified helicopters heading sible for coor- into the restricted zone. The military dinating with EC145 trio over London. helicopter would join the left hand the Police and side of the incoming aircraft and rock L O C O G ; t h e his aircraft. The military aircraft might London Orga- helicopters fitted with the Searchwa- also display a “Follow Me” sign that had nizing committee responsible for ter 2000 radar would add airborne to be obeyed. The military crew could the Olympic and Paralympic Games, surveillance and control to the Olym- also get the pilot’s attention by use of a the Lynx were kept at a high state pic security picture, and were based at green laser or firing a flare. If none of of readiness from July 13 until both RAF Northolt. The Mk7’s intelligence, these had the desired effect of halting Games were over. surveillance and reconnaissance the rogue aircraft, stronger and more Aside from maintaining aviation (ISR) was most recently deployed kinetic measures were available. safety, daily tasking revolved around into Afghanistan where it was used Army Air Corps Lynx and three constant updates with briefs and to monitor insurgents in Helmand Royal Navy Mk 8 Lynx helicopters relo- planning, ready to react to any emer- Province. Usually it is used to detect cated from their bases to the helicopter gency that occurred. “Operating in and protect naval ships at sea from carrier HMS Ocean, which berthed this unusual battlespace has brought maritime and air threats. on the River Thames near Greenwich with it a series of demanding and chal- Away from the capital city, Merlin for the duration of both Games. This lenging problems,” said Cunningham, MH1s of 814 NAS were based on the 21,000-ton dedicated helicopter carrier adding that the ship was berthed close 21,000-ton HMS Bulwalk provid- has six helicopter operating spots on to the Olympic equestrian event area. ing security for the Olympic sailing its flight deck. Incidentally, due to the This required the varying of launching events in Weymouth Bay. During the proximity of the ship to the Olympic and recovery of helicopters in order AW101 Merlin’s operated from the site it was also used as a floating accom- to prevent excessive helicopter noise ship supported by 150 personnel. modation base for more than 400 from adversely affecting the horses in The offshore RN helicopters sup- soldiers who were drafted in to boost competition nearby. ported the Dorset Police through security at the eleventh hour when One of her primary tasks of HMS their maritime patrol capability. A security company G4S revealed that it Ocean was to coordinate the flying harbor revision order that lasted could not recruit and train the 10,400 operations above London. By the end daily between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. was private security staff it had contracted of the deployment her flight team devised to ensure that boats did not to provide. This meant that many addi- had logged a total of 1,680 hours of interfere with the Olympic competi- tional servicemen had to be drafted in flying aircrew and snipers in their tors in the area that they were using. late in the day to bolster security at a embarked Lynx helicopters. In a pub- In this scenario, the military’s role variety of sites. Around 18,000 service lic relations mode to local residents was to support the authority of the personnel of all types were eventu- and the general public, the ship was police by their presence and by their ally called upon, some have to give up opened for visits for three days with ability to gather information. The promised leave after just returning more than 11,000 visitors taking up aircraft’s L-3 Wescam MX-15 electro- from tours in Afghanistan. the opportunity to visit the carrier. optical camera could identify and The RN Lynx detachment from Around 50 personnel from 854 send real-time footage via downlink 815 Naval Air Squadron (NAS) com- NAS with a pair of Sea King Mk7 to situational controllers.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 37 SERVICES | MAINTENANCE WHY ENGINE MAINTENANCE MATTERS Maintaining proper rotorcraft engine maintenance is critical for safe, smooth flight. By Mark Robins Helicopter Specialties Inc.

38 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Engine Maintenance

Proper engine maintenance guarantees a long-lasting, efficient source of power for the helicopter. E S

egular and thorough helicopter engine main- Engine manufacturers establish maintenance standards for tenance ensures safety, compliance with legal their products via an extensive test and qualification process Robligations, peace of mind, and enhanced during the design and development phases of the engine-mak- flying pleasure. According to the Helicopter ing process. A smart design team includes operators’ input early Safety Advisory Conference, engine-related mechanical on to help ensure easy access for maintenance. Additionally, malfunctions are one of the leading causes of helicopter manufacturers often work in cooperation with the helicopter accidents. Powerplant maintenance is so important because airframe manufacturer. “The airframe manufacturer may the engine is the main component keeping the helicopter impose additional specific maintenance requirements relative in the air. “An airplane uses wings for much of its lift, but a to the engine installation, ancillary systems, controls and indi- helicopter relies on the engine to drive the main rotor blades cating systems,” say Phil Kemp, vice president of airframe and that provide the required lift,” says Jim Freeman, president of avionic sales for Vector Aerospace Helicopter Services North Helicopter Specialties in Janesville, Wis. “A neglected engine America in Langley, Canada. can’t provide enough horsepower to safely take off or land a Engine maintenance procedures are part of the engine helicopter.” A complete engine failure could be catastrophic. certification process (JAR21). “Based on engine architecture, “Without a reliable engine, the helicopter is just about use- design margin, system redundancies and engine parameters less,” says Jerry McCawley, test pilot and safety engineer at monitored, safety analysis will identify mandatory maintenance Lockheed Martin in Owego, N.Y. “Proper maintenance is tasks and associated periodicities that have to be performed,” critical to engine long-term reliability and performance. says Keith Marshall, vice president at Turbomeca USA. “These Daily inspections, pilot pre-flights and heavier inspections maintenance constraints are taken into account along all the such as 100 hour/annual inspections and hot-end inspec- engine development phases and design optimization. Most of tions all play a part in ensuring an engine is both safe and those tasks are related to control functions which will be acti- delivering full performance.” vated in emergency and can’t be tested in normal operations. Not all rotorcraft engines receive equal engine mainte- Qualification tests will identify all limitations related to engine nance. Smaller engines complete more cycles over the same operations.” Respecting preventive and scheduled maintenance period of time compared to larger engines. Any maintenance is the only way to keep engine airworthiness. “It’s important activity prescribed according to engine cycle will be car- from both a practical standpoint and a legal/regulatory stand- ried out more often on a smaller turbine engine. McCawley point to maintain a helicopter engine in accordance with the notes piston engines require more maintenance than turbine manufacturer’s standards,” stresses Freeman. engines due to their more complex makeup, spark plug fowl- Cory Little, senior technical sales manager at Phoenix, Ariz.- ing and cooling issues. based Honeywell, agrees, saying: “Civil certification authorities

