August 2014

Homeland Security
Boeing’s Strategy
Night Vision Tech
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EDITORIAL
Andrew Parker Editor-in-Chief, [email protected]
Katie Kriz Assistant Managing Editor, [email protected]
Andrew Drwiega International Bureau Chief/Consultant,
[email protected]
Ernie Stephens Editor-at-Large, [email protected]
Emma Kelly Australia and Pacific Correspondent
Claudio Agostini Latin America Bureau Chief
Contributing Writers: Rick Adams; Chris Baur; Lee Benson;
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4 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
[email protected]
By Andrew Parker
U
nmanned aerial vehicles
(UAVs), optionally pilot-
ed vehicles, autonomous
aircraft, unmanned aerial
systems (UAS), remotely piloted
vehicle systems (RPVS), drones –
whatever you call them, they are
beginning to take over the world.
While no one can seem to agree
on a term to describe their UAV/
UAS/RPV, one thing everyone
seems to realize is that UAVs have
a future in the world of civil avia-
tion, however limited or deep that
role may turn out to be.
From police units to home-
land security, surveillance and
border patrol, to local July 4 cel-
ebrations across the United States
– see story from Editor-at-Large
Ernie Stephens online at www.
rotorandwing.com – UAVs are
popping up all over the place, in
addition to the increasing role that
drones play with military forces.
They come in all shapes and
sizes, for both military and com-
mercial applications. Sikorsky
recently uncovered an optionally
piloted Black Hawk, adding to its
Matrix Technology platform for
the commercial side. Late last year
AeroVironment reached an agree-
ment with Airbus Helicopters
(formerly Eurocopter) to develop
unmanned systems, a few months
after the first flight of the option-
ally manned EC145 in April 2013.
During Farnborough in July,
AgustaWestland revealed that
demonstration flights are com-
plete for its Rotorcraft Unmanned
Aerial System/Optionally Piloted
Helicopter (RUAS/OPH) under
an Italian Ministry of Defence
R&D contract. AgustaWestland
and PZL-Swidnik of Poland devel-
oped the aircraft based on a modi-
fied version of PZL’s single-engine
SW-4 Solo.
Also at Farnborough, Terry Fog-
arty, general manager of Kaman
Aerospace’s UAS product group,
explained that the U.S. Army plans
to test the K-Max unmanned coax-
ial helicopter during the second
half of 2014. According to Inter-
national Bureau Chief Andrew
Drwiega (see the full story online),
the first autonomous technologies
trial was scheduled for July at Fort
Benning with the U.S. Army’s Avi-
ation Applied Technology Direc-
torate (AATD). The second
trail is set for mid-August with
Lockheed Martin’s squad mis-
sion support system (SMSS).
On the civilian side, many
operators continue to be in
a “wait and see” mode pend-
ing the release of FAA’s long-
delayed small UAS Notice of Pro-
posed Rulemaking (NPRM). The
NPRM is now expected sometime
during late 2014, followed by a
public comment period, meaning
now is the time to identify what
missions and functions would be
easier – and less expensive – using
commercial UAVs. So the question
is: What does your operation want
and what does it need from these
new tools?
Following the comment period,
FAA has 18 months (of course
for FAA “months” are kind of like
dog years) to publish a final rule.
The takeaway here is: Get your
comments ready. Now is the time.
Send your thoughts about how
to best integrate UAVs into your
operations to editor@rotorand-
wing.com and tune in for a live
town hall webinar in September
that will dig deeper into this topic.
Find out more online via the
“Webinars” link at: www.avia-
tiontoday.com/rw
Impending UAV Regulations: Are
You Ready to Comment?
Editor’s Notebook
Recent UAV and optionally piloted designs (clockwise): AgustaWestland RUAS/OPH, optionally
manned Airbus EC145 and Northrop Grumman/Yamaha unmanned R-Bat.
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Public Service Military Commercial Personal|Corporate
THIS MONTH FROM
6 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
DEPARTMENTS
12 Rotorcraft Report
18 People
18 Coming Events
21 Hot Products
40 Training News
45 Classified Ads
47 Ad Index

COLUMNS
4 Editor’s Notebook
8 Feedback
10 Meet the Contributors
44 Back Shop
48 Military Insider
50 Leading Edge
On the Cover: Erickson S-64E on the scene of a fire
in Beaver Creek, Idaho. Photo by Kari Greer

FEATURES
COVER STORY
22 ■ Help from the Sky
Rotor & Wing speaks with Merton Cox III with U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP). By Robert W. Moorman
28 ■ Firefighting Frontlines
The U.S. Forest Service defies the flames with a fleet of around 125
contract helicopters. By Ernie Stephens, Editor-at-Large
32 ■ Night Vision Tech: The Big Picture
The use of NVG technology in the civil sections of EMS and law
enforcement. By Frank Lombardi
36 ■ Essential Equipment
This month focuses on water buckets and sprayers, as well as rotor
blade repair and replacement services. By Rotor & Wing staff
(Above) Boston MedFlight’s new EC145. Courtesy Metro Aviation (Below)
Girl Scout troop learns helicopter controls from Guidance Aviation. Courtesy
Guidance Aviation. (Right) Pair of Boeing helicopters. Photo by Andrew Drwiega
36
42
7
AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
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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@
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STORIES & PHOTOS ON THE WEB
• Go to rotorandwing.com to see more photos and read some of the stories that
didn’t make it into this month’s print edition, for example:
• AS350 to Assist Philadelphia Police with Patrol, Rescue and SWAT Missions
• Girl Scouts Get a Taste of Helicopter Training from Guidance Aviation
• North FDS Recorder Receives STC for Airbus, Bell Platforms
• CHC UK to Use S-92s in Transportation Contract with Statoli
• Danish MH-60R Support Deal Worth $115 Million
• Bond Australia Renews Vector Super Puma Deal
• P&WC PW206B3 Receives Transport Canada Certification
DIRECT TO YOUR DESKTOP: CHECK YOUR EMAIL
AUGUST 1:
• Digital edition of Rotor & Wing August 2014. Electronic version with enhanced web
links makes navigating through the pages of Rotor & Wing easier than ever.
WEEK OF AUGUST 4:
• HOT PRODUCTS for Helicopter Operators—Latest in equipment upgrades, performance
modifications, training devices and other tools for the rotorcraft industry.
WEEK OF AUGUST 25:
• Rotor & Wing’s Helicopter Safety & Training e-letter. Get the latest updates from
helicopter training organizations around the world.
12
Vol. 48
|
No. 8
August 2014
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
8 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014
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, fax us at 301-354-1809 or email 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.
Here is what people on
Twitter have to say about
a few features from the
July 2014 issue of Rotor &
Wing:
ON MIKE HANGGE’S (MJHANGGE)
HUMS STORY “RIGHT PART, RIGHT
PLACE, RIGHT TIME,” FOUND ON
PAGE 38:
TheresaHartzell: @rotorandwing
@mjhangge_author@Honeywell_
Aero Great article on HUMS –
enhanced safety, improved aircraft
reliability and reduced costs.
Honeywell_Aero: How HUMS
and HFDM can solve mainte-
nance, logistical and safety prob-
lems hwll.co/c8x4 via @rotorand-
wing @mjhangge_author #avgeek
ON ERNIE STEPHENS’ FEATURE
“AIR-ONE: VOLUNTEER
PROFESSIONALS” ON PAGE 26:
RotorComm: #Helicopters help-
ing people. From our good friends
@rotorandwing Air-One: Volun-
teer Professionals bit.ly/1o82Tci
ON LAST MONTH’S “ESSENTIAL
EQUIPMENT: FLIR TECHNOLOGY”
ARTICLE ON PAGE 44:
KenMeyr: nice pic of Helicopter
FLIR via @rotorandwing
Feedback on this month’s
feature “Boeing Plans for
Additional Apache and
Chinook Versions Before
Future Vertical Lift Arrives”
on page 12:
BY ANDREW DRWIEGA
omegatalon: While Boeing may
want to build another version of
the Apache, any new design will
need to possibly beat the perfor-
mance capability of Sikorsky’s X2
VTOL aircraft which has a top
speed of almost 260 mph, or 100
mph faster than the Apache.
Xwingfighter1138: FVL isn’t due
until 2060? Sounds like a pipe
dream. What will the world look
like in 2060???
B-Sabre: FVL (heavy) isn’t due
until 2060. FVL (medium) is 2030
or thereabouts.
Feedback on August 2014
article, “Eat, Sleep. Fly:
Revolution Expands to
UAV Training” in this issue
on page 42:
BY KATIE KRIZ
Mike Franz: FAA 141 resources
are very limited. Many schools
have been waiting two to three
years for 141 interaction. Do not
count on 141 approval for busi-
ness. No foreign or VA training.
I recommend that you make an
appointment at the FSDO to have
the initial meeting for 141.
Dave Saucier: If these folks plan
to fly the UAV in the civil and or
public arena, before you do please
check the CFR’s for certification.
In the public arena not only does
the PIC need certificates and Class
2 medical. The VO also needs to
be certified!

