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volume 02 / issue 02 / March 2013 01

Advances in technology have been with us for decades and continue to significantly change the way we function and operate in both our business and personal lives.Aviation is no different and the pace of change is no less dramatic. Exciting developments are common and new innovations and approaches to flight, new ideas and concepts surface almost daily. The interesting thing about what’s happening in Aviation is that we are seeing technology develop to such an extent that it is set to challenge the traditional principle, the traditional assumption that human beings need to be in control. Could this be or in fact, should this be an inevitable result?

The growth and effectiveness of satellites and UAV’s clearly indicates that pieces of sophisticated flying equipment can be controlled remotely but there’s still the need for someone to control the mission. Recent near catastrophic events involving commercial airliners also clearly indicate that the reliance on ‘human factors’ remains somewhat crucial. Could US Airways flight 1549 have been saved without Captain Chelsey Sullenberger’s intervention? Was the ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ an act of genius or was it the result of extraordinary advances in aviation? I want to believe it was the Captain. Was the escape of QF32 from near disaster the product of the incredible work done by Captain Richard De Crespigny and first officer Matthew Hicks or could they have not done it without technology? The events differ but having sat through a compelling presentation delivered by Captain De Crespigny in 2011 I want to believe that

Volume 02 / Issue 02 / March 2013

I n c o r p o r a t I n g t h e o f f I c I a l J o u r n a l o f t h e

it was the human mind, human actions, human interpretations, mental calculations that saved that flight from disaster. I want to believe that there really was no choice simply because so much control data was lost, so many data feeds cut.

In describing the series of events that lead to QF32’s dilemma, Captain De Crespigny’s words were chilling. “The aircraft was so injured and so many of the 250,000 sensors were complaining that I’d reached the limit of my ability to absorb them all. The ECAM threw up so many failures, degradations and checklists – especially in the fuel system – that I could not evaluate all the interactions and consequences of the cascading failures.” It certainly seemed to be the case that when faced with irreconcilable data, Captain De Crespigny overruled the system. “My overriding philosophy was (still) to focus on what was working, we were not scared, but we were busy. By inverting our logic and looking at what was working, we were able to build a basic ‘Cessna’ aircraft from the ground up, amassing sufficient bits for a basic fuel system, flight controls, brakes, landing gear and electrical supplies. This process took over an hour, but I am convinced it was time well spent”. It is clear that this approach could not have

been conceived by computers, nor could computers have identified the procedures required to eventually return the aircraft safely to the ground. In this case the flight crew developed and implemented a plan using calculus and instinct. There is no implied criticism of the onboard technology here because, despite being severely damaged, the aircraft kept flying. It’s just that the most effective method of resolving the situation in this case was to revert to the basics and get the aircraft on to the ground as quickly as possible.

Rather than deciding that the future is man (person) versus machine we probably ought to agree that the future is man (person) and machine working together. This is the way we run our ordinary lives. We use technology as an effective resource, to make us more productive and to enhance our knowledge and perspective, but we still use our minds and our instincts to generate the final result. They remain crucial. I’m sure Captain De Crespigny would agree.Looking at the concept of ‘fly by wire’ it’s easy to understand its relevance. Aircraft design has developed to such an extent that, at the cutting edge, the human mind can’t now remain the primary controller unless there becomes no alternative. How

can a pilot maintain full control through an ever widening speed range? How can a fighter pilot maintain control at such large angles of attack? Add to this the value of multiple redundancies and the benefit of constant availability of data both control and optimization, and the case looks compelling. And then there are the benefits of digital systems over analogue systems which leaves us left to contemplate a single issue, that being ultimate failure, the concept of ‘off’ and ‘on’ as opposed to partial degradation. This is where perhaps a human can never be replaced (at least on commercial flights) although there is even some discussion of the possibility of ‘pilotless’ commercial airliners in the not too distant future. Recent experience does indicate, however, that the best solution is an effective partnership, a partnership that uses the best of the capabilities that both technology and the human mind can deliver.

It should be re-assuring for pilots to know that their skills and capabilities cannot yet be reproduced in full by digital technology. But then again, it’s exciting to think that computerized systems might eventually meet or exceed the power of the human mind. No doubt it’s a long way off but we should not discourage the quest because the process of researching and developing future technologies always delivers numerous subsidiary benefits.

