Bell delivered more civil helicopters in both the fourth quarter and all of 2019 than it did in the corresponding periods of the previous year, parent company Textron said yesterday during its quarterly investor conference call. In the last three months of 2019, Bell delivered 76 civil helicopters, up from 46 in the same year-ago period. For the full year, civil helicopter deliveries totaled 201, nine more than in 2018.
Revenue at Bell climbed $74 million last year, to $3.254 billion, while segment profit increased by $10 million, to $435 million, thanks to higher commercial volume, Textron said. Backlog at the rotorcraft manufacturer ended 2019 at $6.9 billion, up from $5.8 billion a year earlier.
“We saw higher deliveries from increased order demand that we've seen over the last year-and-a-half,” said Textron chairman and CEO Scott Donnelly. “We’re expecting continued strong execution in 2020 [at Bell], with lower military production offset by higher military aftermarket and higher commercial volumes.”
Textron is forecasting revenue of about $3.3 billion at its Bell subsidiary this year.
Vertical Aerospace last week completed the preliminary design review for what will be its first full prototype eVTOL aircraft. The new design marks a significant change from the Seraph technology demonstrator aircraft, with a wing added to boost range and speed.
The as-yet-unnamed aircraft is expected to fly in the second half of 2020 and the UK company is now anticipating type certification by late 2023 or early 2024. Vertical chief operating officer Michael Cervenka told AIN today that the company expects to deliver a cruise speed of around 150 mph and range “in the high 10s.”
On January 30, Vertical displayed the Seraph aircraft in London’s Canary Wharf financial district. The event marked the start of a new round of fund-raising for the start-up, which is backed by Ovo Energy founder Stephen Fitzpatrick. According to Cervenka, it expects to spend “north of $100 million” to get its first eVTOL aircraft type certified, with more funds required to start the program’s production phase.
Honeywell Aerospace is working with Vertical to develop the flight control system. TE Connectivity is supplying cabling and other major system suppliers are expected to be named in the next 12 months or so.
NBAA Kicks Off First Regional Forum of the New Decade
NBAA president Ed Bolen opened the association’s first regional forum of 2020 yesterday with optimism that matched the warm Florida sunshine on Atlantic Aviation’s broad ramp in Palm Beach, Florida—just five days before the 54th annual Super Bowl event was expected to pack the entire bizav side of the airfield with private, government, and corporate aircraft. “Looking into this next decade of business aviation we see business aviation on the forefront of developing eVTOL, drones, autonomous vehicles, and sustainability solutions,” Bolen told a crowd of more than 3,000 at the opening session.
He didn’t shy away from the issues, noting that aviation safety and privacy were both at the top of NBAA’s “hit list” to tackle in the next 10 years. Addressing the problems business aviation encounters in Palm Beach County, which suffers from nearly weekly Presidential temporary flight restrictions (TFRs), Bolen told AIN, “We continue to try to work with the Secret Service and others to make the TFRs as understandable and predictable as possible, but obviously we're not going as far or as fast as we would like.”
He ended with an appeal to attendees to be forward-thinking about the next generation of business aviators. “We need an educated, innovating workforce to continue this trajectory,” he said. “Among our attendees today we have 190 students registered who are here to learn about us.”
Over the past year, Airbus Helicopters has nearly doubled the number of rotorcraft now sharing flight and maintenance data with the OEM. Currently, it has nearly 1,000 helicopters representing more than 165 operators worldwide in the program.
“Collection of such valuable data is made possible thanks to our strategy of building digital solutions, such as HUMS, digital log cards, and digital logbooks, which enable customers to digitize their operations,” said Christoph Zammert, the manufacturer’s executive vice president of customer support and services.
The airframer also noted it added 250 helicopters to HCare Smart and Infinite contracts last year, increasing to 2,250 the number of its aircraft, or 19 percent of its worldwide fleet now covered by the HCare material management program. Newly-added at Heli-Expo 2020 were Papillon’s 21 H130s, and HeliPortugal’s 9 H125s.
The program provides customer support in five areas: material management, MRO and upgrades, technical support, training and flight operations, and connected services. On-call experts are available 24/7.
