March 2016

March 2016
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EDITORIAL
Randy Jones, Publisher, [email protected]
James T. McKenna, Editor-in-Chief, [email protected]
Amy Kluber, Assistant Managing Editor, [email protected]
Joseph Ambrogne, Technical Editor, [email protected]
Ernie Stephens, Editor-at-Large, [email protected]
Pat Host, Defense Analyst & Associate Editor,
[email protected]
Contributing Writers: Claudio Agostini; Rex Alexander; Chris
Baur; Lee Benson; Igor Bozinovski; Keith Brown; Keith Cianfrani; Mark
Colborn; Steve Colby; Peter Donaldson; Ian Frain; Pat Gray; Michael
Hangge; Emma Kelly; Frank Lombardi; Elena Malova; Vicki McConnell;
Arthur J. Negrette; Terry Terrell; Richard Whittle.
For over 100 years, ZF has designed, manufactured and supported aviation related
gearboxes. Our extensive design, STC mod, production, test bench and MRO capabilities,
combined with our attention to customer service, have made us the supplier of choice for
both helicopter OEMs and operators around the world. ZF offers a full range of gearbox
R&O services for EC135, EC145, BO105 and BK117, and now were proud to offer the same
for Bell 407 and 212/412. We can repair or overhaul your gearbox or supply you with a
ready-to-install exchange unit verified on our own full power test rigs. Whether you have
an upcoming scheduled gearbox overhaul, or need a transmission AOG, ZF is ready to help.
After all, weve already been doing it for more than 100 years. rw.zfaviation.com
ADVERTISING/BUSINESS
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25511
M A R C H 2 0 1 6 | R OTO R & W I N G I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Editors Notebook
By James T. McKenna
[email protected]
Happy New Year
ne might argue that Heli-Expo marks

the beginning of the business year for
the rotorcraft industry.
Other events come earlier in the New
Year, certainly. But HAIs annual gathering is arguably the largest all-helicopter trade show in the
world. It does tend to focus the mind of rotorcraft
executives on what their key initiatives will be in
10 months to come after the leisurely weeks of the
year-end holidays.
We know that good practice calls for thinking
strategically, planning accordingly and sticking to
that plan. Business guru Stephen Covey, I recall,
referred to it as the big rocks approach: concentrate on the tasks of major consequence and dont
get distracted by pebbles.
Wed like to believe we are inclined to follow
such an approach and that the leaders around and
above us certainly do so.
But here at R&WI, we spent late January and
most of February tracking down what exhibitors
plan to highlight at this years show in Louisville,
Kentucky, and it was only in the days leading up to
press time on Feb. 18 that we began to get definitive answers. You can look for what we found in our
Heli-Expo 2016 Show Day, which will be distributed in Louisville on March 1the day Heli-Expos
exhibits open.
We have some things planned ourselves for
2016. Those of you attending Heli-Expo will learn
more in the special double issue we are handing
out at the show, but Ill give you a peek or two here.
Concentrate on the tasks of major

consequence and dont get distracted
by pebbles.
Recognizing that navigation by instruments
and under positive control of air traffic control offers
great potential for improving helicopter safety, we
at R&WI are partnering with Hughes Aerospace and
a panel of judges (made up of industry leaders and
contributors to this magazine) to select a helicopter
operator to receive a set of instrument approach
and departure procedures.
Hughes is an FAA- and ICAO-certified thirdparty air navigation services provider that will
work with the selected operator to develop those
instrument-flight-rules capabilities, which we and
R OTO R & W I N G I N T E R N AT I O N A L | M A R C H 2 0 1 6
Hughes expect will benefit the broader community that the selected operator serves.
Well have more on that at Heli-Expo and afterward; you can learn more at www.rotorandwing.
com/IFRHelicopterEndowment.
The recipient of the IFR Helicopter Endowment will be announced in September at the 2016
Rotorcraft Technology Summit, which will convene in Fort Worth. This event will build on the success of our 2015 Rotorcraft Certification Summit
and will focus on the business aspects of fielding
new technology and capabilities. Discussions during that Sept. 19 to 20 event, we fully expect, will
include the state of the low-level infrastructure for
helicopter operations and new efforts to pursue
improvements of it.
We plan to develop the program for that summit with the founding members of R&WIs Editorial Advisory Board. We established this board of
distinguished business and rotorcraft leaders to
guide this magazine in its mission to serve as the
business resource for rotorcraft management
around the world. We will be sharing the details
of that boards membership in the weeks ahead. I
personally am thrilled at the opportunity to learn
from the board members individual and collective
wisdom and experience.
In our ongoing efforts to fulfill that mission,
this month we present a set of articles aimed at
helping our readers manage familiar issues and
emerging ones.
Editor-at-Large Ernie Stephens and newly
returned contributor Todd Vorenkamp explore
the challenges that smaller operators and their
MRO providers face in ensuring compliance with
maintenance requirements while avoiding serious
disruptions to their operations.
Technical Editor Joseph Ambrogne examines
the work of the FAAs new industry-led Rotorcraft
Occupant Protection Working Group, specifically
factors surrounding its assessment of the costs
and benefits of improving measures for protecting
pilots and passengers involved in crashes.
From our sister publication Avionics Magazine,
Associate Editor Woodrow Bellamy III takes a fresh
look at the FAA and industrys continuing efforts to
manage the impact of new avionics mandates on
commercial helicopter operations.
I hope you find these articles and our other initiatives beneficial and that you each have a fruitful
Heli-Expo. Come see us there (at Booth 11933), and
let us know what you think of the magazine and
its work.
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Military
THIS MONTH FROM

Features
Vol. 50 | No. 3 | March 2016
Commercial
26 Balancing Operational Needs

With Maintenance Downtime
Smaller operators must work with vendors and crews
to prevent maintenance slumps from disrupting
missions and finances. By Todd Vorenkamp
32 Forecasting Parts Needs
Public Service
With 40% of maintenance coming in unscheduled,

operators and MROs need to share information on
operational tempos to avoid service disruptions.
By Ernie Stephens
Personal | Corporate
26
Planning and organization are key to balancing

customer needs with aircraft availability and
scheduled downtime.
38 The NextGen Experience

Manufacturers, OEMs, operators and regulators made
progress in 2015 toward improving the certification
and approval process for certain mandated
technologies. Now, the FAA and the industry must
work together to unlock all of the benefits for rotarywing operations. By Woodrow Bellamy III
42 The Price of Egress

An FAA-directed industry group is meeting behind
closed doors to appraise new crashworthiness
mandates for old rotorcraft. By Joseph Ambrogne
38
U.S. helicopter operators face the same 2020 mandate

for ADS-B as the rest of the aviation industry.
Departments
8
10
12
Feedback
Meet the Contributors
Rotorcraft Report
Training
Jeff Pino heads West, collaborative IFR endowment,

piston helo sales increase, a new rotorcraft summit
Products
42
The NASA Langley Research Center is just one of the

various third parties able to assist the industry in
meeting higher occupant-protection standards.
Services
On the Cover: Photo courtesy of Heli-One

On the Double-Issue Cover: Photo courtesy of Bell Helicopter /
Sheldon Cohen
22
24
25
47
49
51
Program Insider
People
Coming Events
Advertiser Index
Coming Up
Hot Products
Columns
4
21
46
48
50
Editors Notebook
Washington Insider
Law Enforcement Notebook
Safety Watch
Military Insider
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www.rotorandwing.com
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China Receives
Frasca R44 FTD
R22-Drone Collision in Question

Air Methods Buys Tri-State Care Flight
XTI Earns SEC Certification
Airbus Sees Civil Market Lead
US Marines Need Future Speed to Escort
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CAE Approved for US Navy MH-60 Tech
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The editors welcome new product information and other industry news. All editorial inquiries should be directed to Rotor & Wing International, 9211 Corporate Blvd., 4th Floor, Rockville, Md. 208503245, USA; 1-301-354-1832; fax 1-301-762-8965. E-mail: [email protected]. Rotor & Wing International (ISSN-1066-8098) is published monthly, except a combined December/January
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Feedback
After 10 Years, Have We Failed?
Be sure to follow
@RotorandWing to
stay up to date on the
latest helicopter news
Regarding your February cover story on the International Helicopter Safety Team and its goal of an
80% cut in helicopter accidents, Id say corrective
action depends on the cause.
Pilot error, give pilots more training and more
flight time especially. Mechanical malfunction,
either improve maintenance procedures, maintainers or maintenance training, or get better/
newer equipment. And if fatigue is an issue dont
over work your flight crews.
Taylor K. Davis
Also, like us at
facebook.com/
rotorandwing
I am sick and tired of U.S. media acting as if aviation accidents carry more weight and concern
than people getting killed in car accidents. While
the goal of operating any vehicle is to accomplish
travel without accidents, the real story is that
when it comes to deaths by road vehicles each
year, this information this is being extremely well
masked by the help of the media.
Over 30,000 deaths occur by motor vehicle
accidents each year in the U.S. alone. Over 2.4 million people have died on U.S. roads in the last 80
years. Now this is absolutely a moral outrage!
Yet the media, U.S. citizens and politicians
apparently couldnt care less about this. They
are tight-lipped about it and obviously have
little care or compassion for this annual highway
holocaust.
Now compare deaths by road accidents to
helicopter accidents: According to the International Helicopter Safety Team, from 1997 through
2005 the number of civil helicopter accidents (not
deaths) averaged 570 each year. Thats it? A moral
outrage??
I propose the problem is that many people
have an inadequate understanding of morals
(based on science) and therefore can joyfully
refuse to see the immoral nature of the media,
the general U.S. population and politicians not

actively trying to reduce car deaths in the U.S.
(or in any country) and making this a national
priority.
When the media, U.S. citizens and our politicians recognize that car deaths in the U.S. is
a national disgrace and shame, theyll fix the
problem. Then lets have a detailed discussion on
not criticizing the International Helicopter Safety
Team, but how all of us in the helicopter community can help decrease helicopter accidents in
the future.
Mike, in a comment
on www.rotorandwing.com
Whistleblower
After reading your feedback section (February
2016, page 8), I completely agree with various
comments about the topic Disclosure Woes.
Then you printed other articles like After 10
years, Have We Failed? (page 32) and Flight
Reports (page 36) in the same issue.
As long as the FAA keeps getting pushed back
from doing the right thing by emergency medical
service operators and as long as Occupational
Safety and Health Administration investigators
take one year for a whistleblower investigation
(even though their regulation mandates 60 days),
no pilot will come forward just to get fired like I
was for bringing up pencil-whipped inspections
(confirmed by the FAA) and other safety-related
issues.
Pencil whipping and other grounding maintenance issues will continue to be reported after
the aircraft arrives at its home base, putting passengers and the rest of the public in danger. My
case is still currently with OSHA, so I wont go into
details now, but itll all be public records soon.
Name Withheld Upon Request
Question of the Month:

What experiences have you had or observed
with crash-resistant fuel systems?
Let us know, and look for responses in a future issue. Youll find contact information below.
Do you have comments on the rotorcraft industry or recent articles and viewpoints weve published? Send them to: Editor, Rotor & Wing, 9211
Corporate Blvd., Fourth Floor, Rockville, MD 20850-3245, fax us at 301-354-1809 or email us at [email protected]. Please include a
city and state or province with your name and ratings. We reserve the right to edit all submitted material.
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Meet the Contributors

JAMES T. MCKENNA
An aviation journalist for more than 25 years, James T. McKenna served as R&WIs editor-in-chief from 2003
to 2008. He then worked on communications projects for Bell Helicopter and numerous consulting clients,
including the Aerospace Industries Association, Helicopter Association International and AHS International. He
has completed aircraft accident investigator courses of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and the
Air Line Pilots Association and the NTSBs crisis communications course.
JOSEPH AMBROGNE
Joseph Ambrogne is the technical editor of R&WI. He earned a bachelors degree in English from Christopher
Newport University in Newport News, Virginia, and spent eight years as a technical writer in the software and
manufacturing industries. He holds a commercial pilot license and instrument rating.
PAT HOST
Associate Editor Pat Host, in five years with our sister publication Defense Daily, has developed a stable of inside
sources to gain access to sensitive documents and stories that impact readers. He has conducted one-on-one
interviews with high-ranking members of the U.S. Congress and American military and executive branch officials, with a focus on breaking down official policy statements, memos and complex scientific information.
TODD VORENKAMP
Todd Vorenkamp, a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, is a former naval aviator who has served
as an aircraft commander on the Boeing H-46, Sikorsky Aircraft H-3 and H-60, and Eurocopter H-65. He is the
former editor-in-chief of Rotor Review, the Naval Helicopter Assn.s quarterly publication, and is a trustee of
the association. His writing was featured in the anthology, Operation Homecoming: Iraq, Afghanistan, and
the Home Front in the Words of U.S. Troops and Their Families, published by Random House and the National
Endowment for the Arts. Todd works in New York City as a writer and award-winning photographer.
ERNIE STEPHENS
Ernie Stephens, editor-at-large, spent 27 years with a major county police department, retiring as the chief pilot
of its aviation section. He began his flying career in the late 1980s when he earned his rotorcraft license and
incorporated a small aviation company as a sideline to his law enforcement career. Ernie holds a naste in aeronautical science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, where he is also an assistant professor and former
director of academics at one of the schools satellite campuses. He has been writing for R&WI since 2003 and
has performed evaluation flights in some of the latest, most technologically advanced rotorcraft in the world.
WOODROW BELLAMY III