R&W’s Question of the
Month: What are some of the
most logic-defying and in-
teresting firefighting, SAR,
homeland security, military
special operations or medical
missions involving a helicop-
ter that you’ve experienced or
heard about?
Let us know, and look for responses in a future issue. You’ll find
contact information below.
Services Products Training Public Service Military Commercial Personal|Corporate
F
eedback
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Be sure to follow @RotorandWing to stay up
to date on the latest helicopter news
Controp USA’s FLIR camera. Photo courtesy Controp USA
www.aero-access.com | [email protected] | 1-800-251-7094
©2014 Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. All rights reserved.
Innovation. Reliability. Performance.
You asked. We answered. In keeping with Aeronautical Accessories’ tradition of designing
products to meet our customers’ needs, a new, patent-pending windshield has been added
to the brand’s product portfolio.
Introducing the Bell 407 Polycarbonate Windshield. This revolutionary design features
improved impact resistance and provides increased flexing. Through the combination of unique
materials and exclusive strapped edging, the windshield is superior compared to traditional
acrylics. For more information on the new, FAA STC approved Bell 407 Polycarbonate Windshield,
contact your Aeronautical Accessories sales representative.
Meet the
Contributors
10 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
ANDREW DRWIEGA, International
Bureau Chief, is a senior defense/avi-
ation journalist with a specialization
in international military rotorcraft.
Based in London, he has reported
from Iraq and Afghanistan on numerous occa-
sions on attachment with American and British
helicopter forces. Andrew is a member of the Army
Aviation Association of America, the Royal United
Services Institute, the Air Power Association and
is an associate member of the Royal Aeronautical
Society. Andrew covers defense and global rotor-
craft markets.
THIERRY DUBOIS is a long-time
contributor to Access Intelligence
publications. He has been an aero-
space journalist for 12 years, special-
izing in helicopters since 2006. He
writes on technical subjects, both for professional
media and a popular science magazine in France.
Follow him on Twitter: @aerodub
KATIE KRIZ is the Assistant Manag-
ing Editor of Rotor & Wing. She holds
a BA in journalism from Northeast-
ern University in Boston, where she
also developed an interest in pho-
tography. She participated in a rotational program
within R&W parent company Access Intelligence,
which led to her position with the publication. Katie
can be reached at: [email protected]
FRANK LOMBARDI, an ATP with
both fixed-wing and rotary-wing rat-
ings, began his flying career in 1991
after graduating with a bachelor’s
of science in aerospace engineer-
ing, working on various airplane and helicopter
programs as a flight test engineer for Grumman
Aerospace Corp. Frank became a police officer
for a major East Coast police department in 1995,
and has been flying helicopters in the department’s
aviation section since 2000. He remains active in
test and evaluation, and holds a master’s degree in
aviation systems-flight testing from the University
of Tennessee Space Institute.
ROBERT MOORMAN has written for
more than 25 years about the aviation
industry, including rotorcraft. His
articles have ranged from topics on
commercial, regional, cargo, mainte-
nance, training, safety, information technology and
business aviation, to the U.S. military. Moorman
runs his own freelance writing and communications
business in the Washington, D.C., area.
DOUGLAS NELMS has more than
30 years of experience as an aviation
journalist and currently works as a
freelance writer. He has served as
managing editor of Rotor & Wing. A
former U.S. Army helicopter pilot, Nelms special-
izes in writing about helicopters.
TERRY TERRELL gained his early
aviation experience as a U.S. Navy
fixed-wing instructor and U.S. Coast
Guard aircraft commander, where
his service included SAR in Sikorsky
S-61s. Terry served as a cross-qualified captain
and safety special projects officer with Houston’s
Transco Energy, and later with Atlanta’s Kennestone
AVSTAT Helicopter Ambulance Program and
Georgia Baptist LifeFlight.
ERNIE STEPHENS began flying in the
1980s, earning his commercial pilot’s
license and starting an aerial photog-
raphy company as a sideline. In his
regular job as a county police officer,
he was transferred to the department’s new aviation
unit, where he served as the sergeant in charge and
chief pilot until his retirement in 2006. In addition to
Rotor & Wing, Ernie (aka “Werewolf ”) has written for
Aviation Maintenance. He enjoys meeting our read-
ers and flying a variety of helicopters.
RECRUITMENT ADVERTISEMENT FOR CIVIL SERVICE VACANCY
CIVILAVIATION DEPARTMENT, GOVERNMENT OF HONG KONG SPECIALADMINISTRATIVE REGION
Senior Operations Officer (Helicopter Operations Inspector)
Salary: Master Pay Scale Point 45 (HK$89,565 approximately US$11,482* per month) to Master Pay Scale Point 49 (HK$103,190 approx-
imately US$13,229* per month) (See Note 1).(*Based on exchange rate of HK$7.8 = US$1) (subject to fluctuation)
Entry Requirements: Candidates should have (a) (i) a current Airline Transport Pilot's Licence (ATPL) (Helicopters) with Class One Medical Certificate
and not less than 3,000 flying hours in command of helicopters of which 2,000 hours should be in command of twin-engine helicopters; and (ii) not less than
12 years' relevant post-licence experience of which not less than five years should be as an Aircraft Rating and Instrument Rating Examiner or in other reg-
ulatory duties; OR (b) an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) contracting state's Commercial Pilot's Licence (CPL) (Helicopter) with Instrument
Rating; and a minimum of seven years' post-licence experience in civil aviation management and operations or as a regulator; and have passed the ATPLexam-
inations; AND (c) strong command of written and spoken English.
Duties: ASenior Operations Officer (Helicopter Operations Inspector) is mainly deployed on helicopter operations matters including - (a) monitoring of the
operating standards of helicopter operators in Hong Kong; (b) monitoring standards of crew training and associated training facilities, operations and training
manuals, pre-flight briefings, flight planning facilities and the adequacy of staffing and accommodation; (c) observation of tests conducted by operators' exam-
iners for the issue/renewal of authority to sign certificate of test and type rating tests forms; (d) investigation of aircraft accidents and incidents; and (e) assist-
ing in formulation of policies and requirements on flight standards and operations matters. (Notes: Post holders are required to travel extensively on duty and
work irregular hours)
Notes:
(1) Subject to the prevailing situation, candidates with additional experience may be granted increments for previous relevant experience in the civil avia
-ton field in excess of the stipulated minimum.
(2) For the purpose of heightening public awareness of the Basic Law (BL) and promoting a culture of learning of BL in the community, assessment of
BL knowledge will be included in the recruitment for all civil service jobs. Results of the BL test for degree/professional grades will be one of the
considerations to assess the suitability of a candidate but will not affect his/her eligibility for applying for civil service jobs. As a general principle,
the main consideration for suitability for appointment remains a candidate's qualification, experience and caliber.
(3) Candidates should submit their application forms together with an Experience Resume by mail to the enquiry address on or before the closing date
for application. The Experience Resume can be downloaded from the Civil Aviation Department's website.
(http://www.cad.gov.hk/english/recruitment.html)
Terms of Appointment:A new recruit will normally be appointed on civil service agreement terms for three years. He/she will be required to serve on
agreement terms for at least 3 years before they can be considered for appointment on the prevailing permanent terms.
(A gratuity may be granted upon satisfactory completion of the full agreement period with consistently high standard of performance and conduct. In addi-
tion, in compliance with the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance, the Government will arrange to make contributions for the appointee to a regis-
tered mandatory provident fund scheme (MPF scheme). The amount of gratuity payable will be the sum which, when added to the Government's contribu-
tion to the said MPF scheme, equals to 15% of the total basic salary drawn during the contract period.)
Enquiry Address, Fax. No and E-mail Address: For enquiry or request for an application form, please write to the Administration Division, Civil
Aviation Department, Level 5, Civil Aviation Department Headquarters, 1 Tung Fai Road, Hong Kong International Airport, Lantau, Hong Kong S.A.R.,
People's Republic of China. (Fax.: (852) 2910 6399) or e-mail to <[email protected]>, quoting reference "CAD PR/5-25/64(2014)".
Closing Date of Application : 1 September 2014
General Notes :
(a) Persons who are not permanent residents of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) may also apply for this vacancy but will be appointed only when no suit-
able and qualified candidates who are permanent residents of the HKSAR are available.
(b) Applications from serving civil servants in the Senior Operations Officer (Senior Operations Inspector) / Senior Operations Officer (Helicopter Operations Inspector) rank of
Civil Aviation Department would not normally be considered.
(c) As an Equal Opportunities Employer, the Government is committed to eliminating discrimination in employment. The vacancy advertised is open to all applicants meeting the
basic entry requirement irrespective of their disability, sex, marital status, pregnancy, age, family status, sexual orientation and race.
(d) Civil service vacancies are posts on the civil service establishment. Candidates selected for these vacancies will be appointed on civil service terms of appointment and condi-
tions of service and will become civil servants on appointment.
(e) The entry pay, terms of appointment and conditions of service to be offered are subject to the provisions prevailing at the time the offer of appointment is made.
(f) The information on the maximum pay point is for reference only and may be subject to changes.
(g) Fringe benefits include paid leave, medical and dental benefits, and where appropriate, assistance in housing.
(h) Where a large number of candidates meet the specified entry requirements, the recruiting department may devise shortlisting criteria to select the better qualified candidates for
further processing. In these circumstances, only shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend recruitment examination and/or interview.
(i) It is Government policy to place people with a disability in appropriate jobs wherever possible. If a disabled candidate meets the entry requirements, he/she will be invited to
attend the selection interview/written examination without being subject to further shortlisting.
(j) Holders of academic qualifications other than those obtained from Hong Kong institutions/Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority may also apply but their quali-
fications will be subject to assessments on equivalence with the required entry qualifications. They should submit copies of their official transcripts and certificates by mail to the
above address.
(k) Civil service vacancies information contained in this column is also available on the GovHK on the Internet at http://www.gov.hk.
(l) Towards the application deadline, our on-line system would likely be overloaded due to large volume of applications. To ensure timely completion of your on-line application,
it is advisable to submit the application as early as possible.
How To Apply: Application Forms [G.F. 340 (Rev. 3/2013)] can be downloaded from the Civil Service Bureau of HKSAR's website
(http://www.csb.gov.hk). Candidates must state clearly the details of professional qualification obtained on the application forms and attach the
Experience Resume. (See Note 3) Completed forms, together with the Experience Resume, should reach the above enquiry address of the recruiting depart-
ment on or before the closing date for application. Online application can also be made through the Civil Service Bureau's website (http://www.csb.gov.hk).
Candidates who apply online should submit the Experience Resume within one week after close of application period to the above enquiry address, and
the online application number should be quoted on the envelopes and the Experience Resume. If candidates fail to provide the Experience Resume, their
applications may not be considered. Candidates who are selected for interview will normally receive an invitation in about six to eight weeks from the clos-
ing date for application. Those who are not invited for interview may assume that their applications are unsuccessful. For enquiries, please contact the depart-
ment via the means stated above. >>
Services Products Training Public Service Military Commercial Personal|Corporate
12 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
When Boeing calls asking if
you would like to join its pre-
Farnborough/Le Bourget media
briefing week, it is unwise to say
“no.” The schedule is always hectic,
crisscrossing the United States
on variously timed early and late
flights, but the agenda always makes
the effort worthwhile. Hence Rotor
& Wing was in this year’s select
group and while I had completed
the course with more than enough
information to fill a small book,
this article has been tailored to
reflect the aspects relevant to our
rotorcraft sector audience.
“Customers need innovation,
ideas and affordability. They want
more capability at the right time and
the right price,” said Chris Chad-
wick, executive vice president, and
president/CEO of Boeing Defense,
Space and Security. (See more on
page 20).
He said that there was a rebal-
ancing of social as well as military/
security forces worldwide.
Condensing his points into the
rotorcraft side of the business, he
emphasized the importance of
keeping the helicopter portfolio
current and continually attractive to
international buyers: “That is one of
the challenges that Boeing is facing
with aircraft that were originally
designed in the last century,” he said.
The simple fact is that Future
Vertical Life (heavy) is still a
long way off. Chadwick said that
until that is reached, the existing
product line has to be kept healthy
and growing in adding capability.
Returning to Farnborough,
Chadwick said that it was impor-
tant to keep the dialogue with inter-
national customers fresh and to
understand how they were evolv-
ing and even rebalancing in line
with the world’s changing social as
well as defense/security needs. He
revealed that the commercial side
of Boeing was playing an important
part in helping the defense side
of the business get access to cus-
tomers, whether that was fighters,
transport aircraft, intelligence gath-
ering aircraft or helicopters.
Down in Mesa, Ariz., where
Apaches can still quickly emerge
from the surrounding hills [the AH-
64E and AH-6 were demonstrated
to the media in a low level display of
capability early one morning], Boe-
ing officials confirmed that there
will be at least one further version
of the AH-64 attack helicopter and
probably two more versions of its
CH-47 heavy lift helicopter before
any aircraft developed through the
U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)
FVL initiative are fielded.
Boeing’s outgoing director of
attack helicopters, Mike Burke,
stated that the Apache AH-64E
was a sustainment program but
that the aircraft is likely to still be
flying for many years beyond the
initial introduction of the new
Future Vertical Lift (medium) fleet.
Boeing has a joint venture with
Sikorsky to present the SB>1 Defi-
ant as the Joint Multi-Role technol-
ogy demonstrator (JMR TD) as the
first step on the path to realizing the
FVL (medium) platform, which is
intended to replace all of the U.S.
Army’s AH-64 Apaches and UH-60
Black Hawks.
Dave Palm, director of Vertical
Business Development, added that
the company expects that the Chi-
nook would benefit from “at least
two more turns of technology”
■ MILITARY
|
AIRFRAMES
Boeing’s Strategy: Holistic,
Enduring and Innovating Boeing demonstrated the AH-64E and AH-6 to the
media ‘up close and personal’ in the early morning
desert sun, including Andrew Drwiega (left).
Rotorcraft Report
13 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
after the CH-47F. Boeing’s senior
management has already said that
the Chinook will come close to
having a 100-year service life from
its initial introduction in 1962.
The U.S. Army’s approved Multi
Year II buy of CH-47Fs is planned
to flow through to 2019, while the
first of eight new build Special
Forces MH-47Gs will be delivered
this September. Potentially all 61 of
the 160th Special Operations Avia-
tion Regiment (SOAR) aircraft will
receive upgrades to the same stan-
dard. With FVL (heavy) not expect-
ed until around 2060, Palm said that
the next version of the CH-47 could
be expected after 2019 ensuring
that there was a continuous produc-
tion line and skills retention. He said
that new rotor blades are currently
being tested that should increase lift
by over 1,800 lbs.
Interestingly, Jeff Shelton, Boe-
ing’s SB>1 Defiant business devel-
opment manager, stated that the
JMR TD team agreement with
Sikorsky “allows us to use technol-
ogy developed on JMR or FVL to
backward place onto our current
fleets – Apache or Black Hawk.”
Boeing’s Phantom Swift pro-
totype was born when the U.S.
Defense Advanced Research Proj-
ect Agency’s (DARPA) Vertical
Takeoff and Landing (VTOL)
X-Plane program arrived for con-
sideration at Phantom Works,
Boeing’s advanced prototyping
division, originally founded by
McDonnell Douglas. They threw
it out to Boeing’s wider innovation
community for feedback.
“We had some great ideas com-
ing back,” said Brian Ritter, Phan-
tom Swift program manager, based
in Mesa. But it was one from an
engineer in Seattle that caught
their eye. “He sent a rendering that
looked more like a Star Trek space
ship; it had a pair of coaxial fans in
the center and funky wings. It was
cool enough for us to play with.”
Ritter describes the DARPA
program as searching for “that ever-
illusive configuration of something
that could hover more efficiently
than anything we have today, fly
faster than any VTOL rotorcraft,
have a lift to drag ratio double that
of a typical rotorcraft and with a 40
percent useful load. Most of those
have never been done individually,
never mind together.”
The Phantom team ran com-
binations of fans and wings and
thrusters, which eventually result-
ed into the concept that they are
working with today. “Suddenly we
said that this could really work,”
said Ritter. The initial flying mock-
up was built by a group of six guys
working on their own time on
a six-foot model. DARPA’s pro-
posal is broken into three phases,
explained Stu Voboril, director of
the Special Pursuits Cell. Phase
1 is conceptual and preliminary
design; Phase 2 progresses into
detail design and final assembly;
while Phase 3 comprises the flight
test program. The vehicle that the