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 39 SERVICES | MAINTENANCE

prohibit continued operations outside repairs, component replacement and provide a very detailed analysis of the of approved maintenance standards. troubleshooting. engine oil, monitoring elevated lev- Violating standards can result in fleet “The most common maintenance els of specific metals and materials. grounding by civil authorities until an is the daily/pre-flight inspection per- “By reviewing the volumes and type of engine comes back into compliance with formed by the mechanic, the pilot, or material in the sample, it is possible to maintenance standards.” best (in my opinion) both,” says McCa- identify the source within the engine From the regulatory standpoint, the wley. “A thorough visual inspection will and intercept potential failures, or to FAA plays a big role in U.S.-based civil spot many issues at an early stage and direct maintenance activities to avoid helicopter fleets in the standards which allow for a quicker fix, though not in expensive repair or replacement actions,” regulate engine maintenance initially every case, of course.” At this time, the says Kemp. “By interpreting trends across and through issuance of Airworthiness engine, systems and components must individual engines as well as fleets, it is Directives to address issues that arise be examined for cracks, corrosion, gen- possible to anticipate failures as well as as an engine matures in service and eral condition, leaks and signs of material the impacts of operational and environ- problems arise. “The Aviation Missile distress. mental conditions.” Research Development and Engineering External components and fuel con- Inspection of fuel and ignition sys- Command (AMDREC) does this for trol systems require close inspection tems includes the filtration system to the U.S. Army and NAVAIR for the U.S. of lines, unions and fittings for leaks ensue that clean fuel is being delivered to Navy/USMC,” says Sam Evans, Colonel and cracks. “At specified periods in the the burner nozzles, ensuring reliable and (ret.) and U.S. Army Aviator. engine overhaul cycles, or following spe- safe engine operation. Some engine types Operators can also set mainte- cific abnormal events, the engine may require periodic inspection of nozzles nance standards to better reflect the require internal inspection of the com- and igniters, to ensure the nozzles and conditions they face in their opera- pressor, combustion or power sections,” igniters are operating to specification tions. The more an operator lowers the says Kemp. “These inspections may be and are not damaged, which in turn can hourly operating cost of the engine, the accomplished through either partial cause additional damage and problems more profitable the operator becomes. disassembly of the engine to access the to the combustion and power sections “Through coordination with the OEM parts to be inspected, or with a bore- of the engine. “Air and bleed air systems they can tailor their programs to be scope, which allows a detailed inspec- are an extremely important and essential both effective in catching any issue as tion of the engine interior through a part of the engine operating and control well as cost effective,” says McCawley. fiber-optic viewfinder, without extensive system,” says Kemp. “In addition to their “A operator that uses its aircraft in disassembly, which may be recorded by role in the start process, in many types of longer distance executive transport has photo or video.” fuel-control systems, they play an essen- needs that are vastly different than one Performing periodic engine main- tial role in the scheduling and governing involved with logging, long lining or tenance tasks reduces the risk of severe of the entire fuel system. Chafed line or offshore applications.” engine damage. Checking oil, fuel filters, loose connections can cause air leaks Engine maintenance includes regu- magnetic plugs, oil level and air intake that result in the sudden and uncom- lar, scheduled maintenance events with are periodic tasks, which help get infor- manded loss of all engine power.” routine inspections and overhauls, as mation to understand engine health to The above helicopter engine main- well as unscheduled events including detect and prevent serious engine deg- tenance procedures along with others radation. For example, the composition are all considered operator-level main- It’s important from both a practical of a metallic particle collected on a mag- tenance. Brian Costello, field service standpoint and a legal/regulatory netic plug or oil filter will identify which engineer at Lycoming Engines in Wil- standpoint to maintain a helicopter engine in accordance with the manufacturer’s component it came from and trigger a liamsport, Pa. believes most required standard. specific maintenance procedure. periodic maintenance and inspections A helicopter’s engine oil is its life- can be carried out by a properly trained blood. “Maintenance requires that the and equipped in-house staff. Kemp feels engine oil be changed before it becomes much depends on staff training, techni- acidic,” says Mike Turner, president of cian experience, and the ratings, capabili- Air Technology Engines Inc. in Naples, ties and access to special tooling. Fla. Acidic oil results in a drastic reduc- More intermediate-level activities

Helicopter Specialties Inc. tion in the Ryder gear value of the oil. must be carried out by service centers Under high loads, the oil gets squeezed capable of disassembling and inspect- out between the gear teeth resulting in ing an engine at a modular level. “These excessive wear.” activities might include disassembling Spectrographic oil analysis programs the engine into the primary modules

