Back on track

 Eurocopter’s CEO says that, if you know where to look, the world helicopter market is making a strong recovery.

 Certainly, considering the economic malaise besetting the USA and Europe, the Franco-German OEM is making impressive global strides. During 2011 the company delivered more than 500 helicopters, turning over €5.4 billion ($7.1 billion) – the first time turnover has cracked the €5 billion milestone – representing a twelve per cent growth. Orders also increased by over a hundred, to 450, with the most significant orders coming from the A-Star and EC130 family, of which some 240 were taken. Orders for the EC145 light-twin doubled and the first T2 variant, launched at Heli-Expo last year, was ordered by German HEMS specialist DRF Luftrettung.

 Key areas of interest remain Latin America and Asia and there is a near-desperate optimism that this New Year – the traditionally auspicious Year of the Dragon – will herald the dam-busting opening of low-altitude airspace in the People’s Republic of China. In answer to a question from a Brazilian journalist, Bertling also confirmed his intention that Eurocopter should become embedded as the nation’s de facto helicopter OEM.

 In the meantime, the company progresses development of the Dauphin replacement, the X4, while the X3 hybrid has recommenced flight trials. In previous rounds the airframer took the hybrid to 230kt, using only 70% of available power.

 Chief technology officer Jean-Michel Billig was coy about any speed goals expected from this third flight test campaign. “We will attempt to answer questions thrown up by analysis of data from the two previous ones. This will include the performance of the main rotor blades at high speed and how the FADEC system operates when moving between the two flight modes.” He also confirmed that development of the X4 ‘Game Changer’ was on-track, with first flight due in 2015.

 Finally, a retrofit system to maintain Nr for a few seconds following an engine failure (in the AS350B to start with) and in the final post-autorotation flare, has completed technical development and Billig is about to hand over the project to his sales engineering counterpart. Kits are expected to be available by the end of the year. US pilots are said to be especially keen to get hold of it.