Woodrow Bellamy III is the associate editor for R&WIs sister publication Avionics Magazine. In this role over
the past three years, he has been covering a wide range of topics, including aircraft Internet connectivity, nextgeneration airspace modernization and federally mandated avionics equipage.
KEITH CIANFRANI
Keith M. Cianfrani, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, has more than 30 years of aviation experience flying
offshore and in the Philadelphia and New York areas. He is a master army aviator, aviation safety officer, commercial pilot and instructor pilot, and was an accident investigator for the U.S. Army Safety Center. He is rated in
both rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft and is an instructor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Kansas State University. Keith is also a member of the HAI Safety and U.S. Helicopter Safety Team SMS committees.
MIKE HANGGE
Mike Hangge is an active-duty U.S. Army warrant officer with an elite aviation unit. With more than 25 years
experience, he has performed duties as a mission, medevac, maintenance and developmental pilot. He has
received numerous awards, including the Distinguished Flying Cross. He also is a novelist under the pen name
mjHangge.
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Rotorcraft Report
Testing Progresses on Bell 525, 505
NEED TO KNOW
Piston Sales Rise
Bucks GA Trend
Rotorcraft Technology
Summit Set for September
Bristow Buys
Into Drone Business
U.S. Navy Sees RFP
This Year for IFR Trainer
Bell Helicopter is targeting the 505

JetRanger X for certification later
this year.
Photos courtesy of Textron Inc.
Bell plans to fly the No. 2 525 to

Heli-Expo in Louisville, Kentucky,
where the company will gauge
market interest in the aircraft.
12
ell Helicopter is stepping up marketing of

its newest civil aircraft as testing progresses
on the super-medium twin 525 Relentless
and the light single 505 JetRanger X.
Both helicopters are to be featured at Bells
exhibit at Heli-Expo early this month in Louisville,
Kentucky. The manufacturer is bringing the second 525 prototype, the blue-and-white Flight Test
Vehicle 2, and the third 505 prototype, the purple
Flight Test Vehicle 3, to the Kentucky Exposition
Center.
Program managers express satisfaction with
the performance to date of the prototypes.
Its uncanny how close the actual aircrafts
performance has been to the analytical predictions, said Larry Thimmesch, vice president of
commercial program anduntil recentlyhead of
the 525 program.
The leader of the 505 effort, LaShan Bonaparte,
said she expects to brief Heli-Expo attendees on
that aircrafts preliminary performance data.
Bell has logged more than 500 flight test hours
on the 505. Flight Test Vehicle 1 has retired from
the flying, Bonaparte said, and it now will undergo ground-run testing of its drivetrain.
The No. 2 505 is being used for functionality
and reliability testing, some avionics testing and

checkouts of optional equipment kits.
The 505 has undergone hot-and-high testing
in Colorado and cold-weather testing in Montreal.
In addition, Bell has started structural testing of
505 components to support type certification of
the aircraft.
I fully expect certification to happen this year,
Bonaparte said.
On the 525 side, Bell is preparing for the third
prototype to enter flight test; it will be used for
load-level surveys and other work. Program leaders are taking to the field to explain the Relentless
safety and performance features. These include
the twins fly-by-wire flight controls, triplex-redundant systems and maintenance cost guarantees.
Plans call for Flight Test Vehicle 2, which first
flew on Dec. 21, to fly to Louisville for Heli-Expo.
The first flight was conducted with the fly-by-wire
system engaged from liftoff.
Bell has adjusted development plans slightly
given the plight of the offshore segment; it has
moved up development of some corporate/VIP
kits for the aircraft. Bell is working on about 50
equipment kits to incorporate in the 525s type
certification.
Rotorcraft Report
COMMERCIAL
P-51 Crash Kills Former Sikorsky Chief Jeff Pino

A legend in aviation, Jeff Pino, was killed Feb. 5
when his P-51D crashed in Maricopa, Arizona.
Pino had a long and distinguished aerospace
career that began in the early 1980s when, as a
young captain, he began U.S. Army flight training.
As few years earlier, he was a tank platoon leader
in gunnery training at a very cold tank range in
West Germany when he was instructed to stop firing to allow a helicopter to dump ordnance.
I was just looking up at the Bell Helicopter AH-1 Cobra firing its rockets and gun, Pino
recalled, and I said, You know what? Thats the
way to go. He added, Its just been helicopters
since that for me. Nothing else.
Pino had just been appointed president of
Sikorsky Aircraft when he shared that story with
R&WI in 2006. (Before joining Sikorsky, he had
worked at Bell Helicopter for 17 years in military
program and commercial sales management.) He
led Sikorsky until 2012, overseeing that manufacturers ramp-up to support expanding U.S. combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
That burgeoning work left Sikorsky flush with
funds for independent research and develop-
ment, which Pino used

to have the company
design and fly the highspeed X2 Technology
Demonstrator. In 2010,
the rigid coaxial-rotor X2
achieved 250 kt in level
flight. The X2 led directly
to Sikorskys development of the S-97 Raider
and the follow-on SB>1 Defiant for the U.S. Armys
Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator initiative to develop high-speed vertical-flight aircraft.
Most recently, he served as vice chairman of
XTI Aircraft, leading that companys early effort
to develop the TriFan 600 high-speed, fivepassenger, vertical-takeoff-and-landing business
transport. To drum up interest in that effort, XTI in
August 2015 ran a contest offering as a top prize
a ride with Pino in his two-seat P-51D, Big Beautiful Doll.
That flight was scheduled to take place the day
after the crash that killed Pino and friend Nicholas
Tramontano.
Jeff Pino, former president

of Sikorsky Aircraft and vice
chairman of XTI Aircraft, died
Feb. 5.
Photo courtesy of XTI Aircraft
Company
PUBLIC
U.S. Industry Groups Split on ATC Privatization

A U.S. bill to privatize the nations air traffic
control system, passed Feb. 11 by a House of
Representatives committee, has received
alternating support and criticism from aviation
associations as it makes its way through the
legislative process.
Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pennsylvania), who chairs
the House Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee, introduced the bill, H.R. 4441, on Feb.
3. Called the Aviation Innovation, Reform, and
Reauthorization Act of 2016, the bill purpose is to
reauthorize funding of the FAA. But the bill most
notably calls for the creation of a new ATC entity
governed as a nonprofit corporation rather than
through congressional oversight.
Critics have warned that the proposed governing board, staffed primarily by airline executives,
would have negative ramification to both the flying public and the aviation community.
HAI President Matt Zuccaro urged the rotorcraft industry in a Feb. 9 letter not to give the
skies to the airlines.
He warned HAI members that the bill could
significantly impact helicopter operations in

our national airspace and urged them to tell
congressional representatives that they oppose
the move.
Zuccaro added that lack of helicopter representation on the board meant helicopters might
not be assured equal access to airspace.
The National Business Aviation Assn. and the
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Assn. voiced their own
criticisms of the bill, citing opposition to private
control of ATC and user fees, respectively.
However, surprising support for the bill came
Feb. 10 from the National Air Traffic Controllers
Assn., the union that represents ATC personnel. Citing furloughs, hiring freezes and other
problems created by federal budget disputes in
recent years, NATCA President Paul Rinaldi said,
We no longer have a stable or predictable funding stream and this uncertainty has caused many
serious problems for the system.
He added that other non-for-profit ATC organizations worldwide, such as NavCanada, have
proven that the proposed system works.
13
Rotorcraft Report
MILITARY
US Army Aviation Restructure Solution Costs

$165M
The National Commission on the Future of the the operation of two Army National Guard Black
Army has proposed an aviation restructure Hawk battalions.
The commissions solution would result in
solution that would keep AH-64 Apaches in the
U.S. Army National Guard, but it would cost an one-time costs of about $420 million to remanuextra $165 million a year, on top of a $420 million facture 24 Apache helicopters from D to E models. These remanufactures would likely occur
upfront cost.
The commission, in its report released Jan. 28, some time beyond the next five years. The comoffered its own solution, a mix of the Armys Avia- mission said the E model provides greater capation Restructure Initiative (ARI) as proposed in its bility to work with unmanned reconnaissance
fiscal year 2016 budget request, and the National assets and has a new drive train and rotors for
improved aircraft performance. This, the commisGuards solution, formed in response.
The commissions solution would maintain sion said, would significantly enhance safety and
24 manned Boeing AH-64 battalions, of which combat performance.
The commission pro20 would be in the active
posed an illustrative
Army (same as under
Plans to restructure the U.S. Armys aviation
approach to offsetting the
ARI). Four would be in the
operations would keep AH-64 Apaches in the
added costs of its soluNational Guard (compared
National Guard. Photo courtesy of Boeing
tion from within aviation
to zero under ARI). All the
funds. A portion of the
active Army battalions
added costs could be offwould be equipped with
set by maintaining two
24 aircraft.
fewer Black Hawk battalT h e fo u r N a t i o n a l
ions in the National Guard.
Guard battalions would be
Another offset could be
equipped with 18 aircraft
savings from personnel
and, thus, would have to
cuts designed to leave
cross-level helicopters
the National Guard at the
before deploying. Crosslevel of 335,000 planned
leveling is where a batin President Barack
talion called to active duty
Obamas fiscal year 2016
would acquire aircraft
budget request.
from a National Guard batThe remaining offsets,
talion. The commission
the commission proposed, could be achieved
said this strategy is commonly employed today.
To hold down costs, the commissions solution through a modest slowdown in the Black Hawk
assumes that only two Sikorsky Aircraft UH-60 procurement program. The commissions soluBlack Hawk helicopter battalions are added to tion makes no change in the L-to-V conversion
the National Guard (compared to four under ARI). program for Black Hawks, a program that proThis approach, which is also used by the Army duces a fully digitized Black Hawk. To offset its
National Guards preferred solution, would result proposed additional costs, the commission said
in a reduction in operational Black Hawk aircraft the Army would probably have to buy five to 10
fewer new Black Hawks per year.
by about 3%.
The commission said reductions in buys of
Operating costs, under the commissions
solution, would increase by a net of about $165 Black Hawks would need to continue beyond the
million a year due to the added costs of four next five years in order to offset operating costs
National Guard Apache battalions, including and provide funds needed to remanufacture
costs to deploy them on a regular basis, and costs the 24 Apaches. The commission believes the
to forward station a combat aviation brigade in Army should be able to adjust its annual Black
South Korea. These additional operating costs Hawk buys so as to not undermine its multiyear
are partially offset by savings from foregoing contract. By Pat Host
14
CH FROM THE SOUT
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IT MANEUVERING TO APPROA
ING POINT (N 38 59 W 86
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T D FLY
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Rotorcraft Report
PRODUCTS
Robinson Deliveries Rise; Dollar Slows Growth

Robinson Helicopter delivered 347 aircraft in
2015, a modest 5.5% increase from the 329 it
delivered in 2014, the company said last month.
The turbine-powered R66 led all models in
delivery value with 117 delivered, up from 101
in 2014. The remaining deliveries were divided
among Robinsons piston models: 152 R44
Raven IIs, 44 Raven Is and 34 R22s. Robinson said
employment at its Torrance, California, plant
remains at 1,200 workers.
Company President Kurt Robinson said a
strong U.S. dollar coupled with a sluggish global
economy hampered further sales growth again
last year. He noted that Robinson relies on the
export market for more than 70% of its sales.
Robinson expects the softness experienced
in the second half of 2015 to carry over into
this year.
Robinson plans to unveil more details on its
new two-place R44 Cadet aimed at the training
market at Heli-Expo in Louisville, Kentucky, early
this month.
Photo courtesy of Robinson Helicopter
We are very focused on a low-cost, reliable,

economical helicopter that we think will make a
good trainer and also a variety of missions that
need only two people, said Robinson. Theres a
lot of demand for that.
PRODUCTS
Piston Helo Sales Rise Bucked GA Trend in 2015

Worldwide shipments of piston-engine
helicopters for general aviation rose during 2015
despite flat or declining numbers for all other
categories of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft,
according to a report by the General Aviation
Manufacturers Assn.
GAMA released its 2015 worldwide year-end
report on aircraft shipments and billing numbers
Feb. 10. It reported that piston rotorcraft shipments increased by 8.6% in 2015 to 279 from
257 the previous year, despite a 4.4% drop in
shipments of all GA rotorcraft. Turbine rotorcraft
shipments were responsible for the total decline,
falling by 8.9% from 741 to 675.
GAMAs report did not include figures for Russian Helicopters, Indias Hindustan Aeronautics
Ltd. or Chinese manufacturers.
Robinson Helicopter made the majority of
piston shipments at 230 units, according to the
GAMA report. Hlicoptres Guimbal shipped 44
of its Cabri G2, and Enstrom Helicopter shipped
five of its 280FX.
Of total rotorcraft shipments, Robinson also
16
led the way with 347 units. The remaining list

revealed each companys most sought model.
Airbus Helicopters shipped 279 units, 90 of which
were H125s. Bell Helicopter shipped 175 units,
99 of which were 407s. Finmeccanica Helicopters
shipped 60, 37 of which were AW139s. Sikorsky
Aircraft shipped 29: 16 S-92s and 13 S-76s. .
Of shipments made to military or government
customers, Sikorsky led the way with 149 units,
including 106 Black Hawks. Airbus shipped 81,
including 31 H145/H145Ms. Bell shipped 48, split
evenly between H-1s and V-22. NHIndustries
shipped 35 NH90s. Finmeccanica shipped 32,
including 14 AW139s.
Worldwide GA fixed-wing shipments were
on par with rotorcraft, falling 4.6%. The
mixed 2015 year-end numbers among the
various sectors reflect a market characterized
by plummeting energy sector revenue, economic uncertainty, and currency fluctuations
in key general aviation markets such as Brazil,
Europe, Russia and China. said GAMA President and CEO Pete Bunce.
Rotorcraft Report
PRODUCTS
Technology Summit Set for September

