Viola Takes the Stick as HAI’s Conductor

This year’s Heli-Expo marks the end of one era and the beginning of another as Matt Zuccaro, who had helmed the organization as president and CEO for the past 15 years, retired as announced before the show started. To succeed him, Helicopter Association International (HAI) selected James Viola, bringing on board a long-time government and military professional with deep aviation safety and helicopter experience.

He assumed his new role with HAI on January 16, and at an introductory press conference at the Anaheim Convention Center on Monday ahead of the show’s opening, he found himself thrust into the media spotlight as he addressed the tragic helicopter crash the day before which claimed the life of former NBA superstar Kobe Bryant, his daughter, and seven others, in nearby Calabasas.

“High-profile incidents and accidents certainly bring more visibility, and not in a positive way for the industry,” he told the audience, as he then touched on the safety classes and presentations being offered at the show. “But if there is any connection to what we are doing this week, it will show that this industry really goes out of its way to try to make sure that we provide the safest industry as possible on the helicopter side of the house.” He concluded his response stating, “It’s about zero fatal accidents, that’s the vision, the goal, because no loss of life is acceptable.” 

Kopter Finalizes SH09 Design

Eastern Switzerland-based Kopter Group's Pre-Series 4 (PS4), expected to fly by mid-year, will incorporate the “representative” final design of the company's new, clean-sheet single-engine SH09 helicopter. Kopter is revealing the features of the design at Heli-Expo via a full-scale mockup in seven-passenger configuration with 3D animations for other mission packages.

Kopter’s HAI exhibit will also enable pilots to test the virtual reality (VR)-based training system in development by VRM.

“We are close to finalizing the configuration of the to-be-certified aircraft,” CEO Andreas Löwenstein told AIN. “We have progressed very well with the design. We have progressed very well with the flight-testing operations.”

Kopter is targeting EASA and FAA certification by the end of 2020. “We are still convinced we can do it,” Löwenstein said, though he acknowledged that approval could slip into 2021.

“We have a very strong feeling from the market; people are really expecting this aircraft to arrive,” he added. “We have sold out roughly three years of production. And despite that, people order aircraft for years like 2024 and 2025, which is pretty amazing for a brand new aircraft.”

A major modification in the fuel system, with less fuel under the floor, has allowed Kopter to increase the cabin size of the SH09, which can now accommodate eight passengers and a pilot in transport configurations. More glass area will allow improved views for tourism passengers.

Deliveries of Garmin GFC 600H To Start Soon

Garmin’s GFC 600H helicopter flight control system (HFCS), unveiled two years ago at Heli-Expo, is nearly ready for installation in customer helicopters. The company has been giving pilots demonstrations of the system’s features in an Airbus AS350 AStar, and certification of the system is “imminent,” according to Garmin.

The GFC 600H is available in a two-axis or three-axis configuration—both have pitch and roll servos, with the latter also having a yaw servo. Later, Garmin will add a servo for the collective, according to Jack Loflin, Garmin’s engineering flight-test team lead.

To install the GFC 600H, a Garmin primary flight display is also required. The G500H TXi, for example, provides helicopter terrain awareness and warning system, Garmin’s WireAware wire-strike avoidance, synthetic vision, multiple video inputs, night-vision goggle compatibility, and “a graphical map overlay within the horizontal situation indicator (HSI) for most display formats.”

The GFC 600H is a “fly-through” flight control system, which means that it is similar to stability augmentation system-type helicopter autopilots in that it maintains a stable state that frees the pilot to perform other tasks and not have to concentrate on maintaining the helicopter’s attitude all the time.

The ability for the GFC 600H to hold the hover position by integrating groundspeed and position and not using attitude hold is unique, as is Garmin’s Helicopter Electronic Stability & Protection (HESP) limit cueing and overspeed and underspeed mitigation.

MD Helicopters Reroutes Back To Universal Avionics InSight

MD Helicopters (MDHI) has changed course regarding avionics for its new twin-engine MD 900/902 Explorer helicopter, choosing Universal Avionics’ InSight display system, the companies announced today at Heli-Expo 2020. This returns the helicopter to the Universal panel—MDHI selected InSight for the MD 902 at Heli-Expo 2013, but switched to Genesys Aerosystems avionics in March 2017.

Now, InSight will replace the MD 900/902 aging avionics with two 10.4-inch portrait, high-resolution LCD displays with LED backlighting. The system will be compatible with night vision goggles and provide the latest in synthetic vision, 2D topographical moving maps, electronic charts, checklists, system synoptics, engine instruments, and rotor data.

Tal Golan, UA rotorcraft business development manager, told AIN, “InSight will be a full solution and enhance the aircraft’s capability for IFR, VFR, and all types of operations. Insight is near certification, and then, of course, it will have to be STC’d and certified in the 902 Explorer. But the system as a whole is nearing certification."

The InSight suite will have head-up technology, as well as head-down, Golan continued. “To reduce the pilot’s workload, we have a unique aircraft view combined with synthetic vision, which elevates the pilot’s situational awareness and reduces workload. The FAA is making big efforts to reduce the number of accidents in poor visibility with loss of situation awareness, loss of spatial orientation, or controlled flight into terrain."

Cobham Unveils Titan Digital Connectivity Line

Cobham Aerospace launched its new Titan line of digital aircraft audio management products for light to medium rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft on Monday on the eve of Heli-Expo 2020. Noting the growing demand for connectivity solutions in smaller aircraft utilized by police, fire, medevac, and other public safety aerial operations, Cobham said Titan provides all the necessary functionality for those missions in a compact profile that is more than 50 percent lighter than other comparable systems.

"Titan brings helicopter and turboprop connectivity into the 21st century, providing their crews with the modern functionality that they are used to outside aviation and reflecting the requirements for multi-channel audio management systems to cope with tactical missions,” said Mickeal Daw, Cobham's product manager for audio and information management.

Titan offers Bluetooth connectivity for those onboard the aircraft, as well as restricted transmission capability, a configurable front panel, and spatially separated audio to help crewmembers distinguish conversations on different radios. The system can replace as many as nine separate communications boxes on current EMS aircraft, Cobham noted, shaving weight and equipment footprint while also easing operational complexity and reducing the amount of parts numbers needed for system certification.

Daw added the company has seen “early expressions of interest from leading OEMs, who have responded positively to the functionality and profile of the system." 

Aero Asset: Preowned Helo Sales Down, but Market Improving

The global twin-engine helicopter market conditions saw improvement last year with a tightening of the preowned inventory, but overall sales throughout the preowned helicopter market were down, according to Toronto-based Aero Asset. In its annual Preowned Helicopter Market Trends report released on Monday at Heli-Expo 2020, the company said overall preowned sales of $444 million in 2019 had declined 5 percent from the previous year, while the estimated value of available preowned helicopters declined by 18 percent, to $1.14 billion, year-over-year.

Overall, the light-twin inventory fell by 20 percent, driven by EMS operator demand for H135’s and H145’s equipped-with Thales Meghas avionics and IFR. While sales volume in the segment saw a slight decline, market conditions improved with supply (at 2019 trade level) dropping 40 percent since 2018.

For the medium helicopter segment, both supply and sales volume fell slightly last year, while preowned supply at the top end of the range has fallen significantly, according to the company.

The number of heavy twins available on the market rose slightly year-over-year, but retail sales volume increased 300 percent over the same period. Supply (at 2019 trade levels) dropped substantially by the end of the year to 21 months, illustrating the categories continuing improvement.