Sikorsky's new product search narrows to concepts over 5t

Sikorsky’s ongoing pursuit of its next civil rotorcraft has narrowed to concepts in a size class over 4.5t (10,000lb), further distancing the Lockheed Martin company from the light helicopter market after it disposed of the Schweizer brand earlier this year.

The sizing strategy is driven by Sikorsky’s view that its resources and skills are best applied to large and complex rotorcraft systems, says Dana Fiatarone, Sikorsky’s vice-president of commercial systems and services.

“We’re probably going to be north of 10,000lb in the development programme,” Fiatarone says, speaking to journalists on 27 February.

Market stagnation has stifled new product launches in the commercial helicopter industry for several years, but companies are continuing to make investments in anticipation of an eventual recovery.

Bell chief executive Mitch Snyder acknowledged an ongoing development project for a new commercial aircraft during his press conference at the Heli-Expo convention, but declined to provide any details.

Sikorsky has indicated its interest in replacing or supplementing its two flagship commercial products – the 5t-class S-76 and 12t S-92 – for several years. But Fiatarone says that Sikorsky refuses to launch a “me-too” product for the commercial market, meaning that the company wants to look beyond conventional helicopter approaches to speed and cockpit automation. This is a comment that has been often heard from executives in recent times.

For a decade, the company has been developing high-speed rotorcraft for the military, designed around a coaxial rotor system with a pusher propeller for forward thrust – beginning with the Collier Trophy-winning X2 demonstrator.

“I would expect us to take a look at that. I like the idea of X2 technology,” Fiatarone says. “I can see us having a conversation where it makes sense to have some type of that technology going forward.”

Meanwhile, Sikorsky continues to work on the X2’s successors for the military – the S-97 Raider prototype and a collaboration with Boeing on the SB-1 Defiant.

Sikorsky expects to have the S-97 Raider back in flight testing in late March or early April, following a hard landing last year that damaged a prototype aircraft, Sikorsky chief executive Dan Schultz says. The SB-1 was originally scheduled to fly last year as part of a demonstration for the US Army, but remains in assembly with no announced timeline for first flight.

Sikorsky still has a “bunch of things left to do with Boeing”, Schultz says, without elaborating. The company is also waiting for a gearbox delivery from Northstar, he adds. “We’re still not there yet.”

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R66 sales hold steady despite Bell 505 arrival

Robinson Helicopter Company held deliveries of the turbine-powered R66 light-single steady at 77 last year, even as rival Bell introduced the 505 Jet Ranger X into service, says chief executive John Robinson.

The $900,000 R66 entered the market shortly after Bell retired its nearest competitor – the 206 Jet Ranger – in 2010, giving the Robinson model a near-monopoly in the weight class.

But with the return of Bell to the segment it helped pioneer, an impact on the R66's sales had been expected.

According to Robinson, however, the effect has only been positive. "Actually, it being out there, so people can fly it and they're not just hearing rumours, it has helped our sales," he says.

The 505 is sold with a list price of $1.3 million, but some popular options drive the price tag higher. Robinson says the standard price is usually about $1.5 million, or about 50% higher than Bell's original goal of fielding a $1 million competitor to the R66.

"Now when they see what it is and they actually look at it, and if it's right for them they're going to get it. If the R66 is right for them, they're going to buy it," Robinson says. "So now these buyers don't have that fear, doubt and uncertainty. That's what I think has been driving us crazy more than anything else."

The 505’s arrival has coincided with the completion of a list of long-planned improvements for the R66. By the end of March, Robinson expects to receive airworthiness certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration for a new cargo hook with a 544kg (1,200lb) capacity. The upgrade has been in certification testing for four years, but arrives just as Bell works on integrating a similar capability to the 505, albeit with a 680kg capacity.

Robinson also certificated last July a new high-definition video camera payload for R66 aircraft operated by television news stations, Robinson says.

