Take a tour around the Helicopter Association International’s annual show.
While Sikorsky did not unveil any new helicopter designs at Heli-Expo 2014 its presence on the show floor was impressive with the S-76 at the forefront – a helicopter that is employed in more than 40 countries.While Sikorsky is being challenged by changes in Department of Defence budgets, military helicopters**** continue to be a major focus for the company. The imposing S-97 Raider is expected to fly by the end of this year.**Airbus Helicopters recently took over the Eurocopter brand. The company had a strong show with 78 helicopter contracts signed. At the front of the booth was the EC145 T2, which Airbus Helicopters hopes to bring to market this year. **Bell started the convention with an elaborate unveiling of a new short light single named the 505 Jet Ranger X. Bell had three 505s on display, one red, one white and one blue, to allow better access for those who wanted to take a closer look.In a dramatic ceremony, Bell Helicopter unveiled three versions of a new helicopter.You can watch the unveiling of the Bell 505 Jet Ranger X here.Enstrom’s booth had a veil of secrecy covering a new product, a tranier named the TH180, which was introduced in the afternoon of the opening day of the show.The interest in Enstrom’s two-seat TH180 trainer exceeded expectations, according to the company’s director of sales and marketing Orlando Alaniz. While Alaniz said launch customer orders were taken, no numbers were disclosed.One of many items on display at AgustaWestland’s large booth was one of several high-tech, task-specific procedures trainers produced by the multi-national company.A digital count-down clock pulled a large crowd in to AgustaWestlands booth in anticipation of the unveiling of the AW109 Trekker, AgustaWestland’s first skid-equipped light twin helicopter.**The AgustaWestland AW109 Trekker is expected to enter the market next year and will be powered by two fadec-equipped 735-horsepower Pratt & Whitney PW207C engines. ****The AW109 Trekker is expected to be certified for single-pilot operations. Its panel is equipped with the immensely popular Garmin G1000 flight deck, which has been widely adopted in fixed-wing and helicopter cockpits. **Thales showed off its newly announced Avionics 2020 specifically designed for helicopter pilots. While the system looks impressive, it is not expected to get in the hands of operators until, you guessed it, 2020.As shown by Thales’ director of marketing for avionics, Richard Perrot, the Avionics 2020 suite allows for pinch zooming and transfer of information from screen to screen with the swipe of a fingertip.**Marenco brought the first prototype of the SKYe SH09 helicopter, which is expected to fly in the next few months. The design features a glass floor and doors that provide excellent access to the cockpit from front and back. **Lynn Tilton talked about her “obsession” with technology and innovation in her leadership role at MD Helicopters and how technologies used in her automotive and gaming companies are being incorporated into MD’s future helicopter designs.**Erickson Air-Crane rebranded itself as simply Erickson with a broadened offering of heavy, medium and light lift helicopter platforms and even some fixed-wing aircraft with the aquisition of several companies, including Evergreen Helicopters and Air Amazonia. **The Swiss airplane maker Pilatus exhibited at Heli-Expo for the first time this year to show its PC-12 turboprop and PC-24 jet, which is currently in development, to operators who have mixed fleets of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.Russian Helicopters had a cool display of its recently introduced Mi-171A2 medium multirole helicopter and the slightly larger Mi-38, another multirole helicopter capable of carrying up to 30 passengers.Robinson Helicopters light helicopter offerings, which had a short flight to Anaheim from the Torrance, California-based headquarters, are immensely popular and the company keeps increasing its production. Robinson delivered 523 helicopters last year.**Universal Helicopters, which provides helicopter training for Embry-Riddle’s helicopter students, had a Robinson R22 on display with a desert-inspired paint scheme. **