40 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM Engine Maintenance

MTBUR, power problems as well as trending an engine’s loss or ultimately, condition and performance,” McCaw- engine flameout.” ley says. These systems allow vast data One of the collection and number crunching of most important all engine parameters. These produce Russian Helicopters engine main- a highly detailed real-time review of tenance tools operating equipment’s current condi- to lower these tion and may predicate corrective or contaminants’ preventative maintenance actions, as impact is a simple well as single-aircraft and fleet-trend water and chemi- monitoring. Advancements in manufacturing technology through improved cal wash of the For instance, a Bell 2061 operator material properties and/or advanced manufacturing methods allow engine’s interior. A can install a Honeywell VXP on-board engine manufacturers to produce engines with increased maintenance clean engine per- HUMS system. “The system is com- intervals that allow operators to safely leave the engines on wing for forms better due prised of multiple sensors installed longer periods of time. to increased aero- throughout the aircraft and connected (turbine module, compressor mod- dynamic efficiency across the turbine to a primary data processing unit,” Little ule, gearbox module), inspecting those sections which results in more horse- says. “This system allows the operator modules per approved inspection pro- power, cooler temps and reduced fuel to monitor critical aircraft engine data cedures, and then carrying out any flows. “An engine flush passes solvents or during a flight that is subsequently ana- module-level maintenance,” says Little. water through the turbines to clean any lyzed to identify potential maintenance Intermediate level maintenance is per- deposits on the turbine blades after flight issues before they occur.” formed off-wing at certified and properly in dusty, dirty or salt environments,” says Marshall believes HUMS is just in equipped facilities. Evans. its infancy in terms of engine main- Depot level engine maintenance Also, there are various engine air pro- tenance and agrees that it is turning is the most advanced and detailed. It tection systems available that eliminate engine maintenance from a corrective includes complete engine disassembly or capture sand and dust particulates to a proactive model. Also, “Computer and inspection and/or maintenance such as self-cleaning particle separa- aided trouble shooting tools, based on activities at the part level. It’s typically tors, integrated particle separators, dust statistical case databases will enhance completed during major inspections protection units, oil-wetted inlet bar- problem isolation and resolution by prescribed in intervals often measured in rier filters and debris screens. optimizing resources or access time,” engine hours, cycles or both. “An unusual “They eliminate or capture airborne he says. “Real-time data transmission helicopter operating event, such as a sand and dust particulates, thus pro- between in-flight helicopters and on- hard landing, may also trigger a depot- tecting the engine from premature ero- ground maintenance centers using level inspection per the approved main- sion,” Jan says. “Selecting the best per- specialized tools will limit helicopters’ tenance standard,” Little adds. forming, safest, cost effective and—not on-ground operation.” Helicopter engine air intakes are forgetting—environmentally friendly Developments like these and oth- frequently challenged by many airborne solution, requires a good understand- ers related to advanced manufacturing contaminants encountered in flight such ing of how each works.” technology involving improved mate- as: sand, dust, ice, FOD, snow, heavy rain HUMS and condition based main- rial properties and/or advanced manu- and salt spray. When ingested, these con- tenance (CBM) are among the most facturing methods continue to surface. taminants can seriously affect helicopter prominent developments in helicopter “They allow engine manufacturers to safety and availability. engine maintenance. CBM describes produce engines with increased main- “The air inlet’s cleanliness is vital to a set of practices utilized to trans- tenance intervals that allow operators prevent damage to the precision high- form the aircraft maintenance from a to safely leave the engines on wing for speed rotating equipment in turbine reactive environment to a proactive longer periods of time,” says Little. engines,” says Pierre-Yves Jan, global environment. HUMS is one tool for Ultimately, an operator’s goal leader of air intakes at Pall Corp. in Port accomplishing the CBM objective. should always be the safe operation Washington, N.Y. “Failure to protect the Self-diagnostic systems such as of their helicopter. Using substan- engine air intake can lead to compres- HUMS or (Digital) Electronic Engine dard engine maintenance practices, sor blade erosion, reduced combustion Control Units, or (D)EECs, monitor and unlicensed or substandard parts chamber life, turbine blade glazing, block- the engine and will report any faults degrades overall engine performance, age of turbine blade air cooling holes, through a variety of displays or outputs. which can potentially affect the pur- component wear corrosion, decreased “They can play a critical role in spotting pose for which it was designed.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 41 PRODUCTS | SERVICES AIRBORNE & O Honeywell

By Frank Lombardi Beyond the needs of the passenger, a wireless connection brings a series of tools to the cockpit capable of increasing situational awareness, lowering workload, enhancing safety, and even assisting with maintenance.

42 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM In-Flight Connectivity E & ON THE GRID: In-FlIght ConneCtIvIty

Conceptual image from Honeywell illustrates in-flight connectivity for aircraft. Helicopter image added by Graphic Designer Gretchen Saval.

ithout question, the evolved into an extra appendage that mary goal of wireless networking has Internet is woven into we seem to need almost as much as been to provide in-flight connectiv- the daily lives of just the opposable thumbs we text with. ity to passengers for both entertain- Wabout all of us. Technol- It is interesting that despite the ment and productivity. But looking ogy has broken the bonds of the wires speed of advancing wireless technol- beyond the Internet, for those of us that once tethered us to our desktops, ogy, the ability to connect to the web in the cockpit, a wireless connection and wireless networks have become while in flight is still somewhat of a option brings a bag of tools capable of more the rule than the exception. The luxury. However, this technology is increasing situational awareness, low- ability to send and receive floods of finally becoming more pervasive on ering workload, enhancing safety— information at a moments notice is the market, and with it comes a host of and even assisting in maintenance. quite literally at our fingertips, and the steadily growing applications. To explore the topic, we must first personal electronic device (PED) has In commercial aviation, the pri- understand the basics. Any wireless