Phantom team is designing will
weigh 12,000 lbs, be 44 feet long
and 50 feet wingtip to wingtip. It
will also be unmanned. Ritter said
that the challenge was to fly a full-
scale technology demonstrator in
four-and-a-half years.
“Looking at existing technol-
ogy for this first demonstration,”
explains Ritter. DARPA allowed the
four participants in the program
– Boeing, Sikorsky, Aurora Flight
Sciences and Karem Aircraft –
the option of their platform being
manned, unmanned or optionally
manned. At this stage the four all
chose unmanned platforms.
“The key technology is the
ducted fan technology,” stated Rit-
ter. “This is something that Boe-
ing is now investing in and we are
bringing materials and approaches
toward meeting something that
has to be both efficient in hover and
high speed flight – two extremes
that need to be brought together.”
“The lift to drag ratio in most
helicopters is in the 5-6 range,
whereas this has to be over 10. This
first demonstrator is not designed
to deliver any mission. It is a very
early clean sheet design of an air-
craft that hasn’t been done before
and we are setting out on a journey
to prove that this is technically
viable. The potential once we have
proven that could produce a family
of products,” he said in summary.
The team would have liked to
consider using electric drive but
knows that the technology is not
yet ready to deliver today. In terms
of power, the Phantom Works team
is looking at a combination of body
fans in the fuselage and tilt wing
fans. They have selected GE CT7-8
engines for the demonstrator. Said
Ritter: “The wing tip thrusters take
over at 80 mph cruise and the body
fans close.” —By International Bureau
Chief Andrew Drwiega, reporting
from St. Louis, Mesa and Seattle
Read the Full Story online at
www.rotorandwing.com
The idea for Boeing’s Phantom Swift
came from an engineer in Seattle.
14 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
The U.S. Air Force is moving
forward with a derivative of the
Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk
for a Combat Rescue Helicopter
(CRH) to replace the HH-60G Pave
Hawk fleet. Lockheed Martin is
also involved as a major subsystems
supplier for the CRH program.
There are currently around 100
HH-60Gs in service with the Air
Force (active plus reserve) and Air
National Guard.
The first portion of the long-
term agreement, referred to as
an Engineering & Manufacturing
Development (EMD) contract, is
valued at $1.28 billion and covers
the development of the helicop-
ter and its mission systems, four
aircraft and seven aircrew and
maintenance training systems.
The Air Force requirement
calls for up to 112 aircraft that
could reach an estimated cost
of $7.9 billion, however the con-
tract has been structured to
“handle fluctuations of quanti-
ties,” according to a Department
of Defense statement. “Eventual
production quantities would be
determined year-by-year over
the life of the program, based on
funding allocations set by Con-
gress and the U.S. Department of
Defense acquisition priorities,”
Sikorsky added in a release.
Work is scheduled to con-
tinue through June 2029 at Sikor-
sky’s plant in Stratford, Conn.
The award came as a result of a
“competitive acquisition” process,
according to DoD, however the
Air Force only received one bid to
an October 2012 solicitation.
The agreement covers devel-
opment, production and initial
support for the CRH. Sikorsky
intends to provide initial train-
ing for aircrew and maintenance
personnel by 2020. —By Andrew
Parker, Editor-in-Chief
Three helicopter manufacturers
have recently introduced new
luxury interiors. Bell Helicopter is
offering a VVIP cabin designed
by Mecaer Aviation Group
on the Bell 429 light twin,
AgustaWestland is studying a
“cocoon seat” concept for the
AW169 medium twin and
Airbus Helicopters has added
customization options to the
EC135 Hermes.
Ag u s t aWe s t l a nd h a s
tapped designer Francesca Lan-
zavecchia to create a new kind of
interior for the in development
AW169. “The idea is to translate
the notions of safety, speed and
high technology into the cabin,”
she explained.
Mecaer Aviation Group also
found inspiration in Italy – the
VVIP MAGnificent interior it
is offering on the Bell 429 light
twin was designed and is manu-
factured in Rome, Grayson Bar-
rows, Mecaer’s director, market-
ing and sales, cabin comfort sys-
tems, said. It is available in four-,
five- and six-seat layouts.
A key feature is quietness,
he went on, both thanks to a
noi se abatement system and
the interior’s structural design.
“It is a capsule, attached to the
airframe at four points,” Barrows
explained. This minimizes sound
propagation from the doors and
gearboxes. Passengers can thus
travel without headsets, accord-
ing to Mecaer. Other features
i ncl ude an i OS/Androi d app
for in-flight entertainment and
communications control, as well
as el ectro-chromi c wi ndows.
—By Thierry Dubois, on Twitter:
@aerodub
Read the Full Story at www.
rotorandwing.com
Rotorcraft Report
■ MILITARY
|
SAR
Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk CRH Program Advances
■ PRODUCTS
|
INTERIORS
Three Helicopter Manufacturers Unveil Plans for New
Luxury Interiors with Custom Options
(Below) Models of AgustaWestland’s cocoon
seats. (Right) Mecaer-designed VVIP cabin
for the Bell 429. Photos by Thierry Dubois
Graphic of the
Combat Rescue
Helicopter. Courtesy
of Sikorsky Aircraft
15 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Rotorcraft Report
Exelis F4949s IN STOCK
www.transaeroinc.com
Exelis is a registered trademark and “The Power of Ingenuity” is
a trademark, both of Exelis Inc. Copyright 2012 Exelis Inc. All
rights reserved.
Exelis F4949
Aviator
Night Vision
System
Brings you the
power of sight for
your most critical
night missions.
R & W 1 3 pg vertical_Layout 1 7/10/14 8:51 AM
■ MILITARY
|
UTILITY
Japan to Replace UH-1H/Js Helicopters
The Japanese Ground Self-Defence
Force (JGSDF) is looking to replace its
current 150 Bell Helicopter UH-1H/J
utility helicopters in a procurement
cycle that could last 10 years and cost
approximately $2 billion.
Read the Full Story online at www.
rotorandwing.com or in the June Mili-
tary Insider e-letter.
■ PUBLIC SERVICE
|
UNMANNED
U.S. National Parks Ban Recreational UAVs
The U.S. National Park Service has put a policy memorandum into effect that
prohibits the use of unmanned aircraft in all of the country’s national parks.
Following noise, nuisance and safety complaints from park visitors and staff,
NPS enacted a policy requiring UAV operators to obtain special permission to
use any kind of unmanned aircraft in the parks.
Jeffrey Olson, spokesman for the National Park Service, was quick to say the
ban will not affect the work of any emergency services in the area.
“We’ve maintained what we call administrative uses of unmanned aircraft,
which would include search and rescue, fire and scientific study,” explained
Olson.
NPS put the current policy memorandum into place while the final regula-
tion undergoes approval. During this process, the National Park Service will
be accepting input and opinions from the public about the use of unmanned
aircraft in these areas.
The input will be used to determine which parks are appropriated for
unmanned aircraft.
“This is an interim policy that will developed at the park level. Then, in the
meantime, we are looking to promulgate a regulation within the court of fed-
eral regulations that covers the National Park Service,” Olson stated. “That’s
an 18-month process and comments and public notice are a part of the rule
writing process.”
Anyone that wishes to fly a UAV in one of the country’s national parks can
apply for an NPS permit that will allow them to do so. According to Olson,
filmmakers and producers often use parks to film scenes for movies and tele-
vision shows. The filmmakers will “need to explain why they need to use an
unmanned aircraft, and we’ll look at their film permits to see if they can or can-
not be added.”
Although the policy is in effect for all parks under the National Park Ser-
vice, there are some parks, according to Olson, that will still allow the use of
unmanned aircraft.
“There is at least one grandfathered provision in this,” said Olson. “There are
several national parks where model airplane clubs have long-standing relation-
ships with a park. Gateway National Recreation Area in New York City, for
example, has what’s called Floyd Bennett field so they have an airstrip inside the
park. That’s an obvious place where model airplane use will continue. So if there
are existing uses of model airplanes, hobbyist uses, those will continue.” —By
Katie Kriz, Assistant Managing Editor
Japanese UH-1J. Photo courtesy of
Japanese Ground Self-Defence Force
16 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Orlando, Fla.-based Moog Integrated Defense Systems
has introduced what it calls its Gen3 Weapons System,
which made one of its first public appearances aboard
an MD-530G light attack helicopter at Heli-Expo 2014.
Although the company says it can be used aboard any
airborne military platform, it is quick to add that it was
designed to be the optimum size and weight for light
attack helicopters and airplanes.
The primary components of the system are the
stores management computer (SMC), the stores
control panel, the stores interface unit, and a
rocket interface. Moog engineers say the combined
weight of 12 lbs and small size can fit in the aft
compartment of any light helicopter used for mili-
tary applications.
“It’s the lightest in the market,” said Jason Reich-
ard, the business unit director at Moog’s Orlando
engineering center.
“[And] it’s designed to be platform agnostic,”
meaning it can work with any weapon system
aboard any aircraft.
At the core of the Gen3 system is the SMC, which
“talks” to all of the platform interfaces, such as sen-
sors, navigation gear, autopilots, and digitized mis-
sion data, then use that information to accurately
create a firing solution for the aircraft’s ordinance.
“We can take coordinates off of a moving map,
we can place targets on a moving map, show missile
footprints, targets of opportunity, and communicate
steering cues to get on target,” explained Reichard.”So,
if you designated a target, and you needed to be in a
different position, [the SMC] will
calculate that and give steering
cues to the pilot. It can [also]
talk through the autopilot
on the aircraft to steer it
to a position.”
Reichard adds that
Gen3 is not designed
to be a rack system. Its
four components can
be individually replaced,
making it easily service-
able. The Moog Gen3 Weapons System can cur-
rently be found aboard the MD530G and the Bell
407GT, which have found customers in foreign
militaries. Other aircraft, which the company
would not divulge, are also being fitted with the
system. —By Ernie Stephens, Editor-at-Large
The Philadelphia Police Department has purchased an Airbus
Helicopters AS350 B2 to aid with hoist rescues, patrol, SAR and
surveillance missions. Photo courtesy of Airbus Helicopters
Australian helicopter charter
operator Air Melbourne has
launched a Heli-Express service
l i nki ng Mel bourne’s general
avi ation ai rport, Moorabbi n
Airport (MBW), with the central
business district and the city’s
international airport.
The company operates three
twin-engine, eight-seat AgustaWest-
land AW109s seven days a week.
The flight between Moorabbin
and the international airport at
Tullamarine takes just 12 minutes
compared with up to 90 minutes
by car on Melbourne’s increasingly
congested roads.
The trip costs A$274. Launch
of the new service follows an A$12
million investment in aircraft and
new heliport lounges and sup-
porting infrastructure. Moorabbin
Airport is a major flight training
centre, with 800 flight students
trained there each year at 16 fixed-
wing and rotary wing flight training
organizations.
The latest route follows the
launch at the end of last year of
helicopter services between Mel-
bourne International Airport and
the central business district. Servic-
es operate to the Melbourne Air-
port Heliport, with passengers then
transported to the relevant airport
terminal by Mercedes-Benz. The
services operate to the Yarra River
CBD Heliport in the city, with the
service between Melbourne Air-
port and the CBD taking just four
minutes. Air Melbourne has capi-
talized on the fact there is no rail
link between the airport and the
city. —By Emma Kelly, Australia
and Pacific Correspondent
Rotorcraft Report
■ MILITARY
|
ATTACK
Moog Presents Gen3 Weapons System
The system can control any light attack
helicopter weapon. Graphic courtesy of Moog
■ COMMERCIAL
|
CHARTER
Air Melbourne Expands Heli-Express Charter Service
Rotorcraft Report
17 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
www.mecaer.com
+1- 972- 717- 2900 or [email protected]
MAG Cabin
Comfort Systems
Mecaer Aviation Group’s MAG Design Studio
has created, in collaboration with
Bell Helicopter, a new, innovative VVIP
interior for the Bell 429 which has been
branded as the MAGnifcent.
MAG has successfully introduced renowned
Italian style and exquisite craftsmanship into
highly advanced-technology interiors that
are fully compliant with the most stringent
aviation standards.
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#
1
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Red Dot Award for
excellent detail solutions
in the VVIP Interior of the
Bell 429, March 2014.
A resident of the City of North Pole, Alaska, has pled
guilty to one count of assaulting U.S. military personnel
performing official duties. The incident occurred
when Daniel Lee Slayden aimed spotlights and fired
mortar-launched fireworks at U.S. Army helicopters
flying out of Fort Wainwright’s Ladd AAF (FBK) in the
fall of 2013.
Court documents show that Slayden had recently
purchased a home in the small Fairbanks suburb
without being aware that low-flying aircraft from
Ladd AAF – located 10 nm northeast – are common
in the area. He made several calls to the public affairs
office at the base to complain about the noise and the
lights shining in his windows, but felt that he was being
ignored. So, by his own admission, on approximately
12 occasions in fall 2013 he launched fireworks toward
the helicopters to “give it back to them,” but not, he said,
with the intention of hitting them. He also admitted to
shining a 12-volt spotlight at them.
Pilots flying the helicopters said Slayden’s pro-
jectiles, which exploded approximately 300 feet
beneath their aircraft, and his spotlights put them
in danger by temporarily blinding them and inter-
fering with their night vision goggles, thus consti-
tuting an assault.
The maximum penalty for assaulting military
personnel performing official duties is one year in
prison and a $100,000 fine. But a plea agreement
reportedly struck between Slayden and pros-
ecutors is expected to result in a sentence of three
years probation, a fine of $12,500, and the surren-
der of all devices used in the offense. Sentencing
is scheduled for October 2. —By Ernie Stephens,
Editor-at-Large
■ MILITARY
|
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Man Pleads Guilty to Harassing Army Helicopter Crew
LCI, Indwe Complete AW139 Leasing Deal
Lease Corporation Intl (LCI) has finalized a leasing agreement with
South Africa’s Indwe Aviation. Under the arrangement, Indwe will
operate a 15-seat AgustaWestland AW139 with Titan Helicopter
Group for offshore operations. Photo courtesy of LCI
18 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Rotorcraft Report
PEOPLE
California Shock Trauma Air
Rescue (CALSTAR) has named
Scott Tish director of flight
operations. Tish has been a pilot
for 35 years and began his aviation
career in 1979 as a U.S. Army
pilot. For the past 28 years of his
civilian career, Tish has focused
on emergency medical services
(EMS) operations, working for
organizations such as Lifeguard
Medical Transport in Oregon,
Marian Air Care in Iowa, University
Hospital Wisconsin, and most
recently, Air Methods, serving as a
check airman and then the aviation
training manager before becoming
chief pilot. Tish is ATP and CFII
(helicopter) rated, including basic
ground instruction. He has over
7200 hours of flight time, 1370
of which were night operations,
and 560 of which were under
Instrument Flight Rules (IFR).
Leanne Collazzo has joined
Elbit Systems of America, a sub-
sidiary of Elbit Systems, as vice
president of com-
mercial aviation.
With more than
25 years of experi-
ence in the aero-
space and defense
industry, Collazzo has held roles in
general management, operations,
engineering, and marketing. Col-
lazzo graduated from the United
States Military Academy in West
Point, N.Y., and retired as a Lieu-
tenant Colonel from the Army
National Guard, where she was a
UH-60 Pilot and Battalion Com-
mander.
J et Suppor t
Ser vi ces , I nc.
( JSSI), provider
of hourl y cost
ma i n t e n a n c e
programs for the
business aviation industry, has
hired Raymond Weiser, Jr. as
the company’s new helicopter
program specialist. Weiser will
be responsible for developing and
growing JSSI’s presence in the
helicopter market by directing
and supporting business devel-
opment initiatives around the
world. He has worked on Bell 205
and 206 helicopters for the U.S.
Army and has more than 12 years
of experience as an OEM techni-
cal representative and product
support specialist.
He l i c o p t e r
Specialties, Inc.
(HSI) of Janes-
ville, Wis. , has
promoted Jason
Shrier to general
manager. He joined HSI in 2001
as an avionics technician and has
been director of maintenance since
2007. He is a graduate of Embry–
Riddle Aeronautical University and
an A&P technician with more than
15 years of aviation experience. As
general manager, he will be respon-
sible for the business management
of HSI and all Repair Station opera-
tions.
Aug. 20-21: NightCon 2014, Dallas, Texas. Visit
www.nightcon.com
Aug. 27-28: International Technical Specialists’
Meeting on Vertical Lift Aircraft Research
Development Test and Evaluation, Patuxent River,
Md. Visit www.vtol.org/pax
Sept. 2-5: European Rotorcraft Forum,
Southamptom, Hampshire. Contact Royal
Aeronautical Society at +44 (0) 207 670 4300 or visit
aerosociety.com/events
Sept. 15-17: Helicopter Finance Americas 2014,
The Biltmore Hotel, Miami, Fla. Contact maria@
corporatejetinvestor.com or call (800) 757-8059 or
visit www.corporatejetinvestor.com
Sept. 17-19: ATC Global, Beijing, China. Contact
ATC Global, phone +44 (0) 207 921 8149 or visit
www.atcglobalhub.com
Sept. 22-24: Air Medical Transport Conference
(AMTC), Music City Center, Nashville, Tenn.
Contact the Association of Air Medical Services at
+1-703-836-8732 or visit www.aams.org
Sept. 23-24: Capability and Affordability in the
Future of the Vertical Lift Industry, Arlington,
Texas. Visit www.vtol.org/events
Oct. 11-12: Rotorfest, West Chester, Penn. Call
(601) 436-9600 or visit www.americanhelicopter.
museum
Oct. 14-16: Helitech International, Amsterdam,
Netherlands. Contact Reed Exhibitions or visit
www.helitechevents.com
Oct. 15-17: 2014 Canadian Region Safety
Seminar, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Contact Rob
O’Quinn at (416) 569-0017 or visit www.alea.org
Oct. 21-23: NBAA 2014 Business Aviation
Convention and Exhibition, Orlando, Fla. Contact
NBAA at (202) 783-9000 or visit www.nbaa.org
Oct. 28-30: Helicopter Military Operations
Technology XVI Specialists’ Meeting,
Williamsburg, Va. Visit www.vtol.org/events
Nov. 4-6: Dubai Helishow, Meydan Grandstand
and Racecourse, Dubai, UAE. Call +971 4 328 5666
or visit www.dubaihelicoptershow.org
c
o
m
i
n
g