Perhaps the last word should be left to one of the forefathers of ‘fly by wire’, Airbus’s Bernard Ziegler whose philosophy was indeed simple. “We always have challenges. The first challenge is to make something new. But we have to do it, we have to believe it’s possible”.

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AIR

Publisher Helix Aviationeditors AirwAves: Tony Shaw AhiA JourNAl: Rob RichAdvertisiNg [email protected] writers Rob Rich, Tony Shaw, John Nicolson, Phil StevensAdvertisiNg deAdliNe Bookings 2nd Friday of the previous montheditoriAl submissioNs AirwAves: [email protected]: [email protected] AddressPO Box 266, Lismore NSW 2480

Publishers geNerAl disclAimerAll the articles, comments advice and other material contained in this publication are by way of general comment or advice only and are not intended, nor do they puport to be, the correct advice on any particular matter of subject referred to. No reader or any other person who obtains this publication should act on the basis of any matter contained in this publication without first considering and if necessary taking appropriate professional advice upon the applicability of any matter, advice or comment herein to their own particular circumstances. Accordingly, no responsibility is accepted or taken by the authors, editors, or publishers of this publication for any loss or damage suffered by any party acting in reliance on any matter, comment or advice contained herein.

Upcoming editions and their themes:April 2013 regional development

may 2013 business Aviation

June 2013 tertiary education

July 2013 defence

August 2013 general Aviation

september 2013 manufacturing

october 2013 Avionics

November 2013 design

december 2013 rotary wing

In this issue:Fly-by-WIre – risk or reward? 2Player ProFIle – ryan Campbell – a young Man With Serious Intent 3MUtUal trUSt and IntegrIty drives an Innovative business 4CIrrUS aIrCraFt to debUt new generation 5 aircraft at aviatex 2013 5eMbraer eMbraCeS Fly-by-Wire technology 6KIWI UPdate – news From ‘aotearoa’ 8eMbraer SeleCtS HoneyWell’S Integrated avionics technology 8bell’S neW 525 to Carry elite Performance & Control technologies 9HaWKer PaCIFIC SellS 4 diamonds to arena aviation 10blUe SKy SolUtIonS – north, South, east, West 10aVIa aIrCraFt aCqUIreS global Wings aviation 11agUStaWeStland reCeIVeS another order for the aW169 in australia 11FroM tHe HelICoPter edItor 12tHe rUSSIanS are CoMIng! 12IntrodUCIng neW teCHnology – night Vision Case Study 14US MIlItary MadneSS – Can Industry Meet the Challenge? 15PerForManCe baSed naVIgatIon 15

Fly-by-Wire – risk or reward?Phil Stevens, business development director, BAE Systems Commercial Aircraft Solutions reviews the state of play…Fly-by-wire flight control electronics provide safe, controlled handling of aircraft while reducing weight and lowering maintenance costs relative to traditional flight control systems. Fly-by-wire replaces the heavy mechanical control cables with electrical signals generated by a computer and then transmitted through wires to the surface control actuators. BAE Systems’ fly-by-wire system controls the aircraft ailerons, elevators, rudder, flaperons, spoilers, and horizontal stabilizers in commercial aircraft.

In the early days of flight, aircraft were operated with mechanical and manual flight controls, complex wire and cable

systems to connect the pilot’s commands to the control surfaces. Technological advances introduced auto stabilizers and autopilot functions to reduce pilot fatigue and improve flight efficiency; subsequently adding analogue flight control computers to further reduce the pilot work load. This led to the advent of digital fly-by-wire flight control systems aboard military aircraft, allowing significant improvements in aircraft performance. BAE Systems was the first company to introduce digital microprocessors aboard civil aircraft, with slat and flap computers on the Airbus A310, and in 1994, the company provided Boeing’s first commercial fly-by-wire system for the 777. BAE Systems developed and certified advanced, highly fault-tolerant flight control computer architecture and actuator control electronics for the 777, and continues to expand fly-by-wire technology encompassing Embraer and Bombardier platforms today.

Fly-by-wire flight controls offer weight savings, reduced and simplified maintenance, and greater flying precision

for commercial and military aircraft. The replacement of the heavier mechanical system with lightweight electrical wires and electronic controllers reduces fuel costs, and provides the opportunity of increasing passenger or payload capacity and therefore, revenue. In a fly-by-wire system, the mechanical control cables are replaced with electrical signals generated by the flight control computer and transmitted through wires to the control actuators. The use of fly-by-wire control systems improves control signal response time, facilitating more precise aircraft handling and improved safety. An additional advantage of the fly-by-wire flight control system is its automatic monitoring of pilot commands, which ensures the aircraft is operated within the flight protection envelope, allowing the pilot to extract maximum performance from the plane without running the risk of exceeding safety margins and improving pilot situational awareness.