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 43 PRODUCTS | SERVICES

connection in flight will initially need complex. Jeff Warner, President and other), and their power requirements to connect with a router-style “access CEO of North Flight Data Systems, are less, allowing for smaller, lighter, point” installed in the aircraft. The data helped explain what can be a confusing more streamlined equipment. The cave- being requested must then be relayed hierarchy of businesses involved in the at is that they only provide lower band- from the aircraft to a ground station. process of getting connected. First there width signals more suitable for voice The ground station then taps into the is the aircraft. Then there are companies and low-speed short burst data transfer. Web or whatever data service is neces- that produce data collection devices, A second generation satellite network, sary, and the return data is passed back i.e. the hardware necessary to gather coined Iridium NEXT, will launch in in the opposite direction. certain data—be it cockpit data, passen- 2015, and promises numerous perfor- Gogo (originally Aircell), an Internet ger data, etc. Finally there is the service mance increases. With some insight provider to select air carriers, employs provider, which passes the collected into each type of system, it’s apparent an air-to-ground (ATG) system to bring data through its software and modem that no one system can address every third-generation evolution-data opti- access point and transmits it via satellite possible requirement. To help in making mized (3G EV-DO) wireless broadband for a fee. Warner’s company produces the proper choice, companies such as into select airline cabins. To accomplish lightweight voice, video and flight data Honeywell can provide packaged solu- this, Gogo’s networked cell towers recorders for use in light helicopters tions. Kurt Weidemeyer, Honeywell’s across the U.S. have been outfitted such as the Eurocopter AS350, EC135 director in marketing and product man- with antennas that point their signals and EC145, among others. agement for satellite communications, up at the sky instead of down across Two predominant types of satellite explained: “With the coming upgrades the ground. This provides a wireless connectivity solutions in use today are in the near future, operators will have service experience that most of us are the high-altitude, high-powered geosta- multiple choices to serve the cockpit and used to when we surf the Web with our tionary variety requiring high-powered cabin when choosing a system.” He was smartphones. However, it does have its transmitters, and the low-altitude, lower referring to Inmarsat’s evolving Global limitations. The most obvious should powered type in low Earth orbit. Xpress system with “Ka-band” technol- be the fact that the signal is only good Inmarsat, provider of mobile satellite ogy, which has more capacity and is while over the continental U.S., since services, operates a network of 11 geo- well-suited for mobile use. It is resulting the last cell tower will go out of range stationary satellites around the world to in smaller, more reliable and more effi- shortly after the aircraft flies out over achieve near-global coverage (coverage cient components that can still provide the ocean. Another issue is that as more at the poles is tricky because of poor a broadband signal, and has allowed people try to stream data-intensive line-of-sight). By definition, each of Inmarsat to become more competitively material, such as movies on their PEDs, these satellites match the rotation of priced with the offerings of Iridium. the speeds they can achieve may leave the Earth and maintain their location Weidemeyer went on to say, “Honeywell something to be desired. Let’s face it, over a point on the equator, while in supports both Iridium and Inmarsat, as our electronic lives evolve, we crave orbit approximately 22,236 miles above and provides everything needed on the more bandwidth. the surface. They are capable of provid- aircraft to take their satellite signal and The quick answer to these two ing the high-bandwidth data transfer make it usable to the operator.” issues is the use of satellites for data speeds comparable to what we have Whether the “operator” refers to the transmission. At a glance, satellites seem come to expect in our home office net- commercial airlines, business class, or to solve all our in-flight connectivity works, via their Swiftbroadband service. private jet travel, a clear need for world- problems. But the reality is a bit more Generally speaking, the higher power of wide connectivity is evident. As put by these satellites requires larger, heavier Jenelle Davis, marketing manager for and draggier equipment to be installed ARINC Direct (a distribution partner on aircraft wanting this capability. for Inmarsat), “When the business per- The other satellite solution—which son in today’s world gets onboard an air- North Flight’s recorders make use of—is craft, their business should not have to provided by Iridium Communications, stop just because they take off.” Having which maintains a low Earth orbit the ability to email, text, fax, stream large constellation of 66 satellites (there’s amounts of data and make voice calls even a bunch of spares in orbit), about globally is crucial to the productivity of 485 miles up. Because the satellites are many businesses, and a system taking closer to the earth, more are required to advantage of a high speed, secure data maintain global coverage. Their cover- connection would provide what Davis SkyTrac Systems SkyTrac age is arguably more efficient with the describes as “seamless global communi- SkyTrac ISAT 200A. ability to crosslink (talk directly to each cation while in-flight.”

44 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM In-Flight Connectivity

When we think of productivity in the The cost effectiveness of helicopter any fee to be able office, it should be easy to see that such a operations is particularly sensitive to to provide their system is equally beneficial to the crew weight, balance and useful load. From toddler with a in the “front office” of an aircraft. Via that angle, it’s not hard to see why the form of in-flight satellite connection, pilots can access addition of current components that entertainment enhanced weather reports, plan and support a high-speed connection can be during a trip to file the next leg of their flights, or access too cost prohibitive. Beyond that, there make the technol- their base operation’s server, even during are electronic issues of obtaining a good ogy worthwhile, long, overwater trip segments. It is also signal with a broadband antenna that is its uses go so far imperative that certain safety-critical mounted under the spinning rotor. Such beyond such a data can be delivered through a highly systems exist, but are generally only suit- notion. Still, War- reliable and redundant certified connec- able for military application at this time. ner cautioned,

tion, which both Inmarsat and Iridium Yet, SkyTrac Systems is a company that “Satellite com- Systems SkyTrac systems can now provide. Additionally, recognizes the importance of wireless munication is SkyTrac Systems’ SkyWeb mobile map communication in the helicopter indus- wonderful tech- with the Federal Aviation Administra- for the iPhone. tion’s allowance of iPads and similar try, and has developed products to meet nology, and that’s tablet devices to be used as Electronic that need. where the indus- Flight Bags by pilots, a cascade of apps Realizing that most critical cockpit try should go, but it should be taken have appeared on the market. Davis operations do not require a broadband in small bites. It sounds like a panacea, highlighted the ARINC Direct flight connection, SkyTrac offers connectivity but we can unintentionally impede our planning app, for example, as one such packages that make use of the lower-cost operation trying to make sense of it all.” tool to aid and enhance flight planning and lighter equipment weight of the In Warner’s view, “Sending data is not from the cockpit when combined with Iridium satellite network to bring two- cheap, so why not just send only what’s one of ARINC’s service plans. way voice, e-mail and flight following important? It’s a lot more than a com-

