Magazine Helicopter Industry #102

EUROPE - MIDDLE EAST - AMERICAS - AFRICA - ASIA - RUSSIA 

#102

THE BEST PLACE TO BE 

AT THE HEART OF SWISS ALPS 

ALL UNDER ONE ROOF 

> 24 PARKING STAND AT THE SAME TIME INCLUDING 3 BBJ 

> 7 COMFORTABLE ROOMS FOR CREW 

> 3 MEETING ROOMS 

> 2 VIP LOUNGE 

> FITNESS & SPA 

> CAMO, AOC & FLIGHT OPS AVAILABLE 

FOR ANY REQUEST 

CONTACT@ALPARK.CH 

+41 27 324 42 42 

WWW.ALPARK.CH

© Leonardo Compagny 


#102 

MILITARY 

Double Dutch 

Anniversary Heavy 

Rotary 

By Carlo Kuit & Paul Kievit 

02 

EDITORIAL 

42 

BREAKING 

NEWS 

By Frédéric VERGNÈRES 

50 

NEW 

TECHNOLOGIES 

A helicopter on Mars 

By Frédéric LERT 

4 

22 

FOCUS 

Helicopters faces 

Covid-19 

By Frédéric Vergnères 

& François Blanc 

MILITARY 

The SP dolphins take to the 

open sea! 

By Frédéric LERT 

56 

36 

INTERVIEW 

Christoph Zammert, 

Executive Vice-President 

customer support 

and services at 

Airbus Helicopters 

62 

INTERVIEW 

Russian Helicopters is 

weathering the storm 

By François BLANC 

By François BLANC 

HI I 1

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I EDITORIAL I 

ARNAUD DEVRIENDT I DIRECTEUR DE LA PUBLICATION 

Professionals in the broad sector of the aviation industry, and a large segment of the public around the world, will 

have witnessed something new in the last five months. 

With eyes turned to the Wuhan region of China, everyone has seen the speed at which the Covid-19 outbreak 

has spread. In the case of this epidemic, it is clear that global air transport has been one of the vectors of the 

spreading, albeit in spite of it. The thousands of aircraft grounded at the height of the health storm will long be 

remembered as evidence of the scale of this disaster. 

Once governments realized the nature of the problem, and built infrastructures to grapple with the magnitude of 

issues, aviation took on a completely different role. Through the repatriation of nationals, surprised by the crisis 

and far from home; and, the airlifts thrown in between continents to supply urgently needed medical equipment to 

Western countries - starting with protective masks from China, to the emergency medical equipment - the wings 

of rescue planes crisscrossed the skies on many routes across the globe. 

More locally, and unsurprisingly, it was time for the helicopter to join the dance. But this time, the challenge was 

different: first in Europe, then North America; the overcrowding of healthcare institutions required the transport 

of patients to hospital units that were better equipped to treat them. It was impossible, however, to assign all 

medical helicopters to this mission, because while the coronavirus was gripping the world, «normal» medical 

transport had to be maintained, outside of the viral tidal wave. And for this reason, military aircraft were called to 

provide support wherever needed. 

Once again, the rotary wing aerodyne has demonstrated its virtues. 

The personnel responsible for its implementation, from the manufacturers’ design offices (consulted by operators 

who had to adapt new medical equipment to their machines), to the crews and medical professionals called upon 

to be placed at the front line; all have provided further proof of the helicopter’s extraordinary usefulness. 

We invite you to discover our website 

Retrouvez l’ensemble de nos informations sur le site 

helicopter-industry.com 

HI I 2

IF YOU ARE ROTORS 

WE GOT IT! 

Nov 10 – 12, 2020 

Koelnmesse | Germany 

www.europeanrotors.eu 

organised by 

in cooperation with

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I BREAKING NEWS I 

©Boeing 

HI I 4

6 I EUROPE 

16 I INTERNATIONAL 

HI I 5

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I BREAKING NEWS I EUROPE 

©Airbus Helicopters 

H160 RECEIVES EASA APPROVAL 

Airbus Helicopters’ multi-role twin engine H160 has been granted its type certificate by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency 

(EASA), marking a new chapter for the programme. The company is expecting FAA certification to follow shortly prior to first delivery to 

an undisclosed US customer later this year. 

«The successful completion of the H160 Type Certificate is the result of several years of tremendous work and efforts accomplished jointly 

by the involved technical teams of the Agency and Airbus Helicopters in a remarkable fruitful cooperation spirit,” EASA Certification Director 

Rachel Daeschler said. “It is the result of thorough design and testing efforts, to ensure the highest safety standards are reached. The design 

of the H160 makes it suitable for a wide range of versatile missions. It is also one of the most environmentally friendly with respect to fuel 

consumption and one of the quietest helicopters of its class. My personal appreciation and warmest congratulations are conveyed to the 

involved technical staff who continuously showed high commitment for constructive collaboration to overcome the challenges inherent to this 

type certification project,» she added. 

«We are proud that the H160 has received its EASA type certificate. This achievement represents years of hard work designing, industrializing 

and defining the support ecosystem with our suppliers and partners and I would like to thank everyone who has dedicated their time and energy 

to turning this next generation helicopter into reality,” said Bruno Even, Airbus Helicopters CEO. “I now look forward to the H160 entering into 

service and offering its innovative features that bring competitiveness alongside additional comfort and safety to customers worldwide,» he 

added. 

Airbus Helicopters relied on three prototypes, the first serial aircraft, and two additional test means, the dynamic helicopter zero and 

the system helicopter zero, to develop and certify the aircraft and continues to mature the aircraft ahead of entry into service. The 

helicopters have flown over 1500 hours both for flight tests and demo flights so that customers can experience first-hand the innovation 

and added value the H160 will bring to their missions. 

MORE ABOUT H160 

HI I 6

©Norwegian armes forces 

PATRIA CONSOLIDATES ITS OPERATIONS IN NORWAY 

Patria onsolidates its helicopter maintenance operations in Norway for better customer support and efficiency selling its Bardufoss 

operations (Patria Helicopters AS) to Kongsberg Aviation Maintenance Services (KAMS) of which Patria owns 49,9% of the shares. The 

deal is effective from July 1, 2020. 

«The main purpose of the deal is to help the Norwegian Armed Forces to increase the availability of their NH90 fleet. KAMS is a strategic partner 

of the Norwegian Armed Forces, and the Bardufoss operations will have much better opportunities to operate within a bigger Norwegian entity 

in future», states Jukka Holkeri, President of Patria’s International Support Partnerships business unit. 

In Bardufoss, there is a one-stop shop for maintenance, repair and overhaul services specialised in the maintenance of helicopters. 

Patria acquired the unit in 2011. The unit employs 27 persons. 

KAMS supply maintenance, repair and modification services for aircraft, helicopters, components and field equipment to the Norwegian 

Armed Forces and other military and civilian organizations. It is located in Kjeller and Rygge in Norway, and the company employs 285 

persons. 

MORE ABOUT PATRIA 

HI I 7


©NHI 

BELGIUM COULD WITHDRAW ITS NH90TTH 

«Confronted with a profound change and an extraordinary challenge», according to the expression used in their press release, the Belgian 

Defense is forced to drastically reduce its NH90 fleet. 

In order to do so, the Belgian Ministry of Defense could prematurely withdraw from service its four NH90TTHs, the last of which was 

delivered in 2014. According to the press release, «the measures related to the TTH version of the NH-90 are do to its limited operational 

production from the imperfect industrial support (which threatens to diminish in the coming years), as a result of very costly but necessary 

upgrades and personnel shortages». The excessively high operational cost has in fact forced a 40% reduction in the 1050 flight hours 

initially allocated by the government until 2022. Although considerable, this figure, however, comes as no surprise since a report by the 

Kingdom’s Court of Auditors dating back to 2019, had already mentioned the «budgetary» drift of the aircraft. 

With the help of the crisis, the Belgian Defense would therefore choose to concentrate primarily on the NFH (Nato Frigate Helicopter) 

version which, in its maritime role, should increase the efficiency of the frigates and at the same time ensure the SAR (Search and 

Rescue) mission. However, the possible withdrawal of the land version of the NH90 within two years could have major operational 

consequences for the Land and Medical Components, which would have to find a new aircraft. Belgian Defense says it has several leads 

currently under review. In particular, there are discussions of an acquisition of H145s, which are already possessed by Germany and 

Luxembourg. A multi-purpose machine that would enable the salvage of the Belgian budget, and at the same time allow the replacement 

of the NH90 and A109, which have been in service since 26 years. To be continued… 

MORE ABOUT NH90 

HI I 8

©Cyril Abad - Safran 

SAFRAN TO SUPPORT GERMAN AND NORWEGIAN NH90 ENGINES 

Safran Helicopter Engines has signed a support contract with the NATO Helicopter Management Agency (NAHEMA), to support 

276 NH90 engines owned by BAAINBw (Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support) 

in Germany and the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (NDMA). The RTM322 engines will be covered by Safran’s Global Support 

Package (GSP) under NAHEMA management. 

This NH90 helicopters fleet is operated by the German Army (Deutsches Heer) and Navy (Deutsche Marine), and the Royal Norwegian 

Air Force (Luftforsvaret). Within this agreement, their engines will be supported under a framework agreement with NAHEMA. 

Giorgio Gomma, General Manager of NAHEMA, said: «the Global Support Package and its philosophy as a Service by the Hour Contract 

based on an availability commitment for the supported engines represents a further step in the direction of unifying In Service Support of NH90 

community». 

Olivier Le Merrer, Safran Helicopter Engines EVP Support and Services, said, «this new contract is founded on the excellent service 

experience we have developed with the German and Norwegian armed forces. It also marks a major milestone in our partnership with NAHEMA 

and European NH90 users. We are extremely proud of their commitment to a GSP supporting RTM322-powered rotorcraft. We are committed to 

offering world-class support to all European armed forces». 

In 2017, Safran Helicopter Engines and NAHEMA agreed a support program protecting RTM322 engines installed on NH90s operated by 

France’s armed forces, the Belgian Army and Navy and the armed forces of the Netherlands. 

Under a GSP, the customer receives a commitment to engine availability. Other benefits include budget stability, a fixed price per engine 

flying hour and a technical partnership with the OEM. 

MORE ABOUT SAFRAN HELICOPTER ENGINES 

HI I 9


KOPTER SH09 TEST FLIGHT GO AHEAD IN SICILY 

The flight test activities of the third prototype of the SH09 single-engine helicopter (designated P3) have restarted in Pozzallo, Sicily, in 

Italy last week. The Kopter flight test & prototype maintenance teams arrived in Pozzallo earlier this month to prepare P3 and perform 

all necessary technical checks to resume the flight tests that had been halted since the 10th of March due to the Covid-19 situation. 

Richard Grant, Kopter Chief Test Pilot, commented: «We are very pleased to be back in Pozzallo to resume our work on P3. The first few flights 

have been used to re-familiarise ourselves with the operation and to complete some essential training for flight crew and ground staff; there 

has even been the opportunity to train new team members. Good progress has been made and we are ready to restart our experimental flights». 

The new flight testing activities are to further assess the benefits provided by the new main rotor configuration. Since January 2020, P3 

has been flying with a modified main rotor head and next generation rotor blades, optimising the dynamic behaviour of the helicopter 

and further reducing the pilot workload in all phases of flight. In the forthcoming months, additional advancements in the programme 

will also be tested on P3, a new tail rotor hub design, currently being bench-tested in Ennetmoos (Switzerland), the Garmin avionics suite 

G3000H, a new aerodynamics package for the Tail Plane, vertical fin and upper cowlings, extensively validated through CFD analysis and 

Wind Tunnel testing and the final main rotor configuration with the latest blades and revised flight controls. 

During the three-month period without flying, Kopter has continued to maintain a good level of operational activities, while ensuring the 

health and safety of its staff at all times. Kopter has been able to leverage its extensive digital approach to operations and organisation 

of work to easily implement efficient home office solutions. A close collaboration with partners and suppliers have allowed the progress, 

under the restrictions in place, of the SH09’s development and industrialisation processes. Engineering teams continued the design 

activities for the upcoming P3 upgrades and for the PS4 (Pre-Series 4) configuration definition, while the Operations and Procurement 

teams continued to ensure the delivery of parts for both aircraft. 

Under the ongoing integration process with Leonardo, Kopter is already benefitting from complementary skills, resources and tools at 

all levels, greatly supporting the SH09 programme development and production of parts. The SH09 is a real game changer addressing 

evolving needs and delivering more capabilities at competitive costs. The end-to-end digitalisation of the SH09 programme will be a key 

enabler. 

MORE ABOUT SH09 

HI I 10

©E.Raz 

FRENCH AERONAUTICAL RECOVERY PLAN : 

10 H160’S FOR THE GENDARMERIE AND MORE. 

In order to support the aeronautics industry in France, the government launched on 9 June a vast support plan of 15 billion euros in aid, 

investments and loans and guarantees. The military component of this vast aeronautics support plan is based on the anticipation of 

orders to the tune of €600 million. 

According to the French Minister for the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, this acceleration will «make it possible to safeguard more than 1 

200 jobs for 3 years, throughout France, half of which will benefit subcontractors». 

Airbus Helicopters and its sub-contractors have been given a boost in particular, since the manufacturer has been notified of an advance 

order for eight Caracal helicopters which will replace the Air Force’s Puma helicopters from 2023, instead of 2028-2029. The order is 

worth a total of 300 million euros and «the equivalent of 960 jobs preserved for 3 years», the minister said. 

Other air fleets benefiting from this support include the Civil Security, which should receive two H145s for a total of 32 million euros to 

partially compensate for the loss of four aircraft. 

The most important announcement, however, remains the advance order of ten H160s for the Gendarmerie in order to partially renew 

the fleet of 26 AS350 Squirrels. These single-engine aircraft have in fact become obsolete, particularly for missions in urban areas, which 

have been banned since 2014. 