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MD Helicopters delays MD6XX certification to 2020

MD Helicopters (MDHI) has delayed certification for the 2.5t MD6XX civil helicopter at least two years to focus the small manufacturer's resources on delivering a surge of orders from military customers, says chief executive Lynn Tilton.

The delay comes only a year after Tilton unveiled a mock-up of the MD6XX and promised to complete certification by the end of 2018.

That timeline became unachievable as MDHI copes with new orders by at least three foreign militaries for the armed version of the MD530 light-single. The Mesa, Arizona-based manufacturer is expected to deliver 30 helicopters by the end of this year, including the first five by the end of May, Tilton says.

Additional orders by Kenya and Lebanon have added to the backlog for the MD530, but require additional certifications that have consumed the engineering department, Tilton says.

"We just didn't have the resources" to make progress on the MD6XX, she says. "We're not stopping it. We’re excited about it, but in the end I just couldn't do it all."

The MD6XX concept unveiled last year represents the company's most ambitious new product launch for the civil helicopter market since Tilton acquired MDHI in 2005.

The design resembles the shape of the MD600N, but replaces the NOTAR anti-torque system with a four-bladed rotor. The MD6XX is also loaded with new technologies, including S411 main rotor blades, an extended composite tail boom, a Genesys Aerosystems glass cockpit, boosted flight controls and a three-axis digital autopilot.

Asked to suggest a new timeline for certification, Lynn thought briefly and, with some hesitation, replied, "2020".

"We’re still working on the design. I have a design team working on it," she says. "But I can’t work on [certificating] it until I get through all of these deliveries."

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Kaman eyes enhancements for new-build K-Max

After reviving deliveries of the original K-Max helicopter last year, Kaman’s small engineering team is considering options for updating and improving the 20-year-old design of the heavy-lift aircraft.

Kaman re-launched the dormant programme three years ago, after receiving interest from customers in the aerial firefighting market, and handed over the first K-Max aircraft from its Bloomfield, Connecticut assembly line last July.

Since deliveries of a first lot of 10 production aircraft resumed, Kaman has seen a huge amount of interest in the unique helicopter – which features an intermeshing rotor system – from a variety of operators, including firefighting and oil and gas companies, says Drake Klotzman, general manager for Kaman's air vehicles and MRO division.

Interest extends well beyond the forestry operators that accounted for the bulk of the 38 K-Max aircraft deliveries during the original 2008-2013 production run.

Discussions with buyers for a second lot of 10 production aircraft are now in progress, Klotzman says, with a third lot of sales expected to follow.

As demand has widened and stabilised, Kaman is now looking to expand the capabilities and performance of the original K-Max.

Options for upgraded systems are extensive, he says, including more power, improved avionics and structures and advances in autonomy.

K-Max aircraft are now delivered with refurbished Honeywell T53 turboshaft engines, but new propulsion systems may be considered.

The US Marine Corps deployed two K-Max aircraft modified with autonomous controls by Lockheed Martin to Afghanistan in 2009, to ferry cargo to remote operating bases.

Kaman is considering new ways to introduce autonomy in the K-Max cockpit for foreign military operators, but in a less expensive package, Klotzman says.

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Airbus Helicopters to produce EC145e at US plant as it waits for army orders

A new order for 25 EC145e helicopters from US-based Metro Aviation will help keep a threatened Airbus Helicopters final assembly line for the US Army open for several critical months.

In announcing the large order at Heli-Expo on 27 February, Airbus Helicopters confirmed that the EC145e rotorcraft ordered by Metro Aviation would be produced in Columbus, Mississippi.

Airbus Helicopters is scheduled to deliver the last of more than 400 UH-72A Lakotas to the army on 28 February, which has left some degree of uncertainty over the future of the facility.

More orders for UH-72As from the service are expected this year after a three-year legal battle between Leonardo Helicopters and Airbus Helicopters was resolved in the latter's favour in early January.

The army has funds set aside to buy 16 more UH-72As from Airbus Helicopters later this year. The service has declared an interest in buying up to 35 more, but the money for the entire follow-on batch has not been secured.

