Sikorsky unveiled renderings of its HEX concept hybrid-electric and autonomous tilt-wing technology demonstration aircraft yesterday at Heli-Expo 2024. First flight is planned for 2026 and design goals include a range greater than 500 nm, high speed, and a 9,000-pound maximum gross weight.

Developed in collaboration with GE, the design features a 1.2-megawatt GE turbogenerator propulsion pack, integrated flight and motor controls developed under Sikorsky’s Matrix program, and electric motors and power electronics developed by Sikorsky.

As the newly dubbed Vertical Aviation International (VAI) broadens its horizons, the association is managing a full plate of challenges confronting the association’s expanded reach such as infrastructure availability and operating standards.

“We've been trying to make sure we don't lose any current infrastructure that helicopters have access to today,” VAI president and CEO James Viola told AIN. “The second thing that we've been…doing is trying to get a buy-in from the government that all current infrastructure can be used by future [advanced air mobility] vehicles.”

“I tried to gain control of the helicopter, adjusted my headset and gazed outside and all I could see was reddish brown and blue, reddish brown of the lava and blue of sky, literally over and over we went, all the way yawing faster and faster.” So said Tim Hunter, the pilot of an air tour Bell 407 that crashed in Hawaii on June 8, 2022, after its tail boom separated in flight.

Speaking at the Heli-Expo Safety Symposium on Monday, Hunter described how he was flying his fourth flight of the day—a sunset tour with five passengers onboard. Hunter was flying at 1,500 feet and about 130 knots just 30 minutes into the two-hour tour from the Paradise Helicopters base at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport (PHKO) when he heard a loud “whoosh” and was pitched forward with enough force to dislodge his headset.

Leonardo announced orders and commitments for up to 200 helicopters yesterday at Heli-Expo.

The Helicopter Company (THC), owned by Saudia Arabia's Public Investment Fund, placed a firm order for 20 AW139 intermediate twins and inked a multi-year framework agreement for more than 130 Leonardo helicopters.

TRU Simulation + Training has developed the Veris virtual reality (VR) flight simulator platform for rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft and is demonstrating its first device—a Bell 505—this week at Heli-Expo 2024. Following the show, the Model 505 VR simulator will be installed at the Bell Training Academy in Fort Worth, Texas, with training for Bell customers to begin later this year.

Bell is the launch customer for the Veris simulator, which is part of TRU’s train-on-site concept, according to TRU v-p and general manager Jerry Messaris. The idea is to offer lower-cost but highly effective simulators that can be used closer to (or even at) customer locations.

The digital flip-through issue of AIN’s award-winning Heli-Expo Convention News is now available online. It’s a great way to quickly scan the news from Heli-Expo 2024, whether you’re in Anaheim attending the show or watching from afar.