The next step in the evolution of commercial flight controls technology is the introduction of active pilot controls. These systems are

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AIRconcerns over dual pilot inputs in passive inceptor-equipped aircraft. BAE Systems is the world’s only provider of flight-worthy active inceptors, with more than 25 years of design experience in active stick technology.

As flight control products continue to evolve and expand, BAE Systems offers today’s first application of electronics that are truly “stick-to-surface.” From fly-by-wire flight control electronics, to actuation electronics, active inceptors, and high lift electronics, BAE Systems is the provider of the first stick-to-surface solution, for Embraer’s KC-390 platform, that will be civil certified. This is the culmination of more than four decades of

flight control innovation, beginning with the development and certification of fly-by-wire flight control computer architecture for the Boeing 777 in 1994, and exemplifies why BAE Systems is regarded as the leader in commercial flight controls.

Fly-By-Wire is the future for all commercial platforms. After more than four decades of experience with flight control technology, BAE Systems can count more than 20,000 commercial and military systems in service on aircraft around the world today. Every second, a plane takes off somewhere in the world enabled by BAE Systems’ flight-critical products, and the fly-by-wire technology that started it all is the foundation of this legacy.

Player ProfileRyan Campbell – A Young Man With Serious Intent…

In July 2013, Ryan Campbell , a nineteen year old from Merimbula on the far South Coast of New South Wales, hopes to achieve a dream – a dream to fly solo around the world. If successful he will also become the youngest aviator to do so by breaking the record currently held by Swiss pilot Carlos Schmidt who completed his flight in 2012 at age 22.

The journey will take two and a half months and fly through fifteen countries, a distance of over 23,000 nautical miles. Ryan’s plan will not only create history - he also hopes it will raise awareness of the opportunities within the aviation industry for young people. ‘Throughout my journey from a wide eyed young boy to commercial pilot, I have not only seen and experienced what aviation has to offer young people, but noticed the lack of young people within aviation. I often wonder why is it that there are so few young people learning to fly?’ he says, ‘I’m hoping that what I plan to do will demonstrate to other young aviators that there are real opportunities for them to engage and become involved’.

Ryan Campbell’s love of Aviation started from a very early age. He recalls his first flight vividly. ‘The first time I set foot in an airliner was on a flight to Vanuatu when I was only six years old. After being pushed back in the seat on take-off, shown around the flight deck at 35,000 feet and sitting in awe of smartly dressed commercial pilots towing their small wheelie bags through the airport, I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Growing up with two older brothers meant that life’s hardest decision, ‘What do I want to be when I grow up?’ was not just left to them. As a seven year old I would sternly and seriously tell anyone who would listen that I would grow up to be a ‘Jumbo Jet’ Pilot, own a Subaru WRX and live in Canberra!’

Whilst the seeds of an aviator were sown early in Ryan’s childhood it was perhaps the family’s original connection with flight that allowed them to take root and begin

already used in military aircraft, replacing traditional, passive pilot controls, which use position sensors to send electrical signals to the fly-by-wire system; the aircraft uses mechanical devices to generate the feedback forces felt by the pilot. These mechanical inceptors cannot change the feel of the stick in real time, so changes to the flight envelope of the aircraft cannot be used to feed back to the pilot as force feedback cues, meaning there is no situational awareness through the inceptor feel, such as excessive bank angle. However, active inceptors provide force feedback directly into the pilot’s hand, in real time. This force feedback, or tactile feedback, may take the form

of various pilot cues, such as variable gradients, force breakouts, detents, ramps, gates and soft stops, to warn of mode engagements or impending flight envelope limits. It provides an intuitive means of giving immediate feedback to the pilot, and links the controls across the cockpit, so each pilot can feel the forces and see the displacements generated by the other pilot. This is done electrically by the system, is highly redundant, and replaces all the mechanical complexity, weight and volume of passive inceptor mechanical linkages without the significant capability loss resulting from the use of passive electrical inceptors. The result is increased safety and crew coordination in dual pilot aircraft, which may eliminate industry