No funding for more UH-72As was included in the US Army’s fiscal 2019 budget request submitted to Congress on 12 February.

In the meantime, the Columbus facility will have a backlog of orders for the EC145e, a model that is nearly identical to the Army’s UH-72A.

While the vast majority of output for the medium-twin is now the latest H145 variant, introduced in 2014, the manufacturer has continued to offer the EC145e as a stripped-down and less expensive utility model, lacking improvements such as a fenestron shrouded tail rotor.

Instrument flight rules certification for the EC145e is expected later this year, Airbus says.

Metro has placed the EC145e, upgraded with an electronic flight instrument system, an autopilot and a stability augmentation system from Genesis Aerosystems, with broad range of customers, performing missions such as medical, law enforcement and utility transport.

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Bell unveils improved 407 variant

Fort Worth-based Bell unveiled the 407GXi with new avionics and engine technology on 26 February at the Heli-Expo convention in Las Vegas.

Bell will start delivering the 407GXi to customers in the spring after achieving Transport Canada certification in January, says Bell chief executive Mitch Snyder.

The four-bladed, single-engined light helicopter will be the first in its size class to feature a dual-channel full authority digital engine control (FADEC) system.

The FADEC will manage the aircraft’s Rolls-Royce M250-C47E/4 turboshaft engine, which includes a value improvement package that can reduce specific fuel consumption by up to 8%.

Bell says the 407GXi, which will become the standard model as it enters production, also features the Garmin G1000H NXi cockpit. The avionics upgrade includes a full re-wiring of the electronics system, making the package too extensive to offer as a retrofit option, Bell says.

The upgraded model could help Bell recover from what Snyder calls an industry-wide “dip” in aircraft deliveries in the 407’s size class in 2017.

Although deliveries had fallen, demand for the aircraft actually grew during the year, as Chinese operator Shaanxi Helicopter ordered 100 aircraft.

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Era Group signs for two AW609s

Era Group has emerged as the launch customer for the Leonardo Helicopters AW609 tiltrotor, with an initial firm commitment for two aircraft for delivery from 2020.

Configured in a nine-passenger layout, the tiltrotors will be used for a range of applications, including utility and offshore transport, search and rescue, and emergency medical services (EMS) missions in the USA.

Era Group had in 2016 signed an agreement with the manufacturer to assist in the development of an EMS variant of the AW609.

Chris Bradshaw, chief executive of Era Group, says: “We see the AW609 as part of our future and look forward to building upon the collaboration with Leonardo as Era prepares to launch commercial tiltrotor operations across the diverse missions we operate.”

Leonardo says that it has tentative commitments for around 50 of tiltrotors so far. The only other confirmed customer is the United Arab Emirates which intends to take three examples for SAR operations.

US Federal Aviation Administration certification for the AW609 was recently revealed has having slipped to late 2019.

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India makes progress with Rustom II UAV

Information from TTFLY:India has conducted a successful flight of the Rustom II UAV in a configuration that will be used by the country’s military.

The flight took place on 25 February at the Defence Research Development Organisation’s (DRDO) test range in central Indian district of Chitradurga.

The flight was notable in that the aircraft flew with more powerful engines, in an end-user configuration.

“All parameters were normal,” says the DRDO.

Developed indigenously, the Rustom II made its first flight in November 2016.

Touted as a “new era” for India in its development of UAVs, the programme is expected to result in a medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned system with an endurance of 24h. The DRDO renamed it the Tapas 201, but still refers to it is the Rustom II in communications.

All three branches of the Indian military are expected to operate the type.

Kopter seeks to raise another Swfr150 million for certification

Swiss helicopter developer Kopter is seeking to raise Swfr150 million from private investors to carry the single-engined SH09 design through certification and into production in the second half of next year, the company says.

The new round of financing would add to the Swfr270 million spent on the development project since the company — originally branded as Marenco Swisshelicopter — was founded in 2007.

The company’s financing so far has come from a single source: a Russian family foundation led by Alexander Mamut.

