Aviation Week Heli-Expo Show News Briefing - February 24-26, 2008 - (Page 6) They Can Bid Here But We Can’t Bid There; U.S. Superiority at Stake “We’re giving up our aviation superiority,” says Enstrom Helicopter president and CEO Jerry Mullins. “Our expertise is going overseas,” he says, with programs like the President’s “Marine One” (an AgustaWestland helicopter fronted by Lockheed Martin) and the Army’s Light Utility Helicopter among the more visible examples. The latter, known also as the UH-72A Lakota is being built by American Eurocopter Jerry Mullins. in Mississippi. “They assemble them in Mississippi,” Mullins says. “They do 90% of the work in France. “They say they create a hundred jobs, but there’s a lot more jobs than that in building a helicopter. Very little content’s over here in terms of American jobs.” The United States not so long ago held about 60% of the world helicopter market, Mullins says, and now it’s only about 30%. When the French or Italian or German governments need new helicopters, he says, “They never open it up to the United States for bids and that’s just not right.” What is all this to Enstrom, of Menominee, Mich., which sold just 27 helicopters last year (14 in the U.S.) and doesn’t bid for programs like the President’s ride and the Army LUH anyway? For one thing, here’s the possibility of new helicopters for Homeland Security, specifically the Border Patrol, Mullins says, noting the recent success of his 480B with police operators. And the other? “I hate to see the U.S. aviation business go down.” —Rich Piellisch S-92 Ramps Up at Sikorsky The 75th commercial S-92 will be delivered by Sikorsky by the end of March, and another 50 are on order. That’s not a bad recovery for a program that was almost canceled a few years ago before Sikorsky decided to continue with an investment that so far has reached nearly $1 billion. “We have bids out on many, many more,” says Steve Estill, Sikorsky worldwide sales vp. What has surprised him is the corporate demand for a 26,000-lb. helicopter that can seat up to 19 passengers. Several customers have had the cabins outfitted the same as their corporate jets, he noted, and “just under 20” have been ordered as Head of State transports. Sikorsky is at Booth 1641. and the S-76D is Coming Together Sikorsky’s major makeover of the S-76C, the Model D (it has a Thales glass cockpit and brand new Pratt & Whitney Canada PW210S engines) is coming together: the first two are being constructed at Sikorsky’s Keystone Helicopters subsidiary from C++ airframes delivered from Aero Vodochody in the Czech Republic. The engines will be delivered in the summer. The 1,000 lb increase they bring in hot-and-high lifting capability has opened up brand new markets to the S-76, says Sikorsky worldwide sales vp Steve Estill. Enquires are coming from the northwest U.S., India and the Middle East—regions where the old S-76 just didn’t have the oomph. Blades Key MD’s Vertical Drive Supply chain issues kept MD Helicopters’ deliveries to just 33 last year of a planned 48, so CEO Lynn Tilton is seeking to vertically integrate. Among the plans is in-house production of rotor blades, with certification expected soon and start of production possibly this month. An MD500 series helicopter is shown here. Booth 143. Air Cruisers Pneumatic Raft for AS350 Air Cruisers (Booth 4331) has partnered with Louisiana’s Era Helicopters to develop a six-person, TSO-approved liferaft for the Eurocopter AS350 which mounts in the aircraft’s right hand cargo extender. A patented pneumatic activation system allows anyone inside the helicopter to remotely deploy the raft through a modification in the cargo extender door. “This is the best of its kind on the market today,” said sales manager Patrick Nasdeo. “This liferaft is TSO-C70a approved, totally modular for use with any float system on the market regardless of manufacturer, and has triple redundancy in activation with two pneumatic actuators mounted inside the cockpit and one externally to the cargo extender.” An Air Maui AS350 is shown here. The God Machine Author Is Here Jim Chiles describes his book The God Machine: From Boomerangs to Black Hawks: The Story of the Helicopter as “a social history of helicopters,” and he’ll be at HAI Booth 2409 mid-day Sunday and Monday signing copies. “The title of this sprightly history is apt,” says Publishers Weekly, “both because of the helicopter’s seemingly miraculous ability to float above the earthly realm and pluck mortals from the jaws of disaster, and for the nearly superhuman feats of engineering accomplished in its development.” February 24, 2008 6 www.aviationweek.com/shownews http://www.aviationweek.com/shownews
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