to dominate his thinking. But there may never have been a connection had there not been a timely invitation from Charles Kingsford Smith. ‘My Great Grandfather was one of those “if it was meant to fly it would have feathers and a beak” kind of people’, recalls Ryan, ‘so it was after much grumbling that he was convinced to join his wife and two sons on a barnstorming flight with Charles Kingsford-Smith. Only a young boy at the time, this flight sparked the love of aviation within my Granddad. After returning from World War Two he learnt to fly and, joining the ranks of fellow private pilots, he went on to build a total time of 222 hours and 22 minutes. Various factors including his time in the infantry on the Kokoda Track, a busy farming life and ill health meant that his flying was limited, yet he still managed to pass his love of aviation onto the next generation’.

This most fortunate encounter with Kingsford-Smith certainly embedded aviation in the family fabric and when Ryan Campbell’s Dad began to take flying lessons, pursuing his dream to become a private pilot, it seemed logical for his son to follow suit. But how would it unfold? Where would it start? Just like his Great Grandfather before him, it was a single event that provided the catalyst. But this time things were different. There was no reluctance, no hesitation. ‘It seemed common sense to think you would need to get your driver’s licence before learning to fly’ recalls Campbell, ‘it was under this assumption that I decided to complete Year 12 and then pursue my career in aviation. But the plan changed for me at age 14 when I stumbled across an article in the local newspaper about a boy who had just flown an Evektor Sportstar solo on his

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Ryan Campbell with the Cessna 182T that he plans to fly around the world.


AIR

Mutual trust and Integrity drives an Innovative business…In 1989 Annie Mack, an experienced business manager, formed a new company. The plan was to manufacture and distribute environmentally responsible cleaning products for the Aviation, Power Generation and Mining Industries. The mission was simple. ‘To become a trusted and reliable supplier of cost effective, environmentally safe, industry best practice products that allow customers to excel in their business’.

True to its mission the company developed and began to market a range of products that were not only environmentally safe but also highly effective. Underpinning much of the product range was colloidal technology. ‘The concept is simple’ says Mack who remains the company’s Managing Director. ‘Colloids’ or ‘micelles’, when mixed with water, roam and collide with dirt or grease on the surface being cleaned, each ‘collision‘ removing a small piece. This is occurring both rapidly and constantly and in a short space of time all the dirt or grease is removed from the surface. Just as importantly the micelles stop the pieces of dirt or grease from re-joining so they cannot re-attach to the surface being cleaned. This is a totally different to the way soap or detergents clean. They tend to stick to the dirt or grease like iron filings to a magnet. They float around in the water carrying the globules with them’.

For over twenty years Annie Mack continually worked on developing and sourcing innovative solutions. The process was one of constant refinement until she eventually settled on three key products:

• Zi-400 Aircraft Colloidal Cleaner • Cleen Screen • ZOK 27

Zi-400 Aircraft Colloidal Cleaner is a fully approved, highly advanced aerospace cleaner, specifically designed to provide corrosion inhibition whilst cleaning. It is

fifteenth birthday, making him the youngest ‘pilot’ in Australia. I was in awe and to say the least, purely jealous. I must have read that article a dozen times before deciding that if he could do it, why couldn’t I’?

So the die was cast, Ryan Campbell was set to take flight.’ It was about this time that my Dad had just started flying lessons with an instructor through my Uncle’s scenic and charter flight business, meaning that completing my trial introductory flight was an easy experience. Flying in the Sportstar with CFI Alan Lindsay and under time restraints on the day, I flew what I now know as a circuit. It was only a short flight but after rocking the wings to the left and to the right on downwind it gave me a smile that simply wouldn’t go away for days and confirmed what I already knew. This was what I was meant to do’!

For the next year, Ryan travelled from his home in Merimbula to the Moruya Aero Club to fly a Skyfox Gazelle and on his 15th birthday, the 13th of January 2009, he flew solo. ‘I was now the youngest pilot in Australia and only a week later I was reading about myself in the local newspaper!’ Mission accomplished. Or was there more?

The initial satisfaction of becoming the youngest pilot in Australia was soon overshadowed by a strong desire to progress further. ‘Flying at least once a fortnight for the next twelve months I reached the next goal I had set myself when I flew solo in a GA aircraft on my 16th birthday’, he recalls.