Rotor & Wing International is now accepting proposals for
presentations to include in its 2016 Rotorcraft Technology
Summit, scheduled for Sept. 19 to 20 in Fort Worth, Texas.
This years event will build on the success of R&WIs
Rotorcraft Certification Summit last October in Irving,
Texas. That event featured panel discussions on challenges
manufacturers, vendors and operators face in obtaining
certification of new safety measures and aircraft capabilities and on FAA steps to streamline certification processes.
The theme of 2016s summit is The Business of Technology. Topics under consideration for the Rotorcraft
Technology Summit include advanced technologies, the
state of low-level navigation and weather infrastructure,
the benefits of instrument flight rules for a broader range
of helicopter operations, certification mandates for new
helicopter equipment and current uses and established
benefits of flight data monitoring in helicopter fleets.
Organizers welcome proposals to cover topics in these
areas and suggestions for additional topics to address
during the 1.5-day event. Send your proposals to Editor-inChief James T. McKenna at [email protected].
ACR ARTEX
The 2016 Rotorcraft Technology Summit will be held

in the Hilton Fort Worth on Main Street in downtown Fort
Worth, just a short walk to the vibrant Sundance Square
entertainment district.
About 75 individuals, industry executives and regulatory agency decision makers came together Oct. 27, 2015
at the Sheraton Dallas/Forth Worth Airport Hotel in Irving,
Texas, to participate in discussions and promote ideas
for possible improvements to the certification process.
Attendees included senior leaders of the FAA Rotorcraft
Directorate, representatives of other FAA offices, executives from international aircraft and engine manufacturers,
leaders of maintenance and modification companies and
other services, and helicopter operators.
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17
Rotorcraft Report
SAFETY
HeliOffshore Study Tracks Pilots Eyes

Airbus Helicopters donated H225
simulator time for the study.
Photo courtesy of HeliOffshore
The offshore helicopter

industr y s latest safety
effort includes collaborative
research to enhance pilot
performance in the cockpit
by studying how aviators
monitor instruments in flight.
HeliOffshore, the not-forprofit organization set up
in 2014 to improve flight
safety and advance technical
competence globally in the
offshore oil and gas support
segment, has engaged U.K.based operational safety,
human performance and
aerospace medicine consultancy Jarvis Bagshaw Ltd. to
conduct that research.
The research began in
January. The consultant said
it involves tracking the eye
movements of paired pilots
performing a number of different monitored tasks in a
helicopter simulator that replicates a realistic

workload in visibility conditions that drive reliance on instruments and immerses both crew
members in duties.
The pilots eye movements are tracked through
glasses they don connected to a camera that illuminates their eyes with bursts of harmless infrared
light. Varying amounts of infrared light reflects off
different parts of the eye, which facilitates tracking that indicates which instruments are being
monitored at specific periods of a flight.
More than 25 pilots from Bond Offshore,
Bristow Group and CHC Helicopter participated
in the first phase of observational study, according to Jarvis Bagshaw Ltd. Airbus Helicopters UK
donated time in its Aberdeen, Scotland-based
H225 simulator for that phase.
The results of the research will be used to
improve training and standard operating procedures, and give feedback to the manufacturers
about the design of automation and cockpits, said
HeliOffshores operations director, Francois Lassale.
HeliOffshore plans to share de-identified
research results at its annual conference in Prague
in May.
MILITARY
Canadian Military
Performs First
Cyclone Shipboard
Landing
The Canadian Armed Forces first new Sikorsky Aircraft
CH-148 Cyclone fully manned by Royal Canadian Air Force
personnel performed the types first shipboard landing on
HMCS Halifax off the coast of Nova Scotia Jan. 27, according
to Canadian officials. HMCS Halifax has been involved with
CH148 testing and training for the past year, including five
months of Ship Helo Operating Limits trials that began in
January 2015 to determine operating limits and best practices
for the new helicopter. Personnel at the Helicopter Operational
Test and Evaluation Facility are conducting the operational
tests.
Photo courtesy of Canadian Forces
18
Rotorcraft Report
COMMERCIAL
Bristow Group Enters Unmanned Business

Bristow Group Inc. has invested $4.2 million in Sky-Futures, a
leading provider of drone inspection data services for the oil
and gas industry.
The investment gives Bristow entry to the fast-growing
unmanned aircraft system services business. It includes an
exclusive partnership agreement, the helicopter firm said,
and gives Bristow access to Sky-Futures drone inspection
operational expertise, data capturing and analysis technology and training capabilities. Bristow will have one
representative on Sky-Futures board.
Bristow Group President and CEO Jonathan Bailiff
said his company will collaborate with Sky-Futures to
capitalize beyond the growing need for global unmanned
inspection services in oil and gas to other industries,
including search and rescue.
Sky-Futures CEO and co-founder James Harrison, said
the partnership enables us to rapidly expand the operational delivery of drone-based inspection services in the
global oil and gas market. Formed in 2009, Sky-Futures

said it operates in 16 countries and works with more than
30 oil and gas companies around the world, many of which
are Bristows global clients.
In January, Sky-Futures said it had completed its first
drone inspection in the Gulf of Mexico under an FAA Section 333 exemption.
Sky-Futures has a team of remote pilots, approved by
the FAA and the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority, that performs drone inspections of live-flare stacks and splash
zones as well as decommissioning, general topside and
under-deck work using HD video, still and thermal imagery. The data is analyzed, processed and delivered through
the Sky-Futures advanced technology platform.
In the past, such inspections have been done manually
via rope access and other means. Advocates argue that
drone inspections can be completed without disrupting
production, eliminating costly shutdowns.
19
Rotorcraft Report
PRODUCTS
Canada Proposes Drone Rules

Based on Risk, Not Use
Transport Canadas drone regulations proposed
to go into effect this year would vary based
on the risks of operating in a given location
and will not distinguish between recreational
and commercial operators, according to the
agency.
The new rules would retain the Special Flight
Operations Certificate process for operators of
drones weighing more than 55 lb (25 kg). But
operators of drones weighing fewer than that
would be exempt from the process, potentially
easing the agencys workload and reducing the
delay for applicants.
In a May 2015 Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA), Transport Canada said a rapid
increase in applications for special certificatesgranted to commercial unmanned aircraft operators on a case-by-case basisis one
reason it decided to revise existing regulations.
The growth of the UAV industry has resulted in growing numbers of SFOC applications
to Transport Canada, said the notice. In 2014,
Transport Canada said, it 1,672 such certificates

for drones, compared to 945 in 2013 and 345
in 2012.
Other reasons it cited included promoting
safety without constraining innovation and
being on par with rules proposed by other
countries, such as the U.S.
From the applicants perspective, another
notable change is that the new rules would
depend on where drones are operating rather
than whether they are commercial. For example, stricter flight training qualifications and
operating rules would be required to fly drones
near aerodromes and major cities where they
present great risk.
Under such a system, even hobbyists might
be classified according to the proposal as
Small UAVs (Complex Operations) if they
operate within 5 nm of cities, towns or villages.
In that case, they also would have to obtain a
pilot permit along with meeting other requirements.
PRODUCTS
H160 Second Prototype Flies
The H160s second prototype flew Jan. 27 at the manufacturers facility in Marignane, France, according to Airbus Helicopters, which added that 2016 will be
a busy flight test year for the program to produce the medium twin. The second prototype is the first H160 to fly with the 1,100-to-1,300-shp (800-960-kW)
Turbomeca Arrano 1A engines. Prototype No. 1 is powered by Pratt & Whitney Canadas PW210 engines; Airbus decided in 2015 not to offer those engines on
production H160s. Airbus said prototype No. 1 had accumulated more than 75 hr of flight testing by the end of 2015, opening the aircrafts flight envelope and
validating some performance features and handling qualities. Airbus aims to introduce the H160 to service in 2018.
20
Rotorcraft Report
Washington Insider
Budget Proposal Would Boost FVL
he U.S. Army would take an important

step forward with its Future Vertical Lift
(FVL) initiative if its fiscal year 2017 budget
request were enacted into law.
American Helicopter Society Internationals
executive director, Mike Hirschberg, said the $10
million request by the Army, if granted, would
mark the start of the process of defining FVL
requirements and be the first funding applied to
an actual FVL program of record.
Previous funding had been under the umbrella
of the Joint Multi-Role (JMR) Technology Demonstrator effort, he said. According to Army officials,
the service expects to request $104 million over
the next five years for FVL. The fiscal 2017 request
provides for analysis-of-alternatives modeling,
simulation and analysis and for systems engineering and program management, according to
budget documents. Hirschberg said an analysisof-alternatives study is a key milestone prior to
the Defense Dept. potentially committing billions
of dollars in development and acquisition.
Fiscal 2018 funding would continue to fund
analysis-of-alternatives efforts and systems engineering and program management. Funding the
following fiscal year would support a Milestone A
decision, development and release of a request
for proposal and further systems engineering and
program management. A FVL acquisition strategy
and program schedule are being developed to be
presented at a materiel development decision
milestone in early 2017.
Also significant in fiscal 2017 is the Army
breaking FVL into its own subprogram: Future
Vertical Lift Medium. This helps key decision
makers in Congress and top Pentagon brass track
the program and provide funding mechanisms.
It also helps stakeholders find exact dollars programmed for certain efforts like FVL.
FVL is an initiative, not yet an acquisition program, to develop a family of vertical-lift aircraft
for the U.S. military. Advocates say development
and fielding of FVL would improve significantly
vertical-lift capabilities by providing critical aviation support to the joint warfighting community.
The Army believes increases in range, speed,
By Pat Host
payload, survivability and reliability, as well as a

reduced logistical footprint, can only be achieved
through the FVL approach. The initiative is aimed
at integrating technological advancements and
design configurations with affordability trades.
Aviation programs overall did not fare very
well in the Armys $125 billion base budget
request, $1.4 billion less than what was appropriated for fiscal 2016. Aviation procurement fell
$2.3 billion in the request; spending on all other
Army items (missiles, combat vehicles, ammunition and other equipment) increased. The service
cut from its aviation modernization programs to
pay for readiness, spending just enough to preserve rotorcraft production and avoid default on
contractual obligations.
At a quarter of the Armys procurement budget, aviation was a big target for trimming cost.
That is a big portfolio, the Armys budget director, Maj. Gen. Thomas Horlander, said Feb. 10.
The Army in fiscal 2017 requested $3.9 billion
for new aircraft, including overseas contingency
operations spending, down from $6 billion in
fiscal 2016. Despite the cuts, aviation remains
a modernization priority and the largest proportional element of the services procurement
spending, said Maj. Gen. Keith Thurgood, deputy
for acquisition and systems management for the
assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition,
technology and logistics.
Existing multi-year contracts for Boeing CH-47
and the Sikorsky Aircraft H-60 are protected in
the Fiscal 2017 budget request. The Army plans
to stretch out its multi-year commitments and
slow the pace of procurement necessary to sustain production. A total of $1 billion will buy 52
remanufactured Boeing AH-64E Block 3 aircraft,
four of which are funded through OCO.
The request includes $923 for 21 UH-60Ms for
the Army and 15 HH-60Ms, 11 of which are for the
National Guard. That is down from the $1.7 billion
enacted funding for H-60 procurement in 2016.
Another $668 million would further Armys
efforts to have a fleet entirely of F-model Chinooks by paying for 22 remanufactured airframes
and modifications to existing aircraft.
21
Rotorcraft Report
Program Insider
US Navy This Year
Plans to Issue RFP
For New IFR Trainer
The U.S. Navy wants to replace its