This order, worth €200 million, should enable the Gendarmerie to have a streamlined fleet of fully multi-purpose aircraft. According to 

the Ministry, these twelve helicopters ordered (Civil Security and Gendarmerie) should preserve the equivalent of 640 jobs for 3 years. 

MORE ABOUT AIRBUS HELICOPTERS 

HI I 11


©Airbus Helicopters 

FIVE- BLADED H145 RECEIVES TYPE CERTIFICATION BY EASA 

Airbus Helicopters’ five-bladed H145 has been certified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), clearing the way for 

customer deliveries towards the end of summer 2020. The certification covers the full range of capabilities, including single-pilot and 

instrument flight rules (IFR) and single engine operations (Cat.A/VTOL), along with night vision goggles capability. 

Unveiled at Heli-Expo 2019 in Atlanta, this latest upgrade of the H145 family adds a new, innovative five-bladed rotor to the multimission 

H145, increasing the useful load of the helicopter by 150 kg (330 lb). The simplicity of the new bearingless main rotor design 

will also ease maintenance operations, further improving the benchmark serviceability and reliability of the H145, while improving ride 

comfort for both passengers and crew. Certification by the Federal Aviation Administration will follow later this year. The certification 

for the military version of the five-bladed H145 will be granted in 2021. 

Powered by two Safran Arriel 2E engines, the H145 is equipped with full authority digital engine control (FADEC) and the Helionix digital 

avionics suite and includes a 4-axis autopilot. 

«Our new five bladed H145 is an excellent example of our quest for continuous improvement and providing incremental innovation that responds 

to our customers’ requirements“, said Bruno Even, Airbus Helicopters CEO. “This helicopter combines value-added features with the robustness 

and the reliability of a tried-and-tested bestseller, making it very competitive in the light twin-engine market.» 

MORE ABOUT H145 

HI I 12

©NHV 

NHV EXTENDS OFFSHORE CONTRACT WITH ITHACA ENERGY 

NHV Group has signed a five-year contract extension with Ithaca Energy (UK) Limited, providing aviation services to the Ithaca Energy 

Group’s operated FPF-1 installation, Alba, Captain and Erskine fields in the Scottish North Sea. The extension covers seven-day-a-week 

coverage out of Aberdeen and will start in January 2021. 

NHV will provide two H175 (primary + back-up) aircraft for this operation. The state-of-the-art H175 aircraft, an Airbus Helicopter’s Super 

Medium type is specifically designed to meet evolving mission needs in the oil and gas industry. 

«We are extremely pleased with this important agreement, further strengthening our solid partnership with Ithaca Energy. This extension is a 

direct result of NHV’s continued commitment to safety and top-class service for our client and their passengers. We thank Ithaca Energy for 

their continued trust in NHV and we look forward to supporting them in the years ahead», said Jamie John, NHV’s Base Manager in Aberdeen. 

MORE ABOUT NHV 

HI I 13


AW159 CONDUCTS FIRST SUCCESSFUL FIRINGS OF THE THALES « MARTLET LIGHTWEIGHT » 

Leonardo and Thales announced the first successful firings of the Thales «Martlet» Lightweight Multirole Missile (LMM) from Leonardo’s 

AW159 Wildcat helicopter. The firings were conducted as part of the UK MoD’s Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon (FASGW) programme 

and demonstrated the integration of the Martlet onto the AW159 platform. This represents a major milestone for the programme and will 

enable this high-end capability to enter service with the Royal Navy later this year. 

The firing trials were conducted from 27th April to 21st May 2020 and despite the current COVID-19 situation, Leonardo and Thales were 

able to support the UK Ministry of Defence by completing this critical activity. All of the teams involved had to adopt strict distancing 

procedures, in some cases having to find new ways of working, in order to make sure that the trials could go ahead. It is a testimony to 

the professionalism of those involved that these trials were successfully completed under such challenging and novel circumstances. 

“This major milestone demonstrates that the combination of the AW159 Wildcat and Martlet missile will be a flexible and effective 

tool for the Royal Navy. Next year the Wildcat fleet will embark on Carrier Strike Group missions with HMS Queen Elizabeth on its 

maiden operational deployment. As the only British company to design and manufacture helicopters on-shore, we’re extremely proud 

to be equipping the UK Armed Forces with world-beating sovereign capabilities.” said Nick Whitney, Managing Director of Leonardo 

Helicopters (UK). 

«The successful live firings of the Thales LMM Martlet from the AW159 Wildcat is a key milestone in the programme, delivering a significant 

step-change in capability for the platform. LMM Martlet will ensure that the Wildcat has the best-in-class offensive capability to protect HMS 

Queen Elizabeth and her task group during her maiden operational deployment next year. With each platform capable of carrying up to 20 

Martlet, the Wildcats deployed with the task group will be a significant deterrent to anyone wishing to interfere with UK interests.» said Philip 

McBride, General Manager, Integrated Airspace-protection Systems, Thales UK. 

In July 2014, Leonardo signed a contract with the UK Ministry of Defence to integrate, test and install the MBDA Sea Venom (heavy) 

and Thales LMM (light) missile systems onto Royal Navy AW159 Wildcat helicopters, a programme called Future Anti Surface Guided 

Weapon (FASGW). 

The FASGW (light) part of the programme has now seen the LMM, with its associated launcher and airborne laser guidance unit, 

successfully integrated into the Leonardo AW159 Wildcat sensor, displays and avionics systems. The LMM provides a step-change in 

capability for the Royal Navy which, in the maritime environment, faces a major challenge in engaging smaller, fast-moving, asymmetric 

threats, due to their high mobility, their small thermal and radar signatures and the severe background clutter encountered. The LMM 

is capable of surmounting these issues where traditional electro-optic and radar guidance systems do not provide the certainty of hit 

required. On-board the AW159 Wildcat platform, the LMM Martlet could also allow operators to engage air targets such as UAVs and 

other maritime helicopters. The launchers are mounted to the AW159 via the new Leonardo Weapon Wing, developed at the Company’s 

design and manufacturing facility in Yeovil and first trialled last year. Each weapon wing will be able to carry either ten Martlet or two 

Sea Venom missiles and generates additional lift for the helicopter in forward flight, reducing demands on the main rotor. 

MORE ABOUT AW159 

HI I 14

Helicopter Industry TV, 

Everywhere ... 

Every month, UJ TV & HI TV takes an in-depth look 

at two issues making the headlines of the industry 

with a distinctive editorial slant and style.

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I BREAKING NEWS I INTERNATIONAL 

©Airbus 

JAPAN’S NATIONAL POLICE AGENCY ORDERS FIVE NEW HELICOPTERS 

Japan’s National Police Agency (NPA) has ordered one new H225 and four H135 helicopters as part of its fleet modernisation programme. 

Currently operating 12 H135, four H155 and six AS365 helicopters, with one H215 and two H225 already on order, NPA deploys its 

growing fleet for missions including law enforcement, personnel and VIP transport, goods transportation, disaster relief, as well as wide 

area support. The five new helicopters will complement the agency’s law enforcement capabilities. The new order will take NPA’s Airbus 

fleet to 30. 

«Airbus Helicopters treasures the opportunity to support Japan’s wide-ranging law enforcement missions for more than 30 years with our light 

twin, medium and heavy-lift helicopters. We thank NPA for its continued trust built over the years, and welcome the agency as a new customer 

for our Super Puma helicopters. With an enlarged fleet not just in numbers, but also in range and capacity, we are fully confident that the new 

helicopters will be a timely addition, reinforcing the agency’s operations,» said Guillaume Leprince, Managing Director of Airbus Helicopters 

Japan. 

MORE ABOUT AIRBUS HELICOPTERS 

HI I 16

©Erickson 

ERICKSON WINS IDIQ CONTRACT 

Erickson Incorporated won an indefinite delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple-award contract as subcontractor to Metson Marine 

Services,Inc. The Naval Undersea Warfare Center Operational Support Services for Ocean Testing Contract will be performed at 

government locations based on each individual task order, all over the world. The contract provides for: 

•5-year IDIQ contract with three awardees 

•$22,950,296 estimated total value 

•Erickson scope focused on fixed and rotary wing services 

•Scope includes torpedo recovery, range clearing and special test aircraft 

Completion is expected by June 2025. 

«This contract builds on a long history of Erickson support to the U.S. Navy. We are thrilled to be working with Metson Marine Services and 

are honored to be trusted with this critical U.S. Navy Mission.» add Kevin Cochie, VP and General Manager Defense and National Security, 

Erickson 

MORE ABOUT ERICKSON 

HI I 17


©Russian Helicopters 

ROSTEC MADE FIRST CIVILIAN MI-8AMT ARTIC HELICOPTER 

Russian Helicopters started serial production of Mi-8AMT Arctic helicopters for civilian customers. Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant made the 

first rotorcraft which is ready to start operation. 

Mi-8AMT helicopter in its Arctic version completed the flight-test program and the procedure of acceptance by an independent 

commission of the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya). The rotorcraft’s main features include a unique system for heating 

transmission parts, designed by JSC «National helicopter center Мil & Kamov». The system provides for quick start of engines in 

extremely low temperatures, even if the helicopter is deployed without a hangar for a long time. 

The system for heating transmission parts is complemented by an improved system for thermal protection of the cargo cabin and 

special thermal insulation shutters in sliding doors and cockpit doors. Special cover protects the helicopter from low temperatures, high 

humidity and strong wind, if it is deployed without a hangar for a long time. The helicopter systems have teflon hose, which is resistant 

to freezing temperatures, instead of rubber hose. 

MORE ABOUT MI-8 

HI I 18

«New Mi-8AMT helicopter will be sought after by many Russian companies and government agencies implementing projects and tasks in the 

Arctic. The first rotorcraft is ready to start operation, and negotiations with several potential Russian customers are underway» stated Director 

General of Russian Helicopters Andrey Boginsky. «The holding company is making every effort to provide operators with reliable and modern 

helicopters, which is irreplaceable when many important tasks related to work in the region are carried out.» 

The helicopter is equipped with two additional fuel tanks, which allow it to fly long distances. This in very important for northern districts 

with low population density. The Arctic version of Mi-8AMT can fly up to 1,400 km. An emergency floatation system can also be installed 

on the helicopter to fly over a vast area of waters in the Arctic. 

«This helicopter is necessary for air medical services, maintenance of facilities of the fuel and energy complex, and for meeting the needs 

of polar expeditions. It may also help organize transportation in northern regions,» emphasized Managing Director of Ulan-Ude Aviation 

Plant Leonid Belykh. 

When the helicopter was designed, great attention was given to ensuring that it is capable of flying over the Arctic terrain with few 

features, in the conditions of polar night, harsh weather, and when satellite and radio signals are lost. For that purpose the rotorcraft is 

equipped with a special navigation complex. 

The complex includes several navigation systems for locating the helicopter, a radar with horizontal and vertical sweep of information 

on the weather, a digital autopilot, and radio stations with a wide range of frequencies. The helicopter is capable of automated hovering, 

flying a planned hovering route, and landing. The navigation system considerably reduces the load on the crew, and ensures greater 

safety of the flight. 

HI I 19


©Bell 

BELL & BOEING DELIVER 400TH V-22 OSPREY 

Bell Textron Inc. and Boeing have delivered the 400th V-22 Osprey to the United States Department of Defense. The U.S. Air Force 

Special Operations command received the CV-22 on June 2, marking a milestone for the world’s first production tiltrotor aircraft. 

«The delivery of the 400th V-22 represents the demand for this platform’s unique capabilities. It is a testament to the diligence of the men and 

women from Bell, Boeing and our entire supply chain who build and deliver this incredible aircraft to our customers,” said Kurt Fuller, Bell V-22 

vice president and Bell Boeing program director. “For over 30 years, the people who support the Bell Boeing V-22 have been the foundation in 

bringing tiltrotor capabilities to the world.» 

The CV-22 is the Special Operations Forces (SOF) variant of the V-22 Osprey. The CV-22 Osprey is a tiltrotor aircraft that combines 

the vertical takeoff, hover and vertical landing qualities of a helicopter with the long-range, fuel efficiency and speed characteristics 

of a turboprop aircraft. Its primary mission is to conduct long-range infiltration, exfiltration and resupply missions for Air Commandos 

around the world and at a moment’s notice. 

«It’s been over 20 years since the first production V-22 was delivered, and we are proud to reach another milestone in our 400th delivery. 

V-22s continue to be in high demand, protecting our country and our allies around the world through combat operations, international training 

partnerships and humanitarian missions,» said Marine Corps Col. Matthew Kelly, program manager for the V-22 Joint Program Office 

(PMA-275). «This platform’s impact can’t be overstated.» 

MORE ABOUT V-22 OSPREY 

HI I 20

BELL UNVEILS INDUSTRIALISTS ON THE INVICTUS PROGRAM 

In his latest press release, Bell Textron Inc. has announced agreements with nine premier aerospace industry leaders to form 

Team Invictus. The companies are producing the Bell 360 Invictus prototype submission as part of the U.S. Army’s Future Attack 

Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) program. Each industry partner brings unique experience and technological expertise to provide a 

low-risk path for the Army’s acquisition of a lethal, affordable rotorcraft with advanced mission systems to modernize aviation for multidomain 

operations (MDO). «Team Invictus is working together to show how cutting-edge technology will give soldiers the ability to confidently 

operate in the complex and contested battlespace of multi-domain operations,” said Chris Gehler, vice president and program director for FARA 

at Bell. “Future Vertical Lift is critical for the Army’s ability to win in multi-domain operations with FARA defeating defensive layers and the Future 

Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) exploiting opened areas to achieve operational objectives.» 