The Mamut foundation’s single shareholder status will change if Kopter’s latest financing round is successful, but will still keep a majority stake in the company, says Kopter chief executive Andreas Löwenstein.

Kopter needs more cash to push the SH09 through what is expected to be the final series of certification testing starting later this year.

Of the three SH09s that have entered flight testing so far, none are considered production-representative aircraft. The fourth SH09 — dubbed production series (PS)-4 — is scheduled to begin flying in the summer.

The entrance of PS-4 into flight testing will allow Kopter to complete airworthiness testing with the European Aviation Safety Agency in the first quarter of 2019.

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Mahindra, Viking Air team up for India regional opportunities

India's Mahindra Aerospace and Canada's Viking Air have signed a memorandum of understanding to partner to help boost India's regional air connectivity.

Both parties say the "strategic alliance [will] support and take advantage of India's growing regional air connectivity opportunities."

Under the partnership, Mahindra and Viking will support each other's non-competing aircraft business to boost market penetration in identified territories and provide potential customers with suitable aircraft for specific operational requirements.

Viking produces the Twin Otter series 400, a 19-seater, twin-engine utility turboprop aircraft that can also operate from water.

Mahindra produces two utility aircraft at its GippsAero unit in Australia, the single-engined GA8 and GA10. The GA8, which seats seven passengers, is powered by a single piston engine. The larger GA10 seats nine passengers, and is powered by a single Rolls-Royce M250 turboprop.

"India’s diverse market landscape offers numerous options for Viking and Mahindra to leverage their unique and complementary resources for a mutually beneficial collaboration to develop regional air transportation solutions."

“Viking sees enormous market potential for the Series 400 Twin Otter in India, with a particular emphasis on the seaplane variant as it provides an unmatched transportation solution for servicing India’s thousands of kilometers of coastline and river systems. We are confident that our alliance with Mahindra Group, such a well-established and well-regarded company, will provide the necessary traction the Series 400 deserves in India and will offer us new possibilities to collaborate in other territories as well,” says David Curtis, president and chief executive of Viking Air.

The announcement follows an earlier development from low-cost carrier SpiceJet that it concluded trials for possible services with the Quest Kodiak aircraft equipped as a seaplane.

SpiceJet is considering the operation of amphibious aircraft in the Northeastern regionssuch as Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra, along with other coastal areas of the country.

According to Quest's website, the Kodiak can carry a maximum of 10 occupants including the pilot. It can take off with just 934ft of runway, and has a range of 1,132nm. It is powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT-6A turboprop.

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Safran drives hybrid helicopter engine development on back of Racer selection

Safran Helicopter Engines (SHE) believes it will be able to deliver a new powerplant for service entry in the mid-2020s that will use electric power in addition to a standard turboshaft in order to optimise in-cruise performance.

The French manufacturer has already embarked on the first stage of its "hybridisation" strategy with the use of "Eco Mode" on its new Aneto powerplant. For use on twin-engined helicopters, the feature allows one of a pair of engines to be idled during flight and then rapidly restarted as required.

Eco Mode will debut on the Aneto-1X, which Airbus Helicopters today revealed will power its Racer high-speed demonstrator.

The Racer, a twin-engined compound rotorcraft, is being produced under the EU's Clean Sky 2 programme and is expected to make its first flight in 2020.

However, Bruno Bellanger, executive vice-president of programmes at SHE, says the next stage will be to add "transitory assistance" to its turboshafts.

"Today, as you know, engines are designed to be very efficient for high-power usage – specifically for take-off and emergency mode," he says. "By combining electrical and thermal power we will be in a position to optimise the system and turbine to deliver some very impressive fuel savings."

Bellanger sees electrical power – probably a combination of a generator and batteries – being able to provide additional power during the cruise phase of flight.

SHE should be in a position to conduct demonstration flights by about 2020, says Bellanger, with a product available for market – depending on airframer demand – by the middle of that decade.