TH-57 Sea Rangers, shown on the
runway at Naval Air Station Whiting
Field, Florida, in 2014, with IFRcertificated aircraft that are part of an
Advanced Helicopter Training System.
Photo courtesy of the U.S. Navy / Petty
Officer 1st Class Karlton Rebenstorf
22
The U.S. Navy expects to issue a request for proposals by the years end to provide an Advanced
Helicopter Training System to replace its TH-57based program.
The Navy wants the new program to include
helicopters certificated by the FAA for single-pilot,
instrument-flight-rules operations, according to its
Jan. 28 sources sought solicitation (No. N0001916-R-0029). That notice does not specify the number of engines that power each helicopter and
leaves open the possibility of using a mix of aircraft
certified for IFR and those limited to visual-flightrules operations.
The service plans to hold an Industry Day and
site visit before April 1 for interested vendors to
observe facilities and activities at Naval Air Station
Whiting Field, Florida. Whiting Field is the primary
site for advanced training of rotary-wing aviators
for the Navy and U.S. Marine Corps, Air Force and
Coast Guard, including Bell Boeing V-22 pilots.
The Naval Air Systems Command said it is
seeking industry input for the most efficient and
economical approach for training rotary-wing
students. The command added that it intends to
acquire the Advanced Helicopter Training System
through competitive bidding for the services Chief
of Naval Aviation and Training.
The Navy described the sources sought notice
as a market research tool that it will use to iden-
R OTO R & W I N G M A G A Z I N E | M A R C H 2 0 1 6
tify potential and eligible firms, of all sizes, prior to

determining the method of acquisition and issuance of a solicitation.
Under the concept described in the
notice, training flights will originate and terminate at Whiting Field, in the Florida Panhandle near Pensacola. Classroom and simulator training will be conducted within a
10-mi radius of Whiting Field.
Navy rotary-wing training now relies on the
Bell Helicopter TH-57, which is obsolescent and
becoming difficult to support.
The Navy said the new helicopter training program would have to provide the ground instruction for rotary-wing student naval aviators that
would cover aircraft-specific systems training and
the use of flight simulation training devices such
as full-flight simulators, flight training devices and
aviation training devices.
Any training devices included in a contractors
bid would have to comply with current FAA certification standards and guidelines. The new training
regime would continue the current practice of
having all flight training and instruction done by
active-duty officers, not civilian contractors.
In addition to the general FAA requirements,
the notice said, it is desired that the simulators
allow linked formation flight training as well as
simulated operations to and from Navy ships.
The new program would support both helicopter and tiltrotor training. The Navy currently
trains about 500 rotary-wing students a year,
with surges to 600 a year. The average student
load for tiltrotor student pilots today is 90, with
a surge capacity to 100. In addition to the flight
students, 60 to 80 instructors go through Navy
instructor training each year.
The Navy specified in the notice that helicopters
provided under the new program must be capable of performing full auto-rotations to the ground
repeatedly, without any required post-maneuver,
post-flight auto-rotation specific inspections.
The size of the helicopter fleet provided under
an Advanced Helicopter Training System contract would have to be sufficient to support the
daily flight schedule at Whiting Field. That today
includes 220 to 260 single-training flights within
a 16- to 18-hr window (0800 to 2400). A singletraining flight is about 1.8 hr long.
N O M AT T E R W H AT S O V E R T H E H O R I Z O N ,
M I L E S T O N E W I L L B E T H E R E.
For any challenge that comes your way, take comfort in knowing
that your helicopter leasing partner will be there for the long haul.
milestoneaviation.com
Rotorcraft Report
People
Mid-Continent Instruments
and Avionics appointed Marc
Medeiros
as direc tor
of sales.
Medeiros
will lead the
c o m p a n y s
sales strategy and manage its
sales team. He has 20 years
experience in the industry
and previously held the same
position at Rockwell Collins
since 2012.
CybAero board member Claes Drougge has been
appointed
chairman
again after
its previous chairman, Anna
hrwall Rnnbck, stepped
down earlier this year after a
month. Drougge had previously been the boards chairman
since 2009.
S t e v e
Gross has
been promoted to
SVP of FlightSafety Internationals commercial unit. He
is tasked with managing its
business aviation and regional
airline training sales activities.
Gross joined FlightSafety in
1996 and was most recently VP
of sales. He earned a bachelors
degree in aviation administration and has a commercial pilot
license with instrument rating.
New management at Cool
City Avionics includes Jeffrey
Kelly as chairman, president
and CEO, James Irwin as chief
technical officer and Rick Milburn as VP of sales and marketing. Kelly simultaneously has
been president of his business,
Kelly Aerospace, since 2002.
24
Irwin, who co-founded Cool

City, will direct all engineering and certification programs.
Milburn owns Milburn & Associates, Inc., an aircraft brokerage
and consulting company. These
changes reflect progress in certification of the companys SAS
and autopilot systems.
Rafael
Advanced
Defense Systems, Ltd.s
new CEO is
retired Maj.
Gen. Yoav Har Even, replacing former CEO Yedidia Yaari.
Har Even served in the Israel
Defense Forces for 31 years,
most recently as head of its
operations branch. Har Even
earned a bachelors degree in
economics and political science
as well as a masters degree.
M a t t
Hayes leads
Oryx Aviation
Consultings
operations
team. The
company
formed in response to helideck and helipad regulations
implemented by the General
Civil Aviation Authority in the
United Arab Emirates. Hayes is
a commercial helicopter pilot,
aviation auditor and helideck
inspector.
Taking over as commanding officer at Naval Air Station
Whidbey Island, Washington is
Capt. Geoffrey Moore, who last
served as commanding officer
of a helicopter anti-submarine
squadron in San Diego.
Babcock International Group
PLC appointed Victoire de
Margerie as an independent
non-executive director of its
board. De Margerie has previously served as a non-executive
director and held senior management positions in various

other European companies.
Lobo Leasing appointed
Mark Kelly as executive VP and
managing director. Kelly will
lead the companys global
headquarters
in Dublin. He
previously
served as VP
of marketing
at Lease Corporation International. He is a helicopter pilot
with experience particularly in
search and rescue.
Amela Wilson has been
named VP of the sensor and
fire control solutions business
unit at Elbit
Sys te m s o f
America, LLC.
An electrical
engineer, Wilson previously was sector
VP at L-3 Aerospace Systems.
She is now tasked with building
relationships with customers
and industry partners.
Air medical equipment manufacturer Spectrum Aeromeds
owner and CEO, Dean Atchison,
has been appointed to serve
on the North Dakota District
Export Council, which is
made up of
volunteers
from local
businesses
that provide international business advice to local firms.
John Parnell joined Sloane
Helicopters as director of sales
and marketing. Parnell started
as a U.K. military helicopter
pilot. Previously, he was the
U.K. and Ireland head of region
for AgustaWestland/Finmeccanica.
coming events
Rotorcraft Report
Feb. 29-March 2: Military Radar Summit, Washington, D.C.
www.militaryradarsummit.com
April 12-14: Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition,

Shanghai. www.abace.aero
Feb. 29-March 3: Heli-Expo 2016, Kentucky Exposition Center,

Louisville, Kentucky. heliexpo.rotor.org
April 20-21: Aviation Electronics Europe, Munich.

www.ae-expo.eu
March 2-3: UAS West Symposium, San Diego.

www.uaswest.com
April 26-28: ALEA Northeast Regional Safety Seminar, Albany,

New York. www.alea.org
March 8-10: Abu Dhabi Air Expo, United Arab Emirates.

www.abudhabiairexpo.com
April 27-30: Aircraft Electronics Assn. Annual Convention and

Trade Show, Orlando, Florida. www.aea.net/convention/2016/
March 22-23: Aerial Firefighting International 2016, Sacramento,

California. www.tangentlink.com/event/aerial-firefightinginternational-2016
April 28-30: 2016 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit,

Atlanta. www.quad-a.org
March 22-24: Airborne Law Enforcement Assn. (ALEA) Midwest

Regional Safety Seminar, Indianapolis, Indiana. www.alea.org
March 29-30: DoD Unmanned Systems Summit, Alexandria,
Virginia. unmannedsystems.dsigroup.org
March 29-April 3: FIDAE 2016 International Air and Space Fair,
Santiago, Chile. www.fidae.cl
April 4-6: CHC Safety & Quality Summit - Back to Basics:
Prioritizing Safety in a Challenging Economy, Vancouver, British
Columbia. www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com
April 5-7: MRO Americas 2016, Dallas.
mroamericas.aviationweek.com
May 2-5: Xponential (AUVSI), New Orleans.

www.xponential.org
May 9-13: Naval Helicopter Assn. Symposium 2016, Norfolk,
Virginia. www.navalhelicopterassn.org
May 17-19: American Helicopter Society Internationals Annual
Forum and Technology Display, West Palm Beach, Florida.
www.vtol.org/forum
July 15-16: Rotor n Ribs Fly-In with Randy Sharkey, Goshen,
Indiana. www.rotarywingshow.com
July 18-23: ALEA Expo 2016, Savannah, Georgia. www.alea.org
Aug. 30-Sep. 1: ALEA Western Regional Safety Seminar, Palm
Desert, California. www.alea.org
25
Military
Commercial
Photo courtesy of Sky Aviation
Public Service
NEED TO KNOW
Operators without standby
aircraft can run into
problems with unscheduled
maintenance
Balancin
Services
Products
Training
Choosing the right mechanic

can be just as big of a
challenge as managing
downtime
Photo courtesy of Metro Aviation
26
ng Operational Needs
With Maintenance
Downtime
Smaller operators must work with vendors
and crews to prevent maintenance slumps
from disrupting missions and inances.
By Todd Vorenkamp
f you travel by air enough, you have probably had the pleasure of experiencing a maintenance
delay with an airline. Even though the largest global carriers have factory-supported service centers
and back-up aircraft at their disposal, a break-down or unscheduled maintenance need can wreak
havoc in operational schedules and inconvenience hundreds or even thousands of customers.
When those same realities arise for a small helicopter outfit with one, two or a few airframes, the
impact of an aircraft going down for maintenance can have a crippling effect. Even worse, when a
M a r c h 2 0 1 6 | r oto r & W i n g i n t E r n at i o n a L
27
Military
Public Service
Commercial
small helicopter operator is just getting its business off the ground, one catastrophic unscheduled maintenance event could disrupt the entire
business and undermine their budget, said Jet
Support Services, Inc. (JSSI) Director of Business
Development Kyle Sale.
S&T Services of Austin, Texas, is a single-ship
Bell 206 LongRanger operator. Manager Matt St.
Louis offered a very real scenario and its impact
on a small rotorcraft operator.
Our pilot starts his day with a preflight of the
aircraft and finds a leaking fuel filter housing. In
a couple of hours, we are expecting our clients to
arrive for a Part 135 flight. We call a maintenance
facility and let them know, said St. Louis.
They find a serviceable replacement and
drive over 200 mi to deliver and install. That is
an excellent example of how things can go right
and still wrong as the revenue flight had to be
canceled, he said.
The worst part The flight was an anniversary surprise for the passengers. That hurts
a small operators reputation, added St. Louis.
Having another aircraft available would have
allowed the revenue flight to take place, which
would have paid for the unscheduled service. No
profit, but a balance.
Maintenance is a reality of aviation. There
are no maintenance-free aircraft. Helicopters
are subject to routine maintenance, scheduled
maintenance, preventive maintenance, main-
tenance to comply with service bulletins or

airworthiness directives and, of course, all of the
budget impacting unscheduled repairs due to
component failures.
Operators large and small have to overcome
maintenance challenges. However, for the
smaller operators, there is sometimes a need to
increase efficiency when it comes to maintaining the aircraft and avoiding downtime due to
the fact that standby aircraft are not available.
When asked what his biggest maintenance
challenge is, Njord Rota said, Downtime. The
director of operations for Ravco, a high-altitude
and mountain flying school in Leadville, Colorado, added, Having a small fleet is a challenge
to meet customer commitments when maintenance takes excessive time.
Ravco operates a small fleet of Eurocopter
AS350 AStars and Bell Helicopter 206B3s and
trains commercial, private and military clients
from around the world.
Maintenance is the greatest challenge and
unknown cost driver as a small business, said
Rota. Unfortunately, you end up placing the
success or failure of your own business in the
hands of others.
Planning and organization play a key role in
the success of an operation that is constantly
trying to balance customer needs with aircraft
availability and scheduled downtime.
With a smaller fleet, we have to make sure
Services
Products
Training
Photo courtesy of Ravco
28
that we are not taking on more work than we

can perform with upcoming maintenance,
said Alyssa Gulke, office manager for Worland,
Wyoming-based Sky Aviation, the helicopter
operation of which specializes in firefighting,
aerial survey, search and rescue, external load
and heavy-lift operations. Sky Aviation calls itself
the first civilian operator of the Boeing CH-46E; it
also operates Bell UH-1H and Bell 206 aircraft.
When our schedule is busy, we could easily get into a position where we dont have an
alternate helicopter to use on a job if one needs
maintenance or an overhaul completed, said
Gulke. Other than the challenge of managing the schedule around customer needs and
weather, we always have to keep the upcoming
maintenance and projected downtime in mind.
Coordinating Schedules
Revolution Aviation operates a small fleet of
Robinson Helicopter R22s, R44s and R66s out
of John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California.
Chief Pilot Mark Robinson said he turns the need
for heavy maintenance into a learning opportunity for students.
One particular challenge is how to coordinate the instructors schedule with clients to get
the helicopter to maintenance on time, he said.
To meet that challenge, the Southern California
school has the student and instructor fly the
aircraft to the maintenance shop so the student
can learn, meet and see the mechanics.
Revolution conducts minor maintenance
at its home airport but hopes to hire full-time
mechanics next year to service the companys
seven helicopters and two fixed-wing aircraft and keep up with increasing operational
demands. The first maintenance company with
which Revolution outsourced was a disaster,
said Robinson, so choosing the right mechanic
is absolutely key.
Operators of Robinson Helicopters are not
short on praise for the Torrance, California, manufacturer. Responsive customer service, great
parts stocks, free online manuals and personalized tech support are just some of what loyal
Robinson customers compliment. One operator,
however, referred to it as the Apple computer of
the helicopter world.
Robinsons feature a large number of proprietary parts that are not available through aftermarket companies. Parts usually need to come
from the factory and will generally not be available across the ramp or down the street.
Operators of other aircraft source both

manufacturers and aftermarket partswhatever is cheapest and most readily available to
maximize flexibility and savings. Ravco leans
heavily on the aftermarket parts supply for its Jet
Rangers and AStars.
We use a lot of aftermarket support lower
prices, longer time between overhauls, and they
have parts in stock, said Rota, adding that is not
always the case with OEM parts.
One operator who formerly flew Schweizer
300s said, After they were purchased by Sikorsky, parts availability became a challenge for
a while, it was impossible to even get a washer
from that company.
With the exception of operators that own
type certificates for an aircraft, overhaul work
is almost always contracted either back to the
OEM or to a factory-authorized service center.
Robinson schedules a major overhaul for 12
years or 2,200 hours on its airframes. Part 135
operator Centennial Helicopters chief pilot,
Michael DeMarici, has two options when the
companys single R44 Clipper II comes up on
this milestone. He could send the aircraft to the
manufacturer in California for a ground-up factory overhaul or give it to a service center closer
to his base in Danbury, Connecticut.
DeMarici has done both. The factory overhaul
took the aircraft out of service for almost six
months; the service centers turnaround was less
than three months.
OEM Pros and Cons