Then came further recognition. In 2010 Ryan was awarded an Australian Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Scholarship. Valued at $6000, the money was put to good use and he went on to obtain his private pilot’s licence aged 17 and then, on his 18th birthday, after having successfully completed his HSC, Ryan left home bound for Brisbane to study for a commercial pilot’s licence with Bob Tait Aviation.

To say that ‘the rest is history’ would be doing Ryan Campbell a dis-service. There is obviously much more to come. Currently

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in the frame is his dream of becoming the youngest pilot and first teenager to fly solo around the world. The greatest hurdle, to secure an aircraft capable of completing the journey, has now been cleared with the acquisition of a 2003 Cessna 182T and the ‘Teen World Flight’ team, including mentor Ken Evers and safety advisor Dick Smith, has been working hard to raise the required funds for the journey.

With more funds required and a few challenges yet to be faced, Ryan Campbell remains characteristically optimistic, ‘I know this is an ambitious project’ he says, ‘but my belief is strong. I’m getting the best advice and guidance and with a little more support from the aviation community I know we can succeed.’

Following the world circumnavigation Ryan Campbell will be planning an around Australia ‘Youth in Aviation Schools’ tour. ‘The schools tour, along with a partnership to be announced in the coming weeks, means we can inspire youth all over the world to follow their dreams no matter what they are’ he says. Coming from a kid who has regularly turned dreams into reality that’s a fair call!

If you would like to read more about Ryan Campbell’s journey, visit www.teenworldflight.com.au and follow Teen World Flight on Facebook and Twitter. If you, or someone you know, is interested in sponsoring Ryan and his team you can find more information on the website or by emailing [email protected]

cutting edge colloidal technology. It is not a conventional detergent or surfactant based cleaning product. Since 1993 ZI-400 Aircraft Colloidal Cleaner has become an integral component in the corrosion control program developed by the Royal Australian Air Force for its aircraft fleet. In 1997, Zi-400 Aircraft Colloidal Cleaner was also chosen by the United Space Alliance (NASA’s ground operations arm) for use on the space shuttle fleet.

Cleen Screen is used to remove marks, smudges and bug spots from windscreens, canopies, paintwork and plastics. Cleen Screen’s anti-static properties help stop dust, dirt and lint sticking to cleaned surfaces. This reduces frequency of and time spent on cleaning. Cleen Screen will not leave a film that could produce optical distortion or halo effect. Cleen Screen also has a rejuvenating effect on cleaned surfaces.

ZOK 27 is a product specifically designed for cleaning and de-carbuizing the inside of gas turbine engines. ZOK 27 was originally developed to meet the UK Ministry of Defence requirement for a combined cleaner and corrosion inhibitor for helicopter turbine engines. It is now the approved cleaner for British military aircraft engines and is in wide spread use on all current gas turbine engines in many other applications including Civil Aircraft, Marine, Oil and Gas, Industrial and Power Generation.

Whilst the range is small Eco 2000’s products are extremely versatile and can take the place of multiple specialized cleaning liquids. ‘Our advanced technology products are formulated to be highly effective and efficient’ says Mack, ‘we are committed to uncompromising quality and to promoting industry best practices. Understanding the crucial need to embrace change we constantly endeavour to be recognized as best in class by our customers. We employ highly skilled and motivated people that understand the market and the respective industries we supply’.

The original business plan was simple and the principles on which it was built still remain clearly evident. ‘We understand that any successful business relationship is based on mutual trust and integrity’ says Mack. ‘Their success is our success. We also strongly believe that our commitment to our customers needs to be equally matched by our commitment to the environment’.

Pictured - Steve Deane, ZOK Technical Manager (left) with Annie Mack.


AIRCirrus aircraft to debut new generation 5 aircraft at aviatex 2013World leading general aviation manufacturer Cirrus Aircraft has chosen Aviatex 2013 for the Australian debut of its new Generation 5 aircraft.

Launched internationally in January 2013, Cirrus Aircraft’s new SR22 and SR22T bring a dramatic increase in load carrying capability, allowing carriage of an extra passenger along with substantial extra baggage or cargo while also carrying more fuel in both of the 5 seat aircraft.

In its launch announcement, Cirrus Aircraft said “the changes for 2013 make the SR22 and SR22T the highest in-class useful load aircraft available today.

“A standard SR22 not only achieves true “four-seat airplane that can carry four people and full fuel,” but SR22 and SR22T models now have five seats total and can carry all five FAA-standard passengers non-stop and in comfort over 700 nautical miles,” the company said.