Team members are working closely together to deliver the Bell 360 Invictus prototype using a configuration that emphasizes operational 

availability, sustainability, and maintainability. The members of Team Invictus include: 

• Astronics Corporation for a modular framework of airframe power generation, conversion, and distribution products 

• Collins Aerospace for integration of a new generation of avionics hardware and software featuring cyber-hardened and digital backbone 

solutions to configure and integrate mission systems 

• GE Aviation for the 3,000-SHP T901 engine and working on the aircraft Health Awareness System (HAS) 

• ITT-Enidine Inc. for the passive Liquid Inertia Vibration Eliminator (LIVE) units for all modes of operation including high speed 

• L3Harris Technologies for the WESCAM MX-15D, an advanced, stabilized multi-sensor, multi-spectral imaging and targeting system 

• Parker Lord for rotor dampers, the main rotor CF bearing, the tail rotor tension torsion strap, and the Active Vibration Control (AVC) System 

• Mecaer Aviation Group, Inc. for a fully retractable, tail dragger landing gear system 

• MOOG Inc. for flight control computer (FCC) electronics, software, and flight control actuation, critical components of the Bell fly-by-wire, Flight 

Control System (FCS) 

• TRU Simulation + Training for a high-fidelity flight simulator that gives pilots a true sense of the aircraft flight controls 

Team Invictus is applying digital design and manufacturing technologies, including maintenance as part of the design process, and use 

of emerging commercial practices to bring a holistic view of digital models, processing and analysis to reduce lifecycle maintenance 

and servicing requirements—and thus reducing sustainment costs. 

«Each team member brings a capability that is vital to the success of the Bell 360 and we are honored to have proven, capable, and wellrespected 

industry partners on Team Invictus,» stated Gehler. «This is an outstanding industry team, and we are working diligently to produce 

a FARA weapon system that is operationally effective and affordably sustainable, as well as complementary and in many ways common to the 

FLRAA program.» Following the selection of the Bell 360 Invictus for the competitive prototype in March 2020, Team Invictus continues 

to rapidly move forward. Team Invictus’ collective expertise reduces program risk while preserving the Army’s FARA schedule leading to 

a first flight targeted for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022. 

MORE ABOUT BELL 360 INVICTUS 

HI I 21

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I FOCUS I 

BY FRÉDÉRIC VERGNÈRES & FRANÇOIS BLANC 

©HIOWAA 

HI I 22

HI I 23


©ALAT 

OPERATION RESILIENCE: 

ALAT IMPLEMENTS ITS NH90S 

After the French Air Force, it is the French Army’s turn, and 

its’ Aviation Légère de l’Armée de Terre (ALAT) -Light Aviation 

Army – to implement its air assets. On March 28th, three 

transfers were administered at the benefit of six patients 

suffering from Covid-19. The transfers were carried out by 

two aircrafts from the 1st Regiment of Helicopter Combat 

(1st RHC) in Phalsbourg, in order to relieve hospitals in 

the East of France. Flights were carried out in the morning 

hours from Metz to Essen (Germany), and from Mulhouse 

to Geneva (Switzerland) in the afternoon. On Sunday the 

29th, the same aircrafts were also used to evacuate 6 other 

patients from Besançon to Grenoble and Clermont-Ferrand; 

and from Metz to Essen in Germany. At the end of the daily 

missions, the two aircrafts left for Phalsbourg to undergo a 

complete decontamination phase. 

In order to establish the procedure for transferring intensive 

care patients, the 1st RHC worked on the implementation 

of an operational protocol in cooperation with GAMSTAT 

– Groupement Aéromobilité de la Section Technique de 

l’Armée de Terre – Aeromobility Group of the Ground 

Army Technical Section, the units of the SAMU – Service 

d’Aide Médicale Urgente / Emergency Medical Assistance 

Service – and the 2nd Dragon Regiment Régiment de 

Dragon, a unit specialized in nuclear, biological and chemical 

(NRBC) threats. «The idea was to be able to adapt the existing 

equipment to that of the SAMU, thus, limiting as much as 

possible the manipulations during the transfers between the 

ambulance and the helicopter, but also to preserve the initial 

containment of the patient,» said a spokesman of the Alat. 

To do so, the teams had to reinvent the NH90 cargo bay to 

be able to integrate the two conditioned stretchers and the 

resuscitation systems. Models, which are not normally used 

on these devices during EVASAN missions abroad. 

In addition to the integration of the medical equipment, 

all stakeholders had to take into account the isolation 

of the cockpit from the rest of the teams in the hold, by 

integrating a protective device between the two zones. 

The implementation of basic procedures between the crew 

and the EMS medical teams were also defined. Through 

the integration of military medical personnel and bunker 

personnel, they were capable of guaranteeing, not only the 

handling of the helicopter’s safety elements (door, cargo 

hold, etc.), but also the autonomy of the batteries for the onboard 

medical equipment. 

HI I 24

Despite the complexity of implementing such a system, the 

mission testing and certification phases were completed 

in a very short period of time. They were validated the day 

before the first mission. However, from the very beginning 

of the epidemic and the subsequent containment measures, 

GAMSTAT had already envisioned a working hypothesis of 

this type of mission, and visualizing the action plan with 

the airborne elements available in the territory. Already 

particularly solicited by external operations, the 1st RHC in 

Phalsbourg remains, after a very busy weekend, on high alert 

for new transfer missions. At the moment, there are none 

planned, but they can be triggered at any time, based on the 

needs of the hospitals. For the General Staff, «these missions, 

and the air assets committed to them are used to meet the 

needs of the health services, and are carried out on the orders of 

the President of the Republic and the Ministry of Solidarity and 

Health». The fact remains however, in the event of a crisis 

escalation the helicopter system could without problem be 

reinforced on other sites in the hexagon, from the Caymans 

base at the CFIA – Centre de Formation Inter Armées – in 

Le Cannet des Maures and those of the 5th Regiment of 

Helicopter Combat (5e RHC) in Pau. 

MORE ABOUT ALAT 

HI I 25


©Armee Air 

FRENCH AIR FORCE INFLATES 

THE « RÉSILIENCE » OPÉRATION 

WITH EC725 CARACAL 

After the ALAT – Aviation Légère de l’Armée de Terre -, it is 

the French Air Force’s turn to use its heliborne assets. As of 

April 1st, the French Air Force set up a plot of three Caracals 

and six crews of the EH 1/67 Pyrénées at the Villacoublay 

Air Base 107, south of Paris. Operations began just a few 

hours after the arrival of the machines, as two EC725s each 

transferred two Covid-19 patients from the Ile-de-France 

region from orly to Caen and Angers. 

To keep up with the pace of the missions, the squadron 

will also operate the EC225, rented from RTE, for logistical 

purposes between the Cazaux base and the Villacoublay 

site. Two SA330 Puma from the EH 1/44 Solenzara should 

also reinforce the Paris operation in the coming days. 

The request for reinforcements for this type of mission is 

in fact not really a surprise for the crews from the Pyrenees 

who have been preparing for several weeks to be put on 

alert for Covid missions of inter-hospital transfers. As soon 

as the virus became more powerful, the squadron and the 

CEAM – Military Air Test Centre – worked on the possibility 

of converting the EC725‘s hold into a medical «cluster», 

following the example of the modifications carried out on 

the Army’s NH90. 

The hold, which houses the medical equipment, should not 

have any electronic interaction with the cockpit in order to 

remain fully autonomous. In addition, the crew should be 

separated from the rest of the hold by the installation of a 

protection system. 

With this new mission, the human element should find itself 

particularly solicited on several fronts. Currently engaged in 

external operations, in particular for «special forces», the EH 

1/67, which operates a total of nine EC725 Caracal aircraft, 

will also continue to maintain an aircraft and its crew on H24 

alert for the public service search and rescue mission. 

MORE ABOUT RESILIENCE 

HI I 26

CAESAR AT THE BEDSIDE 

OF THE ITALIANS 

While Italy is paying a heavy price against the Covid-19, with 

more than 6,000 deaths to date, the country has set up a 

health alert with the Caesar HH-101s from the 9th Stormo 

of Grazzanise and the 15th Stormo of Cervia. 

On March 6th, the regional emergency and rescue agency 

of Lombardy called upon the Italian Air Force to evacuate 

a 62-year-old patient suffering from the Coronavirus, 

transporting her from Cremona to the Morelli Hospital in 

Sondalo (Sondrio). This first mission was carried out from 

Cervia, headquarters of the 15th Stormo, specialized in SAR 

missions. The helicopter, with a specialised medical team 

on board for bio-containment transport, took off from Cervia 

shortly after receiving the mission order and reached the 

hospital in Cremona, where it loaded the patient. The aircraft 

then left again for Bormio, where a subsequent transfer was 

completed to the Morelli Hospital in Sondalo. 

for possible health surveillance, military infrastructures 

spread over the entire peninsula. From Valle d’Aosta to 

Sicily, about 2200 rooms and approximately 6600 beds, 

including their own medical staff from the Army, Navy, Air 

Force and Carabinieri, have been provided at the request of 

the Civil Defense in order to meet the needs of the Lombard 

territories. According to the Italian Ministry of Defense, «this 

operational alert is expected to last more than a month. » 

Initially dedicated to search and rescue missions in support 

of special operations, the 11 HH-101A Caesar aircraft of the 

Italian Air Force are also capable of loading and transporting 

special insulated stretchers, A.T.I. (Aircraft Transit Isolator), 

designed specifically for air transport in bio-containment of 

highly infectious patients. This modular system, equipped 

with respiratory equipment, allows the transport of patients 

in bio-containment mode. In addition to the HH-101A, the 

ATI modules have also been certified for use on the C-130J, 

C-27J and KC-767 of the Italian Air Force. 

In the last two weeks of march, five such transports have 

been carried out by 15° Stormo, with the support of crews 

from 9 Wing Grazzanise, who also depart from the Cervia 

base to intervene in various locations throughout the Italian 

territory.Since the first cases of the contagion were observed 

in the north of Italy, the Armed Forces have provided, 

MORE ABOUT ITALIAN AIR FORCE 

©Aeronautica Militare 

HI I 27


©F.Lert 

HEALTH CRISIS: THE FRENCH 

GENDARMERIE AIR SUPPORT 

Along with army, air force, Sécurité civile and air ambulance 

helicopters commitment, rotary-wings aircrafts of the 

Gendarmerie nationale, in France, participate in many types 

of missions related to the current health crisis. As for the 

armed forces and the Sécurité civile, their actions have 

multiplied over the past few weeks, as their usual role had to 

be maintained in full epidemic. 

Since 1953, the Forces Aériennes de la Gendarmerie 

nationale, or FAGN (national Gendarmerie air forces), in 

France and in French overseas territories, are the only 

internal security air forces. In 2020, they consist of 56 

helicopters and 32 drones, divided into 23 units in France and 

6 units overseas. The rotary-wings aircrafts implemented 

by this particular Corps of the helicopter state fleet are of 

three types: AS350 (for 26 of them), EC145 and EC135 (15 

aircrafts of each type). All those units are commanded by 

the CFAGN (Commandement des forces aériennes de la 

gendarmerie nationale) from the Vélizy-Villacoublay air 

force base, located a few kilometers of Paris. The fleet is 

operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 

It flies between 18 000 and 19 300 hours per year, depending 

on the year. In total, 152 pilots are assigned to it, on a global 

workforce of 483 officers and non-commissioned officers. 

The helicopters operational availability rate is «greater than 

80 %, thanks to our mechanics and to the Groupement de 

maintien en condition opérationnelle (GMCO) based at Orléans 

and Nîmes. The GMCO perform maintenance operations every 

1200 hours for the benefit of the AS350s, every 1000 and 800 

hours, respectively, on the EC135s and EC145s», said colonel 

Emmanuel Sillon, FAGN commander. 

Three action frameworks 

Deployed year round in the French airspace, Gendarmerie 

helicopters work in three areas: information gathering and 

decision support tool, intervention and crises management 

and, finally, assistance and rescue. The first part includes 

policing and judicial police mission. «Air assets allow us 

to cover large spaces, to anticipate the evolution of events 

on ground and to provide valuable insights to ground units. 

Thanks to its on-board advanced equipment, the helicopter is 

facing more and more complex internal security missions. The 

aforementioned equipment includes a thermal camera able to 

film day and night with optimal optical resolution (it allows to 

read a licence plate one kilometre away); loudspeakers and a 

spotlight capable, for example, of lighting a soccer filed from 

300 m high; a winch and a rope jib used for quick commandos 

drop-off, such as the GIGN (Groupement d’intervention de la 

gendarmerie nationale) or the national police RAID (Recherche, 

assistance, intervention, dissuasion).» 

In addition to this equipment, a crisis mapping system is 

used: the SC2. «SC2 is a complex system which aims within 

a few hours to establish a cartography of a possibly modified 

environment. In crisis management, time is a strong constraint. 

Images acquisition of the situation and associated cartography 

acquisition are essential for the conduct of operations. In 

crisis, the map becomes obsolete. Satellite images are slow 

to come. The crisis upsets usual references: it induces a 

change of landscape and of values. However, it is essential 

to understand the crisis in all its dimensions (intrinsic nature, 

intensity, extent, kinetic). Thus, the SC2 crisis cartography 

system brings real operational added value in order to plan, 

HI I 28

prepare and conduct operations, both for the military authorities 

and for administrative or judicial authorities. Let’s keep in mind 

that this cartography system had provided valuable services in 

the framework of the French Var department flood occurred in 

2019», said colonel Emmanuel Sillon. 

Intervention and crisis management 

The judicial police mission consists in supporting ground 

units looking for, or in pursuit of criminals. On-board 

equipment provides forensic evidence.The second part 

of the role played by Gendarmerie nationale helicopters 

consists in intervention and crisis management. «Helicopter 

is a valued ally of counterterrorism capacities and of illegal 

immigration control. This was the case during Trèbes hostage 

taking, on 23 march 2019, for the projection of intent elements 

and intelligence gathering. In the French overseas territories, 

in particular in Mayotte, the Gendarmerie air section (SAG: 

section aérienne de gendarmerie) peforms administrative police 

missions focused on the fight against illegal immigration from 

Comoros islands.» 