North Flight into the helicopter cockpit. Malachi munications link. The conduit is there, Nordine, director of product develop- but there’s lots of work that needs to be ment at SkyTrac Systems emphatically done in qualifying those sent messages told Rotor & Wing: “Satellite connectiv- and making sure they’re useful. I mean, ity should not be reserved for the bizjet/ you don’t want junk mail coming over North Flight Data Systems multifunction data your satellite connection!” acquisition unit (MFDAU). air transport market just because they operate in a different economy class. Perhaps least thought about, but pos- Non-scheduled ‘working’ rotorcraft also With all this talk about digital com- sibly the ultimate display of usefulness need connectivity. Maintaining communication on aircraft, this article of in-flight connectivity is exemplified munication to one’s operations is criti- wouldn’t be complete without by aircraft routinely taken into remote cal. Safety is the factor when communi- addressing the pressing questions locations, such as offshore, search and cating with remotely deployed assets.” about the legality of electronic device rescue, EMS, forestry, or disaster relief While discussing the cost of operating and cell phone usage on aircraft. helicopter operations. To these types such instrumental electronics, Nordine Although difficult to enforce, it is the of operations, an in-flight connection also had an interesting view: “There is Federal Communications Commis- is a literal lifeline. With a wireless con- a misconception that satellite service is sion, which bans the use of all 800 nection via satellite, operators can have expensive. Satellite connectivity in air- MHz cellular phones on any aircraft a full-time live link to their entire base craft is actually more economical than in flight. One of the thoughts behind operation. Voice over Internet Protocol regular cellular roaming. When I travel, this is that the radio transmitters of (VoIP) can allow voice calls from areas my roaming charges are significantly cell phones in flight can connect to where no cell coverage exists. Health more when compared to what the satel- multiple cell towers, and have the and usage monitoring systems (HUMS) lite charges would have been. My office potential to disrupt cellular opera- that watch over the many rotating and people joke that it’s cheaper for me to tions on the ground. As it stands vibrating critical parts of a helicopter use satellite when I travel.” today, in the U.S., the use of elec- can be tied into a wireless connection For the average air traveler, the cost tronic devices by passengers while and transmit the state of an aircraft’s of upgrading an airliner to have a broad- onboard a commercial airline flight is systems to maintenance personnel hun- band connection will ultimately fall prohibited below 10,000 feet. Above dreds of miles away, who can monitor or upon them, as they pay a fee for their this altitude, electronic devices are troubleshoot many issues without physi- connections. While there are probably permitted, but cell phones must have cally being there. enough parents that would gladly pay their radio transmitters off.

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 45 TRAINING | PROCUREMENT Public Service

By Lee Benson

Procurement Dragons

ne of my challenges in writ- been around since at least Judas, prob- however dragons talk, and the next ing a column for Rotor & ably going to be around awhile longer. thing you know instead of their nose OWing is to attempt to be rel- The next reason is chief pilot or pro- being under your tent flap they are sit- evant to its entire readership. gram managers not doing their job, but ting at your table telling you how to fly In the broadest terms that means for what is their job? Their job is not taking a helicopter. This trend of procurement profit, not-for-profit, military, non- someone else’s specification and pre- dragons getting stronger by the day has military, foreign and domestic. My senting it as your agency requirement. to stop, if we as the aviation professionals career has spanned all six of the groups The reason that this is not the answer is are going to retain a seat at the head of identified but mostly involved domestic, because you can’t back it up. Two sepa- the table. Two documents can help in governmental operations. Guys, there rate issues here—either you haven’t iden- this effort. One is your agency’s mission are magazines out there that cater to tified your mission profile and now you statement. Let me quote Los Angeles governmental entities, but it would have nothing to base your specification County Fire’s Mission Statement: “… seem to be a little confining to write for on, or a specific specification is included to protect lives, the environment and “Government Ops Are Us” don’t you to eliminate competition. For example, property by providing prompt skillful think? All of this came to me as I pre- specifying a rotor system that rotates and cost effective fire protection and life pared to write a story about the recent clockwise. This will eliminate half the safety services.” multiple program failures related to OEMs, but let’s hear you explain why Every word of that mission statement procurement. In 2007 and 2008 several this trait is a defining quality needed to was reflected in a detailed mission profile of my columns were a collection of mis- complete your mission. In both instanc- that was written with great specific- takes and small successes that I had es, when the tender hits the street the ity about exactly what was required of experienced in the acquisition process companies that you have excluded go the helicopter when L.A. County Fire while I was employed by Los Angeles to your procurement folks and make a bought the Firehawk. That’s step one in County Fire. All of this was intended detailed complaint against your tender; how you slay a dragon. The additional to help my fellow chief pilot/program you can’t justify the specification against factor is, what is the mission statement of managers. One of my points was to a written mission profile that includes the procurement dragons. The mission be a little sensitive and inclusive to the every aspect of your specification, you statements for most agencies would be procurement folks, more about this lose the appeal and your tender gets difficult to apply to a procurement sec- later. Being a consultant on program tossed. First of all, don’t blame the com- tion within that agency, see the example management issues, a product repre- pany that contested the tender. They had above. Any subsection of a large entity sentative and an interested observer expended time and money in their bid, left without defined goals and parameters of military helicopter programs has they deserved a chance to compete on a will fill the axiom “that nature abhors a caused me to beat my head against the level playing field. You tilted the field and vacuum.” At this point I believe that the wall and ask what the heck is going on? got caught, you didn’t do your job, but subspecies of dragons in procurement We have all repeatedly seen programs they did theirs. More of this occurs then and human resources world are out of delayed, contested, or canceled. Why gets called out, but every time it occurs, control and plotting their takeover of is this, why are a significant number of it strengthens the procurement dragons the world at the above mentioned oil programs experiencing procurement rational for being further into your tent. field. Why do you think the U.S. General problems? I think I can shed some light As I have said before, all procure- Services Administration spends millions on this problem. One of the reasons is ment dragons go to the same oil field to of our dollars on conferences? Oil isn’t just plain old greed and corruption— reload their flame throwers, they talk, cheap and dragons use a lot of it.