A third strand of hybridisation is also being pursued, designed to tap into the market for a new generation of light eVTOL aircraft requiring electrically powered, distributed propulsion.

However, although SHE sees that emerging market as "very promising", Bellanger cautions that all-electric power is unlikely to usurp the traditional turboshaft engine for any aircraft performing a mission longer than 30min with a payload greater than 100kg (220lb) "for at least two decades".

SHE launched the 2,500-3,000shp (1,860-2,240kW) Aneto engine family in October 2017, with the initial application on the K-model variant of the Leonardo Helicopters AW189, providing an alternative to the baseline GE Aviation CT7 engines.

Leonardo's solitary flight-test aircraft has now accumulated 500h across 70 flights, says Bellanger; service entry is scheduled for later this year.

Elsewhere, flight tests of the Arrano powerplant for the Airbus H160 "are close to the end", he says. So far, the six test engines equipping three flying prototypes have amassed about 1,000h. Certification for the 1,300shp turboshaft is scheduled by year-end.

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XTi begins critical design review of TriFan 600

Information from TTFLY :XTi Aircraft has begun the critical design review of its TriFan 600 vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft. This process is expected to be complete by early April, the Denver, Colorado-based start-up says, at which time the design will be frozen and construction of a 60% scale prototype can begin.

“We have already started building the fans and wing ducts for this aircraft, and will soon start static thrust performance and verification testing on these components,” XTi chief executive Robert LaBelle says.

“Our plan is to fly the completed prototype by the end of September,” he adds.

The aim of the initial flight-test phase is “to demonstrate that the TriFan can transition from vertical to horizontal flight, manoeuvre around the airfield, and then transition to vertical flight again”, LaBelle says. He expects this campaign to last about eight weeks.

“Once we have given a visible demonstration of the TriFan’s capabilities, we will begin building the first of three full-scale test aircraft," LaBelle says. Ground tests are scheduled for late 2019, leading to first flight in early 2020.

XTi launched the TriFan in 2013 with the aim of creating an aircraft with business jet-like speed and the take-off and landing performance of a helicopter.

The six-seat aircraft was originally designed with twin Honeywell HTS900 turboshaft engines, gearboxes and driveshafts, but XTI switched to hybrid-electric propulsion last year in an effort to reduce the TriFan's weight and production costs.

It has teamed with US engineering firm Bye Aerospace to develop the new system, which will have a turbine-driven generator, batteries and motor.

XTi has yet to decide where to base its production line and flight-test facility. “We are looking at options in a number of US states,” LaBelle says. “We’d like to stay in Colorado, but we will go where the incentives being offered give us the best advantage.”

Finance for the TriFan is being drawn from XTI founder and chairman David Brody, private equity investors and crowd-funding stakeholders. LaBelle is confident the company will have enough money to bring the aircraft to market in 2022.

XTi has already received 60 orders for the VTOL aircraft from a mix of private owners and commercial operators, representing about $390 million in revenue, LaBelle notes.

The TriFan has a projected speed of 300kt (555km/h) and a range of 670nm (1,240km) in VTOL mode or 1,200nm in conventional take-off and landing mode.

Trump wants his personal pilot to run the FAA - after spending decades at the controls of Trump Force One

President Donald Trump has put forward his longtime personal pilot to run the Federal Aviation Administration – and the White House is championing his experience moving Trump around the country during his campaign.

John Dunkin, who became Trump's personal pilot in 1989, is on a short list of candidates, Axios first reported Monday. 

If nominated and confirmed by the Senate, Dunkin would oversee a sprawling agency with a $16 billion budget. 

According to the agency's web site, it is tasked with '45,000 daily operations as well as enforcing safety standards for all equipment and aerospace professionals within the aviation industry.'

Trump is pushing for Dunkin, although other names also are being floated. A White House official provided a justification to Axios for including the former Trump Organization employee to the senior bureaucratic post.