Cirrus Aircraft Regional Director for Australia and South East Asia,

Graham Horne, says he is pleased to be showcasing the new generation aircraft at the inaugural Aviatex expo.

“The Cirrus’ Generation 5 is an innovative and exciting new aircraft, so it’s fitting that we unveil it at Australia’s innovative and exciting new event for the Australian aviation industry— Aviatex 2013,” Mr Horne said.

Aviatex Organiser Mark Bright welcomed Cirrus’ selection of Aviatex 2013 for the G5 aircraft’s Australian debut. “We are honoured to welcome Cirrus Aircraft’s new Generation 5 aeroplane to Australia

at Aviatex 2013. Cirrus Aircraft is a world-leading supplier of aircraft to the general aviation market, which is a key market that Aviatex is intended to serve,” Mr Bright said.

Cirrus Aircraft will be given pride of place at stand 1A, located immediately adjacent to the entrance to the indoor exhibition area.

Aviatex will be held from 3-5 May 2013 at Illawarra Regional Airport, just 80 minutes’ drive from Sydney’s Mascot and Bankstown airports.

Aviatex 2013 will bring an exciting new expo and trade show to the heart of Australia’s aviation industry and be the first of what will become an annual event tailored for the smaller commercial, general, recreational and sports aviation sectors that form the bulk of Australia’s aviation industry.

Aviatex 2013 will form the trade component of the annual Wings Over Illawarra Air Show, which is fast becoming a ‘must-do’ event on Australia’s aviation calendar, having attracted 15,000 visitors in 2012 and expected to welcome more than 20,000 in 2013.

To secure a display space for your business or register as a trade visitor contact Aviatex organiser Mark Bright on 0418 449 432, or visit www.aviatex.com.au

SUNDAY 5 MAY 2013Illawarra Regional Airport, Albion Park

2013

REGISTER NOW!

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“The Cirrus’ Generation 5 is an innovative and exciting new aircraft”


AIRembraer embraces Fly-by-Wire technologyThe use of Fly-By-Wire technology, for many years confined to the military and heavy commercial aviation sectors, can now be experienced across a much broader size and application envelope and will continue to revolutionise the way aircraft fly and are flown for many years to come. A good example of the technology’s purpose, relevance and benefit can be seen in their application for the first time in the mid-size and mid-light categories of business jets, with Embraer’s Legacy 500 and Legacy 450 jets.

Jose Costas, Vice President, Marketing and Sales for Embraer Executive Jets, Asia Pacific, believes that the introduction of the technology was not only innovative but also logical. ‘Embedding systems that are more intuitive, systems that can reduce the workload of the pilot, systems that can provide more intelligence on how to control an aircraft without reducing the capacity or authority of the pilot have compelling benefits, particularly for business and private jet pilots whose scope of work is far greater than most. At the end of the day these pilots have much broader responsibilities and need technologies that can assume some of the workload without of course interfering with their feel, perspective or appreciationfor the dynamics of the aircraft’.

There is perhaps no better reference document than Embraer’s Fly-By-Wire white paper released in July 2010. This is an in depth analysis of the company’s rationale, justification and methodology in adopting the technology and we have sought permission to reproduce it below because it is not only informative but also an excellent expose of the concept’s logic and potential worth.

Introduction

Embraer’s experience goes back to the 1980’s, with the development of the AMX military aircraft, which had fly-by-wire rudder and spoilers. In the late 1990s, the E-Jets (Embraer’s 70- to 120-seat regional jets) went a step further. Controls were digital in pitch (elevator) and yaw (rudder) axis. In the roll axis, spoilers were digital but ailerons were conventional. The Legacy 450 and Legacy 500 jets are the first full fly-by-wire Embraer jets.

In a fly-by-wire system, pilots’ inputs are translated into digital information. A computer program reads these inputs, understands its intentions and finally makes the decision about which way, when and how much to displace a control surface. Moreover, when making these decisions, the system can also vary its output based on readings of additional parameters such as speed, altitude, angle of attack and others. These built-in logics on how to react to pilot’s commands are the fly-by-wire control laws. They are the heart of the operational advantages a fly-by-wire system can provide and vary according to the manufacturer, translating different operational philosophies.