e
v
e
n
t
s
“FlightSafety
shares Sikorsky’s
safety-first focus.”
MICK MAURER
President, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation

Mick Maurer joined UTC in 1989 at the corporation’s Otis Elevator Co. unit, where
he worked in positions of increasing responsibility until 2000, when he joined
Sikorsky as Vice President, Enterprise Planning and Development. Most recently,
he served as President of the Sikorsky Military Systems unit, responsible for the
U.S. and international military program and product line management, customer
relationships and military aircraft delivery. He was an officer in the U.S. Navy’s
nuclear submarine program and served onboard the ballistic missile submarine
USS George Washington Carver prior to joining UTC. He is a graduate of the
U.S. Naval Academy and holds a master’s degree in engineering from Johns Hopkins
University and a master of business administration degree from Stanford University.
The S-92
®
helicopter leads the safety category with fully
redundant systems that are a generation ahead. Safety was
designed into the S-92, making it the first helicopter to meet
stringent safety requirements established by the FAA and EASA.
Maurer adds, “FlightSafety shares Sikorsky’s safety-first focus. As
our authorized training provider, FlightSafety’s Level D helicopter
simulation helps us to achieve our innovation and safety objectives.”
S
ikorsky Aircraft Corporation is powered by two
principles: innovation and safety. The company’s
innovative helicopters have long been renowned not
only in the aviation industry, but also in the public imagination:
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Sikorsky military helicopters serve 25 nations throughout
the world including all five branches of the United States
armed forces. Commercially, the S-76
®
helicopter is the leading
choice of Fortune 100 companies. Not surprising, considering
Igor Sikorsky is a renowned aviation pioneer whose legacy
still leads the helicopter industry.
Sikorsky was awarded the development contract for the
United States Marine Corps CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter.
It will be the U.S. military’s largest and heaviest helicopter
with twice the lift and radius of action as its predecessor.
“Our constant innovation in aircraft design and manufacture
includes industry-leading safety systems and thinking,” says
Mick Maurer, Sikorsky’s President.
BLACK HAWK,
®
SEAHAWK,
®
S-76,
®
and S-92
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are registered trademarks of Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation.
CEOs on Training
A SERIES
For more information, please contact any of our Learning Centers or call Steve Gross,
Vice President, Sales: 314.785.7815. Our headquarters are at the Marine Air
Terminal, LaGuardia Airport, New York 11371-1061. Email: sales@flightsafety.com
flightsafety.com A Berkshire Hathaway company
20 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
From Boeing’s facility in St. Louis—
“Customers need innovation, ideas
and affordability. They want more
capability at the right time and the
right price,” said Chris Chadwick,
President and CEO of Boeing
Defense, Space and Security,
speaking as Boeing was preparing
to attend the Farnborough Airshow
in July. He stated that the company’s
general attitude was now to take
a holistic view of the international
defense market, but that overall
the company had improved its
international sales position: “The
backlog in international sales was
12-15 percent range previously; it
is now in 25-percent-plus range
and has retained a top line revenue
position.”
Currently Boeing Defense,
Space and Security is roughly at 35
percent backlog being non-U.S. and
around 28 percent of revenue.
Keeping the Boeing helicopter
portfolio current and continually
attractive to international buy-
ers is one of the challenges that
Boeing is facing with aircraft that
were originally de-signed in the
last century.
Chadwick emphasized that
the demand for rotorcraft world-
wide was still high and that Boe-
ing’s V-22, AH-64 and CH-47
were all modernized and com-
peting well in the international
s a l e s a r e na :
“The challenge
f or Boei ng ’s
rotorcraft is to
keep building
capability into
its products. More capability for
less cost is what the market now
wants in the current fiscally chal-
lenging environment,” he said.
“Most non-recurring costs are
behind us on the rotorcraft plat-
forms,” added Chadwick, indi-
cating that the continuing sales
of the recent upgrades [AH-64E
and CH-47F] at a steady rate
meant that the company’s rotor-
craf t busi ness had remai ned
“strong and successful: “Look at
Chinook and the great opportu-
nity [we have had] to keep evolv-
ing the CH-47’s technology.”
The simple fact is that heavy
FVL is out there quite a way,
he noted. “A l ot can happen
be-tween now and then. Keep
existing product line healthy and
growing the capability. We have
become world cl ass in giving
more capability in this more-for-
less world where they can’t afford
the risk on new starts.”
He also indicated that sales
into regions that previously only
had little or no experience of
Boeing’s aircraft was having an
effect on countries around them.
“Saudi [Arabia’s] procurement of
F-15 and Apache woke up a lot of
people in the region because they
bring a lot of capability,” he said.
Regarding Boeing’s commit-
ment to R&D projects, Chadwick
said that three or four years ago,
it became obvious that pressure
was rising on U.S. defense bud-
gets. What had resulted
now, he said, was a need
for “top line stability, bot-
tom line affordability.”
Within Boeing, the way
to respond had been to
make the whole organiza-
tion more efficient and
producti ve. “ We have
taken out $4 billion of
costs, with a challenge of
taking out another couple
of billion going forward.”
Talking of his company’s part-
nership with Sikorsky in a com-
pound coaxial design [SB>1 Defi-
ant] over the Joint Multi-Role
Technology Demonstrator (JMR
TD), which will compete with
Bell Helicopter’s V-280 Valor til-
trotor, he reemphasized that the
V-22 was still a solid investment
in capability, particularly for the
U.S. Marine Corps and interna-
tional customers considering it.
But in the search for a poten-
tial model for a Future Vertical
Lift (medium) design, he said
that the decision to partner with
Sikorsky was a longer-term com-
mitment “to move beyond today’s
platforms.” And that would be a
different mission to today’s V-22
mission profile, he added.
Chadwi ck al so noted the
importance of keeping the dia-
logue with international cus-
tomers fresh to understand how
they are evolving. —By Andrew
Drwiega, International Bureau
Chief
Read the Full Story online at
www.rotorandwing.com
Rotorcraft Report
■ MILITARY
|
ATTACK
Boeing’s Chadwick Offers Remarks on Defense Evolution
(Left) CH-47. (Below) Chris
Chadwick. Courtesy of Boeing
21 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
for Helicopter Operators
Direction Finding SAR
from Techtest Ltd.
Mission-critical factors for life saving SAR operations include:
maximum detection range of emergency beacon transmissions,
flight time to locate the beacon(s), available time at the rescue
site. These parameters are addressed by the Techest DF SAR.
121.5 MHz, 156.8 MHz, 243 MHz and 406 MHz are cyclically
scanned providing 360 degrees DF bearing. The system is com-
pact using a single radome antenna and a user-friendly cockpit
indicator unit. Utilization of the 406 MHz COSPAS-SARSAT
signal has the advantage of providing up to a 30 percent increase
in detection range due to the higher output power of signal com-
pared to the 121.5MHz homing signal. Use of the 406MHz signal
also enables 406MHz message decoding and GPS coordinates of
the target beacon if they are provided. The system gives a relative
bearing straight-line approach vector for all intercepted beacon
frequencies with an accuracy of 5 degrees. If ARINC 429 is avail-
able true bearing and range indications are possible. For more
information visit www.hr-smith.com
Elbit Systems Takes
Wraps Off Skylens HUD
During the Farnborough International Airshow, Elbit Systems
uncovered the helicopter version of its Skylens wearable head-
up display for enhanced flight vision system (EFVS) applica-
tions. According to Elbit Systems, Helicopter Skylens supplies a
true “out of the cockpit” view, showing flight symbology for day
and night operation in severe weather conditions. In limited vis-
ibility conditions, the pilot is able to fly eyes-out due to the wide
field of regard display. Similar to its commercial counterpart,
Helicopter Skylens is a lightweight, easy-to-install device, much
like a pair of sunglasses. Skylens is a part of the Clearvision EFVS family, displaying high-resolution symbology
and video on a transparent visor, providing pilots with head-out capabilities.
Bell Develops Garmin G1000H Autopilot for 407GX
Bell Helicopter is offering a new autopilot kit designed to integrate with the Garmin G1000H avionics suite in the
Bell 407GX. The option is currently available as a kit for the Bell 407GX in the U.S. and Canada. FAA and Trans-
port Canada has certified the autopilot for visual flight rules (VFR) operations. It features two-axis functionality
with cyclic force trim and a stability and command augmentation system (SCAS) available at all speeds with
altitude and heading preselects. Derived from the Bell 429 digital automatic flight control system, the autopilot
integrates with the Garmin G-1000H’s navigation modes and display and also incorporates audio for caution
alerts and mode annunciations. It is also compatible with a night vision imaging system (NVIS) and automatically
disengages during heavy turbulence or extreme flight altitudes.
PUBLIC SERVICE | HOMELAND SECURITY
22 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Helicopters provide valuable aerial support for various
elements of homeland security, from Customs and Border
Protection to local and state law enforcement. Rotor &
Wing speaks with Merton Cox III, executive director of
the CBP’s Operations Office of Air and Marine.
By Robert W. Moorman
Help from
the Sky
23 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
CBP’s Merton Cox
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
A
ug. 9, 2013: Jeff Birks remembers vividly
the day he received the urgent phone call
for air support from the Salt Lake City
FBI SWAT Team. Horseback riders in
the mountains near Cascade, Idaho had sited
James Lee DiMaggio, who had kidnapped teen-
ager Hannah Anderson from her Southern Cali-
fornia school days earlier.
Birks is a helicopter and fixed wing pilot and
critical care paramedic with the U.S. Customs
and Border Protection. The three-person crew,
with Birks as tactical team leader and para-
medic, flew CBP’s Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk
from Great Falls, Mont. to Idaho to rendezvous
with the SWAT Team that had established a
base camp near Cascade. The UH-60’s mis-
sion was to ferry supplies and SWAT teams to
landing sites in the high country. An Airbus
Helicopters AS350 AStar from CBP’s office in
Spokane, Wash., which was equipped with a
high-powered FLIR system, would help in the
operation to rescue Anderson and hopefully
capture DiMaggio.
Valuable aerial footage from the AStar and a
fixed-wing aircraft showed that DiMaggio and
Anderson were holed up at a remote camp site
in the rugged Frank Church Wilderness Area,
which presented some operational challenges
for the helicopters and agents on the ground.
On the morning of August 10, the FBI’s Hos-
tage Rescue Team from Quantico, Va. arrived.
Radio equipment was loaded in the UH-60
and a repeater station was installed on top of a
mountain near the campsite to ensure commu-
nications between law enforcement and aerial
support.
It was time to move. The UH-60 flew two
groups of the Hostage Rescue Team to a moun-
tain-landing site 2.5 miles from the campsite.
The team hiked in and confronted the suspect,
who refused to drop his weapon and fired on the
team. DiMaggio was killed instantly and Han-
nah was rescued and flown out in a Bell 407
operated by the FBI.
A pair of CBP UH-60 Black Hawk pilots
prepare to conduct morning patrols over
Washington, DC. Photo courtesy CBP
24 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
PUBLIC SERVICE | HOMELAND SECURITY
That was not the end of the mis-
sion for the Birks-led and AStar
crews. For the next few days, they
flew investigative teams in and out
of the 7,500-foot area.
“It was varsity level flying,” said
Birks. The crews had to execute a
one-skid landing on rocky, sloped
terrain. To make matters more chal-
lenging, there were several forest
fires in the area. At one point, the
pilots donned night vision goggles
(NVGs) because smoke from the
fires obscured their view.
Birks is one of many helicop-
ter pilots flying for CBP, the uni-
fied border agency within the U.S.
Department of Homeland Secu-
rity. Officially, CBP is charged with
the management, control and pro-
tection of the U.S. borders at and
between the official ports of entry.
“We provide the Border Patrol
40, 000 f light hours per year,”
explained Merton Cox III, execu-
tive director of the Operations
Office of Air and Marine. “We help
them access areas that are difficult
to access by foot and vehicle.”
Cox describes CBP as the “world’s
(Right) Graphic
showing EC135
police helicopter.
(Below) Bond
Helicopters Europe
has been awarded
a contract to install
the next generation
of missions system
equipment into the
National Police Air
Service (NPAS) fleet.
Images courtesy of
Bond Helicopters
Nearly 9,000 miles from North America, helicopters
are being used in South Africa’s anti-poaching efforts
to protect elephants and rhinos that are being slaugh-
tered for their tusks at alarming rates.
The effort might not come under a typical definition
of homeland security, but the safety of these four-legged
residents is of paramount importance to the people of
South Africa. These animals are the country’s legacy.
“The helicopters fill an integral role within the anti-
poaching reaction force,” said Grant Knight, chief pilot
for special projects with South African National Parks.
The reaction team is made up of specialized ranger forc-
es, helicopters and dogs. They go into an area where
there has been an incursion and investigate. Hopefully,
they can prevent the poachers from killing the animals
or catch them in the act, he said.
It is an enormous job for a fleet of only two Airbus
AS350 B3s that must cover 2 million hectares (22,000
square kilometers) in Kruger National Park alone. This
does not include the other wildlife sanctuaries in South
Africa and neighboring countries that must be patrolled.
Knight is keenly aware that more aerial support is
needed and there are efforts underway to increase the
fleet. “One thing I say to people is that if we weren’t using
these helicopters, the figures (number of animals killed)
would be even worse than they are,” Knight said. “In an
anti-poaching operation you can always do with more
fixed-wing and rotary wing aircraft if they are the right
equipment for the work required.”
Knight said his group occasionally works with the
police air unit and the South African Air Force. But
more helicopters are needed and should be equipped
with onboard sensors to better detect poachers on the
ground.
Authorities considered using unmanned aerial vehi-
cles, but so far no decision has been made regarding
full-time use of UAS. That leaves the anti-poaching mis-
sion up to the helicopter pilots and ground forces.
Anti Poaching: Helicopters Aid in African Wildlife Protection
24 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
25 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
CBP’s Merton Cox
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
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largest aviation and maritime law
enforcement agency” with a little
over 1,200 federal agents, 257 air-
craft and 286 vessels. CBP Air and
Marine is one of three law enforce-
ment components of the CBP.
The air unit has a diversity of
missions for homeland security,
said Cox, from anti-terrorism and
aerial support for the border patrol,
to conducting missions in source
and transit zones in Central and
South America from which illegal
drugs flow to the U.S. CBP Air and
Marine works closely with other
local, state and federal law enforce-
ment agencies.
CBP’s air unit was integral-
ly involved in the Dorner Case
more than a year ago. Christo-
pher Dorner, a disgraced ex-cop,
went on a shooting rampage in Los
Angeles and Riverside counties,
which prompted a large manhunt
involving several local, state and
federal law enforcement divisions.
A CBP AS350 and a fixed-wing
Pilatus PC-12 turboprop were used
to help locate the suspect in the
San Bernardino Mountains, pro-
vide aerial support and guide in
law enforcement on the ground.
The CBP also provided “carry cod-
ers,” hand held downlink viewing
units, to law enforcement, allow-
ing them to see the scene from the
air. The siege ended February 12
when Dorner committed suicide
in a cabin during the standoff with
police.
CBP helicopters were used to
move FEMA and emergency per-
sonnel and suppliers in the after-
math of Hurricane Katrina, one of
the most destructive and costliest
storms that hit the Gulf Coast in
late August 2005.
CBP’s aerial missions can vary,
Cox noted. CBP Air provides air-
space security for major events,
such as the Super Bowl, or to pro-
tect the President of the United
States. CBP provides aerial support
for the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
(ATF) and the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA).
Within its fleet of 257 aircraft
are 110 fixed-wing aircraft and
147 helicopters. The rotorcraft
fleet is broken down into two
classifications, light enforcement
and medium-lift helicopters. The
light enforcement fleet is made up
of more than 80 AS350s and 19
EC120 helicopters. The light fleet
is used to conduct surveillance in
support of border patrol.
The medium-lift fleet consists of
26 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
PUBLIC SERVICE | HOMELAND SECURITY
Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks, Bell
UH-1 Hueys, Sikorsky S-76s and
AgustaWestland AW139s. These
aircraft are used primarily in the
maritime environments because of
their extended range capabilities,
according to Cox.
Prior to 9/11, CBP was two
separate organizations. The U.S.
Customs Service was part of the
U.S. Treasury. Border Patrol was
a unit of the Immigration and the
Naturalization Service (INS). The
Customs Service flew drug inter-
diction missions and provided
surveillance support, while the
Border Patrol aircraft were used
for surveillance of the border and
illegal immigration.
Fol l owi ng 9/11, when the
Department of Homeland Secu-
rity (DHS) was formed, the gov-
ernment merged the legacy U.S.
Border Patrol aviation operation
with the U.S. Customs Air and
Marine unit.
“At that point, our mission
changed to have a more terrorism
related focus,” observed Cox. “Our
training changed as well on deliver-
ing a greater understanding on how
to combat terrorism.”
Cox explained how the air unit
has evolved over time. Follow-
ing the merger, the pilot force,
plus management, grew to around
700 people. Fleet type has been
trimmed over the years to reduce
operational costs.