'John Dunkin isn't just a pilot. He's managed airline and corporate flight departments, certified airlines from start-up under FAA regulations, and oversaw the Trump presidential campaign's air fleet, which included managing all aviation transportation for travel to 203 cities in 43 states over the course of 21 months,' according to the official.

Dunkin was a pilot on the Trump Shuttle, an airline Trump created that ultimately folded.

Other names being floated include Missouri Republican Rep. Sam Graves, who chairs a highway subcommittee on the House Transportation Committee, and current acting FAA Administrator Dan Elwell.

Dunkin is 'in the mix,' a White House official told the Washington Post Sunday night after his consideration was first floated, and has already had a preliminary interview. 

According to an article in ProPilot magazine, Dunking oversaw a department with a Boeing 757, bought second hand, a Cessna Citation X executive jet and three Sikorsky S76 helicopters.

He had a staff of two fixed-wing and two helicopter pilots, which got expanded with two more pilots during the campaign. 

'Our flight department has always been very lean and efficient. During my travels for both political events and business, I am most frequently asked what it was like to fly a Presidential campaign. 

'I can honestly say it was one of the most incredible experiences of my aviation career,' he wrote. 

According to his bio posted on the agency website, Elwell 'is responsible for the safety and efficiency of the largest aerospace system in the world — a system that operates more than 50,000 flights per day. 

'He oversees a $16.4 billion-dollar budget, more than 47,000 employees, and is focused on ensuring the agency and its employees are the best prepared and trained professionals to meet the growing demands and requirements of the industry.'

Elwell previously served as deputy administrator, and was appointed to his current post by President Trump.   

He also served as a senior advisor to Transportation secretary Elaine Chao and worked as a legislative fellow for the late Alaska GOP Senator Ted Stevens.

Elwell also worked at American Airlines and for the Aerospace Industries Association, and was a commercial pilot for 16 years, and was a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Air Force Reserve, including combat service during Operation Desert Storm. 

Last year, Trump touted Dunk during a meeting with airline executives, as he made the case for better equipment.

'I have a pilot who's a real expert,' Trump said. 'He said, "Sir, the equipment they're putting on is just the wrong stuff. If we're going to modernize our system we should be using the right equipment."'

Trump coninued: 'My pilot, he's a smart guy, and he knows what's going on.'

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Textron Aviation Ends Cessna TTx Production

Textron Aviation is no longer selling the Cessna TTx, bringing to an apparent close production of the sleek high-performance piston single that originally drew its inspiration from a kitplane and grew into a fully Part 23 certified model that for a time was considered one of the best light airplanes in the world.

Textron Aviation quietly ceased production of TTx last month, according to a source with knowledge of the company’s move, and no longer advertises the model on its website. Cessna produced only 12 of the model in the fourth quarter of 2017 after selling 31 in total the year before, numbers that while small still outpaced production of the Beechcraft Bonanza, Textron Aviation’s other low-wing high-performance piston single.

The TTx began life in 2004 as the Columbia 300, which itself grew from the Lancair ES kit airplane. Columbia also built the glass-panel equipped 350 and turbocharged 400 before the company dissolved and Cessna purchased the design in 2007. Cessna initially produced the 350 and 400, then focused on the turbocharged model only. Its name was changed to Cessna 400, then to the Corvalis TT (for twin turbocharged) before Cessna settled on the TTx name in 2011.

Corvallis is a town in Oregon near Bend, where the composite airplanes were produced before Cessna moved production to Chihuahua, Mexico, and Independence, Kansas, in 2009. This proved to be a blow for the TTx as the composite parts from Mexico were initially defective.

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NBAA Releases Top Safety Priorities for 2018

Each year, the National Business Aviation Association’s Safety Committee convenes to decide which business aviation operational issues are most in need of risk mitigation. The NBAA Safety Committee’s goal is to promote safety-focused discussion and advocacy throughout business aviation, as well as to help the association prioritize its safety-enhancement efforts.

The list’s creation each year follows the committee’s assessment of safety survey results, risk-based safety and qualitative input from industry and regulatory partners, as well as other NBAA committees and association members. The added value of the annual safety list is how easily most of the items can transfer to the rest of the GA pilot population.