Flight Control Laws and Envelope Protection

The control laws on the Legacy 500 and 450 are flight path stable. In other words, within the so called Normal Flight Envelope, the system will maintain aircraft’s flight path vector when the side stick is in neutral position. This is achieved through the use of an auto trim function. Within the Normal Flight Envelope, the system also provides automatic pitch and yaw compensation in turns, automatic roll compensation with sideslip and will maintain current bank angle when side stick is released back to neutral position.

The Normal Flight Envelope is defined by “soft limits” for pitch (+30o/-15o), bank angle (33o), maximum operating speed (Mmo/Vmo) and a 1.1 stall speed. These are called “soft limits” because flying beyond them is still possible. However, it requires continuous sidestick back pressure from

the pilot. Going beyond those soft limits takes the aircraft into the Limit Flight Envelope. Remaining in this wider envelope requires the side stick to be out of its neutral position. With the side stick back to neutral, the aircraft returns to the Normal Flight Envelope. For instance, a pilot can command and keep a bank angle of 45o. Once the side stick is released, the aircraft will gradually move back to 33o bank.

The Limit Flight Envelope imposes some hard limits to the aircraft. Different to other manufacturers, there are no hard limits for pitch or bank angle. Instead, the hard limits are related variables that really have to do with the aircraft’s design limits: controllability and structural loads, which are described through design diving speed, stall (maximum angle of attack), structural load factor and maximum sideslip. In other words, any pitch or bank angle can be reached provided that load and controllability limits are observed.

Embraer’s Fly-By-Wire Features and Benefits

One of the key features of the Embraer’s fly-by-wire system is the Angle of Attack (AOA) Limiter. Differently of conventional stall protection systems based on a stick pusher, which would command nose down to gain speed, the AOA limiter provides stall protection by limiting the angle of attack. This allows lower margins over the airframe’s stall speed and consequently lower takeoff and landing speeds, resulting in better performance figures.

Overspeed protection, on the other hand, is provided through nose up commands when going beyond maximum operating speed limits to prevent exceeding the hard limit of the dive speed. Crew workload is further reduced by automatic compensations in case of intentional configuration changes, such as thrust, flaps and landing gear position. Moreover, flight characteristics are kept the same for different weights, center of gravity positions and speeds.

In a similar way, fly-by-wire also reacts to compensate system failures. Let’s take for example an engine in-flight shut-down.

FBW will help by smoothing the airplane’s response. However, in a failure like that, Embraer’s design intentionally asks for some residual compensation from the pilot. The idea is to have the pilot in the loop. He knows what is happening and is part of the solution. In the same example, after initial recognition and action, a pilot would trim the aircraft and from that point on, fly-by-wire would be in charge of keeping it trimmed.

Also, fly-by-wire makes things a lot easier when the pilot has to climb sharply to avoid obstacles or in a wind shear escape maneouver. With full aft stick, the aircraft pitches up as swiftly as possible, always observing maximum normal structural load factor, until the AOA Limiter kicks in, preventing stall and allowing the aircraft to reach and maintain the maximum angle of attack. The aircraft thus achieves the best rate of climb through two simple tasks: full aft stick and full throttle.

In addition, integration between fly-by-wire and autopilot provide improved comfort when flying under turbulent conditions. The closed loop control delivers more effective reaction than conventional autopilot systems, reducing aircraft oscillations in turbulence and enhancing passenger experience.

Performance is also enhanced by weight savings not only with the flight controls system itself but also within the aircraft’s structure, which can benefit from lower loads in specific areas due to built-in envelope protections and automatic compensations.

Embraer has elected to replace conventional yokes or sticks with side sticks, which allows a more spacious and cleaner cockpit. Auto throttles are used instead of auto thrust. When engaged, throttles will move with thrust variations, and the rudder is controlled through conventional pedals.

Breaking Paradigms

The Legacy 450 and 500 are definitely breaking a paradigm by bringing a technology that is now available only on larger and more expensive aircraft into the ‘mid-size’ and ‘mid-light’ business jet categories. The redundant high-speed computers and side-stick controls will enable a smoother flight and offer to passengers and pilots the advantage of optimized performance, increased comfort, greater control, reduced workload and full flight envelope protection.

The fly-by-wire flight controls together with the state of the art Rockwell-Collins Pro Line Fusion avionics, Synthetic Vision System (SVS), Vertical Navigation (VNAV), Auto-Throttle, paperless cockpit capability, optional Enhanced Vision System (EVS) and Head-Up Guidance Systems (HGS), all make these jets unique in their flight deck proposition, and raise the bar in their class segments.