Asked about the process for pro-
curing new helicopters, Cox said
CBP follows strict federal acquisi-
tion guidelines. The DHS acquisi-
tion directive, D-102, describes
specific documentation and review
processes that must be followed.
Eventually, CBP buys its new air-
craft directly from manufacturers.
CBP also obtains fixed-wing and
rotorcraft from the U.S. military,
which are refurbished and updated
with the latest onboard sensor
equipment. The UH-60 and UH-1s
in the fleet are former military heli-
copters. CBP also operates several
PC-3 Orion fixed-wing turboprops
that are used for surveillance and to
hunt submarines.
CBP Air and Marine is in the
eighth year of a DHS-approved
strategic plan to modernize its
aircraft fleet, which included the
acquisition of the AS350s and
upgrading the Black Hawks. Cox
said the unit is constantly look-
ing to update the fleet with new
onboard systems.
Training and Support
The majority of CBP helicopter
pilots come from the U.S. mili-
tary because of their specialized
training, such as NVG instruction.
Some CBP pilots come from com-
mercial rotorcraft operators, such
as PHI Inc. and Era Helicopters.
Cox said CBP looks for pilots
that have a commercial pilot’s
license with instrument rating. The
applicant should have 1,500 total
flight hours, with 250 of those as
pilot in command (PIC). He/she
needs to have flown 100 hours in
the last 12 months and recorded 75
hours of night flying and 75 hours
of instrument flying, either actual
or simulated.
Prior experience as a law enforce-
ment officer is desirable. [Cox, an
experienced pilot, is a former mili-
tary police office and served as a
state trooper with the North Caro-
lina Highway Patrol. He began his
federal career as a Special Agent/
Pilot with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service in Anchorage, Alaska.]
All new hires go through a rig-
orous background investigation,
which includes a polygraph exami-
nation, to remain employed. The
A CBP Air unit UH-60 Black Hawk follows two
vehicles on a remote air strip in the southwest
border region of the United States. Photo by
James Tourtellotte, courtesy CBP
27 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
CBP’s Merton Cox
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
pilots receive security clearances
that relate to their specific job and
the site at which they work. New
hires go first to CBP’s National Air
Training Center near Oklahoma
City, where helicopter pilots are
trained on specific surveillance tac-
tics, and on operating the sophisti-
cated onboard sensor equipment.
The primary training vendor
is Costa Mesa, Calif.-based HeliS-
tream, from which CBP helicopters
pilots receive their FAA biennial
flight reviews and emergency pro-
cedure training. Check rides are
administered in Washington.
The pilots must go through
annual recurring (vendor) train-
ing, which includes emergency
training review and basic aircraft
operations. After the pilots come
back to station, CBP administers
proficiency evaluation and follow-
on training, as needed.
The Defense Support Services
(DS2) is responsible for mainte-
nance, repair and overhaul (MRO)
for the entire CBP aircraft fleet.
In a related development, CBP’s
Office of Air and Marine recently
took delivery of its third opera-
tional Sikorsky UH-60L as part of
a recapitalization effort. CBP is in
the process of extending the life
of its aircraft by converting select
UH-60As to the UH-60L models.
The effort is part of the interagency
agreement CBP signed with the
U.S. Army Utility Helicopter Pro-
gram Office in 2008 to convert
helicopters for CBP’s missions.
CBP pilots are described offi-
cially in background materials as
an elite group of Air Interdiction
Agents. Those materials should
add that the pilots are also highly
trained and flexible in meeting a
varied array of missions that help
secure the homeland.
Other Agencies
The DEA’s aviation program plays
a vital role in preventing the illicit
trafficking of drugs into and with-
in the United States. Its Aviation
Division, headquartered at the
Aviation Operations Center in
Fort Worth, Texas, manages the
DEA’s aviation operations.
The air unit has a 90-plus aircraft
fleet. It includes numerous single
and multi-engine helicopters along
with fixed-wing single-engine pro-
peller driven and multi-engine jet
aircraft. The DEA Special Agent
Pilots log around 50,000 flight
hours annually, according to DEA
background information. Most of
the pilot’s work is in support of drug
interdiction efforts.
While most of the fleet is located
in the U.S., some DEA aircraft are
used to support DEA international
operations in Afghanistan, Colom-
bia, Iraq, Pakistan and Peru.
The U.S. Department of State’s
Air Wing has a fleet of 176 aircraft,
including approximately 137 heli-
copters.
The Air Wing was formed in the
mid-1980s to conduct aerial eradica-
tion interdiction operations in drug-
producing countries under bilateral
agreements. The Air Wing is based
at Patrick Air Force Base, Fla.
Since its inception, the Air Wing
has expanded beyond counter nar-
cotics to support embassies “in high
threat areas with passenger and
cargo movements where commer-
cial aviation is not secure,” according
to Foreign Affairs Officer Krystin
B. Vermillion, Office of Europe and
Asia, Bureau of International Nar-
cotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.
The Air Wing provides recon-
naissance and surveillance opera-
tions, logistical support, medical
evacuation, transport of personnel
and cargo as well as aerial eradica-
tion of drug crops, currently in
Colombia only.
Transport Canada (TC) is one of several state agencies,
whose aircraft units provide aerial support for various
elements of law enforcement and surveillance.
Transport Canada’s Aircraft Services Directorate
(ASD) mission is to provide aviation services to a num-
ber of federal departments and agencies, including
the Transport Canada Civil Aviation and Marine Safety
Directorates, Department of National Defense (DND),
Department of Fisheries and Ocean (DFO) CCG, Trans-
port Safety Board (TSB), Environment Canada and The
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
ASD has a fleet of 46 aircraft, including 20 airplanes
and 26 helicopters.
ASD conducts “various reconnaissance operations”
for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), including ice
reconnaissance, fisheries patrols and wildlife surveys,
such as bird and seal counts, fisheries enforcement
activities, arctic re-supply projects, among others, said
Transport Canada Spokeswoman Maryse Durette. ASD
does not provide search and rescue services.
The surveillance operations are conducted from
Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers and shore bases
located through Canada, including the arctic.
Aircraft Services Directorate helicopters also are
used for transportation of equipment and personnel to
work locations.
RCMP has a 40 aircraft fleet of fixed and rotary-wing
aircraft. The DND and the CCG have separate fleets of
fixed-wing aircraft and rotorcraft that provide aerial
support.
Northern Neighbor: Helicopter Duties in Canada
PUBLIC SERVICE | FIREFIGHTING
28 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
The U.S. Forest Service defies the flames with a
fleet of more than 125 helicopters on contract.
By Ernie Stephens, Editor-at-Large
29 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
Firefighting Frontlines
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
T
hey come in many shapes and
various sizes. They fly to places
with odd names, like Soldot-
na, Coconino and Funny River.
Then they linger amid flames and smoke
that darken the skies, and drive families
out of their homes. They are helicopters
hired by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to
support those who battle wildland fires.
Using the National Interagency Fire
Center (NIFC) as the seat of its overall
command authority, USFS can mobilize
an armada of helicopters and crews to
help personnel on the ground prosecute
wildland fires – those blazes that occur
in predominantly undeveloped areas –
that ravage millions of acres in the U.S.
every year. The causes of these fires vary
widely, and can include lightning strikes,
improperly managed campfires, and
carelessly tossed cigarettes. But any of
them can go from being minor to fatal
in just a couple of hours if not attacked
quickly, properly, and sometimes from
the sky. Although people tend to think
of wildland fires as situations that only
occur in places like Arizona, California
and Oregon, there are enough undevel-
oped woodlands in all 50 states to make
the possibility of a large fire anywhere
very real. Even so, ground personnel are
often capable of extinguishing the fire
by themselves, provided they can get
to it. But that requires roads that can
handle their heavy vehicles. Wildland
fires are often found deep in the wilder-
ness where roads do not exist, or are
embedded in steep hillsides inaccessible
to firefighters and the amounts of water,
retardant, and gear they need.
Enter the helicopter. The USFS
employs helicopters to transport person-
nel, move firefighters, haul cargo inter-
nally or externally, drop water, and apply
retardants in areas that are either dif-
ficult to get to, or completely inaccessible
by any other means. Getting them there
quickly when there are so many areas
that could ignite is the responsibility of
Vince Welbaum, the national helicopter
operations specialist for USFS. With 35
years of firefighting experience – 33 years
A Siller Brothers Sikorsky S-64E working the
Lodgepole wildland fire in Idaho in July 2013
releases a load of retardant. The material will
help keep the trees from becoming fuel for the
approaching flames. Photos by Kari Greer
30 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
PUBLIC SERVICE | FIREFIGHTING
of which were spent on the aviation
side of the operation – there is little
that he hasn’t seen or done.
“We really don’t have a down-
time,” said Welbaum, who went
on to explain that when the fire
season is slowing down in one part
of the country, it can be lighting off
in another. “There’s always some-
thing burning.”
USFS, which comes under the
Department of Agriculture, does
not own a fleet of firefighting air-
craft. Instead, it uses two contract
methods – Exclusive Use (EU) and
Call-When-Needed (CWN) – to
retain the services of helicopters, air-
planes and their support from per-
sonnel from commercial operators,
whom they refer to as “vendors.”
EU contracts require helicop-
ters to be available for wildfire
suppression for a specified period
of time called a “mandatory avail-
ability period.” During that time,
the company must provide the type
and number of mission-ready air-
craft specified by USFS, a crew that
is properly licensed and trained
to fly firefighting missions, and all
of the support services needed to
maintain readiness. They must
also provide fuel for their aircraft,
unless it will be deployed to Alaska.
(Because of its remoteness, the gov-
ernment furnishes aviation fuel for
aircraft contracted to fly there.)
CWN contracts enable USFS to
mobilize additional aircraft when
needed to supplement the EU con-
tract fleet. Companies with CWN
contracts must be able to provide
personnel and aircraft that meet
the same levels of preparedness
as the EU vendors, but there is no
obligation to respond to a fire when
called. They can pass if they have
other obligations or problems, but
as with any other paying customer,
refusing the mission means refus-
ing the fee that the customer (i.e.,
the government) would have paid.
All companies must meet strin-
gent performance and safety stan-
dards before applying to bid on an
USFS contract. Once hired, the
contract’s language requires the
vendors to adhere to stringent per-
formance and safety standards over
the life of the agreement, which
includes work hours.
“We have in the contract that
[flight crews] are required to have
10 hours of uninterrupted rest,”
explained Welbaum. “So, they can
work a 14-hour day, but they’re
limited to eight hours of flight time
per day.”
USFS pays a daily availability
rate and an hourly flight rate for
helicopters with each type of con-
tract. The rates differ, however, for
different types of helicopters.
A Type-I (heavy) helicopter can
carry a payload of 5,000 lbs or more,
and 700-2,500 gallons of water or
retardant. Two examples would be
the Kaman K-Max and the Erickson
Air-Crane. A Type-II (medium)
helicopter can carry 9-14 passen-
gers, with a payload of 2,500-4,999
lbs and 300-699 gallons of water or
retardant. The Bell 212 is a Type-II
craft. And a Type III (light) heli-
copter can move 4-8 passengers,
lift a payload of 1,200-2,499 lbs and
deliver 100-299 gallons of water or
retardant. Examples of a Type-III
aircraft would be the Bell 407 and
the MD Helicopters MD500.
“The helicopters have their own
management,” said Welbaum, who
explained that the vendors provide
their own maintenance personnel,
spare parts and supplies.
The numbers associated with
the type-system simplifies identify-
ing which aircraft will be the most
effective for any given mission,
without assigning more helicopters
than needed. At the time of this
writing, the USFS had 34 Type-I,
33 Type-II, and 60 Type-III heli-
copters stationed throughout the
country. Those operating under EU
contracts might be instructed to
remain at their normal company-
owned base until called, while oth-
ers might be positioned to support
a current firefighting operation.
Some aircraft may even be pre-
positioned near an area with a high
probability of catching fire, based
upon weather conditions, human
interference, or some other factor.
Once a fire incident has been iden-
tified, local and area personnel will
try to deal with it themselves. But
if it rages beyond the capabilities
of their resources, they will make
A flight crew uses an erasable marker to record important mission information
on a section of cockpit glass for easy reference. Many sorties include map
coordinates and special radio frequencies that need to be recalled quickly.
Photos by Kari Greer
30 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
31 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
Firefighting Frontlines
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
a call to the National Interagency
Command Center (NICC) in Boise,
Idaho, for help. Personnel staffing
the NICC will then locate the most
appropriate asset, and dispatch it.
The incident commander, who
is the highest firefighting authority
on the fire scene, will set up a for-
ward base as close to the incident
command area as possible, but not
before taking into consideration
the size and purpose of the aircraft
that will be supporting the opera-
tion, and any hazards that might
encroach upon the base. Such haz-
ards can be blowing smoke and
debris, the projected path of the
blaze, or its proximity to wires.
“[A forward base] can be any-
where, from a farmer’s field to an
airport that’s nearby,” said Wel-
baum. “We’ve even set up at school
facilities after schools have been
let out for the summer.” The most
visible missions flown by con-
tract helicopters are water drops,
which are typically done directly
on burning grass, brush, and trees
to extinguish the flames, or cool
areas that might ignite. The two
primary helicopter systems used
for delivering water are the water
tank and the water bucket. Water
tanks are vessels that are attached
to the helicopter, and can hold
several hundreds or thousands of
gallons. Filling the tank can be done
by lowering a snorkel into a body of
water and drawing some aboard. It
can also be filled by landing, so that
a water truck can replenish it with
a hose. Once filled, the aircraft will
fly to the designated site where the
crew can release its content a little
at a time to cover a large span, or all
at once to create a deluge of water
in one spot, depending on what the
incident commander wants.
Water can also be delivered by
“Bambi Buckets,” a specific sys-
tem that became so popular over
the years, its brand name became
the generic term used to describe
any kind of cable-slung, firefight-
ing water bucket. The bucket is
suspended below the aircraft by
a cargo hook and cable, and filled
by dipping it into a body of water.
Once above the drop site, the crew
opens the valve that releases its con-
tent, which can be between 70 and
2,600 gallons of water, depending
upon the model. Tank- and bucket-
equipped helicopters can serve a
second purpose. They can fill their
vessels with flame retardant, which
is typically dropped ahead of fires to
reduce the flammability or ignition
properties of any forest materials
the flames might use for fuel.
One particular mission that is
seldom seen by the general public
involves an operation called, “heli-
torching,” where the aircraft carries
a 50-gallon drum of flammable gel
on the end of a cable. The drum
slowly releases its content, which
is then ignited by a device called a
“drip torch.” Those globs of burning
gel set the terrain ablaze, resulting in
a controlled burn-off of fuel before
the wildfire arrives. Once this “fire-
break,” as it is called, has been extin-
guished, the wildfire’s progress will
be slowed down, if not halted.
Welbaum emphasized that as
valuable as helicopters are to the
mission, the key component to
bringing a wildland fire under con-
trol is ground personnel. Rotorcraft
are frequently used to ferry in fire-
fighters, who will battle the blaze
on the surface. Sometimes it’s a
simple matter of dropping them at
a forward base, while other times
they must rappel into the forest
using ropes rigged by the helicopter
crew. Although Type-I helicopters
will be the largest on a scene, per-
sonnel are normally flown aboard
Type-II and Type-III aircraft, along
with as much gear as possible.
All of the services contracted for
by USFS come at a price. The costs
for all helicopter operations for the
years spanning 2010-2013 were
approximately $149 million, $245
million, $272 million, and $250
million, respectively. According to
NICC’s Wildland Fire Summary and
Statistics Annual Report for 2013,
a total of 1,008 helicopter requests
were processed by the NICC. In that
year, 619 requests were filled, and 111
were canceled. USFS was, however,
unable to fill 278 of those requests
for any number of reasons, ranging
from not having an aircraft to send,
to deciding that a different kind of aid
would be more appropriate.
While firefighting is the primary
mission of USFS’s contract aircraft,
they stand ready to assist with any-
thing deemed to be a national emer-
gency. “If the president declared a
national emergency – whether an
earthquake, a flood, or one of the
nasty hurricanes that we get – we
could deploy these contracted air-
craft to go support that response,”
said Welbaum. And [aircraft and
crews] have deployed to incidents,
such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005,
and the crash of the Space Shuttle
Columbia in 2003.
“Our aircraft are a national asset,”
said Welbaum.
Kaman K-Max operated by Mountain
West Helicopters hurries back to its water
supply to replenish its bucket.
SERVICES | NIGHT VISION
32 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Night Vision Tech:
The Big Picture
The benefits of night vision technology to the civil world
have finally become tough to dispute, especially in the law
enforcement and helicopter EMS roles.