Finally, in terms of assistance and rescue, gendarmerie 

helicopters are implemented «at sea and in the mountains 

to protect human lives, to ensure the judicial processing of 

claims and, thus, to protect victims interests. Where access is 

impossible for men and when particular technique is necessary 

(hoist), helicopters are taking over.» The health crisis related 

to Covid-19 epidemic has required the transfer of many 

patients (more than 600 on mid-April) to French hospitals 

able to accommodate new patients, but also to care facilities 

located in Germany, Switzerland, Luxemburg and Austria. 

FAGN were called upon for this. «Vélizy-Villacoublay, Lyon and 

Hyères SAGs contribute to these transfers, in order to decongest 

saturated hospitals. 

The Vélizy-Villacoublay SAG had been integrated in the Paris-Orly 

hub.” More precisely, “In the early days of April, seven missions 

of this kind had been performed, essentially from the sanitary 

hub established at Paris-Orly and Lyon. Two Gendarmerie aerial 

units have been solicited: the Vélizy-Villacoubaly and Lyon 

SAGs.» 

The anti spread fight 

Like the other state and private operators called to transfer 

infected patients, FAGN has to adapt helicopters layout. 

«Our aircrafts are prepared in accordance with the rules issued 

by the Ministry of Health for the air ambulance fleets. Those 

rules were taken over by Airbus Helicopters through two of 

its recent publications. Otherwise, each aircraft is disinfected 

after each mission: headset microphone, flight controls and 

handles are carefully cared for. The facilities are disinfected 

with every crew change. Individually, during these missions, 

crews wear protection’s masks, gloves, protective gown, also 

in accordance with the standards established by the medical 

authorities.» Along those missions, FAGN aircrafts participate 

in the support of the internal security forces territorial action, 

in relation to the containment measures, «just like vital points 

of interest security operations aiming to preserve the people 

energy, food and sanitary supply chain.» 

MORE ABOUT 

GENDARMERIE NATIONALE 

HI I 29


©Leonardo 

LEONARDO AT THE HEART 

OF COVID-19 TRANSPORT 

Faced with the pandemic, manufacturers are adapting and 

striving to find new solutions to effectively support the work 

of caregivers, particularly during the transfer of patients 

from one hospital to another by helicopter. 

Italy, which has been particularly affected by Covid-19 

in Europe, has been able to benefit from the technologies 

introduced by Leonardo in this field. In order to limit the 

risk of contagion for the crew and medical personnel, 

biological containment solutions specifically developed by 

the manufacturer were used for patient transfers. These biocontainment 

“cells” have been developed in collaboration 

with the aeronautical authorities (ENAC – Italian Civil Aviation 

Authority and EASA – European Aviation Safety Agency) and 

comply with European standards for air ambulance services. 

In addition to its equipment, Leonardo provides in parallel 

real-time technical assistance and sanitation procedures 

before and after patient transport and specific measures to 

be followed when loading patients in order to limit the risk of 

Covid-19 contagion. 

Adaptation according to the cabin 

The installation of the biological containment solution 

developed by Leonardo not only optimises the space on board 

the helicopters but also completely isolates the pilots and 

passengers, while ensuring functionality and airworthiness. 

To integrate this solution, Leonardo had to adapt its systems 

to the constraints on board the helicopters, such as power 

supply and ventilation systems, to make them as efficient as 

those used in hospital intensive care units. If the integration 

of such a system seems at first sight easy for a heavy 

military aircraft with a large cabin, type HH-101 “Caesar”, 

the same cannot be said for private operators. In fact, the 

manufacturer has proposed specific solutions developed 

especially for civil air ambulances, with smaller cabins and 

short distance flights of 20 to 30 minutes. 

The helicopter: a precious asset for the Covid-19 emergency 

According to Leonardo, the devices have thus been integrated 

in Italy, on the AW139 and AW169 models – used for medical 

aid by several regions – as well as on the HH-101A “Caesar” 

helicopters of the 15th Cervia Wing of the Italian Air Force 

patient transport, since the beginning of the epidemic. For 

its part, Babcock Aviation has obtained approval from the 

Italian civil authorities and the British National Health Service 

to use specific stretchers with the biological containment 

system. Their deployment was also possible on the AW139 

and AW169 helicopters in order to guarantee maximum 

protection for the medical staff and crew. In the face of the 

crisis, Leonardo recalled that helicopters are proving to be 

an indispensable asset. More versatile than other types of 

transport, the rotary wing remains to this day the safest 

and fastest means of transferring patients with Covid-19. 

The manufacturer pointed out that its range of aircraft had 

carried out numerous missions of this type throughout the 

world: from the United Kingdom with the AW159 Wildcat 

and AW101 Merlin of the armed forces to the United States 

with the operator Bristow Group, via Brazil and the company 

Omni Táxi Aéreo, which both operated their AW139s to 

evacuate patients potentially affected by the Covid-19. 

Activity was also sustained in many other countries, 

including Chile, Canada, Malaysia, Australia and Spain. 

MORE ABOUT LEONARDO 

HI I 30


©HIOWAA 

HAMPSHIRE AIR AMBULANCE JOINS 

FORCES WITH THE RAF 

While the United Kingdom East has just announced a threeweek 

extension of the containment to cope with Covid-19, 

air evacuation of patients is intensifying, particularly in the 

south of the country. The operator, Hampshire and Isles of 

Wight Air Ambulance – HIOWAA – has unveiled that it is one 

of the first air ambulance services to work with the Royal Air 

Force (RAF) to transport Covid-19 patients. On Tuesday 7 

April, members of the HIOWAA Intensive Care Unit were able 

to carry out the emergency transfer of a patient from Jersey 

to Southampton University Hospital in an RAF Chinook. 

Training with the RAF 

A mission previously prepared during an exercise carried out 

in particular with units from Odiham Air Force Base housing 

the Chinooks last week on the Thruxton site of HIOWAA base. 

«Our intensive care teams have been working alongside military 

personnel to prepare to provide increased support to patients 

in the Isle of Wight and other more remote areas during the 

Covid-19 pandemic,» said the teams from the Charitable Care 

Unit. During the exercise, the doctors and nurses simulated 

the loading of critically ill patients and provide constant care 

support within the cargo holds of the rotary wing aircraft 

currently in service with the RAF, namely Chinook HC6, 

Puma HC2 and Merlin HC3. The operational procedures 

practiced during this exercise have been incorporated into 

new operational procedures being developed to oversee the 

collaboration between military crews and air ambulance 

services across the country. 

For Alex Lochrane, President and CEO of HIOWAA, these 

missions are vitally important because «It is absolutely our 

duty to do everything we can to ensure that patients on the Isle 

of Wight, and other more remote areas, receive the critical care 

they need during the current pandemic. This is an extremely 

impressive and vitally important collaboration with the RAF 

and I am immensely proud of our intensive care clinicians and 

the Group Care Management team at Southampton University 

Hospital, who have responded with flexibility and total 

disinterest to the rapidly evolving health crisis, demonstrating 

their usual professionalism, dedication and teamwork». 

The units on board the Odiham Chinooks 

Following this initial operation, the charity’s ambulance and 

medical teams are now expected to be integrated de facto on 

board military helicopters, particularly Chinooks operating 

in the region to provide urgent critical care to patients who 

will be transferred to the country’s major trauma centres, 

including Southampton University Hospital and the new NHS 

Nightingale Hospital at the ExCel centre in London. To meet 

the need for emergency medical evacuations in the south 

of the country, three Chinook helicopters, each capable of 

transporting up to two ventilated patients each, have been 

placed on standby at the Odiham base in Hampshire. The 

use of these helicopters is proving to be particularly vital 

as Dr Simon Hughes, HIOWAA’s senior consultant in prehospital 

emergency medicine for over 10 years, who led the 

joint training session, points out: «The Chinook not only has 

the advantage of range and speed, but also offers more cabin 

space than the EC135 operated by HIOWAA, allowing us to 

continue treating patients who could potentially be positive on 

the Covid-19, while maintaining a safe distance from the military 

crew». 

In addition to the Covid missions, the charity’s teams 

continue to respond to critically ill patients throughout the 

region, implementing the EC135 that the charity received in 

2015 to replace an identical aircraft delivered in 2010. 

MORE ABOUT RAF 

HI I 32

©HIOWAA ©Charlotte Cotronis 

FRENCH EMERGENCY MEDICAL 

SERVICE HELICOPTERS 

IN THE FRONT LINE 

Helicopter medical rescue, in France, switched in “Covid-19 

mode”. A business manager of SAF Hélicoptères, one of 

four companies beside Babcock, MBH and NHV serving 

the Service d’aide médicale urgente (SAMU) in the 

country, including French overseas territories, recalls the 

arrangements made the benefit of hospitals and their 

patients. 

Basically, their mission doesn’t change beyond measure. 

Transporting patients from one hospital to another in suitable 

safety and sanitary conditions is, indeed, their daily tasks. 

Since the appearance of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, helicopter 

transport companies under contract with care facilities, in 

France, saw evolve the order of priorities. «Apart from any 

crisis situation, SAF Hélicoptères transports 5 500 patients per 

year, carries out 7 000 missions in about 6 000 flight hours. 

In full Covid-19 epidemic, it’s impossible for the time being to 

predict if this activity level will be matched or exceeded. But it is 

certain that the mobilization of crews and helicopters is total», 

said Marc Latour, helicopter pilot, business development 

manager at SAF Hélicoptères. Total, indeed, and everybody 

knows why. From the French people point of view, the peak 

of the epidemic seems to be in the process of being reached. 

In other words, the crisis took unseen proportions until then. 

In Paris area, where healthcare infrastructure is known as 

the largest in Europe, facilities are saturated. 

To free up space in intensive care units 

The medical rescue helicopter is called to play a new role, 

in addition to the one he usually plays. It’s implemented to 

free up beds in saturated intensive care units, transporting 

patients to more or less distant facilities able to accommodate 

them. «Our other activity areas, such as aerial work, passenger 

transportation (both VIP and tourists) and training, record a 

sharp decline. The usual medical transportation also tends 

to decrease, because the medical emergency isn’t managed 

as it usually is», said Marc Latour. In these dark hours, 

the 16 helicopters deployed by SAF Hélicoptères from 

their ten air bases (most of them are located south of a 

Toulouse-Besançon line) are now solicited on a new field of 

operations. «Crews must serve hospital platforms they aren’t 

necessarily used to go to.» History will perhaps remember 

that at the start of the epidemic, doctors didn’t plan to use 

helicopters to transport patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. 

But the speed of virus propagation as well as the number of 

registered cases in a to short period of time changed their 

minds. 

Protected crews 

Simultaneously, this unexpected transportation mission 

required new measures: the crew protection – pilot and 

flight attendant. «Crews wear protection masks at least. When 

it comes to transport people infected with the Covid-19 virus 

and showing signs of acute pathology, we erected a separation 

barrier between the cockpit and the cabin where doctors, 

nurses and patients take place. This barrier is materialized by 

a kind of plastic transparent tarpaulin. As it is confirmed that 

the patient is infected with the SARS-CoV-2, in addition to the 

mask, our staffs wear a cap covering the hair and the ears, 

protection glasses and gloves.» It is clear that the culture of 

medical emergency, year after year accumulated experience 

in association with the medical staff greatly facilitates the 

task of all the professionals involved in a fight that no one 

expected. 

MORE ABOUT SAMU 

HI I 33


©Pecchi. 

SÉCURITÉ CIVILE: 

THE « DRAGONS » IN THE EARLY 

HOURS OF THE EPIDEMIC 

Very discreet in the major French national media, Sécurité 

Civile was nevertheless the first to intervene in missions to 

transfer patients with COVID-19. 

At the end of February, the helicopters Dragon 75 unit carried 

out the first medical evacuation for a patient infected in the 

Oise, who unfortunately died a few days later. This mission 

was carried out, even though the WHO had not yet qualified 

COVID-19 as a pandemic. «The data at the time was very 

random concerning the risks related to the epidemic. Therefore, 

at the completion of the first mission, the command ordered 

a quarantine of the crew, whose screening fortunately proved 

to be negative,» said the spokesman for the Sécurité Civile. 

Moving ahead, they would be the first heliborne unit to be 

called upon because of its daily experience and its ability to 

carry out such missions, as the spokesman emphasizes once 

again: «Unlike the army helicopters, which require an adaptation 

of the cargo bay layout for medical transport, the Sécurité 

Civile EC145s are already planned to receive a configuration 

with specific medical equipment, in particular for the transfer 

of patients suffering from serious pathologies. Moreover, the 

cargo compartment is perfectly autonomous, and there is no 

electronic interaction between the cabin and the cockpit. Our 

aircraft have been designed from the outset to carry out several 

missions, including the vital mission of medical evacuation». In 

addition to its first intervention in the Oise at the beginning 

of the epidemic and before the crisis developed in the East, 

Sécurité Civile had already gone to the front by intervening in 

French Guiana on the cluster of Saint-Laurent du Maroni in 

order to carry out transfers to Cayennes. 

Grand Est district 

Since the beginning of the confinement, the Dragons of Grand 

Est district units based in Strasbourg and Besançon have 

been particularly solicited. They had to respond very quickly 

to the first requests for inter-hospital transfer missions in 

order to relieve congested hospitals in the region. These 

were first-rate missions, which did not, however, escape 

certain conflicts between the various administrations 

concerned. Paradoxically, solidarity and teamwork do not 

always seem to be appropriate in an emergency context. 

Despite these few pitfalls, the missions proved particularly 

intense in this region for the two helicopters, which had to 

call on a third machine from Haute-Savoie, as the Sécurité 

Civile command emphasised: «Following the confinement, 

activity in the mountains was almost nil, which enabled us to 

disengage a helicopter from Haute-Savoie to the Grand Est 

plot. Today, the fleet in the area has three helicopters, and the 

possibility of a fourth, if necessary». 