46 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM International Marketplace 47 NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 2012 | ROTOR NOVEMBER

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By Ernie Stephens Ground Security t was in October, about nine years risk of ambush that all officers face: How enforcement airbase in the world. Base ago. Mike and I had just landed do we also protect aircraft that, by the security personnel won’t let you bring Iafter a routine night patrol. As I nature of their mission, have to sit outside your dreams past the main gate of that was completing my post-flight when on duty? It was bad enough that we place! inspection and he was returning the couldn’t see the flight line from inside the Unfortunately, most of the other nozzle to the fuel pump, I saw a car stop facility, but truth be known, even if we police and sheriff bases I’ve visited are on the road off the end of the runway. could see it, the aircraft wouldn’t be any located in places that leave their on-call This wasn’t unusual, since people fre- safer from a sniper. After all, by the time aircraft vulnerable to malicious attack or quently stopped whenever they saw us we could hear a shot and get outside to non-malicious (but equally damaging) outside, probably to see if we were going investigate—carefully, I might add—the tampering. And while the personnel who to takeoff. But that’s where the norm damage might already be done. And I staff those units do the best they can to ended that night. never liked the idea that we wouldn’t hear monitor the safety or their helicopters, is As Mike and I were grabbing our gear anything if we were on the pad in a run- there cause to do more? If so, what else out of the aircraft, we heard five pops ning helicopter. can be done? coming from the direction of the stopped Although it had nothing to do with Keeping an aircraft behind closed car, immediately followed by five whiff- our two sniper incidents, we moved to a hangar doors isn’t an option for many ing sounds near our heads. Those were different airport about a month later. But agencies, simply because it takes far sounds I remembered from my second that really didn’t change anything. The too long to get them out for an emer- week out of the police academy over area was only slightly less remote than gency launch. So, we’ll scratch that option two decades earlier. They were gunshots the old place, and our apron was still out off the top. Many aviation units have coming from the car 400 yards away, and of our view when we were inside, and installed lights with motion detectors. bullets passing close enough for us to vulnerable to a hidden gunman. They make the aircraft a little harder for hear! As Mike took cover and I turned off Paranoid? Yeah, I was—but not the people to see from a distance when the the apron lights to cloak us in darkness, paralyzing kind. Just the kind that makes lights are off, and hopefully alerts unit the car sped off. you wonder if there’s anything that can be members if someone approaches the After a very thorough check, we didn’t done to make the environment safer for flight line. And while they’re at it, those find any holes in the aircraft, the hangar, the crew and the machines. And it wasn’t departments sometimes install surveil- the fuel farm, or ourselves. Evidence just about bullets, either. Being based at lance cameras that will allow them to technicians, however, collected spent a small, general aviation airport with no keep an eye on their ships from inside of bullet casings from the spot where we separation from anyone else sometimes their quarters. I’ve even seen some outfits saw the car. resulted in folks strolling over to look at install windows so that personnel can A few days later, at almost the same our aircraft, and innocently molesting better see the apron. time, someone fired shots at fellow avia- our equipment. Heck, I came out one Whatever method a unit uses, I tors, Bo and Brian. This time, the shots day to find a kid spinning our FLIR ball think a major component of any aircraft came from the opposite direction. Again, around! (When the paramedics got me security system is a pre-launch walk- no injuries, damage or suspects. off the ground, I walked the youngster around. Personally, I rarely get into any- For the next few nights, our takeoffs, back to his preoccupied parent.) one’s aircraft—police, military, private or landings and refueling were covered by a My friends who fly out of the Trooper commercial—until I’ve given it a quick, squad of ghillie-suited, NVG-equipped 2 hangar of the Maryland State Police walk-around check for bullet holes, open counter-snipers hidden around the air- have it made. With their hangar located panels and rags, even though it isn’t port. It increased our comfort level, but on the airfield of Joint Base Andrews always my responsibility to do so. That when it came to catching anyone, no joy. (formerly Andrews Air Force Base), its check won’t find every possible problem, The two incidents raised an impor- proximity to the Air Force One hangar but it gives me a better chance of finding tant question that went beyond the usual arguably makes it the most secure law an issue than not looking at all.