The advantage of the service center, said
Chris Webb, general manager of Minnesota
Helicopters, is that there you can choose what
kind of elective work will be performed during
the overhaul.
Robinson only offers one service package
a full overhaul and it is incredibly comprehensive. You basically get back a new aircraft,
said Webb, at nearly the cost of a new aircraft.
Webb said Minnesota Helicopters outsources
all its aircraft maintenance to nearby Quality
Aviation in Faribault, Minnesota. But he added
he is extremely happy with Robinsons customer
service, saying: It might be the only helicopter
manufacturer that ships 95% of AOG parts truly
overnight. Other manufacturers could learn a
thing or two from Robinsons customer service.
S&T Services St. Louis said one challenge
is sourcing the appropriate service center to
execute major work. Not all service centers are
29
Military
Public Service
Commercial
Services
Products
Training
30
created equal. I have to balance cost, personalities, upgrading components or not, etc.
When it comes to powerplant overhauls,
DeMarici sends his R44s Lycoming to Penn Yan
Aero in Penn Yan, New York. There he has the
option of having an overhaul done, acquiring a
remanufactured engine or buying a brand new
powerplant. Where he might get an exchange
core from Lycoming, using Penn Yann allows him
to specify that he gets the same core in return
following his overhauls. Penn Yann does a better job than the OEM, said DeMarici.
Years ago, Rolls-Royces factory service plan
gave birth to the term Power by the Hour.
Today, OEMs like Sikorsky, Bell, Airbus Helicopters, AgustaWestland and MD Helicopters offer
fixed price-per-flight-hour maintenance programs. One alternative to the OEM programs is
offered by 27-year industry veteran JSSI, which
calls itself the largest independent provider of
hourly cost maintenance programs for turbinepowered helicopters.
According to Sale, Hourly cost maintenance
programs are a great way for operators to stabilize their maintenance operating budget, be
protected from costly unforeseen failures and
increase overall residual value of their aircraft.
JSSI does not own aircraft, nor does it turn
wrenches. What it does offer is a comprehensive
financial tool for managing the often unpredictable costs of maintaining a helicopter, said Sale.
Customers pay a flight-hour fee based on
type of aircraft and annual utilization. Funds are
held in reserve to pay for all routine, scheduled
and unscheduled maintenance, including service bulletins, airworthiness directives, rental
engines, component costs and foreign-object
debris damage.
The JSSI program is more effective than
simply setting aside funds for maintenance, as
JSSI assumes the risk for actual costs incurred. To
complement this financial tool, JSSI provides clients with technical advisory support. Coverage
includes access to JSSIs worldwide network of
MRO and rental pool resources and a dedicated
technical advisor that will accompany the aircraft through the overhaul process to represent
the customers interests.
In addition, customers gain access to a global
parts-buying team and to independent product
line specialists specific to their make and model
of helicopters.
As an owner-operator, you want your crew to
have the best available resources at their finger
tips. You want your clients to have a positive experience in a clean, quality maintained aircraft. And
at the end of the day, Id like to see some financial
balance, said S&T Services St. Louis.
Military
Commercial
Public Service
Products
Training
Services
An aircraft arriving for unscheduled repairs could throw an MRO

off balance if it arrives to a hangar full of scheduled work. RSG
Aviation, Inc. of Forth Worth, Texas, tries to save room for such
scenarios. Photo courtesy of Keith Moreland / RSG Aviation, Inc.
32
Parts Needs
With 40% of maintenance
coming in unscheduled,
operators and MROs need
to share information on
operational tempos to avoid
service disruptions.
Even rotor blades can be the subject

of unscheduled maintenance.
Photo by Ernie Stephens
Some maintenance shops, such

as Keystone Turbine Services, try
to have loaner engines on hand
for customers who fall victim to
unscheduled powerplant repairs.
Photo by Ernie Stephens
By Ernie Stephens
t wasnt raining when Noah built the ark. The thrust of that proverb is
simply that you should plan far in advance of potential trouble.
Planning is something with which all helicopter operators have
an intimate relationship, particularly when it comes to maintenance. It
begins with an aircraft manufacturers direct operating cost projection
and continues with a complicated maintenance schedule that must be
adhered to. Interspersed between those date, time and dollar projections
are issues that require unscheduled service and parts replacement. Some
truly appear out of nowhere, while others may actually be foreseeable.
The operator most vulnerable to a maintenance-driven catastrophe
is the small onethe company or public-service provider that only has
one to five helicopters. If an aircraft goes down, there is rarely a spare
that can pick up the slack for an extended period. If no spare exists, missions cannot be flown, and flight crews may be left sitting idle. On-call
operations have it even rougher, because clients may have to be turned
away and could end up on the doorstep of a competitor.
A helicopter maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operation
understands the problems faced by its smaller customers. Many do
their best to handle scheduled and unscheduled maintenance issues
as quickly as possible without cutting corners that could affect safety.
An MRO also has the headache of trying to get parts from the manufacturer sooner rather than later, especially when the part is in short
supply in the first place. A mega-customerlike the military or a private
company with hundreds of aircraftis going get priority attention from
parts providers.
So how can the administrators and managers of small
operations sidestep the land mines that accompany unscheduled maintenance issues?
33
Military
Public Service
Commercial
Veterans of maintenance management offered

some suggestions for ensuring parts are available
to support prompt maintenance, repair or overhaul of your aircraft.
The first and most important is to develop a
good working relationship with your maintenance
provider.
Be sure to alert that provider when the pace or
scope of your aircrafts operation changes or when
you begin flying in a different environment.
Get comfortable sharing data in advance with
your maintenance provider.
Inform that provider of all issues that you
have observed or experienced with your aircraft, because not every single one will recur
during testing.
Difficult to Respond Quickly
Services
Products
Training
Terry Reiningers aviation career spans 45 years.

He has worked in flight operations, maintenance,
research and development, and the overhaul
business (including serving as manager of a major
rotor blade repair MRO). He has been a fixed-wing
and helicopter pilot and is a certified U.S. Defense
Dept. acquisition specialist. Today he owns of Reininger Aviation Services in Richland, Texas.
Reininger understands the issues that face both
the small operator and its MRO provider. He also
appreciates the weight that an unscheduled repair
carries. The reason is because he has been on both
sides of a repair order.
It is difficult for most MRO facilities to respond
to the small operators as quickly as needed, said
Reininger. First, most MROs do not have the
luxury of having teams standing by to respond.
If an operator, large or small, stops by for drop-in
maintenance, the technicians must be pulled from
other jobs to respond.
If small operators bring in an aircraft for heavy
maintenance without prior planning, they may
have to wait days or weeks to be accommodated. They even may have to consider finding
another provider.
The secret to customer satisfaction is for the
MRO and the operator to develop a great working
relationship, according to Reininger. It is important for the operator to share flight operations
tempo with the MRO. That tempo is the frequency
of missions carried out by a unit or organization.
It isnt enough for an MRO to know that its customer provides air ambulance services at an average of 100 flight hours a month. The maintenance
provider needs the management of the flight
operation to warn it when that operations tempo
34
is going to change. For example, if the operator

knows it will be transferring a large number of
patients from an old hospital to a new one, its
management should make a call to the MRO to let
that outfit know that some aircraft will be building
hours faster than normal. That means those will be
coming in for maintenance that much sooner.
Advanced knowledge will allow the MRO to
order parts and have the correct technicians available for the job, explained Reininger.
In addition to notifying the MRO of an increase
in operations tempo, it is critical for a customer to
alert the maintenance provider of any changes in
the place or the way its aircraft are being used. For
example, a change from a noncorrosive environment to a corrosive one could alter the kind of work
a helicopter will need and when it will need it.
If you plan to take your machine on an extended deployment, let the MRO know so they can
evaluate possible overhaul issues, warned Reininger. If you have been operating at higher gross
weights and higher speeds, let the maintenance
facility know, so they can pay close attention for
structural defects.
If the heart of a helicopter is its powerplant, a
close working relationship with the engine shop is
vitally important.
Most customers never supply advance information on a regular basis, said Chuck Hurdleston,
customer and support program manager at
Keystone Turbine Services in Coatesville, Pennsylvania. Which means we must always be ready
at a moments notice to react when something
goes wrong.
Maintenance Options
A former U.S. Army pilot, Hurdleston has been
in the small turbine repair business for nearly
30 years.
Keystone Turbine Services, like many other
engine repair depots, will try to turn the customers
engine around quickly. If the needed repair is a
limited one, technicians will start working on it
immediately. If, however, it looks like the repair will
take longer, the customer has three options.
First, manage flight operations around the
out-of-service aircraft until it has been returned.
Second, exchange the troublesome engine with
one of the MROs spares. Third, have a rental engine
installed on a pay-by-the-hour basis.
Keystones 50 or so technicians service all
Rolls-Royce M250 series engines, Honeywell accessories for the M250 and Honeywells LTS-101, Pratt
& Whitney Canada PT6 series powerplants and
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Turbomeca Arriel 1 and 2 series products. To stay

out in front of unscheduled maintenance on all of
those units as much as possible, said Hurdleston,
Keystone relies on business software.
We track the amount of our business thats
considered unscheduled versus scheduled, said
Hurdleston. In other words, how much of our total
business was based upon work we were not aware
was going to be coming to us until a problem
occurred.
Look at History
Services
Products
Training
Public Service
Currently, Keystone Engine Services uses ondemand customer relationship management software provider Salesforce.com to track projected
unit deliveries based upon annual hours flown
and other predictors. According to its figures, more
than 40% of Keystones engine support business is
unscheduled.
Its hard to plan materially for these episodes,
so the best you can do is look back on historical
averages and plan accordingly, said Hurdleston.
Reininger said he believes surprise maintenance issues can be reduced using what amounts
to an early detection system.
Pre-maintenance inspection visits to the
customers facility can provide advanced notice
of the extent of upcoming maintenance, he said.
Advanced knowledge will allow the MRO to order
parts and have the correct technicians available for
the job.
He also suggested that the operator provide
the MRO with a complete list of issues before it
delivers one of its aircraft to the maintenance facility. Technicians may not always find all issue if they
are not alerted to them. If there were an intermittent problem, like a strange sound or vibration
that isnt reflected in an instrument reading, do not
assume that the maintainer would discover it.
Reininger and Hurdleston were asked whether
there was anything that small operators could do
to ease the impact of unscheduled maintenance
on their MRO, considering the advantages both
parties could reap.
In a perfect maintenance world, operators and
maintainers would develop a relationship, which
includes total transparency in sharing data and
concerns, said Reininger. The MRO and operator have the same goal, and that is to keep a safe
machine in the air the greatest number of hours on
a continuous basis.
He added that he recognizes that the concept
of total transparency sends chills up the spines of
some managers in the highly competitive aviation
36
industry. They just arent programmed to let current and future flight operational plans leak past
their own offices and hangars. Reininger, however,
suggested one possible fix.
Operators and MROs need to execute a nondisclosure agreement if there are concerns, said
Reininger. If one or both of the parties are worried
that their information will be leaked, maybe they
are dealing with the wrong partner.
Sikorsky has gotten way out in front of detecting maintenance issues before they can become
an unscheduled repair problem.
S-76Ds and S-92s are equipped with a data collection system that allows Sikorsky engineers to
monitor the health of the two lines.
For example, if engine No. 1 aboard aircraft
serial No. 0050 in the worldwide S-92 fleet were
experiencing a transient compressor problem, that
would be detected at Sikorskys 360 Live Support
Center in Connecticut. There, an engineer would
query the system to see whether any other aircraft
were experiencing the same problem.
If the problem were isolated to that one aircraft,
the center would notify the operator, recommend
a course of action, and keep an eye over it.
If a fleet-wide check reveals that more than one
aircraft were experiencing the same issue, points
of commonality would be assessed to better pinpoint the cause of the problem. Sikorsky claims this
process can detect a problem long before a pilot or
mechanic could perceive it and address it before a
catastrophic surprise catches everyone off guard.
(Think of it as a heavy, near-constant inspection
that limits surprises.)
Lessening the Impact

Once an aircraft or engine arrives at a facility for
unscheduled maintenance, there are several
things the MRO could do to lessen the impact to
the customer.
First, Reininger said, the MRO needs a software
package that will help conduct incoming inspections, schedule work and track completed tasks.
Secondly, the shop needs to have a clear understanding of the time to complete each task and the
skills required. Third, a system must be in place to
track the quality of work performed, since poorly
trained technicians (or inept ones) can cost the
MRO time and money in the form of rework.
Finally, they need to have an accounting system that quickly and accurately bills the customer,
said Reininger. There is nothing that frustrates a
customer more than to receive multiple invoices
that are incorrect.
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11-13 October 2016