Second wave 

Extremely connected with the Eastern sector, Sécurité Civile 

also had to deal with the first interventions in the Paris 

region. These transfers, which begun on March 29th, have 

helped to relieve congestion in certain Parisian hospitals, 

to those in the Tourangelle and Indre-et-Loire regions. As 

with previous COVID missions, procedures remain strict 

during flights, including suitable equipment for the crews 

(waterproof gowns, masks…) even when they are returning 

HI I 34

from missions. Some units have reinforced their measures, 

such as Dragon 20 based in Ajaccio, which has installed 

plastic protection to isolate the cockpit from the cargo, thus 

helping to limit the risks of contamination during COVID-19 

transfers. The disinfection protocol for both crews and 

machines is particularly strict and can take several minutes. 

maintain our crews’ condition, in order to preserve them as long 

as possible.» An objective that we hope will be sustainable, 

as we cannot forget those hidden units during the daily 

national applause to say thank you. 

Despite a spike in the epidemic, which does not seem to 

have reached a peak point according to the authorities, the 

Dragon 75 site at Issy Les Moulineaux could nevertheless 

accommodate new machines. «But nothing is set in stone,» 

said the spokesman. The daily management of helicopters 

is being carried out by the SAMU, according to the needs 

and regions, but also based on the availability of an aircraft, 

whether it’s operated by the Sécurité Civile, the SAMU, the 

ALAT – Light Aviation Army, or the Air Force. In order to 

plan flights, the Sécurité Civile staff and the different 

heliborne units, such as: the SAMU, the Army, and recently 

the Air Force, should evaluate and determine the different 

hypotheses concerning the distribution of helicopters, along 

with the possible reinforcements needed at certain locations 

throughout the hexagon, according to the spread of the virus. 

The Dragons recorded their 100th mission on March 29th, 

proving their effectiveness. And, the number of operations of 

this type, across the across the territory, has not weakened. 

According to the Sécurité Civile spokesman, an average of 

eight to twelve flights a day are now conducted for patients 

suffering from COVID-19 throughout the territory. In total, 

more than 180 hours have been logged in the last 15 days 

for this mission alone. And, the pace of crews is not slowing 

down. In fact, the staff says, they have to «readjust the 

workload of the crews and maintenance mechanics according 

to their needs.» For the moment, according to the spokesman 

of the entity, «The objective is to last throughout the period, and 

MORE ABOUT 

SÉCURITÉ CIVILE 

©Ministère de l’intérieur 

HI I 35

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I INTERVIEW I 

HI I 36

EXECUTIVE VICE-PRESIDENT 

CUSTOMER SUPPORT AND SERVICES 

AT AIRBUS HELICOPTERS 

BY FRANÇOIS BLANC 

©AIRBUS HELICOPTERS 

HI I 37


C 

hristoph Zammert, executive vice-president of 

customer support and services at Airbus Helicopters, 

describes the events of the last four months of the current 

year. He talks about the role of the manufacturer in the 

development of specific technical solutions in the midst 

of the health crisis. He also explains how the spare parts 

supply intended for its customers never stopped. 

HI: When did Airbus Helicopters take into account the arrival 

of a global pandemic? 

Christoph Zammert: We went through two phases. And I 

imagine that we did as others have done, because the crisis, 

or pandemic, has its origins in China. We have a strong 

presence in China. We were confronted with this virus for 

the first time on our premises there; and confronted with the 

way China handled it. Early on, containment measures were 

taken, which disrupted our Chinese customers. But I imagine 

that like many people, we first saw it as a local phenomenon. 

Unfortunately, it didn’t stay that way. Quite early on, from 

the end of February, at the very beginning of March, when 

we saw the first cases in Europe, we understood that we 

had to face a global, worldwide pandemic, as we may have 

experienced during the SARS era, for example. We launched 

an internal reflection on the scope of the phenomenon, both 

for us, our business, but also for the business of our clients. 

At the same time, we were contacted by customers who 

started asking us questions. We have a tool that i allows 

us to capture all the questions asked by our customers, so 

we are able to see themes that appear, that are out of the 

ordinary. And we recorded several types of questions. In the 

beginning, everything was related to the means, products 

and procedures for disinfecting cabins. We started thinking 

about it. We talked to our colleagues in the group, both 

Airbus Defence & Space and Airbus Commercial, because 

they were facing the same problems. The theme itself was 

not new. So we were able to concentrate all this in a first 

information note that we distributed to our customers on 

March 10, 2020. As we went along, we updated tis notice, 

because we heard from operators that the recommended 

products were not readily available, or that the procedures 

were not necessarily suited to their operations. We have 

therefore took the opportunity to issue an update. After this 

period, the need arose to separate the cockpit from the cabin 

to exclude, or minimize, the risk of infection to the pilots. 

So we have undertaken several things. We looked at what 

was already on the market, in terms of STCs [Supplemental 

Type Certificates], and where this was not possible, where 

there was no solution adapted to the platforms in question, 

we developed solutions with some of our customers: we 

collected some good ideas from our engineers or from our 

customers. Thus, we have developed quick solutions, which 

we have subsequently certified with the authorities. 

HI I 38

HI: Are you talking about the European Aviation Safety Agency 

(EASA)? 

CZ: Yes, absolutely. So the first question was about 

disinfection. Then came the segregation of the cabin. But 

cabin segregation also means separation of ventilation flows 

in air conditioning systems. We have therefore developed 

solutions to block or segregate air flows where possible. Then 

we received questions related to the operators’ operations. 

Wherever possible, we proceeded to validate their technical 

solutions. For example, there is a need for electrical current 

transformers. In order to be able to transport patients with 

their ventilators, solutions had to be found to allow them to 

operate on 220 volts AC, not 28 volts DC. Either we proposed 

solutions that exist on the market or customers proposed 

solutions that they wanted to implement. We did analyses 

and then issued what we call “No technical objections”, 

technical approvals. 

HI: Still under EASA? 

CZ: Yes and no: through our Authorized Designer Approval, 

we can give a “No Technical Objection”. It’s covered by our 

approval. Between the first questions and the first structured 

answer, generalized to all operators, we took less than two 

weeks. 

HI: Another sub-question: From which regions of the world did 

the first questions from come? 

CZ: Europe. It was kind of like tracking the virus. The 

questions arrived in Europe from French, Italian and then 

German operators. Two to three weeks later, they came 

from North America. Faced with these demands, we have 

undertaken several things. We have published briefing notes 

through which we can easily reach all of our clients. But we 

have also reinforced our usual communication flow to our 

customers that we considered critical in this pandemic: EMS 

operators (patient transport), para-public operators (police) 

and military operators, in order to understand their needs 

and pass on a certain amount of information to reassure 

them, for example about our supply chain or our logistics 

situation at the moment. We also heard their questions and 

considered solutions to their problems, because being close 

to the customers is something that is important to us. This 

led us to update the briefing notes we had developed. Finally, 

we reached our critical customers at least once every two 

weeks through our network of customer support managers. 

So we’re dealing with about 450 questions a week. Many 

of them concern the world of medical transport – EMS, 

protection, disinfection, separation. Now the customers are 

changing. Because the implementation of these solutions 

proves to be costly. Secondly, we received more and more 

questions about what they call PID (Patient Isolation 

Devices), those kinds of cocoons that completely isolate the 

patient. Here again, we have issued technical approvals and 

given advice on the integration of this equipment in the cabin, 

power supply, oxygenation. All this concerns professionals 

who are fighting the pandemic directly. But there were also 

other requests, in connection with the French operation 

“Résilience”, when the government fleets began to be used. 

We’ve seen the NH90s, the Cougars and the Caracal come 

on the scene. Through our organisation, which manages 

the French customer, we have developed solutions adapted 

jointly with the operators. We have also received comparable 

requests from Germany and Sweden. In their case, we do not 

have the same airworthiness constraints, because it is often 

the customer himself who is his own authority in this area: 

he can more easily, not certify, but qualify the solution. At 

the same time, we have all other customers to manage – we 

follow 420 EMS, parapublic and military operators. We have 

noticed, through the questions asked, that an evolution is 

taking place: we are dealing with more and more questions 

about the temporary immobilization of machines. For 

example, in the United States, almost all tourist flights are 

banned by the government. Customers then want to place 

their machines in temporary storage. They sometimes show 

a willingness to anticipate some maintenance tasks. We are 

therefore taking a lot of questions into account in this sense. 

All this leads us to think about how we can be proactive in 

the prospect of deconfinement of helicopters, because if 

customers have immobilized machines for several weeks or 

even months in sometimes hostile environments (extreme 

cold, heat, humidity, salty air), we must be proactive in order 

to limit the risks associated with return to service as much 

as possible. 

HI I 39


HI: What is the profile of the suppliers of the equipment you 

approve, in particular for separating cabin and cockpit? 

CZ: These are companies we know. Usually, a supplier who 

has developed something, who has his own Supplemental 

Type Certificate (STC), wants us to validate this solution, to 

label it. We are in contact with a number of suppliers who 

hold a STC. On our Airbus World portal, we give access to 

a very large number of STCs, those that we have labelled. 

Sometimes large customers have developed their own 

solutions and submit them to us for approval. 

But the vast majority were like us – they took the time to 

reconfigure themselves. Where difficulties have arisen, and 

we need to be agile and innovative, is in the area of logistics 

solutions. Because with all the commercial flights that have 

all but disappeared, we have lost a lot of capacity to transport 

parts. But we always find solutions, even if this remedy has 

become very expensive. It is also a way of supporting our 

customers: we do not pass on these increased transport 

costs in our invoices. 

HI: 8% down, that seems very little. How can I explain it? 

HI : From an aerospace manufacturing industrial point of view, 

has this health crisis event changed the situation? 

CZ: Everything works! All our production sites, assembly 

lines, spare parts, are running, but at a slightly slower pace. 

Why? A number of staff have to keep their children as long 

as the schools are or were closed. On the other hand, we 

have people who are more or less in poor health, so they 

can’t take the risk of coming to work. Let us add that last 

March, for four days, we significantly reduced our industrial 

activities, the time it took to reconfigure the workstations, 

in other words, to put in place a system of team relief and 

cleaning procedures to limit or avoid the risk of infection as 

much as possible. We are quite proud of the fact that we 

have not had any cases of infection in the workplace. Our 

entire customer support business continues to operate. 

This is also important for us; and reassuring: activity in 

terms of spare parts orders and deliveries has not declined. 

Because in terms of global flying hours, we are seeing a 

slight decrease (by about 8%), because there are people who 

are flying less, or who cannot fly at the moment. But we are 

lucky: for the moment, we are very little affected. Suppliers 

have experienced some problems because they also have 

concerns about the presence of staff, or supply problems. 

That’s why we monitor our supplier network very closely 

to pick up any weak signals that could indicate a problem. 

CZ: Already the Airbus Helicopters fleet is very diversified. 

The parapublic, military, EMS sectors continue to fly – 

sometimes even more than before. The Oil & Gas sector is 

very much affected by the consequences of the fall in the 

price per barrel. However, because it also has exceptional 

passenger separation provisions, operators have to operate 

more machines with fewer people on board. We will see how 

the flight hours will evolve over time. 

HI: Does that mean that the share of tourist flights is quite low 

in any case ? 

CZ: Yes and no. For example, when we look at Hawaii, the 

Grand Canyon in the United States and these kinds of air 

operations in the northern hemisphere, they tend to be more 

active in the summer. So the season is still to come. In 

Europe, we were rather at the end of the heli-skiing season. 

The consequences of the health crisis have therefore been, 

and are still being, weighed. 

MORE ABOUT AIRBUS 

HELICOPTERS 

HI I 40

HI I XX

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I MILITARY I 

HI I 42

APRIL THE 16TH OF 2020 MARKED THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF 298 SQUADRON 

WHICH IS CURRENTLY OPERATING A FORCE OF TEN CH-47D ‘CHINOOKS’ AND IS 

AWAITING DELIVERY OF TWENTY CH-47F MY II CAAS CHINOOKS (US ARMY MULTI 

YEAR II PROGRAM, COMMON AVIONICS ARCHITECTURE SYSTEM) AS REPLACEMENT. 

X DUE TO THE COVID-19 CRISIS THE PLANNED 75TH ANNIVERSARY IS POSTPONED 

TO A LATER MOMENT. 

BY CARLO KUIT & PAUL KIEVIT 

© PAUL KIEVIT 

HI I 43


E 

specially this Covid-19 and the introduction of the new 

Chinook fleet is on top of the mind of Lt Col. Niels van 

den Berg, the current Commander of 298 squadron. Niels 

transitioned from 300 Squadron during 2011 and is 298 

Commander since September 2018. «My main focus is to 

have stability in the squadron. We worked very hard over the last 

seven years implementing new procedures, quality assurance 

and improve operations which has shown to be successful. 

There is no need to change». Niels continues «The big challenge 

for the squadron is implementing the new CH-47F fleet and 

remain open for business to support international missions. The 

moment we have both the new CH-47F and legacy CH-47Ds in 

use with the squadron this will be a turning point in potentially 

briefly impacting availability for operations. We expect under 

the current Covid-19 situation to be completed with the 

conversion by 2022». The first new CH-47Fs are expected 

to arrive in Royal Netherlands Air Force during December 

2020. As Boeing Philadelphia has been identified as Critical 

Infrastructure the impact by Covid-19 has been minimal. The 

total number of new CH-47F MYII CAAS Chinooks within the 

Royal Netherlands Air Force will be twenty. Fifteen will be 

assigned to 298 Squadron at Gilze-Rijen Air Base while five 

remain with 302 Squadron at Fort Hood in the United States. 