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’m an Army National Guard supposed to be proficient at on a daily has to change. There has to be an pilot and my unit recently went basis. As a professional pilot we have assessment of a person’s knowledge Ithrough an “ARMS” inspection. to practice the things we can during prior to beginning the training. It occurs about every three the year, study hard, chair fly emer- All the Internet-based training years and is a detailed inspection gency procedures, and then hope for is a one-size-fits-all philosophy and of everything an aviation unit does, the best come checkride time. that isn’t necessarily effective. Addi- which includes checkrides for the Secondly, training has to be real- tionally, there has to be additional unit pilots. During this most recent istic and effective. I know of a couple time allotted with a check airman to inspection I made some mental of programs that send their pilots to ensure all academic areas have been observations about training that I’d FlightSafety International every year learned. The 10 days of training at like to share. for one day. The odd part is that they headquarters is gone forever but I First off, there is no cramming for train in a different model of helicopter would argue that being in a class- checkrides. If you go 363 days without than the one they actually fly back at room with your fellow pilots and an cracking open a book then two days their base. If the cockpit, limitations experienced company instructor of cramming will not help you come and checklist are different, then what is invaluable. With Internet-based checkride time. Knowledge and flight is the point of that training other than training there is no swapping of war skills are perishable items. Many EMS to confuse the pilot? I suspect it helps stories or sharing of questions that companies offer one-hour “training” the vendor’s marketing or insurance makes everyone else go “I didn’t even flights every quarter. These flights are rates because they can say “all our think of that.” This is especially true almost always without an IP onboard pilots attend simulator training.” in the commercial helicopter world and sometimes without even another Speaking of effective training, where almost all operations are flown rated pilot. So during these so-called initial and recurrent academic train- single pilot. “training” flights the pilot does not go ing via web-based programs are com- Finally, everyone can’t pass their out and perform single-engine ops, pletely replacing classroom training checkride and that’s OK. The prob- inadvertent IMC recoveries, or any with a real instructor. I can’t believe lem I see in the civilian helicopter other emergency procedure. the FAA allows it. When I flew Part world is that virtually no one fails a Even if the pilot is an IP, it isn’t the 135 the leading Internet training training event. With a FAA examiner same when you are giving emergen- provider had the following phrase or an Army IP there is a possibility of cies to yourself. Many bosses view on their home page: “Designed to failure. Simulator companies avoid training flights as a waste of time and save you money.” That’s great, my failing future customers. Most Part money. I would argue that “train- company saved some money but the 135 check airmen won’t fail a pilot if it ing” flights are a waste if everyone is training never taught me anything. is going to mess with the flight sched- just turning Jet A into noise. Ensure It is human nature to not pay ule. In most Part 135 operations it that training flights are effective by attention when completing these always messes with the flight sched- having an IP onboard, stressing the Internet-based lessons. I used to ule. The two checkrides I learned the importance of training, and ensuring watch various reality TV shows while most from are the two checkrides debriefs occur with follow-up assign- completing my annual recurrent I failed. All instructors, including ments to strengthen pilot skills and training via the web. I would look at myself, need to keep that fact in mind associated knowledge base. Some the computer every 30 seconds and the next time we evaluate another companies allot zero training time click to the next screen when the big pilot. We aren’t doing anyone any throughout the year and it can be arrow turned blue. I recognize web- favors by not holding pilots to the hard to stay sharp on the skills we are based training is here to stay, but it standard.

50 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM International Marketplace

Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation (Requester Publications Only) 1. Publication Title: Rotor&Wing 2. Publication Number: 1066-8098 3. Filing Date: 10/4/12 4. Issue Frequency: Monthly 5. Number of Issues Published Annually: 12 6. Annual Sub- scription Price 89. Complete Mailing Address of Known Ofce of Publication: Access In- telligence, 4 Choke Cherry Road, 2nd Floor, Rockville, MD 20850-4024 Contact: George Severine Telephone: 301-354-1706 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Ofce Publisher: Access Intelligence, C, 4 Choke Cherry Road, 2nd Floor, Rock- ville, MD 20850-4024 9. Full Names and Complete Mailing Addresses of Publisher, Editor, and Maging Editor: Publisher: Randy Jones, 4 Choke Cherry Road, 2nd Floor, Rockville, MD 20850-4024 Editor: Andrew Parker, 4 Choke Cherry Road, 2nd Floor, Rockville, MD 20850- 4024 Managing Editor: Chris Sheppard, 4 Choke Cherry Road, 2nd Floor, Rockville, MD 20850-4024 10. Owner if the publication is owned by a corporation, give the name and address of the corporation immediately followed by the names and addresses of all stockholders owning or holding 1 percent or more of the total amount of stock: Veronis Suhler Stevenson, 55 East 52nd Street, 33rd Floor, New York, NY 10055 11. Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding 1 Percent or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages, or other Securities: None 12. Non-prot organiation: not applicable. 13. Publica- tion: Rotor&Wing 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data: September 2012. Average No. of No. Copies of 15. Extent and Nature of Circulation: Copies Each Issue Single issue During Preceding Nearest to 12 Months Filing Date a. Total Number of Copies (Net press run) 21,052 20,245 b. egitimate Paid and/or Requested Distribution (1) Outside County Paid/Requested Mail Subscriptions 18,708 18,466 (2) Inside County Paid/Requested Mail Subscriptions 0 0 (3) Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors Counter Sales and Other Distribution Outside USPS 493 340 (4) Requested Copies Distributed by Other Mail Classes 37 37 c. Total Paid and/or Requested Circulation 19,238 18,843 d. Nonrequested Distribution (By Mail and Outside the Mail) (1) Outside County Nonrequested Copies 339 349 (2) Inside-County Nonrequested Copies 0 0 (3) Nonrequested Copies Distributed Through the USPS by Other Classes of Mail 0 0 (4) Nonrequested Copies Distributed Outside the Mail (Include Pickup Stands, Trade Shows, Showrooms, and Other Sources) 788 646 e. Total Norequested Distribution 1,127 995 f. Total Distribution (Sum of 15c and 15e) 20,365 19,838 g. Copies not Distributed (Ofce, Returns, Spoilage, Unused) 687 407 h. Total (Sum of 15f and g) 21,052 20,245 i. Percent Paid and/or Requested Circulation 94.47% 94.98% 16. Publication of Statement of Ownership for a Requester Publication is required and will be printed in the November 2012 issue of this publication 17. Signature of Owner: Don Paour Date: 10/4/12 PS Form 3526-R, August 2012

WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 51 December 2012: Operator’s Choice: Aircraft Accessories and Year in Review—We examine the biggest stories in the Ground Support Equipment—Our year-end Opera- helicopter industry from 2012, with an eye to the potential tor’s Choice Report this year will focus specifically on the acces- impact on 2013 and beyond. What’s your favorite story from sories and ground support equipment that operators tell us are 2012 and why? Let us know at [email protected] vital to their flight operations. Guardex 2012: Responding to Offshore Wind Farm Emer- AAS—By the time this issue comes out, the U.S. Army will be gencies—Military Editor Andrew Drwiega provides a first- largely finished with flight evaluations of Armed Aerial Scout hand account of Guardex 2012, a multi-agency, international alternatives. Will there be an AAS competition? We’ll bring you SAR exercise held on October 2 in Europe. up to speed with the latest insight from those who know! Columns—Leading Edge by Frank Lombardi; Safety Watch AUSA Round-Up—What other helicopter related news by Terry Terrell; Military Insider by Andrew Drwiega; and Heli- came out of AUSA? Military Editor Andrew Drwiega and Editor- copter Training & Simulation News. in-Chief Andrew Parker report from Washington, DC.