The Scorpion helmet mounted sight and display (HMSD) system from Thales provides color
symbology and video for both day and night missions, improving situational awareness
among crews aboard armed helicopters. Photo courtesy Thales, design by Rob Hudgins
33 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
NVG Tech
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
By Frank Lombardi
T
he military began using
night vision technology as
early as the 1950s. When
de c r e a s i ng s i ze and
increasing performance finally
put night vision technology in the
hands – or actually on the helmets
– of military aviators, its impact
on enhancing the safety of night
flight operations became tough
to dispute. Today it has finally
become tough to dispute its ben-
efit to the civil world, especially in
law enforcement and helicopter
EMS missions. But the transition
from the military world to civil
comes with many caveats. Due
diligence by supervisors, program
managers, and trainers is para-
mount to ensure the safe and legal
use of night vision technology.
If your operation is considering
the startup of a goggle program,
it’s imperative you invest the time
to understand your options and
how the technology works as an
entire system.
The advancement of night vision
technology has been broken down
by the military into four genera-
tions: Generation 0, 1, 2, and 3.
Original 1950s goggle technology,
or Gen 0, required an infrared (IR)
illumination device to “paint” the
objects to be seen. In the early
1960s, Generation 1 was intro-
duced as the first “starlight scopes,”
which began using three stacked
image intensifiers to amplify exist-
ing light. These ultimately proved
impractical for aviation usage.
By the end of the 1960s, Gen-
eration 2 added a micro-channel
plate (MCP), which multiplied and
accelerated the number of elec-
trons hitting the photocathode. It
also allowed the devices to be made
smaller and lighter, thus enabling
development of head-mounted
versions. Initial versions were full-
face, which meant the instrument
panel could only be viewed through
them, providing a fuzzy, out-of-
focus view of the gauges.
Generation 3 became available
in the mid 1980s, and added a galli-
um arsenide (GaAs) photocathode
and a film of ions as a barrier onto
the MCP. The GaAs featured better
sensitivity to IR light, allowing the
viewing of objects further away,
and the ion barrier increased the
life limit of the goggles from 2,000-
4,000 hours to over 10,000 hours.
Shrinking technology allowed for
smaller, lighter tubes and hence the
evolution of today’s helmet-mount-
ed goggles. Generation 3, or varia-
tions thereof, represent the latest in
goggle technology and are what we
will concern ourselves with.
Science
Current goggle technology, despite
some variations, basically works
like this. Photons of light enter the
tube through an objective lens.
They strike a photocathode, which
absorbs the photons and emits
electrons in their place. The elec-
trons then hit a micro-channel
plate, where they bounce through
more than 10 million tightly packed
channels covering a surface the size
of a quarter.
Bouncing through the channels
causes a cascade of more electrons
to be emitted, amplifying the origi-
nal signal. The multiplied electrons
then strike a phosphor screen (simi-
lar to a television), turning them
back into photons of light that give
you a greatly enhanced view of the
night through a focusable eyepiece.
Aviator night vision goggles (NVGs)
provide a 1:1 magnification to allow
for proper depth perception. It is
important to realize that you are
looking at the goggle image pro-
jected on the phosphor screen, not
actually through the goggles.
When researching night vision
equipment, it’s easy to be over-
34 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
SERVICES | NIGHT VISION
whelmed by the sheer number of
acronyms and model designations
alone. Any form of night vision tech-
nology, whether a goggle, scope, or
otherwise, can be considered a night
vision device, or “NVD.” When
the military developed the first
NVG model exclusive to aviators,
they referred to it as ANVIS (Avia-
tion Night Vision System) model
AN/AVS-6 and subsequently AN/
AVS-9. You may see those same
models referred to as the ANVIS-6
or ANVIS-9, dropping the military
designation for short. These two
models have since been given com-
mercially manufactured names. The
AN/AVS-6 commercial equivalent
is designated the F4212 series by
manufacturer ITT Exelis, and its
AN/AVS-9 is designated the F4949
series. However, an AN/AVS-9
model goggle manufactured by
L-3 EOS will have the designation
M949. Clear as mud, right?
The many different model des-
ignations for the same goggle add
to the confusion when aftermarket
sellers of the technology use similar
nomenclature to promote sales. This
is concerning, especially when many
agencies look for the lowest bidder
when purchasing equipment.
Essentially, the world has only
two OEMs of true Gen 3 image
intensifier technology – ITT Exelis
and L-3 Electro-Optical Systems.
These two companies are both
contracted by the U.S. military as
NVD suppliers. But there are many
versions of their Gen 3 intensifier
tubes, built to different specs for
different purposes, that are now
also available to the civilian market.
Additionally, the Mil-Spec design
of the housing and mounts for the
ANVIS-6 and ANVIS-9 system
is readily available for copy. This
allows them to be manufactured by
non-OEM aftermarket companies
with materials of potentially lesser
quality. So while the essential “guts”
of the goggles might contain the key
parts to enable sale as a model AN/
AVS-6 or AN/AVS-9, they may
only incorporate some, but not all,
OEM parts or manufacturing.
A key example of this would be
when a company buys Gen 3 tubes
from an OEM, installs them into
an aftermarket housing, and pairs
them with objective lenses and eye-
pieces containing inferior optics, in
an effort to reduce cost. The buyer
tends to concentrate on the type of
image intensifier used, not realizing
that the system as a whole may be
of lesser quality. Another example
would be when a Gen 3 image inten-
sifier intended for ground troops,
is used inside a set of goggles and
sold as suitable for aviation. True
aviation-grade image intensifiers are
housed in a metal casing to shield
from electro-magnetic interfer-
ence. Tubes intended for ground
use do not have that requirement.
Additionally, there are a few foreign
companies that produce Gen 2 or
slightly better Gen 2+ tubes for use
in housings that may still be called
model AN/AVS-6 or AN/AVS-9.
So how do you purchase with
confidence? If you want assurance
that your NVGs will be within the
advertised military specification,
then purchase them through either
ITT Exelis or L-3 directly, or through
one of the authorized distributors.
This ensures the entire system is
built with certified parts and tested
with accepted methods and certi-
fied equipment. Purchasing from
any company that does not have
military or FAA oversight of their
quality may be asking for trouble if
you fly Part 91 or Part 135.
Realize that buying directly
through the OEM can prove more
costly than going through a distribu-
tor, since the distributor tends to
buy in bulk, and can give a more
competitive price for smaller orders.
Bill Koshansky, regional sales and
night vision program manager for
Transaero advised that if you want
to be sure you are getting an authen-
tic set of goggles, ask for the “Test-A
Data Record,” which shows the
results of all the post-production
tests done on your set, verifying they
meet specifications. Transaero is the
master distributor of the ITT Exelis
F4949 aviator night vision goggle.
Do not forget that NVGs are
only one part of the ANVIS system.
The other part, and arguably the
part that will determine what type
of goggles you can purchase, is the
modification to the cockpit and
exterior lighting that will be neces-
sary for safe legal use of your night
vision system.
The goggles are highly sensi-
tive to the smallest amount of light
energy, especially in the 600-900
nanometer (nm) wavelength range.
The white light emitted from nor-
mal cockpit lighting will cause
them to automatically “gain down”
in order to protect themselves from
damage, and to maintain a steady
level of brightness and contrast.
But by doing this, they become less
sensitive to the natural-lit scene
outside, degrading the crew’s visual
acuity. To stop this from happening,
cockpit lighting must be filtered
Above are examples of NVG being used with Class A panel mods. (Left) Data from Class A
goggles. (Right) Data from Class B goggles. Images courtesy of Night Flight Concepts, from
the “Demystifying NVGs Webinar Series”
35 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE
NVG Tech
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
so that the light emitted does not
affect goggle performance.
There are generally two classes
of NVIS aircraft lighting modifica-
tions: NVIS Class A or NVIS Class
B. Aircraft modified to Class A will
allow the passage of light up to 625
nm. This allows the use of blue,
green, and yellow lighting. Aircraft
modified to Class B will allow the
passage of light up to 665 nm. This
allows for the viewing of cockpit
displays that also contain some red
lighting as part of their symbology.
Having the aircraft lighting mod-
ified to either Class A or Class B will
require the objective lens on your
goggles to have the appropriate
Class A or Class B filter (There is
also a Class C, for goggles that use
a heads-up display). The appropri-
ate goggle filter will block the same
wavelength of light that your cockpit
mod will allow. This lets the crew
look under the goggles and view
the instrumentation with the naked
eye, but does not allow that light to
enter the tube and de-sensitize the
goggles. Matching your goggle filters
to your cockpit filters is paramount.
If a cockpit that is modified to Class
B (allowing some red) is viewed
with goggles that have Class A filter-
ing (which block only up to some
yellow), there exists a gap that will
allow light from between 625 to 665
nm to enter the goggles and cause
them to gain down, lessening their
effectiveness.
Rather than getting wrapped up in
specs and all the confusing technical
jargon, there are three main areas that
define a goggle’s performance. They
are: photosensitivity, resolution, and
signal-to-noise (SNR). In all cases,
higher is better. As an overall indica-
tor of performance, the resolution is
multiplied by the SNR, to give you a
figure of merit (FOM). Since some
of our very best goggle technology is
still proprietary and can pose a risk to
National Security, it is the FOM that
dictates a goggle’s exportability to for-
eign countries under the ITAR.
When all the smoke clears, your
choice of aviator goggle permit-
ted for use in the U.S. National
Airspace System will be limited to
select forms of model AN/AVS-9,
marketed as the ITT Exelis F4949,
and the L-3 M949. Rotorcraft pilots
may also choose the AN/AVS-6,
which will most likely have Class
A objective lenses, but generally
are not compatible with fixed-wing
helmets, and will probably no lon-
ger be found commercially.
While not really changing their
outward appearance, different gog-
gle options can definitely alter their
performance and significantly alter
their price. As far as today’s Gen-
eration 3 technology goes, both ITT
Exelis and L-3 produce standard
filmed tubes that are virtually indis-
tinguishable in performance. Occa-
sionally you may see or hear refer-
ence to Generation 4 technology
being used inside a set of goggles.
The use of “Gen 4” nomenclature
is actually incorrect, in that the U.S.
military has not yet officially adopt-
ed this term. However, in efforts
to push goggle science to the limit,
OEMs have already developed ways
to improve upon the standard Gen
3 filmed tube. Examples of the very
best in image intensifier technol-
ogy involve the thinning of, or even
removal of the ion film barrier. As
electrons hit the MCP and multiply,
some bounce back and strike the
photocathode, which damage it and
speed up its lifecycle. The ion film
barrier controls this, but at the cost
of limiting goggle performance.
ITT Exelis has developed a thin-
filmed tube, which increases the
overall performance, reduces halos,
and uses a “gated” power supply to
maintain or actually improve tube
life limit. Gating, or quickly turning
the power on and off controls the
amount of stray electrons hitting
the photocathode. ITT Exelis refers
to this tube as their top of the line,
“Gen 3 Pinnacle.”
L-3 produces an unfilmed, gated
version that competes with the ITT
model, which they call the “Infinity.”
According to Joseph Estrera, vice
president and chief technology offi-
cer of New Product Develop-
ment at Aviation Specialties
Unlimited, it’s estimated
that the L-3 unfilmed tube
has a 30 percent increase
in performance and dou-
ble the life-limit when
compared to a standard
Gen 3 tube. ASU is the master
distributor for L-3 Warrior Sys-
tems and the model M949 goggle.
You should now be armed with
some background and a bit of night
vision goggle science, giving you
the big picture of what it takes to
see into the darkness.
(Below) Gap in spectrum when Class A goggles are used with Class
B cockpit. (Inset) Goggle test on aftermarket NVG. Images courtesy of
Night Flight Concepts, “Demystifying NVGs Webinar Series”
36 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
ESSENTIAL EQUIPMENT WATER BUCKETS AND SPRAYERS
Simplex
Portland, Ore., United States
With its advanced engineering
capabilities and many years of expe-
rience, Simplex offers a one-stop
solution for nearly every helicopter
mission. Aerial firefighting is one of
those strengths.
Simplex has close relationships
with fire departments and forest
services across the globe. Because
of this, their systems are getting
bigger and better while reducing
weight and drag. Some examples
of this evolution include the transi-
tion from mirrors and a hanging
hose to cameras and a fully retract-
able fill hose.
With more than 150 supple-
mental type certificates (STCs),
there is a model available for many
helicopters. Simplex tanks offer a
variety of water drop patterns to
suit the mission at hand, be it a long
trail drop over grass fires or a single
salvo drop to penetrate a dense tree
canopy.
Their unique design also allows
for the transport of smoke jump-
ers from site to site between water
drops if called upon and with gov-
ernment restrictions on the use of
water buckets, Simplex tanks are
the only ones certified for night
operations in the United States.
More information on Simplex
can be found online at: www.sim-
plex.aero
Water Buckets and Sprayers:
Getting the Job Done
This month we look at the vendors who provide solutions
for aerial firefighters and other agricultural needs with
Water Buckets and Sprayers; along with a comparison of
the various offerings available from companies in the Rotor
Blade Repair and Replacements arena.
Simplex R44 agricultural spray system. Tanks can be
configured for many water drop patterns. Courtesy Simplex
37 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
ESSENTIAL EQUIPMENT WATER BUCKETS AND SPRAYERS
SEI
Delta, British Columbia,
Canada
When talking to someone in the
U.S. Forest Service, the first name
that comes to mind is the Bambi
Bucket and that can be credited
to its 25-plus years of service. The
original Bambi Bucket’s rugged
design has allowed for years of
success, but SEI has continued to
improve the classic workhorse.
With models varying from 270
to 9,840 liters, if your helicopter is
equipped with a tail hook, there is a
good chance there is a Bambi Buck-
et to match. With the purchase of
the Fast Bucket line from Absolute
Fire Solutions, SEI has expanded its
current line even further.
The ability to dip fill from large
bodies of water or pump fill from
very shallow water sources offers
versatility while pre-programmable
fill loads allow the pilot to take on
more water as the helicopter burns
through fuel to take that versatility
one-step further.
Other important features for
those under contract with forestry
services include its multi-drop
and foam capabilities. SEI also has
a wide variety of accessories to
increase efficiency for specific mis-
sions and a line of power packs to
allow the Bambi Bucket to operate
independent of the aircraft’s elec-
trical system.
More information on the Bambi
Bucket line of products can be
found at: www.sei-ind.com
Aerial Fire Control
Magill North, South Australia
The Water Hog is Australian in ori-
gin and designed specifically for the
harshest of environments. Founded
in 2001 with a philosophy based on
customer service, AFC now has
Water Hogs across the globe.
With models as small as 400
liters and having just delivered a
10,000-liter model to a commer-
cial operator in Montana, there is
essentially a bucket for every opera-
tion. With the size of Australia in
mind, AFC went to work on creat-
ing a highly portable system that
could be transported packed inside
the aircraft and assembled on site
for rapid deployment.
Unlike some others, the Water
Hog is designed specifically for
pump fill as customer feedback has
led them to believe it reduces pilot
workload.
A manual, pilot-controlled drop
valve means there is no limit to how
many times the valve can be used
with a single load of water and can
be quite effective when combined
with customizable foam systems.
Another important feature is its
freestanding design meaning it can
be placed with crews as a reservoir
to support forward operations in
remote locations while reducing
the chance for tangled lines on tak-
ing off and landing.
For more information, visit:
www.afcwaterhog.com
IMS New Zealand
Napier, New Zealand
IMS specializes in towed helicopter
systems, and that experience with
other rotorcraft operations result-
ed in a product line of fire buckets
that offers innovative technology.
With a customizable product line
between 130 and 5,000 liters, the
company aims to offer a viable
option for any aircraft drafted into
service as a firefighter.
The Cloudburst is multi-drop
capable but as a dip fill only bucket
they engineered a self-inflating
ring to keep the mouth open while
filling. Also unlike some systems is
their self-contained foam bladder
located in the bucket itself to keep
the corrosive foam concentrate as
far away from the aircraft as pos-
sible. Cloudburst is made from a
material that can withstand high
operating temperatures, is algae
and fungus resistant and has a high
UV stability that is also in use by the
U.S. Navy and Coast Guard.
For more information on the
Cloudburst bucket and IMS: www.
imsltd.co.nz
SEI’s Bambi Bucket can hold between 270
and 9,840 liters of water to accommodate
any size job. Rotor & Wing file photo
IMS New Zealand’s Cloudburst water
bucket can hold up to 5,000 liters.
Photo courtesy IMS New Zealand
38 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
ESSENTIAL EQUIPMENT ROTOR BLADE REPAIRS
38 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | JULY 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
38 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Rotor Blade Repairs
Advanced Composite Structures USA www.acs-composites.com
Sanford, Fla.
Affiliation: 3rd Party non-OEM licensed
Field Repairs: No
Airworthiness: BO105/BK/330/332/365/355/350/316/SikS55/S58/S61/S64/S76