HI I 44

COVID-19 CRISIS IMPACT 

“After the announcement by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte 

on the 16th of March, in which the intelligent lockdown was 

announced in the Netherlands, we took a week and a half to 

rethink how we as squadron would move forward” according to 

Niels. “We decided to focus on crew checks, flight currencies 

and certification flights to safeguard our basic skillset and 

readiness status as we are not able to set up complex exercises 

with our sister squadrons (300 and 301 Squadron) and the 11 

Air Mobile Brigade. We have about half of the squadron working 

from home and rotate personnel every other couple of days to 

avoid risks of virus infection. Luckily 2019 has been a very good 

year for us in terms of training and flight hours. Therefore, we 

can absorb a bit before we are being negatively impacted” Niels 

adds. The Helicopter Weapons Instructor Course (HWIC) which 

was taking place at that moment in Germany was cancelled 

mid-March. “Currently we only allow four persons for planning 

and the execution of flights. Therefore, we work in solitude as 

squadron”. 

DEFENSE HELICOPTER COMMAND (DHC) 

The Heavy Rotary Squadron is one of four flying squadrons 

which are part of the Defense Helicopter Command 

(DHC). Since the establishment of the DHC in July 2008, 

298 Squadron transferred to Gilze-Rijen Air Base from 

Soesterberg Air Base. The purpose of the DHC is to integrate 

all of the Helicopter Units of the Royal Netherlands Air Force 

(AH-64Ds, AS532U2s, CH-47D/Fs and NH90s) under one 

Central Command structure across two airbases and save 

costs. Only the NH-90 fleet of 860 Squadron is based at Naval 

Air Station De Kooy in the Northern part of The Netherlands. 

The other three units reside at Gilze-Rijen Air Base. 

HISTORY OF THE 298 SQUADRON 

The squadron has its heritage dating back to April the 16th, 

1945 when the squadron was operating at Gilze-Rijen Air 

Base as «No. 6 Dutch Auster Squadron» with six Auster’s. Soon 

after the end of World War 2 the Squadron was transferred to 

the Dutch West Indies. On March the 1th, 1950, 298 AOP (Air 

Observation Post) was established. Over the years, ‘298’ has 

flown various types of aircraft and helicopters. The Auster’s 

were replaced by L-18C «Piper Cubs» and L-21B ‘Super Cubs’ 

to support the role of artillery spotters. The first Helicopter 

arrived in 1955 (H-23B «Raven»). The Alouette II followed 

in 1959 for ‘Search and Rescue’ (SAR) missions. These 

were replaced by Alouette IIIs from 1964 onwards. Twelve 

Bo-105C «Bolköw» helicopters were also part of the 298 

Squadron from 1975 to 1979. 

THE NEW CH-47 MY II CAAS 

CHINOOK 

In the period 2010-2015, The Netherlands prepared for 

the replacement of the ageing 11 D-models as well as the 

expansion of the Chinook fleet with three helicopters. After 

extensive deliberations, the standard US Army MYII CAAS 

configuration was considered to be the most efficient choice 

for a successor. The Netherlands was able to utilize options 

in the existing MYII production contract between US Army 

and Boeing. For that, the Letter of Offer and Acceptance 

(LOA) with the US Army for fourteen new CH-47F MYII 

CAAS Chinooks was signed on November the 12th, 2015. 

On April the 14th, 2016 the US Department of Defense 

awarded Boeing a contract to build 12 CH-47Fs followed by 

an additional order on April the 28th, 2017 for the remaining 

two new CH-47F’s. 

HI I 45


In order to prevent a “mixed fleet” of CAAS and ACMS Chinooks, 

which would have been costly during the sustainment 

of the fleet, it was then decided to renew and modernize 

the six ACMS F-models. On December the 14th, 2017 The 

Netherlands and Boeing signed the Direct Commercial Sales 

contract for the Renew Program, converting the six ACMS 

F-models into the exact same configuration as the 14 new 

Chinooks. 

Operating the standard MYII CAAS Chinook will allow 

for further optimization of operations, training and 

maintenance. «We have had a lot of contact with the US Army 

and the Australian MOD being existing operators, to understand 

potential challenges we might encounter when fielding the 

new Chinooks. When we deliver them to the RNLAF (Royal 

Netherlands Air Force), we want to make sure that there are no 

obstacles and that they will be able to operate and sustain the 

helicopters during the first three years. This period will allow 

the RNLAF to become self-supporting when it comes to inservice 

support» according to Colonel Koen van Gogh, Senior 

Project Manager Defense Material Organization (DMO) 

who is responsible for the Replacement and Modernization 

programme Chinook. 

«At around 2500 parts of the legacy CH-47Fs will be reused. 

These parts will be overhauled (zero hours status) before 

being installed on brand-new MYII CAAS airframes. This option 

turned out to be more efficient and affordable than modifying 

the legacy CH-47F fleet. The first idea was to just replace the 

ACMS cockpit of the legacy Fs by a MYII CAAS Cockpit. We 

concluded the risk was too big in terms of certification and 

costs» according to Colonel van Gogh. «The legacy CH-47Fs 

are now sent to ‘Summit Aviation’ who are tasked by Boeing 

under the Renew contract to remove the usable parts from the 

helicopters and have them delivered into the overhaul process.» 

Summit Aviation is an Industry Leader in Aircraft 

Maintenance, Repair, Avionics upgrades, Mission System 

Integration, Modifications and Aircraft sales. 

The new CH-47F MY II CAAS Chinook comes with the 

short nose, which differs from the current «F» version in 

appearance. This meant there is no room for our current 

Weather Radar. Also, the FLIR system under the nose will 

not be implemented. Another striking difference is the 

Woodland Desert Sage Color Scheme, instead of the current 

grey scheme. 

«Although the main goal was to stay common with the US 

Army, Dutch operating intent and national legislation led to the 

addition of some unique modifications. Fortunately, there is no 

need to integrate these into CAAS, so commonality will not be 

affected.» The additional Dutch requirements such include 

Crashworthy Crew Seats with ballistic protection, leading 

to modified MFCUs (MultiFunctional Control Units), a LH 

Removable escape Hatch, a Hook Load Measuring System, 

an Ice Detection System, a Pitot Heater Failure Indicator, 

FRIES (Fast Rope Ingress and Egress System), including 

external hardpoints, and a minor change to the electrical 

system, all which can be implemented during the production. 

A Fall Protection System to protect maintainers, and an 

Emergency Locator Transmitter are implemented by «SES-I» 

(Science and Engineering Services) in Huntsville, Alabama 

as ‘Post Production Modifications’. «We choose for ‘SES-I’ 

because they did similar work for the US Army and to make 

sure we do not interfere with the work performed on the Boeing 

production line» explains Colonel van Gogh. 

On March the 20th 2020, the first Royal Netherlands Air Force 

CH-47Fs have made their maiden flight during acceptance at 

Boeing Philadelphia (registration D-472 and D-473). 

HI I 46

These two helicopters left Boeing Ridley Park to be ferried to 

Huntsville in Alabama on the 5th of May 2020 for validation 

and verification by the US Army and the Post Production 

Modifications by «SES-I». «These two helicopters are planned 

to be the first CH-47s to be send to The Netherlands by 

December 2020. After arrival in the Port of Antwerp, Belgium, 

the helicopters will be transported to Woensdrecht Air Base in 

The Netherlands where they will be prepared to be transferred to 

298 Squadron with an expected arrival at Gilze-Rijen around mid- 

January 2021» according to Colonel van Gogh. These two CH- 

47Fs will have all our additional requirements implemented 

and will have the Digital Automated Flight Control System 

(DAFCS) 3.5 software and CAAS 9.4 installed. The Colonel 

continues «In order to support a tight conversion schedule 

of our flight crew to the MYII CAAS Chinook, we decided that 

the next six CH-47Fs coming from the production line will not 

undergo the Post Modification until a later date. These six 

Chinooks will go to Fort Hood, TX (USA) directly to be used for 

conversion training. The next batch of CH-47Fs will be delivered 

after the Post Modification. The earlier unmodified CH-47s will 

then be rotating through ‘SES-I’ to complete the process of 

modification as well. During January-February 2021 we have 

planned the arrival of another two CH-47s to the Netherlands, 

these will be airframes built with retrofitted parts of the legacy 

CH-47Fs». Concludes the Colonel. 

To support the transition and difference training, a 

Transportable Flight Proficiency Simulator (TFPS) has 

been procured from NAVAIR (Naval Air Systems) Manned 

Flight Simulator Enterprise Team which is stationed at NAS 

Patuxent River (US). «The procurement of a TFPS, stationed 

at Gilze-Rijen, will be more efficient for the Squadron as there 

will no longer be a need to train in the simulator at the Royal 

Air Force at RAF Benson Air Base» continues Koen van Gogh. 

«The TFPS has already arrived at Gilze-Rijen Air Base and we 

are awaiting a team from NAVAIR to do the final acceptance 

testing of the Simulator. The TFPS will need to be ready before 

the first group Instructor Pilots is scheduled to receive their 

Conversion Training at Fort Hood, since the TFPS will be used 

for the crew’s Ground School/ Academics training at Gilze-Rijen 

Air Base before they head to Ft. Hood for the flight training. 

Each Aviator will undergo a three-week training on the Simulator 

before attending a three-week course with 302 Squadron in the 

US and participating in an American Falcon exercise, held four 

times a year. Upon return to the Netherlands the Aviators will be 

Fully Qualified Pilots on the MYII CAAS Chinook». 

Lt Colonel van den Berg adds «We had planned to send a socalled 

Class 0 to Fort Hood in the US during the June-July 2020 

period for the Instructor Course on the MY II CAAS variant. As 

we have five flights with five crews, we have fifty pilots and fifty 

loadmasters to train, resulting in five training classes at Fort 

Hood. This Transition Training is planned to be executed over 

an eighteen-month period. We will have a team from the US 

Army to support the Conversion, a so-called NETT Team (New 

Equipment Training Team)”, both locally at Gilze-Rijen as in Ft. 

Hood. Expectation is to achieve Full Operational Capable status 

by mid-2022 with the Initial Operational Capability (IOC) by 

October 2021». 

HI I 47


MISSIONS OF THE PAST 

«Nihil Nobis Nimium» or «Nothing is too much» is the motto 

of the 298 Squadron. The Squadron has been involved 

in many missions and oversea deployments since it has 

been operating with the CH-47D/F. Kosovo (KFOR, 1999), 

Allied Harbor in Albania and a year later for UNMEE (United 

Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea). From January 2001 

till May 2004, the Royal Netherlands Air Force detachments 

contributed to NATO’s Stabilization Force (SFOR) in Bosnia. 

From July 2003 to November 2005 they served in Iraq. The 

detachment provided transport for the Stabilization Force in 

Iraq (SFIR) for the Dutch military personnel from the Security 

Forces. From May 2005 to June 2006, three Chinooks were 

deployed for the Dutch Special Forces deployment for 

Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Two Chinooks were 

lost due to accidents in 2005 during these operations. As 

of 2007 to October 2010, 298 Squadron was regularly active 

from Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan in support of NATO 

Operation ISAF (International Security Assistance Force). 

And lastly from April 2014 to April 2017, three Chinooks 

participated in the «Minusma» Mission. This UN Mission was 

designed to restore Peace and Stability in Mali. 

TRAINING IN THE US 

«The initial training for new crews is conducted at Fort Rucker 

Air Base (US) as part of the Chinook Aircraft Qualification 

Course. After completing the course new crews are continuing 

their training with the Squadron at Gilze-Rijen Air Base». 2 nd LT 

‘Frank’ explains. «We were planned to travel to Fort Hood to 

have a ten-week training period with 302 Squadron as part of 

the Mission Qualification Training (MQT)». This squadron 

provides Joint Air Assault Training for Helicopter Crews of 

the Defense Helicopter Command (DHC) and ground units of 

11 Airmobile Brigade, this will take place during four times 

a year with the ‘American Falcon’ exercise to conclude the 

training. In addition, Pilots and Load-Masters follow the Initial 

Mission Qualification Training twice a year. The squadron is 

staffed with personnel from the Royal Netherlands Air Force, 

Army, and the US Army. Frank continues «our group consists 

of a mixture of a CH-47 loadmaster, Pilot, but also AH-64 pilots. 

Just before we would travel it became clear that we would not 

go to the US. Due to the Covid-19 situation the original schedule 

will require revision as currently 302 Squadron stood down 

with no training activities. We are now being trained within 

the Squadron here in The Netherlands. This means we all have 

to be flexible to cater for the further Education as Training is 

conducted alongside daily operations». Captain Booze details 

further «The Defense Helicopter Command is a more complex 

organization to cater for this ad-hoc additional training. Luckily, 

we managed to be flexible and had a fast resolution in place. 

The focus for training is now on Tactical Exercises, Navigational 

Skills and Planning of Flights. In order to provide best possible 

training, we need to have Instructor Pilots and Ground Forces 

to act as Enemy Forces. As we cannot fully focus on the MQT 

training the duration will be longer than the 10-week period at 

Fort Hood”. 

HI I 48

FIREFIGHTING 

The Netherlands have been confronted with the largest wild 

fires in 40 years in the Southern part of the Netherlands, 

Deurnsche Peel and Herkenbosch, during the third week 

of April 2020. Starting off with one supporting Chinook it 

resulted in a combined FBO (Fire Bucket Operations) effort 

of four Chinooks, an AS 532 Cougar, Mobile Air Operations 

Teams (MAOT) and the Local Fire Brigades. ‘In case we are 

asked to support Firefighting Operations the Tasking Order 

is provided by NASOC (National Air and Space Operations 

Center) to the Staff of DHC’ adds Niels. «The week before the 

fires started, we already had been asked to have one helicopter 

on standby”. Christiaan Velthausz, on-scene Commander and 

part of the Fire Department: “Under normal circumstances, 

the Ministry of Defense generally supplies Helicopter Capacity 

within 24 hours of the request. Although in practice this is a lot 

faster, usually about 3 to 4 hours. In the event of an increased 

risk of wildfires, FBO and therefore the Helicopters can be put 

at 2 hours’ notice to move». «During the Firefighting we had 

on average five to ten MAOT (Mobile Air Operations Team) 

personnel to support the FBO operations». The main lessons 

learned have been to work on a large-scale bases for a long 

period in a complex setting’ according to Sergeant-Major 

Rob van Mierlo, Commander MAOT. From the 1st of April 

2020 onwards MAOT has a team on standby continuously, 

ready to set off within 2 hours. 

