Lynx : quarante ans au service de la France
By Fred Vergneres Le 4 septembre dernier, devant un parterre d’officiers et trois machines spécialement décorées pour l’occasion, la Marine nationale a fait ses adieux à ses derniers Lynx encore en opération. Outre l’hélicoptère, l’entité a également mis en sommeil,...
The DGA notifies the contract for the development and supply of three test bed helicopters
On August 3, 2020, the French defense procurement agency (Direction générale de l’armement - DGA) awarded the contract to develop and supply three new-generation test bed helicopters (HBE NG) to the consortium formed by Airbus Helicopters and Héli-Union. This...
Austrian armed forces acquire new helicopters
Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner announced the decision Monday, Sept. 21, to acquire 18 Leonardo AW169M helicopters. The purchase will be made in cooperation with Italy and amounts to approximately 300 million euros. "With this helicopter, we are buying a very...
Interview with Christoph Zammert, executive vice-president Customer support and services at Airbus Helicopters
By François Blanc Christoph 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...
The SP Dolphins take to the open sea!
By Frédéric Lert 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. In...
Health Crisis: the French Gendarmerie air support
©Sirpa / M. Balsamo
Leonardo at the heart of Covid-19 transport
By Fred Vergneres and Leonardo 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...
S-64 Skycrane: The story continues!
By Frédéric Lert Erickson has built its success and reputation on the use of the S-64, an outstanding lifting device. The S-64 is the civilian version of the CH-54A born during the Vietnam War, so Erickson has now bought the type certificate from Sikorsky. The company...
Hampshire Air Ambulance joins forces with the RAF
By Fred Vergnères and HIOWAA While the United Kingdom East has just announced a three-week 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...
Safety improvement opportunities from FDM
By Mario Pierobon The oil and gas industry has historically played a leading role in the advent of helicopter flight data monitoring (HFDM). Nowadays the majority of operators flying in support of oil and gas have an active HFDM programme. “Helicopters have a lot of...