Amsterdam RAI
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The NextGe
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Helicopter OEMs will need

to implement various safety
technologies by 2020. Photos
courtesy of the U.S. Air Force,
Heli Tirol and Erickson Inc.
38
en
IENCE
Manufacturers, oEMs,
operators and regulators
made progress in 2015
toward improving the
certiication and approval
process for certain
mandated technologies.
now, the Faa and the
industry must work together
to unlock all of the beneits
for rotary-wing operations.
By Woodrow Bellamy III
ver the last year, the FAA has actively engaged with
the industry to address avionics issues associated
with Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast
(ADS-B) and other avionics concerns as part of its NextGen airspace
modernization program. But, is the agency providing this segment
of the aviation industry with the same level of projected benefits and
safety improvements projected to be derived through NextGen avionics
equipage for airliners and other fixed-wing aircraft? So far, that has not been
the case, but the FAA is looking to turn things around before its too late.
Mandates
Helicopter operators in the United States face the same Jan. 1, 2020, mandate for
ADS-B Out as the rest of the industry. However, air ambulance rotorcraft are also
required to become equipped with Helicopter Terrain Awareness Warning System (HTAWS)
and Flight Data Monitoring Systems (FDMS) by 2017 and 2018, respectively. Unlike ADS-B,
the FAA does not directly associate these mandated technologies with the overarching goals of
its NextGen program, and therefore doesnt have a set of performance metrics and stated goals in
order to show operators what is derived by equipping.
In fact, the FAAs updated NextGen Priorities Joint Implementation Plan, published in October 2015,
does not mention the word helicopter or rotorcraft anywhere in the text.
The biggest challenge previously was just the timeline to do the [Standard Type Certificate] STC program; its
a very arduous, detailed process to get the STC. Now, really it doesnt matter what you have to submit, and what the
applicant has to do does not vary a whole lot whether its an ADS-B installation, a single pilot [Instrument Flight Rules]
IFR installation or a major STC program; the steps are all still the same and its an arduous process, said Milton Geltz, managing director at Metro Aviation.
Metro is a multi-faceted operator and helicopter completions center with a fleet of 130 helicopters operating throughout the U.S.
Over the past year, Geltz said the agency has relaxed some of its processes for approving mandated equipage.
W W W. r oto r a n d W i n g . c o M
M a r c h 2 0 1 6 | r oto r & W i n g i n t E r n at i o n a L
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Military
Commercial
Services
Products
Training
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Erickson is in the
process of upgrading its
S-64 Aircrane fleet.
Photo courtesy of
Erickson Inc.
40
I think the FAA figured out that they had to really relax the reins on the [Flight Standards District
Offices] FSDO and the approval processes to meet
the 2020 compliance mandate. So, thats flowing
pretty well now under that AFS-300 guidance. All
that is for ADS-B Out; the ADS-B In solution is still an
STC program, said Geltz.
Other operators, such as Erickson Aviation, are
also finding it easier to progress through the FAAs
approval process. Erickson operates S-64 and Bell
214 helicopters for customers throughout Europe
and in Australia, China, Africa, the U.S. and Latin
America. The company acquired the Type Certificate (TC) for the S-64 in 1992 and has manufactured, maintained, operated and leased the aircraft
to customers throughout the world who require
crane-lifting, construction and firefighting services.
As the OEM, operator and maintenance center for
the S-64 and certain Bell helicopters, Erickson in
August 2015 obtained certification for S-64 ADS-B
Out and In modifications with upgraded GPS units
and new HTAWS and is currently in the process of
introducing the upgrade package across the global
S-64 Aircrane fleet.
The FAA has some very strong requirements
that you have to show including having opposing
aircraft that you fly at; theres an [Advisory Circular]
AC that describes a lot of this. We went through a
very tough flight test program with the FAA proving
out all these systems, and they do it very well. That
was the metamorphosis of that project. It grew out
of the need to upgrade and replace the GPS, and
by that we realized the abilities of the systems now
would just fit marvelously into the machine and
get us ready for the next generation, said Erickson
Chief Engineer Ian Gibson of the package, which
provides both ADS-B Out and air ambulance operations HTAWS compliance.
Suppliers such as Applied Avionics are also
seeing increased demand for their digital to discrete converter products from OEMs, operators
and installation centers to provide less expensive
compliance with some aspects of the mandate. For
example, the Applied Avionics NexSys ARINC 429

to Discrete Signal Converter (SR429) converts data
bits associated with a single ARINC 429 label and
dissects them into discrete output pins. For ADS-B
applications, the converter resolves the mandate
requirement for displaying a failure message to the
pilot if the solution is not working.
One of the biggest reasons we have received
demand for this from helicopter operators and
other segments of the industry is that the ADS-B
mandate requires that two failures be presented
associated with your solution. There is the ADS-B
Out failure notification and the transponder failure,
said Steve Edwards, VP of product development for
Applied Avionics, which manufactures the SR429.
The failure from the transponders discrete out is
already there, but the polarity of the signal is wrong,
so actually we have got customers putting our solid
state relay right inside the indicators to condense
it and simplify things. There is no software or firmware in the product, the certification issues associated with DO-254 and DO-178 are not required so
it makes the installation and the application for the
installation less costly.
NextGen Certification Challenges

However, the FAA is actively addressing challenges
facing the helicopter industry and operators. One
of the biggest issues that needs to be addressed
for Part 27 and Part 29 operators, some of which
are impacted by mandated technology, is the
determination of previously installed equipment
meeting mandated performance requirements.
The Technical Standard Order (TSO) for HTAWS
is not the issue. A lot of operators had HTAWS
installed back before we were calling it HTAWS, and
feature the exact same equipment that is required
as part of the 2017 mandate, but they were
installed before the provisions for the mandate
were established. (See sidebar)
We are in the business of manufacturing data
requirements that far exceed the FAAs expectations for HEMS operators. However, theres still a lot
of operators that dont fully understand what the

FAAs intentions are, said Geltz. With that rule, the
FAA seems to be saying, Show us what youd like to
use, and well tell you whether its approved or not.
There are still a lot of operators that are not understanding or maybe taking a less-than-advisable
path to meeting that air medical requirement. Our
data monitoring does everything including tracking and communications that a [Cockpit Voice and
Flight Data Recorder] CVFDR would. So its compliant with the rule, but there are others that are considering the flight tracking solution that they have
will meet the rule, and that may or may not be true.
Another major frustration faced by Metro and
other helicopter operators are delays associated
with waiting on certification and approvals. According to Geltz, non-safety-related certification timelines as prioritized by the Aircraft Engineering Division (AIR-100) document sometimes take as long
as 18 months to gain approval due to delays associated with waiting on the FAA at various stages, such
as test plan approvals or flight tests.
Ericksons Gibson agreed, though he felt the FAA
is going through a learning curve with some of the
newer technologies that it is receiving requests to
approve. A learning curve that, once completed, he
believes will lead to quicker approvals and less of a
hands-on approach from the agency.
This is very new for them in terms of approving
a complete installation that features ADS-B Out,
ADS-B In, HTAWS and the FDM equipment, he
said. It was a big combined effort by two or three
FAA offices, it went very well, and I think theyll get
quicker at it once they realize what the technology
is capable of and what its not capable of, which
I think there is a little bit of fear of ensuring what
exactly are the safety issues that this hardware can
introduce that we dont know about it. So, I think
their hands-on will decline; we wont have to go
through this the same way the next time. But when
we go to do this on our other platforms ... this has
proven in the past they become less involved the
more familiar theyre with it.
OEM Upgrade Paths

OEMs have also introduced and are currently
exploring upgrade paths for operators of their
legacy aircraft that still have a decade or more of
flight operational capability left. Catherine Ferrie,
senior VP of engineering at Bell Helicopter, said
her company has been increasingly working with
GAMA and reaching out to Bell operators through
other industry forums to make sure everyone
knows the available options to upgrade. However,
Bell is not prescribing one fix over another.

Most of our helicopters are active in EMS,
mostly 407s and 429s, and some of the older 412s
can do that, so those that have existing capabilities,
such as the 429 and 412EPI, have several options
for installation out there on the market, said Ferrie.
We dont like to prescribe, everyone has to decide
as they configure their aircraft into unique layouts
and how they customize their aircraft, and so something may work for one and not for the other.
In 2015, Bell published a guide entitled Meeting NextGen Airspace Requirements (ADS-B
Reporting) for Bell Helicopter Models, noting that
all of its factory solutions are 1090 ES type ADS-B
Out capability to provide a solution that is usable
across international airspace. The U.S. is the only
region supporting ADS-B Out at both the 1090 and
978 MHz frequencies. The company has no specific
plans to develop ADS-B solutions for the Bell 204,
205, 212, 222, 214ST and 214B, 427 and Huey II
(UH-1). Within its guidance, Bell noted that if the
opportunity presents itself to develop solutions for
one of these models, the data would be applicable
to the rest based on similarity.
Transponders, based on what kind of cockpits
and what kind of upgrades theyve made there,
may be some software or wiring or moving of
equipment depending on where theyve installed
stuff and making sure that you do not have interferences or any type of EMI issues of that nature. We
would help with that type of discussion so that they
make the right decision, said Ferrie.
Out in Europe, Airbus Helicopters has introduced similar upgrade paths for its legacy helicopters still in service.
The new H145 is fully capable of ADS-B Out. This
will be a standard feature on the upgraded avionics
coming up early next year. The EC145 equipped
with dual GNS430 would need a replacement of
the FMS with GNS430W and the replacement of the
transponder with a GTX430. The EC145 equipped
with CMA9000 would require the replacement of
the transponder with TDR94. Early versions of the
BK117 family have not been investigated regarding
a retrofit solution, said Dragos Grigorincu, program
manager for the H145. H145 is in standard configuration already prepared for nearly all PBN procedures. EC145 (BK117 C2) also has capabilities for
[Performance-Based Navigation] PBN procedures,
including [Satellite-Based Augmentation System]
SBAS. Retrofits are possible. ADS-B In is on the
road map of H145 avionics further development,
the availability probably in the coming years, also
pending on the final regulation.
Metro Aviation,
FAA to Meet
in Louisville
Metro Aviation officials plan
to meet with FAA counterparts to discuss how to determine whether previously
installed terrain-warning
systems meet recently adopted standards for Helicopter
Terrain Awareness Warning
Systems (HTAWS).
HTAWS are mandated for
installation in air ambulance
helicopters next year.
Metro Managing Director Milton Geltz said, Right
now, the FAA has no way
of determining out in the
field that these types of
solutions that are the exact
same equipment as whats
listed for HTAWS compliance
would actually meet todays
Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS)
and Technical Standard Order
(TSO) requirements.
Currently, there is no
mechanism for any type of
relief on grandfathering in
the previously installed system in some way, he said.
41
Public Service
Commercial
Military
The Pric
Training
An FAA-directed industry
group is meeting behind
closed doors to appraise
crashworthiness mandates
for new-build rotorcraft.
By Joseph Ambrogne
Services
Products
ost-crash fires have been a major

focus recently of U.S. safety and
regulatory officials and for
good reason.
Its unfortunate that so many helicopters erupt into flames after a crash,
robbing occupants lucky enough to
survive the initial impact of their
chances to escape the wreck. Its
even more infuriating that the
technology capable of mitigating these fires has long
been mandated by the FAA,
but only in helicopters
42
type-certificated after the mid-1990s. That

being said, occupants must first survive the
impact before they can escape the blaze.
Just as the industry has not embraced
swifter adoption of crash-resistant fuel
systems, it also has lagged in incorporating better crash-survivability measures.
Regulatory loopholes mean only a
fraction of the U.S. helicopter fleet is
equipped with the latest advances in
impact absorption and restraint, rollover
protection and structural integrity that
help a skilled pilot-in-command achieve a
survivable crash landing.
ce of
(Above) Research at NASA Langley Research Center has involved dummies and a test helicopter to test crash forces.
Occupant protection measures include rotorcraft seat/harness systems able to withstand downward acceleration forces of as
much as 30 g. Photos courtesy of NASA Langley Research Center and Fischer Seats
On the heels of studies showing stagnant

accident trends despite scientific progress,
the FAA has directed manufacturers, operators and associations to address both issues. The
agency on Nov. 5, 2015, launched the Rotorcraft
Occupant Protection Working Group as a subset
of its Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee
and gave it six months to write a cost-benefits
analysis for improving survivability in helicopter
crashes. The group composed mostly of privateindustry representatives will do its work behind
closed doors.
R&WI has asked industry what already is being
done to improve occupants odds during a crash
and what challenges the FAA-appointed group
might face in raising the regulatory bar.
The science of surviving a vehicular crash has
come a long way since the beginnings of the rotorcraft industry. Then, as one source mused, you
could theoretically screw in a garden chair and
meet the crew-seating standards of the day.
Starting in the mid-1980s, the FAA began to
update its occupant-protection standards, which
are still reflected in the current regulations governing normal and transport category rotorcraft,
or Federal Aviation Regulations Parts 27 and 29,
respectively.
For the normal category, FAR Part 27.561 establishes minimum inertial load factors that occupant
and item restraints, airframe supporting structures

and fuselage structures near the internal fuel tanks
must be able to withstand to maintain survivable
volume in an emergency landing.
Part 27.562 establishes the dynamic testing
requirements (using 170-lb test dummies) for crew
and passenger seat systems.
Part 27.785 establishes design standards for
seats, harnesses and related safety components.
Part 29 includes similar requirements for the
transport category.
Its one thing to set higher occupant-protection
standards, but another to meet them. State-of-theart energy-attenuating seats, harnesses and other
components already have been incorporated in
other industries like fixed-wing transport and automotive racing, but their rotary-wing counterparts
must guard against a different sort of crash.
When a helicopter comes down during an
autorotation, it impacts more vertically, said Jeff
Trang, technology and flight operations VP at Airbus Helicopters, Inc. So the character of how an
aircraft flies results in a different crash profile.
According to Thomas Feigl of B/E Aerospace, within the rotorcraft industry, anybody
can produce a non-crashworthy seat, but
there are only a few companies in the world
that are able to fulfill the new requirements.
B/E subsidiary Fischer Seats is one such com-
43
Military
Commercial
Public Service
Airbus Helicopters upgraded the