«In the event of very large or difficult-to-combat fires, the 

(Civil) Heli-Team Fire Team with Helicopters and the Mobile 

Air Operations Team (MAOT) of DHC form the so-called «Fire 

Bucket Operations (FBO) Team». This team works together 

with the Local Fire Brigade on site. “About 10 years ago, the 

Defense Organization requested a single Point of Contact for 

extinguishing operations; that became the Heli-Team Fire 

Brigade», according to Christiaan Velthausz, the on-scene 

Commander. 

«We have a total of 10 Bambi Buckets which can hold in theory 

10,000L of water. “During FBO operations we only drop 8,000L 

each time as with full capacity to prevent engine over torque as 

we demand all power available with full fuel load so it is safer to 

carry less without a risk having to return due to potential over 

torque”. adds Captain Boezen. One of the loadmasters, who 

was involved in the firefighting is ‘Jimmy’ explains “We had an 

observer of the Fire Department joining our flights who had a 

map showing coordinates where to drop the water. My task was 

to inform the Pilots on the coordinates where to drop water. 

After each drop, we received direct feedback by Local Observers 

on the ground if our drop was successful. This worked out 

perfectly». Over a 5-day period more then 3,2MIO Liters of 

water was dropped during 540 individual drops. 

MORE ABOUT CH-47D CHINOOK 

HI I 49

HELICOPTER INDUSTRY I NEW TECHNOLOGIES I 

NEXT SUMMER, THE MARS 2020 PROBE IS SET TO LEAVE FOR THE RED PLANET FOR A NEW 

ROUND OF EXPLORATION. ON BOARD WILL BE A ROVER AND... A HELICOPTER! AFTER HAVING 

TESTED MANY VEHICLES ON THE MOON AND ON MARS, THIS IS THE POINT WHERE MANKIND 

WILL SEND THEIR FIRST FLYING MACHINE TO ANOTHER PLANET. 

BY FRÉDÉRIC LERT 

©NASA 

HI I 50

HI I 51


T 

he Mars Helicopter Scout, named Ingenuity, is 

scheduled to take off from Earth on July 17 aboard 

the Mars 2020 probe. If the launch were to be postponed, 

the launch window would move to February 18, 2021. The 

one-way trip to Jezero Crater on Mars will take about six 

months. The objective of the Mars 2020 mission, with a 

total cost of about $2.5 billion, is to determine how Mars’ 

natural resources could be exploited to prepare for future 

human settlement. The main tool on board the probe will be 

a six-wheeled land vehicle, a rover, called Perseverance. The 

American rovers Sojourner, Spirit and Curiosity have already 

been seen on Mars. With Perseverance, NASA is changing 

scale, this time sending a spacecraft the size of a small 

car and a mass of one ton. Another novelty, therefore, is 

the presence of a helicopter that will arrive on Mars in the 

luggage of this rover. 

EXTRATERRESTRIAL AND 

EXTRAORDINARY CONSTRAINTS 

Ingenuity is a miniature helicopter, weighing only 1.8 kg, 

which will be called upon to play a scouting role. It will be 

used to find the best possible route to avoid dangers and 

to find points of interest for Perseverance, which could then 

fly over larger areas during its lifetime. The images provided 

by Ingenuity will have about ten times the resolution of 

those of the orbiting Martian probes. Ingenuity will also help 

determine whether or not the use of flying machines for 

extraterrestrial exploration is a good idea. 

The first studies for sending a helicopter to Mars began in 

2015. In view of the positive results obtained, the formal 

decision was announced May 11th, 2018 to entrust the 

project to a mixed team of varying skillsets from the 

Aerovironment Company, Nasa’s Ames Research Center, and 

Langley Research Center. 

The first of the constraints that were faced by the designers 

of the aircraft were that of flight automation: there is no 

question of flying the aircraft in real-time at a distance of 

more than 50 million kilometers. Ingenuity, which deserves 

its name, will therefore have to fend for itself once the flight 

order has been given: take off, flight, orientation, image 

recording, and landing, in order to recharge the batteries and 

wait for the next flight. After all, many drones perform this on 

Earth, although the constraints of the Martian atmosphere 

are far more complex. 

HI I 52

A HELICOPTER AT LEVEL 900! 

Composed of carbon dioxide, Mars is incredibly tenuous, 

with an average pressure of 6 millibars, or 1/170th of the 

Earth’s atmosphere. At about ten meters from the Martian 

ground, which is the maximum flight altitude that Ingenuity 

will attain, as it is equal to the density of the Martian 

atmosphere and that found at... 30 kilometers from the 

Earth’s surface. Flying a helicopter in these conditions 

was not easy. In short, it was first necessary to model the 

dynamics of flight in these particular conditions, before 

designing a very light helicopter with a large rotor diameter 

to obtain the desired lift. However, the helicopter will be 

able to rely on the help provided by gravity, which is about 

three times weaker than on Earth, since Mars’ mass is onetenth 

that of Earth. In May 2016, a first 850g demonstrator 

was tested in an environmental chamber just under 8m in 

diameter, reproducing the near vacuum on Mars. The chosen 

formula used a contra-rotating rotor, eliminating the need for 

an anti-torque rotor while providing a very compact design. 

The results obtained were positive, and allowed the 

development of the final version of the device, by the use 

of the counter-rotating rotor formula with an electric motor. 

Ingenuity therefore weighs 1.8 kg and has two rigid 

counter-rotating rotors with a diameter of 1.21m rotating 

at a maximum speed of 2800 rpm. Its power comes from 

an electric motor coupled to a set of six lithium-ion microbatteries 

recharged by a solar panel. Its payload includes 

a high-resolution colour camera for navigation, another for 

studying the terrain, and a communication system enabling 

it to relay the images obtained to the Perseverance rover. 

Despite its minimalist weight, the Martian helicopter was 

designed to withstand the rocket’s high level of vibration and 

acceleration during launch. Its’ electronics, which include 

gyroscopes, motion and orientation sensors, accelerometers 

and an altimeter, are also protected against solar radiation 

and the intense cold that reigns on the planet (-63°C on 

average). In regards to its’ navigation, the aircraft uses an 

inertial navigation system that can be readjusted using a 

star sight that is pointed at the sun. 

HI I 53


MODESTY AND AMBITION 

Once configured, Ingenuity will have to make several flights 

of two to three minutes each, rising a few meters from 

the Martian surface. The aircraft could then travel several 

hundred meters each time. NASA’s ambition is to carry out 

five flights over a total period of 30 days. 

These figures are as modest as they are ambitious: Ingenuity 

will venture into « terra incognita » and could pave the way, if 

successful, for more efficient air vehicles. After all, many of 

the planets being explored by probes have atmospheres that 

could be used by flying machines. NASA is already talking 

about future plans for a multi-kilogram aircraft capable of 

communicating directly with a space probe, in order to move 

it and transmit its observations. Complete and increase the 

Earth’s displacement capacities to increase speed, autonomy 

and observation capacity are undoubtedly some of the 

logical evolutions in the conquest of space. Today, Ingenuity 

is only scratching the surface of the capabilities that will be 

brought by a new breed of extraterrestrial helicopters. It’s a 

great adventure that’s just beginning! 

MORE ABOUT NASA 

HI I 54

74, rue Georges Bonnac 

Tour 74, rue 6 - Georges Etage 3Bonnac 

33 Tour 000 6 - Bordeaux Etage 3 - France 

74, rue Georges Bonnac 

33 000 Bordeaux - France 

Tour 6 - Etage 3 

33 000 Bordeaux - France 

24/7 Operations Center 

+33 24/75 Operations 57 85 81 11 Center 

operations@flyops.net 

+33 5 57 85 81 11 

24/7 Operations Center 


+33 5 57 85 81 11 


WWW.FLYOPS.NET 

WWW.FLYOPS.NET 

WWW.FLYOPS.NET


HI I 56

THE FRENCH NAVY IS MODERNISING AND GIVING NEW CAPACITIES TO ITS PUBLIC SERVICE 

DOLPHINS (SP) WHICH CAN NOW BE EMBARKED AT SEA. A GAIN IN CAPACITY THAT ALSO 

REPRESENTS FOR THE NAVY AN IMPORTANT STEP IN THE WORK OF HOMOGENISING ITS 

HELICOPTER FLEET. 

BY FRÉDÉRIC LERT 

©MARINE NATIONALE 

HI I 57


IN 

this month of May 2020, the French Navy has a very 

diverse helicopter fleet, combining Alouette 3, Lynx, 

different types of Dolphin, Panther and Caiman. However, 

Lynx will be retired from service this summer and by 2022 

it will also be the turn of the latest SA319 Alouette. By that 

time, the French Navy will have a slightly less heterogeneous 

fleet of Dolphin, Panther and Caiman. The next step will 

come around 2035, when the Cheetahs (H160M) will have 

totally replaced the different fleets of Dauphin and Panther. 

An important milestone was thus reached last month 

with the first boarding on a Stealth Light Frigates (FLF) of 

a Public Service Dolphin N (SP Dolphin SP). The Navy has 

six such aircraft that were previously based solely on land. 

The Dauphin SPs have been in service since the early 1990s 

as part of the 35F fleet based in Hyères. These aircraft had 

then been acquired on the civilian market by the Navy to 

carry out rescue missions at sea, being based in several 

coastal towns: Le Touquet, La Rochelle, Cherbourg, Lanvéoc 

and Hyères have welcomed over the years these Dolphins, 

which have become in the meantime “Public Service and 

Intervention”. 

HI I 58

IN 2020, ONLY LE TOUQUET AND 

LA ROCHELLE ARE STILL ARMED 

The reduction in the number of land-based units has 

therefore enabled us to envisage other missions for these 

aircraft, explains Commander (CF) S. «We are now able to use 

the Dauphins for other missions. To anticipate the withdrawal 

of Lynx and Alouette aircraft from service and limit the risk 

of capability failure before the arrival of the first Cheetahs, 

the decision was taken to navalize these public service and 

intervention dolphins. Embedded on the naval action force 

ships, the aircraft will be able to carry out sea support, sea 

rescue and fleet lighting missions, as well as minimum surface 

situation awareness». 

The navalization of the aircraft began with administrative 

work between Airbus Helicopters and the DGA to technically 

demonstrate that the aircraft, originally of civilian 

manufacture, could meet the demands of the landing. The 

technical file written by the helicopter manufacturer allowed 

the DGA to approve this navalization of the Dauphin on a 

case-by-case basis. However, a modification yard was 

carried out by Heli Union to adapt the Dauphin to its new 

role, including in particular the modification of the rotor 

head to enable the blades to be folded manually and the 

installation of gripping rings. Independently of navalization 

issues, the Dauphin has also been equipped with a «low light» 

instrument panel allowing JVN flight and a GNSS capability 

allowing breakthroughs and IFR flight with satellite means, 

in accordance with civil regulations. 

It was not necessary to equip the aircraft with a landing 

harpoon, notes the CF S. «It was not necessary to equip 

the aircraft with a landing harpoon. The shipyard would have 

been too heavy and out of proportion with our real needs: our 

Dolphins will mainly operate on vessels without a landing grid, 

and in any case in sea states that do not justify this accessory». 

The modification of the devices was accompanied by a 

CEPA homologation work (verification of the implementation 

equipment on the vessels, validation of the field of use…) 

and by the constitution of the technical autonomy batches 

for boarding. From 20 to 25 April, the Pre-deployment 

Operational Refit (RANO) of the frigate La Fayette was the 

occasion for the first embarkation off Toulon with a Dauphin 

and its standard detachment of 9 people (two pilots, a cargo 

chief and six technicians). 

This embarkation is an important step in the perpetuation of 

our know-how in terms of embarkation at sea, emphasizes 

the CF S. «We are very pleased to be able to offer this service 

to the French Navy. The use of a helicopter on a ship involves 

a complete chain of skills, from piloting and maintenance to 

the operation of the ship, which is important to maintain. The 

SPI Dolphins will take part in this effort alongside the other 

helicopters while awaiting the arrival of the first Cheetahs». 

HI I 59


THE WORLD OF THE DOLPHIN 

This embarkation is an important step in the perpetuation of 

our know-how in terms of embarkation at sea, emphasizes 

the CF S. «We are very pleased to be able to offer this service 

to the French Navy. The use of a helicopter on a ship involves 

a complete chain of skills, from piloting and maintenance to 

the operation of the ship, which is important to maintain. The 

SPI Dolphins will take part in this effort alongside the other 

helicopters while awaiting the arrival of the first Cheetahs». 

There are about 40 different species of dolphins, all of which 

are marine mammals. For the French Navy, the number of 

different models is limited to six, with as many complex 

micro-fleets to manage. Here are the details : 

• 6 Dolphin N public service and intervention (fleet 35F) 

• 3 “Pedro” dolphin used for flight safety on the aircraft 

carrier Charles de Gaulle. (flotilla 35F) 

• 4 Rented N3 dolphin used for training missions 

(implemented within 22S squadron) 

• 2 Dolphin N3+ (detachment of the 35F flotilla in Tahiti) 

• 12 N3 dolphins are expected to be rented from December 

2020 by a consortium of Heli Union and DCI. These aircraft 

will constitute an interim fleet to wait for the entry into 

service of the Cheetah. 

• Finally, let us mention a close cousin, the Panther, of which 

16 examples are in service in the 36F flotilla. 

