Mon, Mar 14, 2011
New Sikorsdy Helo Progressing Towards FAA Certification
Sikorsky Aircraft's newest commercial rotorcraft, the S-76D
helicopter, continues to progress steadily toward FAA certification
this year, having performed more than 225 test flights and meeting
performance, reliability and pilot workload expectations, the
company announced earlier this week at the Heli-Expo industry show
in Orlando.
The two test aircraft have completed 325 flight hours in
addition to 179 hours of ground test and evaluation, and
familiarization flights have been conducted with regulatory
authorities in Canada, Europe and the U.S.
The S-76D helicopter is the next-generation entry in Sikorsky's
long and successful S-76 helicopter line. It is designed to perform
an array of civil missions including executive transport, offshore
oil, emergency medical services, and a multi-mission role. Final
assembly has commenced at the Sikorsky Global Helicopters' facility
in Coatesville, Pa. In November 2009, Sikorsky announced that
Falcon Aviation Services, based in Abu Dhabi, had become the launch
customer by contracting to purchase two S-76D helicopters, with
options to purchase two more.
The S-76D helicopter features all-composite, flaw-tolerant main
rotor blades; an advanced THALES integrated avionics system and
autopilot; dual rotor speed for quiet mode operation with active
vibration control; powerful Pratt & Whitney Canada PW210S
engines; a quiet mode; and an optional Rotor Ice Protection System
(RIPS) for all-weather capability.
A third S-76D prototype will join the test program this summer
at Sikorsky's facilities in West Palm Beach, Fla., and is currently
on exhibit at the Sikorsky Booth, No. 2737 in South Hall A. The
test program already has demonstrated that compared with the
current S-76C++ helicopter, the S-76D model has significantly
increased hover performance in hot environments and a reduced
external noise signature that is anticipated to be the quietest of
any helicopter with maximum gross weight above 8,000 pounds, based
on current flight test data and on the margins at which other
aircraft meet FAA and international helicopter noise certification
limits.
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