Latest from Mark Huber
Rotorcraft
Eurocopter Sells in Spain...
Eurocopter has received an order from the Spanish Ministry of the Interior for 12 EC135P2i light twins.
Rotorcraft
Robinson Pegs Price of R66 at $770,000
Robinson Helicopter has set an initial price of $770,000 for its Rolls-Royce RR300-powered R66 turbine single.
Appareo’s units keep watchful eye in cockpit
Appareo Systems (Booth No.
Rotorcraft Programs: Tiltrotors and Compounds
Cutting-edge research takes an enormous amount of time and while the BA609 tiltrotor still shows signs of life, it may end up a solely AgustaWestland proje
Night Flight Concepts turns police green
Several law enforcement agencies recently completed Night Flight Concepts’s (Booth No.
R66 certification ‘very close’
Robinson Helicopter founder Frank Robinson said certification of the company’s new turbine R66 was “very close” and that the company planned an initial pro
Asia orders boost Enstrom business
Enstrom Helicopter (Booth No.
Eurocopter retools, readies for biz upturn
At Eurocopter’s annual Heli-Expo breakfast press conference yesterday, CEO Lutz Bertling said the company is using the current economic downturn to retool
Edgy new blades ease Eurocopter noise footprint
New technology is a main focus of Eurocopter at Heli-Expo 2010.
Bell: tough times until 2012 uptick
Bell Helicopter CEO John Garrison told a press conference here yesterday that he did not expect an uptick in the company’s civil helicopter sales until 201
R66 hovers into Houston
The first flying turbine-powered Robinson helicopter arrived on Thursday at the George R.
Don’t overreact, groups urge in the wake of Austin crash
It remains to be seen exactly what impact Thursday’s intentional crash of a single-engine Piper Dakota into an Austin, Texas IRS building will have on any
Bristow Group consolidates amid stabilizing revenues
Bristow Group consolidated its business units and made changes in the executive suite just weeks before posting declining net income, but modestly increasi
Launch Customer Backs Away From Bell 429
EMS provider Air Methods (Booth No.
Eurocopter Closing Long Beach Service Center
American Eurocopter said it will close its company-owned and -operated Long Beach, Calif.
Eurocopter improves product support services
American Eurocopter customers will begin to see demonstrably better product support, including hard AOG (aircraft on ground) support, by the end of the sec
Eurocopter showcases Texas completion center
American Eurocopter points to a highly customized AStar AS350B3 as a prime example of the capabilities of its Grand Prairie, Texas completion center.
Manufacturer Promising New AW139 Tailbooms
In the wake of a tailboom failure on a Gulf Airways AW139 in August, AgustaWestland is assuring customers with helicopters on order that it will deliver th
Rotorcraft
Eclectic fleet powers Samaritan’s Purse in Haiti
International relief organization Samaritan’s Purse is using an eclectic fleet of its own, borrowed and chartered aircraft to respond to the ongoing humani
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Evergreen supports UAV team mapping Haitian Relief
Evergreen Helicopters is flying in unmanned systems teams using an Elbit Systems Skylark I mini man-pack UAV to map Haitian relief.
Blade Separation Preceded EC135 Crash
Preliminary indications are that blade failure played a role in the fatal crash of a 2000 American Eurocopter EC135T1 near Cave Creek, Ariz., on Sunday aft
ATC
Gulf operators reap benefits of ADS-B
Operators using the newly-activated automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) air traffic control and information system in the Gulf of Mexico wil
Rotorcraft
Erickson Goes for the Gold…in Snow-lifting
Erickson Air Crane was called in earlier this week to dump snow on the venue for the Vancouver winter games after a week of rain and unusually warm weather
Rotorcraft
Robinson Pegs Price of R66 Turbine Helicopter at $770K
Robinson Helicopter yesterday told AIN that it set an initial price of $770,000 for its Rolls-Royce RR300-powered R66 single-turbine helic
Security
Shady Behavior Places Gulf Helo Operators On Alert
Suspicious activity over the last two weeks reported near critical infrastructure and helicopter bases serving the Gulf of Mexico’s oil and gas industry ha
Glenn “Wes” Lematta 1927-2010
Glenn “Wes” Lematta, 83, the founder of Columbia Helicopters, died December 24.
Maintenance and Modifications
Eurocopter Closing Long Beach Service Center
American Eurocopter will close its company-owned and -operated Long Beach, Calif.
Regulations and Government
New Standards Proposed for Composite Helo Parts
Last month the FAA published a proposed NPRM covering new airworthiness standards for composite structures on normal-category rotorcraft under FAR Parts 27
Rotorcraft
American Eurocopter predicts improved product support
Customers will begin to see demonstrably better product support, including hard AOG (aircraft on ground) support, from American Eurocopter by the end of th
Rotorcraft
Silver State ex-CEO Airola sued for fraud
The court-appointed trustee in the 2008 Silver State Helicopters (SSH) collapse has filed suit against the company’s ex-CEO, Jerry Airola, and his top depu