For 2018, the Safety Committee’s plans to specifically focus on loss of control inflight, runway excursions, procedural compliance, ground handling and taxi incidents, distraction management, scenario and risk-based training and checking, positive safety culture promotion, inflight aircraft collision risk, workforce competency and staffing and safety data sharing and utilization. The last important item on the committee’s list for 2018 is single-pilot operations. Two years ago, the safety committee’s six-member working group initiated an ambitious project to outline some of the problems faced by pilots flying high-performance aircraft alone. The working group team wrote and produced a safety video, “Alone in the Cockpit,” that debuted at the NBAA’s 2016 Single-Pilot Safety Standdown. The video continues to serve as a resource to pilots around the world.

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Corporate-Jet Sales Sag for Third Year

Business-jet sales dropped for a third year in 2017 as a commodities bust dried up orders of large aircraft from oil-rich customers.

Sales fell to US$18 billion last year, down 4 percent from 2016, marking the lowest level since 2012, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association said in a statement. Shipments of large aircraft, from companies including Bombardier Inc. and General Dynamics Corp.'s Gulfstream unit, fell 2.8 percent to 176.

The decline is no surprise for an industry that has been signaling that new jet models this year would power a turnaround. Gulfstream will begin deliveries of the new G500 and G600 this year and Bombardier plans to start shipping the Global 7000, the industry's largest plane, at the end of the year.

Large-Jet Lag

Energy and mining companies pulled back on buying aircraft that can fly between continents after commodities fell and crude prices plummeted from more than US$100 a barrel in 2014 to below US$30 in 2016. Many owners sought to unload their aircraft to cut costs, driving down prices of used jets.

It's a different story this year. Commodities have rebounded, with crude oil now above US$60 a barrel. The U.S. economy is accelerating, driving corporate profit growth in a market that's home to about two-thirds of the world's business jets. U.S. companies are flush with cash after Congress cut the corporate tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent and provided a break on bringing back cash held abroad.

Stabilizing Future

"We're optimistic, given some very positive economic indicators, stabilization in the used business aircraft market," Pete Bunce, chief executive officer of the aviation manufacturers' trade group, said in the statement.

General Dynamics saw orders for its largest planes pick up in the fourth quarter, said Chief Financial Officer Jason Aiken in a presentation Wednesday at a Barclays conference. That could increase if corporate tax cuts boost economic growth, he said.

The tax law also accelerates the depreciation customers can claim on their jets, a savings that could be another spur for demand this year, he said.

"We feel very good about the level of activity we see," Aiken said. "That robust, healthy pipeline continues for both the G650 as well as the new models."

Overall jet deliveries last year rose by 9 units to 676. The increase was driven by small jets, which saw shipments jump to 135 from 92. That impact on sales is also small. The Embraer SA Phenom 100, which has a cramped ceiling just under 5-feet tall and usually carries four passengers, has a list price of US$4.5 million compared with US$69.4 million for a Gulfstream G650ER. The G650ER can carry up to 19 people from New York to Tokyo.

The shipments of 176 large aircraft last year was the lowest amount since 2007. Deliveries of midsize aircraft fell to 365 from 394 in 2016.

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No Survivors after Wisconsin-Bound Small Plane Crashes in Indiana

News from TTFLY: the Cessna441 plane crashed in a field near the County Road 600S and 500W north of the town of Rossville, Indiana.

There were at least three people on the plane and all were killed, local media quoted IN state police as saying.

The 10-seater airplane took off from Eagle Creek Airpark in Indianapolis around 6:20 p.m.

"Many of you heard our family and extended family is grieving the loss of owner, father, person and friend, John T. Pagel, as well as John's son-in-law, Steven Witcpalek, and pilot Nathan Saari".

People nearby say the crash sounded like thunder.

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash, which is standard procedure for aircraft incidents.