AS350 with newer seats prior to
certification. Photo courtesy of
Airbus Helicopters
Working Group
Members
Services
Products
Training
The members of the FAA

Rotorcraft Occupant Protection Working Group are:
Injur y Analysis; Safety
Research Corp. of America;
HAI; General Aviation Manufacturers Assn.; Airborne Law
Enforcement Assn.; Survivors Network for Air & Surface Medical Transport; MD
Helicopters; Bell Helicopter;
Sikorsky Aircraft; Enstrom
Helicopter; Airbus Helicopters; Robinson Helicopter; Air
Methods; Air Evac Lifeteam;
Papillon Airways; PHI Air
Medical; Robertson Fuel Systems; Meggitt Polymers &
Composites; BAE Systems,
and EASA (as a non-voting
member).
44
pany, providing OEMs with rotorcraft seat/

harness systems able to withstand downward
acceleration forces of as much as 30g, well
exceeding the 20g load-factor requirement
under Part 27.561.
Airbus has selected the Fischer 180/260 H140
model as its pilot/copilot seat for the H145 T2.
The NASA Langley Research Center can help
the rotorcraft industry meet higher occupantprotection standards. Located in Hampton,
Virginia, the center performs crash testing and
research for customers including the FAA, the U.S.
Defense Dept., rotorcraft OEMs and anyone else
focused on impact biomechanics. Martin Annett,
a researcher with the centers Landing and Impact
Research Facility, explained, We conduct drop
testing and crash testing of anywhere from smallscale materials to full-scale, or from dummies and
seats to the whole helicopter.
The facility can lift a helicopter airframe and
swing it into a surface, testing it against a combination of horizontal and vertical forces. Its a
unique facility because we can control the conditions and attitude and impact pretty well using
a set of swing cables off of a gantry structure,
Annett said.
In one recent example, NASA crash-tested
two Sikorsky Aircraft CH-46 Sea Knight airframes
for the FAA, the U.S. Army and Navy and several
manufacturers. The purpose of the test was to
put in some forward and vertical velocities in
a medium-lift helicopter, so something on the
order of 20 troop positions and five crew positions, said Annett.
The center looked at various seat systems,
restraint systems and crash-test dummies in both
sideways and forward-facing seating configurations. Then, researchers swapped out some components of the airframe that were metallic and
changed them to composite materials to look at
how well they absorbed energy inherently just by
crushing underneath the floor.
He added that, in addition to physical crash

tests, Langley can perform simulations and virtual analysis.
Despite the available options, researchers
both within and outside the FAA are troubled by
just how small a number of U.S. rotorcraft actually incorporate the new occupant-protection
standards of Parts 27 and 29. Accident studies
conducted within the past 20 years showed that,
despite the new rules, there was little change to
the survivability rate in U.S. helicopter crashes
even decades after the rules came into effect.
Pilots still were dying from blunt force trauma and
post-crash fires that the FAA deemed preventable
by currently available measures. By the end of
2014, the agency estimated that only 10% of U.S.
helicopters had complied with the emergency
landing requirements enacted 25 years earlier.
When the FAA published the new crashworthy rules for the fuel tanks, the seats, occupant
protection dynamics and other requirements,
their expectation at the time was that the manufacturers would start using those rules, said
Trang. They have, but only on brand-new aircraft
because derivative aircraft are still using the old
certification basis.
FAR Part 21, which governs certification procedures, explains how helicopters in use today
can be exempt from the new rules. It contains language saying that applications for a new aircraft
type certificate or changes made to an existing
type certificate must comply only with requirements in place at the time of application. This is
good in the sense that a certificate holder need
not worry about having to re-certify every time
the FAA changes a rule. But it also means aircraft
manufacturers can, in theory, continue producing, selling and flying older type-certificated aircraft that fail to meet the latest requirements for
occupant protection.
One might ask not how, but why an industry
so dependent on safety would resist implement-
ing the best technology. But those familiar with

aviation know the answer comes down mostly
to economics, or perhaps more specifically to a
trio of variables that drive innovation: cost, time
and performance. These are the factors the FAAs
working group must weigh before presenting its
cost-benefits analysis in May.
Cost is an obvious downside to redesigning helicopter cockpits to a higher standard.
A 30g seat with its energy-absorbing element
requires certain technology, and that makes
it expensive in design and testing as well as in
production, said Feigl. Even after installation, a
more-protective seat system may require higher
maintenance costs.
Performance factors make operators wary
of any equipment upgrades that add to an
aircrafts basic empty weight. If we proposed
a piece of equipment that weighs only 10 lb,
youd be amazed at how much pushback we
will get from some of our customers, said Trang.
It doesnt sound like much, but every pound
is precious depending on their mission and
operating environment.
But, added Lindsay Cunningham, Airbus
Helicopters, Inc.s aviation safety director, weight
really only impacts performance when it comes
to crash-resistant fuel tanks (covered separately in
FAR 27.952) and other larger items. Energy-attenuating seat systems and associated components
are light enough to have negligible impacts.
The industrys biggest concern, according
to Cunningham, might be the time and effort
required to certify to new FAA standards.
As we have reported, some in industry view
certification with disgust (Whither Single-Engine
IFR?, Moving the Mountain, R&WI, June 2015,
pages 22 and 32). Applicants for type and supplemental type certificates often find themselves
buried in complex procedures or having to wait
months for the resource-strapped agency to process their applications.
In our industry specifically, a major barrier is
a pervasive reticence to tackle the daunting task
of certification, said Carl Schopfer, chief technology officer of MD Helicopters. With many of the
safety improvements necessary to dramatically
improve crashworthiness and survivable volume
not being mandated across the board, most component and airframe manufacturers are not eager
to grapple with the complexities of certification.
Surprisingly, the industrys aversion to certification might actually make the problem seem
bigger than it is. Cunningham told R&WI that the
FAAs estimate of 10% compliance to the new

standards might actually be low and that many
more companies have probably met or exceeded
the new occupant-protection requirements off
the record, avoiding the tedious process of getting them certified to higher standards.
Airbus did so with the AS350 when it replaced
the original AStar seats with newer Zodiac Aerospace CS27 Hydro Series, she said. But it has not
officially certified it to the latest requirements.
The AStar, introduced in 1975, also technically
predates those requirements. Even though we
couldnt originally certify what we call bucketstyle seats in there, we voluntarily started installing those, said Cunningham. So every aircraft,
every B3e for example, in more than the past 10
years has been equipped with the latest standard
energy-attenuating seats and crew seats, even
though it wasnt required.
The FAAs working group has a lot to consider if it intends to require older but still-active
helicopters like the AStar to meet the latest
occupant-protection standards. But in the meantime, the tide is slowly changing. New-generation
aircraft are coming online, each one possessing
cabin and structural features that more than meet
FAA requirements.
To meet those standards, Bell Helicopter had
to design its new Bell 525 Relentless from the
ground up. To preserve a survivable volume during a crash, the 525 airframe structure retains
large masses above and behind the occupied
volume and includes crew and passenger crashworthy seating systems, according to Bell.
The 525 also incorporates an anti-plow
bulkhead to minimize earth or water scooping
during a longitudinal impact, the company said.
The bulkhead connects to the 525s keel beam
and an aluminum post beam that runs up the
center of the windshields and supports a wirestrike protection system. Passenger seats in the
525 are each one seat away from an emergency
exit, and the seating systems stroke downwardly
to absorb vertical kinetic energy at levels below
human injury thresholds, the manufacturer said.
Bell claims its military V-280 Valor has tremendous features for occupant crash survival. Large
masses, such as the engine, transmission and
rotor, are separated from the occupied compartment to improve survivability. It said the V-280
design for the wing-fuselage joint to fail in the
case of a controlled crash to prevent the combined mass of the wing and nacelles from driving
the fuselage into the terrain.
45
Law Enforcement Notebook

By Ernie Stephens
The Tough Choices
ts snowing where I am tonight. This reminds

me of a snowstorm many years ago on Jan.
13, 1982.
I wasnt a pilot yet. In fact, I was so new, if there
were a coffee run that had to be made for the
sergeants back at the station, it was I who got
stuck with it.
But that evening, I was on the road policing
in a bone-chilling kind of cold that finds its way
through your uniform like a knife. The snow and
wind didnt help.
Just 10 mi away from where I sat shivering in
my 1978 Chevy Nova police car, an Air Florida
Boeing 737 with 79 souls onboard was struggling
to climb out of Washington National Airport. With
ice on its wings, Flight 90 wasnt able to do that. It
dipped toward the 14th Street Bridge, which was
choked with early-afternoon rush-hour traffic
leaving the District of Columbia for Arlington, Virginia. The blue, green and white airliner clipped
a portion of the bridges north span, killing four
people and injuring four more in cars on it before
plunging into the icy Potomac River.
Three miles away, U.S. Park Police Officers
John Usher and Gene Windsor were at their
hangar absorbing news about the crash and the
prospect that dozens of people were about to
die if they werent pulled swiftly from the river.
Minutes later, pilot Usher and rescue technician
Windsor were airborne in their Bell Helicopter
206L, feeling their way through low visibility and
ceilings that barely cleared power lines above the
streets they had to follow to find the crash site.
Eagle-1 had no hoist back then, so Usher had
to hover just feet above the Potomac as Windsor
stood on the skids lowering flotation devices to
the handful of people visible amid the wreckage
and ice. Those who had the strength to hang on
were carefully towed to the shore, but Windsor
had to reach down and grab one woman who
was too frozen to cling to a line.
Of the planes passengers and crew, just five
survived. Usher and Windsor saved four of them.
How many times do police aviatorsmilitary
and search and rescue ones, toopush back
against the voices of their primary flight instructors and the warnings in the FAAs Aeronautical
46
Information Manual that tell them not to fly when

the ceilings are like this, or the visibility is like that
and the fuel state is such and such? We all know
that its wise counsel and that ignoring such guidance often leads to the loss of ships and crews.
We also know that nobody will beat us up if
we exercise our right to reject a mission when
the risks are too high. When it comes to flying
this aircraft, theres God and then theres me, I
used to tell one particular lieutenant who was a
bit too thickheaded to grasp the whole pilot-incommand concept.
Police, military and SAR aviation is often about
taking an aircraft into harms way. Yes, we sometimes let emotions get the better of us and miscalculate which missions to fly and from which to
walk away. This is why its always wise to give the
non-piloting crewmembers a say in the decisionmaking process. But right or wrong, I think we all
still push the limits of acceptable risk a bit farther
when life-and-death decisions arise. Were paid to
stick our necks out a bit farther than the corporate driver. Hell, its probably in our DNA.
Chances are that as Im writing this, somewhere in the world there is a law enforcement
helicopter crew trying to decide if they should
pass on an officer down call because the weather is just barely below minimums or if they should
push their fuel so they can spend another two
min searching that last corner of the park for a
missing 2-year-old. As theyre making that decision, they will be aware that livesincluding
their ownmay hang in the balance.
In one of my favorite movies, The Bridges
at Toko-Ri, the closing scene showed the commander of a task force sitting on an aircraft carriers bridge while pondering the loss of a pilot
who was like a son to him. Most of what he said
applies to naval aviators, whom he rightfully
praised for their skill and bravery in flying missions from a ships deck. But his final line echoed
something that applies to police and SAR pilots,
too, especially to officers Usher and Windsor. He
asked, Where do we get such men? Im going to
edit that just a little by adding, ...and women.
May all of your tough choices be the right
ones, just like Ushers and Windsors.
International Marketplace
27
Heliport Lighting
HELIPORT LIGHTING FAA-approved equipment.
MANAIRCO, INC. (419) 524 - 2121, www.manairco.com
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
advertiser index
Page# ..... Advertiser........................................................................................................................................................Website
19 ....................Aerometals............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.aerometals.aero
9.......................Aeronautical Accessories.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.aero-access.com
52 ....................Airbus Helicopters ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.airbushelicoptersinc.com
17 ....................Dallas Avionics...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.dallasavionics.com
47 ....................Chopper Spotter ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.chopperspotter.com
11 ....................FlightSafety...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.flightsafety.com
15 ....................Garmin International .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. www.garmin.com
35 ....................HeliExperts International .................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.heliexpertsinternational.com
37 ....................Helitech International ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.helitechevents.com
25 ....................ITT Enidine....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.enidine-aviation.com/rotorcraft
2.......................Marenco Swisshelicopter ................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.marenco-swisshelicopter.com
23 ....................Milestone Aviation .....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.milestoneaviation.com
31 ....................Standard Aero ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.standardaero.com
47 ....................Survival Products .....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.survivalproductsinc.com
5.......................UTC Aerospace Systems.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................www.utcaerospacesystems.com
3.......................ZF Aviation .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. www.zfaviation.com
M A R C H 2 0 1 6 | R OTO R & W I N G M A G A Z I N E
47
Safety Watch
By Keith Cianfrani
Laser Hazards
ou are out on a mission flying below