Able Aerospace Expands Repair, Overhaul Capabilities
Following the opening of a 60,000-sq-ft facility expansion last year, Able Aerospace Services has added new machinery that will “double the bandwidth of its machining department” and increase its business opportunities, the Textron Aviation subsidiary announced yesterday. Able’s upgrades include a machining center, a new next-generation lathe and mill, and enhanced grinding capabilities.
“These machines add significant capacity to our repair pipeline,” said Able general manager Michael Vercio. “They also allow Able to service new sizes and categories of parts, including full helicopter transmission cases and large-scale commercial fixed-wing components. The expanded capabilities allow us to complete a larger range of repairs in house and offer improved efficiency to our customers.”
Last year, the Mesa, Arizona-based aircraft component repair and overhaul specialist began undertaking work on the landing gear of the Boeing 737 Next Generation, part of the reason behind its $3 million expansion. Its enhanced capabilities extend to automating its repair and overhaul process to accommodate parts weighing up to 4,000 pounds and measuring up to 80 inches in length.
Helo Lessor LCI Adds Investors, AW139
Helicopter lessor and management company LCI signed partnerships with financial institutions Investec and Grupo Santander and added a Leonardo AW169 financed by Investec to its fleet, it said this week at Heli-Expo 2020. The AW169 is being placed on a long-term lease with an unidentified European B2B rotor services provider, the Dublin-based lessor said.
LCI, a division of global conglomerate Libra Group, also concluded an asset-backed financing arrangement with Grupo Santander for one of its Leonardo AW189 helicopters, valued at $15 million, currently on a long-term lease with a European operator.
Last year, LCI concluded more than $400 million in financing and refinancing arrangements, almost doubling its managed rotor fleet—focused on late-model medium and super-medium platforms—to some 100 aircraft valued at about $1 billion, said executive chairman Crispin Maunder.
That growth came as the half-decade downturn in the oil and gas sector bankrupted some high-profile lessors. Indeed, Maunder said much of last year’s growth came from additions to its managed aircraft roster, as institutions in possession of bankrupted lessors’ fleets put 34 helicopters in LCI’s hands. The company also added seven owned aircraft to its balance sheet.
Most of LCIs rotors are operating in the emergency medical services, search-and-rescue, and wind farm markets, Maunder said, while oil and gas accounts for 25 percent of its portfolio.
Aviaa Supplier Network Adds Training Option for Members
Aviaa has added online training services provider TrainingPort.net as a strategic partner, allowing a variety of aviation professionals who are Aviaa members to access 15-minute online lessons, the Utah-based business aviation group purchasing organization announced yesterday. “Our commitment to help train and make our aviation community safer is always a priority, and our partnership with TrainingPort.net will allow Aviaa to offer our clients enhanced digital learning for pilots, dispatchers, ground handlers, maintenance technicians, and cabin crew,” said Matthew Smith, Aviaa chief business development officer.
The online training is accessible via laptop, tablets, and smartphones, and encompasses a range of topics including crew resource management, emergency procedures, fatigue management, and high altitude physiology and effects. Aviaa members will receive a 10 percent discount on TrainingPort’s services through the new agreement. “This is another opportunity for our members to benefit from Aviaa’s global network offering economies of scale and savings on insurance and crew training.”
AGS Opening Brazil Helicopter ‘Ecosystem’
Brazilian aviation logistics firm AGS has announced AGSValley, an industrial office park aimed at companies in the rotary-wing market. “We will offer a co-working location for the aviation industry. Our objective is to let companies focus on what they do well and be able to count on suppliers or partners to do the rest,” said AGS founder and CEO Alexandre Gulla. AGS, with 20 years in logistics operations for the aeronautics sector, will be the anchor tenant in the 592,015-sq-ft (55,000-sq-m) complex, scheduled to open July 1.
Gulla's goal is to bring together MRO companies, OEMs, and parts and component manufacturers. The location in Barueri is in the northwest suburbs of São Paulo, the same region that is home to the major heliports serving the city’s helicopter fleet—the world’s largest. Near the busy Castelo Branco highway and São Paulo’s beltway, AGSValley is an hour from the Viracopos airport, which leads in freight handling, and on the way to the business aviation MRO pole at the Sorocaba Airport, and the country’s first dedicated private business aviation airport, Catarina Executive Airport, which opened last month. Sorocaba and Catarina have both applied for international status.
AGSValley will offer “agility to enter the Brazilian market with commercial, logistical, and operational support,” said AGS. The site will include a helipad.
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