Air Asia www.airasia.com
Tainan City, Taiwan
Affiliation: 3rd Party OEM Licensed
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: 204/205/206/212/407/412/430/B234/S70C/CH47/MD500/UH1H/
TH67/AH1W/OH58D

AgustaWestland www.agustawestland.com
Samarte, Italy
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: Full Line

Airbus Helicopters www.airbushelicoptersinc.com
Marigane, France
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: Full Line

Airbus Helicopters Inc. www.airbushelicoptersinc.com
Grand Prairie, Texas
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: Full Line

Australian Aerospace www.ausaero.com
Bankston, New South Wales
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: AS332/330/350/355/365/EC120/NH90

Aviation Blade Services Inc. www.absblade.com
Kissimmee, Fla.
Affiliation: 3rd Party
Field Repairs: No
Airworthiness: S-55, S-58, S-58T, S-61, S-62, S-64, H-3, CH-54,H-34, H-60/S-70

Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. www.bellhelicopter.com
Broussard, La.
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: Yes
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: Van Horn/S76/S92/SB47/All Bell

Composite Technology Inc. www.rotorblades.com
DFW Airport, Texas
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: Yes
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: 204/205/206/212/214/222/230/407/412/427/430/A109/A119
AW139/AS350/AS355/EC120/EC130/BO105/BK/MD500/MD900/Full
Sikorsky

39 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
ESSENTIAL EQUIPMENT ROTOR BLADE REPAIRS
39 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Heli-Blade www.helicopterbladerepair.com
Anderson, Calif.
Affiliation: 3rd Party Non Licensed
Field Repairs: Yes
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: Van Horn
Airworthiness BO105/BK/Bell/MD/HTC/Sik/K747/Carson

Helicopter Technology Company www.helicoptertech.com
Los Angeles, Calif.
Affiliation: OEM-Blades Only
Field Repairs:
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: MD 500,600,900

International Aviation Composites www.iac-ltd.com
Fort Worth, Texas
Affiliation: 3rd Party Non Licensed
Field Repairs: Yes
Airworthiness: HTC/EC/Bell/MD/Sik/AW/Mil

Kaman www.kaman.com
Bloomfield, Conn.
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: All products/MD902

RBI-Hawker www.rbihawker.com
Dubai, UAE
Affiliation: OEM-JV
Field Repairs: Yes
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: All Bell/ AW109,119,139

Rotor-Tech International www.rotor-remedy.com
Stockton, Calif.
Affiliation: 3rd Party
Field Repairs: Yes
Airworthiness: AW47/Bell 47,204,205,206,212,214,222,230,400,407,412,427,430
Airbus365,350,355,315,316,319,330,332,bo-105,bk-117/
MD369,500,600,900 HTC500/Sikorsky 55,61,64,76,269

Robinson www.robinsonheli.com
Torrance, Calif.
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: All products

Scotts Bell 47 www.scottsbell47.com
LeSueur, Minn.
Affiliation: OEM
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: All products/MD902

Tulsa Rotor Blades www.tulsarotorblades.com
LeSueur, Minn.
Affiliation: 3rd Party
Field Repairs: No
Airworthiness: Bell 47 and Hiller Wood Blades

Van Horn Repair www.vanhornrepair.com
Tempe, Ariz.
Affiliation: OEM-Blades Only
Field Repairs: No
OEM Certified for these Makes/Models: Own products only. UH1 and 206B
40 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Guimbal Reveals Details About
Chinese Certification Process
Expeditionary Warfare Lessons 41
Eat, Sleep, Fly: Revolution Aviation 42
CAA Institutes New Safety Regs 43
TRAINING NEWS
By Thierry Dubois
B
runo Guimbal, founder
and CEO of France-based
Helicopteres Guimbal,
shared with Rotor & Wing
details on the Chinese certifica-
tion of the Cabri G2 light single,
obtained on June 16. The pro-
cess, a validation of the EASA
certification, lasted nine months
and did have some peculiarities.
A type certificate from the Civil
Administration of China (CAAC)
is of particular importance for
Guimbal, who sees a giant poten-
tial market.
“The first main step in the pro-
cess was the validation of the STC
we have for the engine,” Guimbal
told Rotor & Wing, as the manufac-
turer designed an electronic igni-
tion for the Lycoming O360. Then
came the validation of the type
certificate itself. The third step was
an operational evaluation. This
means training programs were
assessed, both for pilots and main-
tenance technicians. Finally, the
first two aircraft destined to China
received individual airworthiness
certificates.
The CAAC did not require any
specific test. “We showed them
exhaustive certification test results,”
Guimbal said. He noted China’s
Avgas 100LL fuel standard is slight-
ly different from that defined by
ASTM. Using such a fuel is not offi-
cially validated for the Cabri yet – in
fact, it is still unsure whether Heli-
copteres Guimbal or the CAAC
is responsible for the validation.
Guimbal made it clear that, as the
engine can burn unleaded fuel, the
Chinese standard is not a problem.
“Standards should be harmonized
eventually,” he added.
A CAAC certification obvi-
ously opens doors nationally but
other possibilities exist, Guimbal
discovered. Local permits to fly can
be delivered in China’s provinces.
“The country is not so centralized,”
Guimbal said.
Representatives of the CAAC
came four times – once for each
of the aforementioned steps in
the process – to Helicopteres
Guimbal’s headquarters in Aix-en-
Provence. France’s authority, the
DGAC, did provide some support,
including symbolic but beneficial
presence at the second meeting.
The Chinese teams comprised
three to five people. “Each had a
real role and was really proficient
or, as for light helicopters, will
soon be,” Guimbal noted.
English language was not a
probl em wi th CAAC peopl e
but was a major issue with some
potential partners Guimbal’s team
met in China. Some discussions
had to be conducted with an inter-
preter. Recently, the company had
to train 10 maintenance techni-
cians with a translator.
Guimbal expressed pride about
having gone through the certi-
fication process independently,
without having formed a local joint
venture for production. Asked
about intellectual property threats,
such as reverse-engineering, he did
not appear worried despite the cul-
tural gap between Western coun-
tries and China. He emphasized
that drawing the plans of a part is
one thing but manufacturing it is
another.
Read the Full Story at
www.rotorandwing.com
Rotor & Wing speaks with Helicopteres Guimbal
CEO to gain insight on the Cabri G2 certification.
The first two Cabris shipped to China (here with Chinese markings) will go to
distributor Shanghai X-Square Aviation Co. Photo courtesy Helicopteres Guimbal
41 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
T
he question of new chal-
lenges ahead for a re-styled
“expeditionary” Army, par-
ticularly as they will apply
to U.S. Army Aviation, was the sub-
ject of an almost aptly named ‘Deep
Dive’ session at this year’s Army
Aviation Mission Solutions Sum-
mit (Quad-A) in Nashville, Tenn.
Operating in the maritime
environment was one of the pri-
mary topics of conversation dur-
ing the session entitled Aviation
Expeditionary Capabilities and
Requirements. Hosted by Maj.
Gen. Kenneth Quinlan Jr. (Ret.)
and ably supported by the recent-
ly departed commander of the
U.S. Army’s Special Operations
Aviation Command, Brig. Gen.
Clayton Hutmacher, the session
sought to look beyond the heat
and mountains of Afghanistan
to other scenarios that might be
encountered under the umbrella
of expeditionary operations.
Hutmacher, speaki ng wi th
the familiarity that an earlier
command of the 160th Special
Operations Aviation Regiment
(SOAR) would allow, made the
point that maritime deployments
were now a distinct possibility
for regular Army aviators and the
skills required could be adapted
for Army helicopters and mas-
tered. He said deck landings were
just a matter of gaining the skill
then maintaining the currency
– and added that they were not
as challenging as a night landing
at a “hot” landing zone. One of
the backdrops to this discussion
is that the Army conducted mari-
time training exercises from naval
vessels in the Persian Gulf last
year, particularly Apache missions
against small raider type boats that
were unidentified and outside the
close protection range of the ship’s
defensive armament. —By Andrew
Drwiega
Lessons for Expeditionary Warfare
ROBINSON
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Read the Full Story at www.
rotorandwing.com or in June’s
Military Insider e-letter. Sub-
scribe: www.aviationtoday.com/
subscribe.html
42 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
R
e vol ut i on Avi at i on,
a flight training school
based at John Wayne
Airport (SNA) in Santa
Ana, Calif., claims to be the first
flight school in the United States
to offer instruction on helicopters,
fixed-wing platforms, and remotely
piloted vehicles (RPVs), more com-
monly known as unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs) or drones. Mark
Robinson, founder of Revolution
Aviation, wanted to open a school
where anyone could “pursue their
passion for aviation.” The company
has a motto of “eat, sleep, fly.”
The school, which opened in
fall 2013, has a total of six aircraft:
three Robinson R22s, one R44, a
fixed-wing Liberty XL2 and one
Hummingbird UAV, a quadcopter
from Ascending Technologies.
Although Revolution Aviation
specializes in helicopters and heli-
copter training, “when we started,
we were the second flight school
at John Wayne Airport providing
helicopter training in 34 years,”
said Robinson. “So we knew we’d
get the overflow from that school,
but we also wanted to do things a
little differently, which is why we
also wanted to offer drone and
fixed-wing training.”
The drone, built by Ascending
Technologies, is a quadcopter
called the Hummingbird. UAV
training allows students to prac-
tice an interest in aviation without
actually piloting a large aircraft.
“The drone makes us a little dif-
ferent, unusual, since it’s an up and
coming business,” he explained.
The reason the company took on
UAV training is because Robinson
“wanted people to have the oppor-
tunity to learn something that
doesn’t currently require medical,
and that’s something that allows
people to enjoy aviation but not
have to fly if they’re scared of fly-
ing.” —By Katie Kriz, Assistant
Managing Editor
Read the rest of the story
and see a video of the training
at www.rotorandwing.com
Eat, Sleep, Fly: Revolution
Expands to UAV Training
Revolution’s R44 with
the Hummingbird UAV.
(Above) Robinson gives
advice during a training
lesson. Photos courtesy
of Revolution Aviation
Guidance Aviation opened its Prescott,
Ariz. helicopter training facility to local
Girl Scouts as a part of the organization’s
2014 Discover Aviation Camp where
participants were able to sit in and
familiarize themselves with the controls of
Robinson R22, R44 and R66 helicopters,
partake in helicopter ground school and
receive hands-on training in the NextGen
helicopter flight simulators by X-Copter.
Photo courtesy of Guidance Aviation
43 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
CAA Moves To Performance Based Safety
Regulation In Wake Of North Sea Accidents
T
he UK’s Ci vi l Avi ati on
Authority (CAA) aims to
become a performance-
based regulator over the
next two years following the find-
ings of a report into a series of
helicopters accidents in the North
Sea, the last of which resulted in
four fatalities. Following the crash
of the CHC Scotia AS332 L2 Super
Puma on its approach to Sumburgh,
in 2013, CAA conducted a safety
review of offshore public transport
helicopter operations serving the oil
and gas sector. The ensuing docu-
ment, CAP145, was published on
Feb. 20, 2014.
Speaking during the first day of
the Royal Aeronautical Society’s
Technology: Friend of Foe confer-
ence in London, Mark Swan, CAA’s
director of Safety and Airspace
Regulation, told delegates that his
organization wanted to provide
performance-based regulation with
a focus on risk first. He said the
CAA was six months into a two-
year process. Human factors were
key and Swan questioned whether
technology complexity issues were
being sufficiently addressed by the
industry and operators. He said that
fatalities should never be “normal-
ized” and the immediate reaction
after Sumburgh was to address
the issues raised, particularly with
regard to human factors.
Swan said that the driving force
behind producing a quick report
had been to get safety measures
introduced in the shortest feasible
time. There had been several posi-
tive results from CAP1145 and the
discussions within the Helicopter
Safety Action Group, which com-
prised manufacturers, operators
and other specialists: it produced
a strong stance on safety; initiated
real changes to improve safety; and
improved communication to the
industry. —By Andrew Drwiega,
International Bureau Chief
Read the Full Story online at:
www.rotorandwing.com
44
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Back Shop
By Douglas Nelms
SERVICES | MAINTENANCE
O
n Dec. 7, 2011, an AS350-
B2 operated by Sundance
Helicopters crashed just
outside Las Vegas, Nev.,
killing the pilot and four passen-
gers. NTSB cited probable cause
to be “inadequate maintenance of
the helicopter.”
Specifically, NTSB said the cause
included (1) the improper reuse of
a degraded self-locking nut, (2) the
improper or lack of installation of
a split pin, and (3) inadequate post-
maintenance inspection. Contribut-
ing to that was fatigue and the lack
of clearly delineated maintenance
task steps to follow on the part of the
mechanic, and fatigue and the lack
of clearly delineated inspections to
follow on the part of the inspector.
Or, to phrase that another way:
complacency – inattention to
detail. NTSB issued three recom-
mendations (Report AAR-13/01-
03) designed to eliminate the kind
of human factor errors that caused
the Sundance crash. FAA subse-
quently issued an Advisory Circu-
lar (AC 136-2) backing up the rec-
ommendations. However, the AC
was only aimed at tour operators.
I have no idea why. Complacency
occurs in every type of aircraft
operations – fixed and rotary wing
– and evidently always has.
Rudy Quevedo, director of glob-
al programs for Flight Safety Foun-
dation, told me that not much has
really changed since the 1930s and
‘40s… that while the industry has
“talked a lot about those things in
recent years, the fact is that we keep
having the same issues.” Promot-
ing helicopter maintenance safety
is a simple concept, ranging from
“don’t drop a wench on your foot,”
to “follow the procedures in the
manual.” Very simple instructions.
So why do accidents keep happen-
ing? Last year, NTSB reported 42
maintenance-related accidents, of
which eight were rotary wing.
The OEMs are doing their part
– using advanced technology equip-
ment and computerization as well as
improved training methods. Sikor-
sky said that it “continues to utilize
HUMS data in new ways that are
focused on helping the operator and
the maintainer,” as well as an “exten-
sive training program” for aircraft
such as the new S-76D. In techno-
speak, Sikorsky said that it has “devel-
oped tools that combine information
from the aircraft with centralized
knowledge base and sophisticated
fault logic algorithms to give confi-
dence-based maintenance action
suggestions.” So as the aircraft are
becoming more sophisticated, so are
the programs designed to keep them
safe. So why is there still a problem?
What it boils down to is safety
management. There is even a safety
management system (SMS) toolkit,
issued by the U.S. Joint Helicop-
ter Safety Implementation Team
(US-JHSIT) designed “to help U.S.-
based organizations understand
the fundamentals of SMS. It serves
as a guide to implement and man-
age an SMS, tailored to all size orga-
nizations.” This includes a guide to
establishing safety management for
the maintenance operations.
But apparently the problem of
maintenance-related accidents is
still there. Quevedo said that while
FSF continues to take a serious look
at the problem of human factors in
maintenance safety, it’s now doing
so with a different view, “approach-
ing it a little bit differently, more
on the psychological end, trying to
understand why [current proce-
dures] haven’t worked.”
He said that one of the biggest
problems in aviation is simply com-
municating the need for awareness
by maintenance personnel to fol-
low procedures. A few years ago,
FSF formed a committee to try and
resolve issues involving mainte-
nance safety, with a special working
group looking at the problem of
failure to follow procedures. This
includes a worldwide group of 22
people from countries including
the U.S., UAE, Australia and China.
One of the problem areas is a
growing shortage of highly quali-
fied mechanics, “especially with
aviation booming in new parts
of world, like Asia,” he said. This
includes the mentoring of new
mechanics by older, highly experi-
enced individuals.
“There are a lot of things, soft
skills, that are not really trained,
things such as communicating
clearly, writing clearly, reading blue-
prints. Long ago the people who
were mentoring had 25 years of
experience. They were true profes-
sionals in every sense of the word.
Today young men come into avia-
tion maintenance – and their men-
tors only have three or four years
themselves because of high turn-
over.” In one of its recent newslet-
ters, IHST stated that the industry
should “encourage operators and
maintainers to implement a robust
Quality Assurance program that
ensures the use of manufacturers
maintenance manuals, service bul-
letins and procedures.”
Yes – we should do that.
We’re Human: Follow Rules
ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014
45 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M