1,000 ft one night when suddenly your
eyes begin to hurt. You lose your eyesight for a few moments. You are dazed and not
too sure what is happening. You have just been
hit by a laser.
This has been happening all across the helicopter industry. In 2015, there were 7,703 reported laser incidents (more than 20 incidents per
day). Saturday nights between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m.
is when you are most likely to be lased (87% of
cases). The most likely locations are Los Angeles;
Phoenix, Arizona, and areas of Texas and Florida.
Mid-2004 saw a marked increase in the number of laser incidents across the U.S. Most of these
occurred during flight operations in terminal
areas; many originated from elevated structures.
Because lasers have proven to be a significant visual performance hazard to pilots, many
operational issues and human factors must be
addressed to develop solutions for the aviation
industry, especially with helicopters. Visual interference is the primary concern.
At a recent conference in Melbourne, Florida,
SAE Aerospaces Laser Safety Hazards Committee
addressed this issue and its affect on navigable
airspace. The topics addressed were operational
procedures, training and protocols that flight
crewmembers should follow in the event of laser
exposure. This is most important during critical
phases of flight.
Because lasers have become more compact,
inexpensive and powerful, the number in use
by the general public has increased dramatically. Green laser pointers, to which eyes are more
sensitive, are now available for less than $100.
They are in the hands of thousands of consumers who are unawareas are many owners of
small dronesof the dangers they pose to flight
operations in navigable airspace.
Laser threats to flight operations vary from
common temporary visual deficits, such as glare
and flash blindness, to rarer effects like permanent eye damage (not to mention the startle
effect). A beam above 5 watts could injure eyes
in a quarter of a second.
Glare is defined as visual hindrance by too
48
much light or a bright light and may cause discomfort for as long as the light is present.
Flash blindness is a period of visual desensitization of varying strength and durations that
persists after exposure to a bright light.
The startle effect is the involuntary reaction to
an unexpected event that alters mental, physical
and visual activities and diverts selected attention away from the normal primary tasks of the
flight crew. The startle response can be broken
into four specific categories: distraction; disruption; disorientation; and incapacitation.
There is no single solution to the laser problem. Equipment like windshield film is effective
but expensive. Many law enforcement aviation
departments use protective eye wear, but education and training seem to be most effective.
Some experts say warnings should be placed
on the lasers to inform the user of the danger of
laser beams to aviation. Some lawmakers are calling for a ban on lasers.
Flight crewmembers should maintain situational awareness to assess the potential for a
laser strike. Certain flight configurations present a
higher risk of exposure. This would be during low
altitude operations, such as landing and departure, and slow stable airspeed.
Flight crewmembers also should know how to
handle a laser incident when they encounter one.
During critical phases of flight, disruptive laser
strikes should be treated as any other abnormal
or emergency situation. Unfortunately, there are
no industry-wide protocols that address this.
If lased, flight crewmembers should communicate immediately their visual status and transfer control of the aircraft to an unaffected pilot.
In addition, crewmembers should not rub their
eyes, should avoid looking at the light source
and should report the incident per FAA AC 70-2A,
Reporting Laser Illumination of Aircraft.
Educational materials should outline the
effects of visual sensitivity and hazards to flight.
Operators should develop protocols, even as part
of their safety management system programs.
With education and training, pilots can take
actions to protect their vision and passengers.
As alwaystake action to fly safe.
Coming Up in
April 2016:
Avionics ChallengesKeeping Your
Cool: As demand for the capabilities offered by
more advanced avionics grows, manufacturers face
the challenge of keeping boxes cool in rotorcraft
compartments. We check out how OEMs are meeting that challenge.
Certification UpdatesRadar Altimeters and Terrain Awareness and Warning Systems: We report the latest on meeting
Vertical Flight and Ground Warfare: A

rotorcraft operations perspective of issues faced in
todays war zones and hot spots around the world.
Firefighting Worldwide: A report on lessons
learned in firefighting activities from South Africa
and Australasia to Europe and the U.S. over the last
year, plus forecasts for key wildland fire seasons in
2016.
2017 mandates for these devices in air ambulances.
Bonus Distribution: Avionics Expo Europe, AEA Expo, Quad-A, ABACE, NAB
May 2016
NoiseI Cant Hear You: We examine the
nature of helicopter noise, its perception (both
physically and politically) and possible solutions
that are being researched and developed.
Making a Viable Business of Drones: A

close look at who is succeeding in commercial uses
of unmanned aircraft systems in the U.S. and around
the world, what impediments they face and how
they are overcoming them.
Vertical Flight and Naval Warfare: We

explore the status and emerging requirements for
naval vertical flight capabilities in hot spots around
the world.
Certification UpdatesCrash-Resistant Fuel Systems: Following our report this
month on the FAA Rotorcraft Occupant Protection
Working Group, we examine factors affecting its
analysis of fuel-system upgrades for new-build
aircraft.
Bonus Distribution: AUVSI, OTC, AHS Forum, Navy League, Heli Russia, EBACE
49
Military Insider
By Mike Hangge, mjHangge
And I Say, Amen.
ast year, my wife and I were among the

first responders to a helicopter crash.
Although we couldnt do much to help at
the scene, our conversation afterward prompted me to help in another way.
I would like to speak plainly about a topic
many of us prefer to avoid death. Its no
secret death will eventually come for us all. If
you know a way around that, please call and
Ill send you a big check. But the secret of life
doesnt lie in avoiding death, rather it is in
embracing life itself.
There are things you can do to make that
event less painful for those you care about. Being
prepared for death is not just for old people like
me nor is it something you should put off for even
one more day. You owe it to your friends, coworkers and families. You should not pass Go or collect
your $200 without becoming prepared.
The key simply is to be organized. Gather
your important documents into one consolidated location, and ensure that everyone
knows where that location is. I personally suggest either a safety deposit box or a fireproof/
waterproof document safe labeled with something easily understood, such as, Open in case
of death. Purchase a safe large enough to contain your entire familys critical documents, and
youll never have to search long for them.
You might consider consulting a lawyer, the
Judge Advocate Generals Corps or an estateplanning firm. But most of your documents
should include the basics. These would be last
will and testaments, trusts, living wills, powers
of attorney, beneficiary documents and master
estate information. Other basics are a physical
items inventory, bank account and assets information, debtor and credit card lists, mortgage
and loan information, insurance policies, tax
returns and password lists. Dont forget military
and Veterans Administration benefit records,
Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, birth
certificates, contact and membership list, passports and funeral/executor instructions.
Choose your executor carefully. He or she
50
should be someone who will not allow difficult emotions to affect decision-making and
be someone you trust with your assets even
while youre still alive. Review and update your
documents yearly or whenever you have a
life-changing event. Send copies of your will to
your executor or keep them secured in a safe.
Additionally, I suggest that you plainly list
your last wishes, such as where and how you
wish to be interred, anything specific like songs
or poems you want at your funeral, your final
words for those who attend and your obituary. Do not leave your family unarmed to make
these difficult decisions; arm them with the
knowledge of exactly what you want.
Yes, I did just suggest that you write your
own obituary. Why not? Consider it as a chance
to write your own legacy and find out how you
want to be remembered. If this doesnt make
sense to you, just imagine your grieving spouse
trying to describe your life only hours after
being told youre not coming home for dinner.
Do not do that to your spouse.
With a pencil in hand, take a few more
moments to express your love for those you are
leaving. Its been well more than 20 years since
I wrote my first good byes. Putting my feelings
and final farewells on paper reminded me to
live and love every day, not just on my final
days. Write that letter to your family so they will
know how much you cared and what they truly
meant to you. Give them something by which
to remember you and something to carry with
them throughout the rest of their lives. I promise that the time spent pouring out your soul
will not be a wasted exercise.
Lastly, be right with your family, friends and
your God. Not just some times, but all the time.
Take every moment to show them how much
you care. That alone might make you a better
person more worthy of that grand obituary you
just wrote.
More than anything else, live your life so
well that the only thing left to say at your
memorial is Amen.
Hot Products
for Helicopter Operators
FEC Heliports introduces HEMS-Star helipad lighting system

NEWLY LAUNCHED FEC HEMS-Star Helipad Light is an advanced, portable, rechargeable, battery-powered, microprocessor-controlled helipad light designed for rapid
deployment in temporary and emergency situations to provide safe and effective
marking at designated or ad-hoc helicopter landing areas.
HEMS-Stars are capable of showing, at programmable intensities, white, green, blue,
red and infrared (IR) light or a combination of visible color and infrared to support
pilots wearing night vision goggles (NVGs). They can be individually programmed to
display flash patterns, including heliport identification beacon and Morse code, and
have the ability to detect light levels for automatic sunset and sunrise switching.
HEMS-Stars are fitted as standard with an 868 MHz (915 MHz in US) UHF transceiver
and can be programmed, interrogated and wireless controlled from up to 2km away
using a remote lighting controller or PC/Tablet dongle provided with each case as
standard.
Each set of 4 or 8 HEMS-Star lights are
supplied in a Nanuk resin case incorporating a charging cable from either,
mains (100-240V), vehicles (13.5-28V),
solar panels or wind turbines. Each light
has an integrated advanced charge management system to ensure optimum charging and battery condition. Typical battery life, depending on
color, light level and flash pattern, can be up to 30 hours.
HEMS-Star is fitted with rubber-soled, solid stainless steel bases to
ensure stability under the toughest rotor-wash conditions. It is IP65
rated, and has CE Certification with FCC Certification pending.
HEMS-Star at Heli-Expo, booth # 9139
For more information, visit www.heliportsequipment.com.
New Garmin GTX 345 and 335 ADS-B Transponders

Garmin International Inc.s GTX 345 and 335 all-in-one ADS-B
transponders included Extended Squitter ADS-B Out with options
for built-in WAAS, as well as dual-link ADS-B In. The transponders
integrate on many current and legacy Garmin displays. The 345
displays ADS-B traffic, subscription-free weather, GPS position
data and back-up attitude information on Garmin Pilot and Foreflight Mobile apps.
For more information, visit www.garmin.com/ads-b.
51
THESE BLADES
TURN MORE.
More Capability. More Safety. Thats why the H125 AStar is the leading U.S.
law enforcement helicopter. With advanced safety features, an open cockpit,
excellent visibility and low maintenance requirements, its backed by Airbus
Helicopters HCare three-year warranty. H125 a multi-mission workhorse.
Made in America. Time for an All-Star law enforcement aircraft? AStar delivers.
Important to you. Essential to us.
www.airbushelicoptersinc.com
Visit us at Heli-Expo 2016, Booth #9651

March 2016

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March 2016

Protecting Helicopter Occupants

The Swiss response to making a helicopter

Join us in Louisville, Kentucky on booth 3006 from March 1-3

INSIDE THIS SHIPPING CONTAINER, YOU WILL

Randy Jones, 1-972-739-6066, [email protected]

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Happy New Year

ne might argue that Heli-Expo marks

Concentrate on the tasks of major

THIS MONTH FROM

Vol. 50 | No. 3 | March 2016

26 Balancing Operational Needs

32 Forecasting Parts Needs

With 40% of maintenance coming in unscheduled,

Planning and organization are key to balancing

38 The NextGen Experience

42 The Price of Egress

U.S. helicopter operators face the same 2020 mandate

Jeff Pino heads West, collaborative IFR endowment,

The NASA Langley Research Center is just one of the

On the Cover: Photo courtesy of Heli-One

What you may have missed

V-22 Navy Variant Gets

R22-Drone Collision in Question

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Week of March 13:

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To subscribe to any of our exclusive e-mail products, go to: www.rotorandwing.com

the general U.S. population and politicians not

Question of the Month:

WHATEVER YOU FLY,

SIKORSKY | AIRBUS HELICOPTERS | AGUSTAWESTLAND

Innovation. Reliability. Performance.

Meet the Contributors

WOODROW BELLAMY III

EXTENSIVE AND GROWING

LEVEL D HELICOPTER TRAINING

and recovery techniques that would be difficult to perform in a helicopter. FlightSafetys

simulators that replicate an aircrafts exact flight and performance characteristics.

Bell Helicopter is targeting the 505

Bell plans to fly the No. 2 525 to

ell Helicopter is stepping up marketing of

and reliability testing, some avionics testing and

P-51 Crash Kills Former Sikorsky Chief Jeff Pino

ment, which Pino used

Jeff Pino, former president

U.S. Industry Groups Split on ATC Privatization

significantly impact helicopter operations in

US Army Aviation Restructure Solution Costs

CH FROM THE SOUT

SEARCH AND RESCUE, EXPANDING SQUARE, SEARC

GPS AND SAVE IT AS A WAYPOINT.

H PATTERN. E NTER THE LAT/LONG OF THE STA

A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS.

Robinson Deliveries Rise; Dollar Slows Growth

Photo courtesy of Robinson Helicopter

We are very focused on a low-cost, reliable,

Piston Helo Sales Rise Bucked GA Trend in 2015