The owner of a Pagel's Ponderosa Dairy Farm in Kewaunee was on board a plane that crashed in Indiana Thursday night, according to a source close to the family.

State Police spokesman Sgt. Kim Riley said early Friday that investigators hadn't yet confirmed how many people were on the plane. Officials haven't released identities of those killed.

The plane that crashed was a Cessna 441.

No additional information was immediately available.

Sikorsky begins final assembly of first HH-60W

Sikorsky has introduced the first HH-60W combat rescue helicopter (CRH) into final assembly ahead of a scheduled first flight by the end of this year.

The derivative of the UH-60M is the first of a planned 112-aircraft production programme worth $8.12 billion to replace the aging fleet charged with rescuing downed US Air Force pilots.

The start of final assembly means the HH-60W is two months ahead of schedule in manufacturing, says Tim Healy, director of Sikorsky Air Force Programmes.

The programme remains ahead of schedule despite repeated concerns from government auditors that the air force is ignoring “best practices” to rush the long-awaited HH-60G replacement into service.

The Air Force launched the CRH programme in 2014 as a minor derivative of an existing platform only after several attempts to buy a larger helicopter failed to overcome a series of legal challenges by losing bidders.

Instead of buying a much larger platform for the mission, the Air Force is modifying the UH-60M with the tactical mission kit (TMK), which integrators new sensors, radar and multiple self-defence systems.

Sikorsky’s workers also will install a new fuel system in final assembly to raises internal fuel to 660gal, or twice the internal fuel tank capacity of a UH-60M.

Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin-owned company, plans to build nine engineering and manufacturing development aircraft, along with 103 HH-60Ws for the Air Force programme.

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Light-singles 'not a priority', says Leonardo Helicopters chief

Leonardo Helicopters has frozen plans to introduce the AW009 – an upgraded and US-certificated version of the SW-4 produced by its PZL Swidnik subsidiary – and instead will concentrate on its core range.

The manufacturer unveiled the rebranded AW009 in 2016, proposing a more powerful Rolls-Royce M250-C30P engine and a new Genesys Aerosystems cockpit. US Federal Aviation Administration certification was being sought for the modified light-single.

But speaking on a pre-Heli-Expo briefing call, divisional managing director Gian Piero Cutillo said the project had now "moved to the right", noting that "it is not a priority".

He declines to specify when the programme might resume, but says it is unlikely to be in the medium term.

"We don't move up to that for the time being," he says, agreeing that the effort is essentially frozen.

The light-single AgustaWestland AW119Kx will remain Leonardo's main presence in the segment for the time being, he says, noting that other areas are higher priorities for investment.

"At the moment we are really focussed to strengthen the product that we have," says Cutillo, although he says it is "not giving up" on the effort.

Aside from the development of the AW609 tiltrotor, the airframer is beginning to evaluate how to evolve the best-selling 7t AW139 to meet renewed competition in the intermediate weight class with the arrival next year of the Airbus Helicopters H160.

"We are taking some decisions on how we want to re-inforce and refresh and resize the product and when," he says.

"It could imply a number of things. We believe that now is the time to start thinking about how we want to develop this product and when. Obviously we will upgrade the AW139, but not today."

Timing will be crucial, Cutillo notes. "It is important to decide what to do and when to do it. But we are seriously thinking on that," he says.

Any decision on the AW139 will be crucial for Leonardo: the intermediate-twin remains a strong seller, with the 1,000th example set to be delivered in 2019.

In addition, the company is working to add additional capabilities, such as icing protection, to the medium-twin AW169, as well as bringing changes to bear on the super-medium AW189 to drive down both the acquisition price and the cost per flight hour.

Unlike its rivals, Leonardo has yet to launch an eVTOL urban mobility project, but Cutillo points out that with "limited resources", other areas must take priority.

However, he also notes that while some companies are touting concepts "the AW609 is much closer to a product".

No other company has the same level of maturity "in terms of this new way of having vertical lift", he says.

(Evangle Luo of TTFLY shared with you)