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The Ever-Evolving Economics of Air Medi-
cal Operations—Big hospitals operating
their own aircraft may be able to absorb
the impact of tighter flight reimbursement
policies from the insurers, but what does it all
mean for the future of community based pro-
grams and the big turnkey helicopter opera-
tors? Editor-at-large Ernie Stephens goes
looking for answers. For a perspective of how
and where the community-based model can
still work, he travels to rural Wisconsin and
flies with Flight For Life, an independent, not-
for-profit HEMS operator based in Waukesha.
Ernie shares how this three-aircraft operation
has carved out a niche for itself providing
quality en route care while maintaining a
spotless, 30-year record.
HUMS Part II: What can a HUMS/HFDM sys-
tem do for your company?—As the second
in a multi-part series on health and usage
monitoring systems (HUMS) and helicopter
flight data management (HFDM), Michael
Hangge will focus on the costs involved ver-
sus the potential savings of the systems. He
will also delve deeper into how the systems
will improve maintenance and safety. Also
covered will be the systems available now
and the ambiguities inherent in the current
descriptions.
Parts, Parts and More Parts—When your
aircraft is AOG, and you’re waiting for a hard-
to-find part, what are the options? Douglas
Nelms digs into the processes and regula-
tions surrounding replacement parts and
how to secure a quick fix when grounded.
Financing the Future—Robert Moorman
provides an update on the growing number
of lenders and lessors getting involved in the
helicopter community, specifically focusing
on how operators can reap benefits from
including leasing options as part of the fleet
mix. The report will also include snapshots of
each of the players involved in the sector.
Essential Equipment Options—This month
we present options when you are in the
market to purchase the following services or
equipment:
• EMS Completions
• Traffic and Terrain Avoidance
Columns – Public Service by Lee Benson; Off-
shore Notebook by Pat Gray; Safety Watch by
Terry Terrell; and Military Insider by Andrew
Drwiega
September 2014:
The Current State of EMS
Bonus Distribution: AMTC, Sept. 22-24 in Nashville, Tenn.
46 ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014 WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
47 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
advertiser index
Page# ...........Advertiser ........................................................................................................................... Website
9 ........................Aeronautical Accessories .....................................................................................................................www.aero-access.com
52 ......................Airbus Helicopters ................................................................................................................. www.airbushelicoptersinc.com
45 ......................Chopper Spotter ............................................................................................................................www.chopperspotter.com
45 ......................Component Control ..................................................................................................................www.componentcontrol.com
45 ......................Consolidated Aircraft Supply ................................................................................................................... www.consolac.com
51 ......................Domus Group .................................................................................................................................www.dubaihelishow.com
43 ......................Elite Simulation ......................................................................................................................................... www.flyelite.com
19 ......................FlightSafety ........................................................................................................................................www.flightsafety.com
2 ........................Garmin International ................................................................................................................................ www.garmin.com
11 ......................Government of HKSAR ................................................................................................................................. www.csb.gov.hk
17 ......................Mecaer Aviation Group.............................................................................................................................. www.mecaer.com
41 ......................Robinson Helicopter .......................................................................................................................... www.robinsonheli.com
47 ......................Survival Products ................................................................................................................... www.survivalproductsinc.com
15 ......................Transaero .......................................................................................................................................... www.transaeroinc.com
5 ........................UTC Aerospace Systems ....................................................................................................... www.utcaerospacesystems.com

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Helmets
ANVIS 6 HELICOPTER HELMETS (Kevlar helmets and
spares including: HGU models). NOMEX coveralls, jackets,
gloves, etc. factory new, in stock. Sage green and desert
tan. GOVERNMENT SALES, INC., 69 Francis Ave. Hartford,
CT 06106, Tel: (860) 247-7787, Fax: (860) 586-8020.
Catalogue on website: www.aviationhelmets.com
HELIPORT LIGHTING FAA-approved equipment.
MANAIRCO, INC. (419) 524 - 2121, www.manairco.com
Heliport Lighting
advertising sales reps
Randy Jones
320 Decker drive, Suite 249
Las Colinas (Irving) TX 75062
972-713-9612 Office
214-679-4615 Cell
[email protected]
James McAuley
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Santa Rosalia,
29551 Campanillas Malaga, Spain
Tel/Fax: +34 952 118018
[email protected]
48
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By Andrew Drwiega
Military Insider
Y
ou could not describe the
airfield at Shobdon in the
heart of the Herefordshire
countryside as on the road
to anywhere in particular. Located
down an unassuming road that
bears left at the bottom of a small
hill towards the control tower, with
two grass and one paved runways,
it has the appearance of a small
country flying club with a few
modernized hangars mixed with
portacabins and Nissan huts that
hint at the airfield’s history.
During World War II, this was
a glider training center with pilots
learning to master the Hotspur
and Horsa gliders. Some of those
men then took those flimsy air-
craft (by today’s standards) and
flew them packed with airborne
troops into the vanguard of battles
such as the D-Day landings and the
Rhine Crossing. Gliders breathlessly
swooped down, landing feet from
their objectives such as the famous
Pegasus Bridge on the eastern shoul-
der of the Normandy beachhead.
While the gliders are now long
gone, pilots are still being trained
at the little airstrip. Appearances
are not what they seem either.
Tiger Helicopters, run by helicopter
enthusiastic and dedicated owner
Alan Ramsden, has been quietly
conducting a professional interna-
tional training academy for national
and foreign pilots including pilots
from Kuwait and Algeria.
Ramsden is one of those people
who lives and breathes his business.
He learned to fly at 17 and, at one
time or another, has invested most
of his finances into building up his
company. From owning his one
and only Robinson R22 and giving
flying lessons to friends and those
who wanted more, he has built a
business which now numbers five
R22s, two Bell 206 Jet Rangers and
an old AgustaWestland AW109A
that has seen the last of its flying
days although Ramsden is gradu-
ally whittling it down by selling its
parts, item by item.
We met almost by chance. A
good friend had given me a heli-
copter flying lesson for my 50th
birthday last year. While not being
a pilot, or even an engineer by
trade, my journalism has given me
numerous opportunities to experi-
ence the thrill – and difficulty – of
taking control of a helicopter to
varying degrees. The most difficult
was not my day with Ramsden –
ours became more of a sometimes
“hands-on” pleasure flight with him
reawakening my realization of how
far down the line I still have to prog-
ress in order to remotely claim any
flying skills. No, the hardest hour I
ever spent was with an instructor at
RAF Shawbury, the home of mili-
tary ab initio training in the UK.
I had arrived with the intention
of riding along on a SAR exercise
over Snowdonia, then on to RAF
Valley to meet up with the SAR
Force commander, but the weather
closed in around the mountains (as
it so often does) and I accepted my
first flying lesson as a compromise.
Let’s say I finished with a very damp
shirt and the sweat trickling out
from under my flying helmet after
closing the session trying to control
cyclic and collective in unison for
the first time.
Up Close: Herefordshire’s
Secluded Training Gem
ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2014
MILITARY | TRAINING
View inside the Tiger Helicopters hangar.
Photos by Andrew Drwiega
49 AUGUST 2014 | ROTOR & WING MAGAZINE WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
Back to Ramsden and my time
in the Jet Ranger. Being a large
guy, he kindly traded me up to 45
minutes in the Bell 206 when my
gift should have meant that I was
flying in an R22. Either would have
been a first. I found the Jet Ranger
to be responsive with excellent all
around vision. Although the cloud
ceiling was around 1,200 feet, the
rain had cleared by the time we
took off and Ramsden took me
seamlessly through the basics once
again (as I had requested). We fin-
ished with cyclic and pedal control,
then a quick lesson in pulling power
through the collective and adjust-
ing cyclic and pedal to account for
the increase and decrease in height.
Before the flight, Ramsden had
shown me around the Tiger Heli-
copters facility. A smart new pur-
pose-built hangar was completed in
2003. The all-in-one hangar has as
many skylights as the design would
allow and offers 28 percent natural
light. Light is further provided by
roof fixtures. The hangar benefits
from a large heater and ceiling fans
that circulate that heat during the
winter, while providing cooling dur-
ing the summer. The numerous slid-
ing hangar doors along one side of
the building have bristle finishes at
the bottom and top which Ramsden
states makes the building virtually
climate controlled. At the far end
is a small area with its own electri-
cally operated hangar door which
conceals a privately owned three-
quarter scale P-51 Mustang and a
couple of general aviation aircraft.
Other than inside the hangar
proper, other rooms on the ground
floor include the machine shop,
engineering office and bonded
storage area. On the second story
there is a pilots leisure area with
kitchen facilities, 1-on-1 training
rooms for pilot, pupil review ses-
sions, and Tiger’s administrative
offices. Currently Ramsden’s opera-
tion is between major contracts
and is down to around five staff, but
during the busiest period around
2012 when both Kuwaiti and Alge-
rian pilots were being trained here,
pilots instructors, personnel look-
ing after the ab initio pilots (and
the extra staff required) fluctuated
between 50 to 60 people.
The Kuwaiti government con-
tract which was split into two parts
stretched over 2005-2008 was a
‘big break’ for Tiger and required
the training of 16 police helicopter
pilots. Ramsden said that English
language training was and continues
to be offered to international cus-
tomers in addition to flight training.
In 2010, AgustaWestland asked
Ramsden if he could become a
training supplier to the organiza-
tion. He subsequently helped to
train ab initio Algerian military
pilots who would eventually fly
AW109 and AW101 military air-
craft that had been acquired from
the Anglo-Italian company. How-
ever, after training the majority of
the pilots, AgustaWestland decided
to take a more independent strate-
gy on training for those nations that
bought its military helicopters.
The second building is quarter
refurbished Nissan hut, which
acts as a pilot/instructor pre- and
post-flight rest area and welfare
center. The other three quarters of
it is a Tardis-like (Google Dr. Who,
BBC for those unfamiliar with the
Tardis) dedicated training center.
The main room can accommodate
a full school of around 60 students
for a collective briefing. Behind
this are three identical rooms with
computer desks that double-up to
provide flight instruction consoles
or English language systems. One
room is configured with Internet
capability including built-in cam-
eras so foreign students away from
home can stay in regular contact
with their families.
But there are significant plans
to further develop this second
building which will entail replacing
the Nissan hut and incorporating
the area into a broader two floor
building complete with an outside
viewing gallery. The work is already
planned and would take around
18 months to complete, reassures
Ramsden.
His wife, Danielle, is a trained cook
and has supervised meals for stu-
dents, including sourcing and serving
halal food when it has been required.
In the early days, Ramsden provided
his few trainees with mobile home
facilities located in the nearby camp-
site, but now students can either
stay with local families, which helps
them to improve their English, or at
a couple of buildings located within
a few miles of the airfield. Previously,
he has also arranged for students to
have cars so they can be independent
and travel to the airfield whenever
their course required.
Currently Ramsden is in discus-
sions with several potential inter-
national government customers,
including Libya who has already
carried out their own audit on the
school. The location is one of the
more attractive points, summa-
rized Ramsden. Beautiful country-
side, a quiet environment in which
to learn flying skills and the abil-
ity to provide indoor and outdoor
instruction for small or large num-
bers of ab initio pilots.
Landing after a flying lesson.
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50
WWW. R OT O R A N D WI N G . C O M
By Frank Lombardi
L
ooking at a panel full of
instruments is like look-
ing at the heartbeat of
your aircraft. Thinking
back to primary flight training
brings up basic images of how they
work, such as the altimeter with
its expandable bellows that moves
a dial; or the attitude indicator,
with a gyro inside that looks like
the one on the shelf in science
class. Those simple pictures help
bring understanding and may aid
in troubleshooting a problem or
failure, but as an aircraft gets more
complicated, so do the systems
that monitor and report its con-
dition. Designing the indicating
systems of today’s airplanes and
helicopters is a challenge to a host
of engineering disciplines.
Pilots are only as good as the
decisions they make. Since many
of those decisions are based on
information presented, it must be
accurately gathered, presented in a
clear and timely manner, and read-
ily accessible. Too much informa-
tion will overload our own CPU,
and too little deprives us of critical
information. Either way, errors
follow. Although the vast major-
ity of cockpit indicators are digital
electronics working at the speed of
light, there still exists a measurable
amount of time that passes before
signals are processed and displays
present their information. This is
called latency, and is a very impor-
tant aspect of system design. This
delay in signal processing must be
taken into account. Add this to the
time it takes for a pilot to perceive,
process, and react to the info pre-
sented, and the total delay grows.
This is especially critical when
designing an IFR-certified aircraft,
since there will often be a lack of
outside visual information to pro-
vide the aircraft’s state to the pilot.
The delay in receiving and reacting
to an indication has the potential to
cause issues with handling qualities
such as a pilot-induced oscillation.
As indicators get more com-
plex, engineers must examine all
possible failure modes and decide
upon the likelihood of each failure
condition during the design pro-
cess. The electronic age has made
it more difficult to troubleshoot
failures in the cockpit. On one
occasion, I squawked an engine
that was becoming increasingly
slow to start. After checking out
rigging and other mechanical pos-
sibilities, our maintenance team
found that a temperature trans-
ducer had “gone bad.” This trans-
ducer is a device that reads engine
temperature, converts it to a volt-
age, processes the signal, and then
displays it back as a temperature
in the cockpit. It was providing
erroneous temperature readings,
causing the pilots to incorrectly
modulate the throttle. Luckily, it
failed in a mode that displayed a
higher-than-normal temperature,
avoiding a very costly repair.
Human factors exist in every
aspect of aviation, and instru-
ment design is no different. Digital
electronics allow infinite ways
to display information. With this
in mind, it is important for dis-
plays to be intuitive and clear. An
increasing value displayed on a
gauge that moves in a decreasing
fashion is counter-intuitive and
can lead to confusion.
The ability of modern electron-
ics to be able to display hundreds
of parameters creates a dilemma
when deciding what is important
enough to show the pilot. Some-
times the system allows the pilot
to choose what is displayed on the
panel. This can help to reduce clut-
ter, but has the potential to increase
workload, since the pilot must now
remember what is not displayed
and how to obtain it if needed. Get-
ting “cognitively lost” in a comput-
erized menu system while trying to
maintain situational awareness has
caused accidents. Some indicators
incorporate a “display by exception,”
where a minimum amount of info
is displayed when conditions are
in a normal range, but when condi-
tions are exceeded, the display will
then present the information that is
out of limits.
Having one indicator that moni-
tors many parameters and concise-
ly presents the info greatly reduces
pilot workload. But when needles
start splitting and lights start flash-
ing, the info being displayed must
be quickly interpreted. Size, color,
symbology, location, and trending
must be thought out so pilots can
make well-informed decisions.
Although the robustness of today’s
digital equipment has greatly
improved, the idea of redundancy
cannot be overlooked. No critical
display should ever provide a single
point of failure in the system. The
displays must serve the pilot, not
the other way around.
Take the time to truly under-
stand the information that is pre-
sented to you by your instruments,
in both normal and failure modes.
An emergency is no time to start
digging through a manual.
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