MORE ABOUT FRENCH NAVY 

HI I 60

... Ultimate Jet TV, 

Same same but different 

A perfect blend between short and long stories: we will bring 

on-the-ground reports, expert analysis and original 

perspective in a snackable format, social media ready.


BY FRANÇOIS BLANC 

©RUSSIAN HELICOPTERS 

HI I 62

HI I 63


T 

he Russian Helicopters holding, partner 

of around 100 countries all over the world 

operating civilian and military Russian manufactured 

helicopters, saw its industrial activity maintained throughout 

the health crisis. Mr. Andrey Boginsky, Russian Helicopters 

CEO, answers a few question from Helicopter Industry. 

Are the Russian Helicopters industrial/production and selling 

activities affected by the governmental measures? If so, how 

far and on which particular points? 

Taking into account our obligations within the state defense 

order and military and technical cooperation we did not stop 

the manufacturing process. Starting from mid-April, up to 

70% of our staff were involved, depending on the instructions 

of local authorities and epidemiological situation in a 

region, and by now, we have returned to a regular working 

schedule. At the same time, working conditions meet all the 

requirements of the Ministry of Health and other regulatory 

authorities. We provided all employees with personal 

protective equipment, their condition is regularly monitored, 

and workplaces undergo regular disinfection, as maintaining 

health of our staff is one of the top priorities 

for Russian Helicopters at this difficult time. 

Moreover, we aim to maintain a high level of 

business activity, retaining contact with our civilian 

partners, and that it proved to be successful: during the 

pandemic, several Mi-8 and Ansat helicopters have already 

been handed over to customers. 

How many civilian and military Russian Helicopters 

customers/operators worldwide are potentially affected by 

the crisis? Through what missions are Russian Helicopters 

rotary wing aircrafts most involved during this health crisis? 

All countries have been affected by the pandemic to a 

greater or lesser degree, including over 100 countries that 

use Russian-made helicopters. Due to restrictions, the 

total volume of operations has certainly been reduced. 

However, some specialized helicopters, such as those for 

EMS missions, are much sought-after now: we see that in 

Russia and in other countries which are actively developing 

air medical services. 

HI I 64

Was Russian Helicopters approached by those operators to 

answer their questions, especially in terms of special cockpit 

and cabin design? Did Russian Helicopters design new 

equipment and develop original procedures the benefit of its 

customers? 

Our Ansat and Mi-8 helicopters are widely used during 

the pandemic in many countries that fight COVID-19. 

For instance, Mi-171 helicopters were used in Wuhan for 

delivery of supplies and medicine, and Indian Air Force Mi- 

17V-5 performed same missions in Himalayas. Our Mi-8 and 

Ansat in EMS configuration are equipped with ventilators 

that allow transporting patients with COVID-19, which 

they do all over Russia, especially in central and southern 

regions of the country that faced a difficult epidemiological 

situation. Still, we understand that coronavirus pandemic 

certainly lays down new requirements for medical helicopter 

equipment, and the holding company is working in that 

field. For instance, the Russian Federal Air Transport 

Agency approved the installation of an isolation module 

for patients with infectious diseases in Ansat helicopter, 

which is currently one of the main helicopters used for air 

medical services in Russia: about 30 such helicopters have 

been supplied, and they are being operated in more than 10 

regions of Russia. This unit will not require redesign of the 

cabin, therefore, all previously supplied Ansat helicopters 

in the medical version can be equipped with it. The module 

will significantly improve efficiency of EMS-missions, which 

now require additional crew protection and disinfection 

measures. 

Do Russian Helicopters approved maintenance centers 

worldwide operate normally during this period? Do they 

operate at a normal activity level, or at an increased or 

decreased activity level? 

The service centers of Russian Helicopters are functioning in 

accordance with regulations of local authorities and following 

all instructions and restrictions. The epidemiological 

situation varies depending on a region. Therefore, in some 

places a rotating work schedule is possible, while in other 

countries all work has been suspended. 

HI I 65

WORLD POINT 

DISTRIBUTION 

COUNTRY 

DISTRIBUTION LIST 

AUSTRALIA 

AUSTRIA 

BELARUS 

BELGIUM 

BULGARIA 

BRAZIL 

CANADA 

CHILE 

CHINA 

COLUMBIA 

CROATIA 

CYPRUS 

CZECH REPUBLIC 

DENMARK 

FRANCE 

(mainland & Corsica) 

GERMANY 

GREECE 

HONG KONG 

HUNGARY 

ICELAND 

INDIA 

IRAN 

IRELAND 

ISRAEL 

ITALY 

JAPAN 

LIBYA 

LUXEMBOURG 

MALLORCA 

MARTINIQUE 

MEXICO 

MONACO 

MOROCCO 

NETHERLANDS 

NEW ZEALAND 

NIGERIA 

NORWAY 

PAKISTAN 

POLAND 

PORTUGAL 

RUSSIA 

SINGAPORE 

SLOVAKIA 

SLOVENIA 

SOUTH AFRICA 

SPAIN 

SWEDEN 

SWITZERLAND 

TUNISIA 

TURKEY 

UAE 

(Dubai, Abu Dhabi) 

UKRAINE 

UNITED KINGDOM 

(England, Northern 

Ireland, Scotland, 

Wales) 

USA 

VENEZUELA 

HI I 66

AVIATION SHOW 

HI I 67

SUBSCRIBE NOW 

ABONNEZ-VOUS 


#101 

SINGLE SUBSCRIPTION 

ABONNEMENT SIMPLE 

€ 

HT* 

50year 

an 

*TVA 20% - 60€ TTC 

6issues 

numéros 


#102 

CORPORATE OFFER 

SPÉCIAL ENTREPRISES 

MULTI-COPIES SUBSCRIPTION PACK 

PACK ABONNEMENT MULTI-EXEMPLAIRES 

Get several copies of each issue at a discount price. 

Recevez directement plusieurs exemplaires de chaque parution et bénéficiez de tarifs avantageux. 

6 issues per year - 6 n°/an 

Helicopter Industry 

1 year - an 

1 copie per issue - 1 ex / n° 50 € 

5 copies per issue - 5 ex / n° 225 € 




#99 

Ms. / Mme Miss / Mlle Mr. / M. 

Company / Société : 

Surname / Nom : 

Name / Prénom : 

Address / Adresse : 

City / Ville: 

Postal code / Code Postal : 

Country / Pays : 

Tel.: 

E-MAIL : 

Société UJ MEDIA 

Tick appropriate boxes - Cochez l’option choisie 

Please find enclosed my payment of _______ € to UJ MEDIA 

Ci-joint mon règlement de _______ € à l’ordre de UJ MEDIA 

Payment method: Check(Euros) Credit card 

Bank Transfer (please contact us) 

Je règle par : Chèque Carte bancaire 

Virement (nous contacter) 

Credit Card: following credit cards accepted : Visa, Mastercard, CB. 

Carte bancaire : nous acceptons les cartes bancaires : CB, Visa, Mastercard. 

Please complete the form - Remplir obligatoirement toutes les rubriques ci-dessous : 

Card Number 

N° Carte Bancaire : 

CVC Code - Les 3 derniers chiffres figurant au verso de votre carte : 

Expiration - Date d’expiration : / 

Date : Signature : 

Aéroport de Toussus-le-Noble, Bât 216 - Zone sud, 78117 Toussus-le-Noble - FRANCE · Phone: +33 (0)1 30 84 13 32 - subscribe@ujmedia.fr 

En application de l’article L.27 de la loi du 6 Janvier 1978, les informations demandées ici sont indispensable au traitement de votre commande 

et aux services qui y sont associés. Elles ne seront transmises qu’au service assurant le traitement de votre commande et des services associés. 

Vous avez le droit d’accéder à ces informations, de demander éventuellement les rectifications nécessaires et de vous opposer à ce que vos 

noms, adresse et e-mail soient communiqués à d’autres entreprises en le demandant par écrit au service abonnements de Callixo.

H130 T2 

www.aircraftformula.com 


contact@aircraftformula.com 

AIRBUS HELICOPTERS FOR SALE 



Two 2017 units available 

T FORMULA ® 

t & Acquisitions 

ormula.com 

H130 T2 T2 

AIRBUS 

AIRBUS HELICOPTERS 

HELICOPTERS 

FOR 

FOR 

SALE 

SALE 


AiRCRAFT FORMULA ® ® 

Aircraft 

Aircraft 

& Acquisitions 

& Acquisitions 

AiRCRAFT FORMULA ® 

Aircraft & Acquisitions 

Two Two 2017 2017 units units available available 


LICOPTERS FOR SALE 


Manufactured in 2017 

Atlantic Blue Metallic paint 

Manufactured in in 2017 

515 hours & 875 hours ea. 

Atlantic Blue Metallic paint 

515 hours & 875 hours ea. ea. 

red in 2017 

ü 

Glass cockpit - Garmin G500H 

e Metallic paint 

875 hours üea. 

Glass cockpit - -Garmin G500H 

ü 

Thales AHV16 Radio Altimeter 

ü üEmergency Floatation Floatation Gear Gear – Complete – Complete installation installation 

ü Emergency ü Thales Floatation AHV16 Radio Gear – Altimeter 

Complete installation ü üCargo Cargo Sling Sling – Complete – Complete installation installation 

Note: Including Capabilities for extended cargo sling 

cockpit - Garmin G500H 

ü Improved Heating System 

ü Emergency Floatation Note: Note: Gear Including Including – Complete Capabilities installation 

for extended for extended cargo cargo sling sling 

ü Cargo ü Sling Improved – Complete Heating installation System 

AHV16 Radio Altimeter ü Cargo Sling – Complete installation 

Note: Cargo Sling mirrors 

üIncluding Dual controls Capabilities for extended cargo slingü 

üDual Dual external external Cargo Cargo Sling mirrors Sling mirrors 

ü Dual controls 

Note: Including Capabilities for extended cargo sling 

ed Heating System 

ü 

Heavy Duty Blade Pins Pins 

Dual üexternal Landing Cargo light Sling mirrors ü Dual 

in in external 

site and 

Cargo ü Heavy Sling mirrors Duty Blade Pins 

ontrols 

ü Landing light adjustable in site and 

ü Heavy Duty Blade ü 

Starter Pins Starter Generator Thales Thales Avionics Avionics 150A 150A 

üg light Heavy adjustable Duty azimuth 

Blade in site Pins and 

ü Starter Generator Thales Avionics 150A 

azimuth 

ü Starter Generator 

th 

ü üDART Thales DART Bear Avionics Bear paws paws 150A 

ü Starter ü Generator Eight seat Thales executive Avionics configuration 

150A 

ü DART Bear pawsü 

DART Bear paws 

eat executive ü 

with configuration 

8 EA Energy-absorbing seats seats 

ü Washable floor-cover 

ü 

DART 

Eight 

Bear 

seat 

paws 

executive configuration 


EA Energy-absorbing seats 


ü Washable 

with 8 EA 

floor-cover 

Energy-absorbing seats 

Best Best deals deals worldwide worldwide 

Best deals worldwide 

Aircraft in operation, availability subject in to prior sale or removal, subject without to prior prior sale notice. 

Aircraft in operation, availability subject to prior sale or removal, or removal, without without prior notice. prior notice. 

mponents times, configuration & equipment subject to verification by the Buyer upon inspection. 

Components times, times, configuration & equipment & equipment subject subject to verification to verification by the by Buyer the Buyer upon upon inspection. inspection. 

Located Located Best in Norway deals in Norway worldwid 



ect to prior sale or removal, without www.aircraftformula.com 

prior notice. 

Aircraft in operation, availability subject to prior contact@aircraftformula.com 

sale or removal, without prior notice. 

ent subject to verification by the Buyer upon inspection. 

Components times, configuration & equipment subject to verification by the Buyer upon inspection. 


Best deals worldwide 

Located in Norway 


ü Emergency Floatation Gear – Complete installa 

ü 

Cargo Sling – Complete installation 

Located in Norway 


Located in Norwa

EUROPE - MIDDLE EAST - AMERICAS - AFRICA - ASIA - RUSSIA #102 

Est édité par/is published by : Société UJ MEDIA 

www.ujmedia.fr 

Siège social/Corporate headquarters : 

Société UJ MEDIA 

Aéroport de Toussus-le-Noble, 

Bât 216 - Zone sud, 

78117 Toussus-le-Noble - FRANCE 

Phone: +33 (0)1 30 84 13 32 

Email : contact@ujmedia.fr 

SAS au capital de 6 000 € 

RCS : 815 195 300 00026 

Gérant/Legal Representative & Executive Director 

Arnaud Devriendt 

adevriendt@callixo.com 

Comité de rédaction/Editorial board 

Directeur de Publication/Executive Director 

Arnaud Devriendt 

Redacteur en Chef Adjoint/Assistant Editor 

Frédéric Vergnères 

fvergneres@callixo.com 

+33 (0)6 64 02 08 84 

Co-rédactrice/Co-Editor 

Sylvie Péron 

speron@ujmedia.fr 

Direction Artistique/Art Direction 

Aurélien Milon - amilon@callixo.com 

+33 (0)1 30 84 13 30 

EUROPE - MIDDLE EAST - AMERICAS - AFRICA - ASIA - RUSSIA #102 

Chef de rubriques/ Section Editor 

François Blanc 

Chef de rubrique « Marché civil » 

Section Editor « Civil market » 

Frédéric Lert 

Chef de rubrique « Secteur militaire » 

Section Editor « Military sector » 

Marketing, Communication & 

Business development 

Lamar Williams : lwilliams@ujmedia.fr 

CPPAAP : 0607 K 88197 

N°ISSN 2495-1188 

La rédaction ne saurait être tenue responsable des textes 

et photos qui lui sont transmis. 

Ceux-ci engagent la seule responsabilité de leurs auteurs.

Magazine Helicopter Industry #102

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?