Bonus Distribution: Nov. 28-Dec.1, Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) in Orlando, Fla.

January 2013:

Annual Reports—As we approach the start of the new Executive Outlook—Rotor & Wing asks the top execu- year, Rotor & Wing surveys its advertisers, key vendors and sup- tives from each of the Annual Report companies to provide a pliers in the helicopter marketplace, and asks them to tell us brief answer to simple questions regarding what they see on what important changes they have made in the past year, as the horizon for the rotorcraft marketplace in 2013. The compila- well as provide an update on what new products, initiatives or tion of these answers produces an insightful prediction of what innovations we might expect to see from them in the coming to expect. The Executive Outlook provides valuable insight and months. an indispensable planning tool for the coming year.

52 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM The New Authority for

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WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM NOVEMBER 2012 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 53 MILITARY | COMBAT SAR Military Insider By Andrew Drwiega Uplifting News for Combat Casualties ne of the amazingly posi- into veins that have collapsed, we use rently being debated. In addition, the tive results to have come intraosseous access where we drill into supply of consultants for U.S. forces Ofrom the war in Afghanistan humeral head, end of humerus or ster- would need to be large. “The number is the increase in survival num and inject fluids through those of consultants required for all of their rate of battlefield casualties airlifted particular bones.” operations around the world would be to in-theater hospitals by helicopter. “We get two lines into the patient considerable, but there are discussions From the days of extracting casualties from minute one into the helicopter between U.S. military and the UK Tac- from the frontlines by Bell 47/H-13 and we immediately start giving blood tical Medical Wing on this subject.” during the Korean War around 60 products,” he continued. “The deliv- But Evans restated that the RAF years ago, the methods and techniques ery of blood products pre-hospital is also now well practiced and com- have moved on to the point where a has saved many lives in the back of mitted to using the MERT based on a Medical Emergency Recovery Team the Chinook to the point where the dedicated Immediate Response Team (MERT) of two paramedics, one nurse civilian UK air ambulance structure CH-47, complete with RAF Regiment and one consultant now travel into the are now considering taking blood on security force of four soldiers: “We danger zone in the back of a medically board their helicopters as they see the always have a dedicated aircraft ready equipped Boeing CH-47. Currently, value of bringing it to the actual scene to go.” this is use of a Chinook is solely a Brit- of the accident.” Following the announcement that In association with ish activity but its achievements have The type of blood given is universal the U.S. Air Force has relaunched its been widely praised and there is a blood at this stage without waiting to Combat Recovery Helicopter (CRH) strong desire to replicate it within areas cross match it. Evans said that “while procurement program, this option of the U.S. military. on the negative side the universal must surely be one that again deserves With a medical consultant onboard blood can distort the picture when close consideration. Last time around in addition to the other specially they are trying to perform an iden- the CSAR-X competition that was trained team members, the “Golden tification of blood type, the hospital due to select a replacement for the Hour” clock is slowed significantly, if always conducts its own lab test to fully USAF’s HH-60G Pave Hawk (Pedro) not stopped, when treatment of the determine the exact type.” combat search-and-rescue helicopters. Delivering UK & international business contacts in a face to face environment casualty begins in the back of the heli- The absorption of blood and/or Aircraft put forward included two High level, 3 day industry conference copter as it lifts off from an emergency plasma into the bone, although it offerings from Boeing—the PRV-22 landing zone cleared by Troops in has to be warmed and injected with Osprey and the HH-47 Chinook, More industry networking opportunities Contact (TICs) in the boonies. some degree of force, is very quick, Sikorsky’s H-92 Superhawk and Lock- Customer demonstration ﬂ ights from outside the venue “What we are essentially doing is continued Evans. “A patient will come heed Martin’s bid of the US101 (from taking an A&E [accident and emergen- onboard with no radial pulse and AgustaWestland). cy] department in the back of a CH-47,” normally by given less than 500mls of The Chinook HH-47 won the said Wing Commander Andy Evens, blood. After that you will get a radial CSAR-X competition in November SO1 Med Ops, Royal Air Force Tactical pulse back—it is that quick.” 2006 before its competitors objected Medical Wing, who has been one of the “We are providing the top end of and the whole thing was “deep-sixed” MERT team members in Afghanistan. the capability in our Area of Operation in 2009. Although budget and numbers “We deliver as much treatment (AO) from Camp Bastion,” he said. will be a key issue in this new competi- Visit: as we can. Intravenous (IV) lines are He added that the reason the U.S. did tion the opinion that the CH-47 was set up for standard casualties but in not currently do the same was that too big and noisy to operate as a com- cases of multiple amputee trauma there were misgivings about sending bat recovery helicopter now seems victims where huge blood loss occurs consultants forward into dangerous irrelevant following the extensive use for more info resulting in the inability to get fluids areas, but that the concept was cur- by the RAF in Afghanistan. Search for on these social media channels

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54 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | NOVEMBER 2012 WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM International Marketplace

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WWW.ROTORANDWING.COM OCTOBER 2011 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE 55 ( THINK BUSINESS )

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