Embraer’s Legacy 500 flight deck


Latin America +55 12 3927 3399, U.S., Canada and Caribbean +1 954 359 5387,Europe, Middle East and Africa +44 1252 379 270, China +86 10 6598 9988,Asia Pacific +65 6734 4321

For the sheer joy of it.The Legacy 500 gives you ultimate performance. That, combined with

fly-by-wire technology doesn’t just make the pilot’s experience more

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Find out more about the Legacy 500 and our six other exceptional

models at EmbraerExecutiveJets.com

13m

ar51


AIRKIWI Update – news From ‘aotearoa’ John Nicolson

HeliExpo 2013, Las Vegas. At least 20,000 industry professionals and over 650 exhibitors. HeliExpo, the largest rotary show in the world. 2013 will see 10 exhibitors from New Zealand and at least twice that number of business visitors.

New Zealand is a world force in helicopters. Over 800 helicopters are registered in New Zealand. This equates to one helicopter per 5,600 people, the highest rate of ownership in the world. Many New Zealand helicopter pilots now ply their trade around the world.

Put another way, New Zealand has 0.06 percent of the world’s population but 8 percent of the global commercial helicopter fleet.

The New Zealand helicopter industry is characterised by its

• Can-do attitude • Professionalism and worldwide class skills • Understanding and use of technology • Fast certification • Safety conscious culture

As we say in New Zealand ‘Aviation is in our DNA’. New Zealand aviation companies are agile and responsive, practical and innovative, professional and accountable. This will be on display in Las Vegas in March.

The industry in New Zealand is diverse. New Zealand companies have internationally competitive expertise in design and manufacture, MRO, agricultural operations and training. This expertise underpins the products and services to be displayed at HeliExpo.

The New Zealand exhibitors at this year’s HeliExpo, which have considerable knowledge and experience of the North American and global market, include:

Aeromotive. Supplies agricultural aviation equipment

Aeronet Software. Software program manages all aspects of rotary wing operation and compliance

Flightcell. Communications systems – they are regarded as the inventor of airborne integrated mobile communications

Oceania. Refurbish helicopters and sell role equipment designed and manufactured in New Zealand. They also buy and sell aircraft from and to the United States,

Spider Tracks, Tracplus and TracMap. These companies will be displaying internet based real time aircraft and vehicle track and tracing systems. They have each developed different systems, are often targeting different market segments and are all having considerable success in North America.

The New Zealand companies are all exhibiting to build profile, maintain relationships and make new contacts. The show is very important for them. This year, for the first time, there will be a New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and Aviation New Zealand hosted networking event for the companies and their key commercial contacts. This will be held on

Wednesday 6 March.

The New Zealand aviation industry is also organising promotional activity in San Francisco coinciding with the challenge for Americas Cup supremacy

in July 2013. New Zealand’s rotary industry will be featured again.

HeliExpo and the activity in San Francisco are important in developing greater global awareness and knowledge of the capabilities and strength of the New Zealand rotary industry.

embraer Selects Honeywell’s Integrated avionics technology…Embraer S.A. has selected Honeywell to provide its Primus Epic 2 integrated avionics system for the second generation of E-Jets, which are planned to enter service in 2018. The decision is another important milestone in the program that is expected to be launched later this year. Last month, Embraer selected Pratt & Whitney as the engine supplier.

“Honeywell has been a valued partner of Embraer for many years, so it is with great confidence that we extend our relationship for this important program,” said Paulo Cesar Siva, President & CEO of Embraer Commercial Aviation. “We believe that the evolution of the Honeywell Primus Epic, including large landscape displays, will provide flexibility for continuous innovation in the flight deck, while offering a mature system and a smooth transition for pilots between the current and future generation of E-Jets.”

The Honeywell Primus Epic 2 integrated avionics system on the second generation of E-Jets will be an evolution of the existing Primus Epic system on the current generation, which will assure a high degree of pilot commonality. The five 8x10 inch displays will be replaced by four 13x10 inch large landscape displays with advanced graphics capabilities. Honeywell’s Next Generation Flight Management System (NGFMS), already in development with

current generation E-Jets, will provide enhanced flight planning, navigation and aircraft performance capabilities.

“Honeywell’s Primus Epic 2 is an incredibly innovative, highly integrated and proven technology that makes flying safer and more efficient. Our avionics systems are found inside the world’s most successful aircraft, including Embraer’s existing 170/190 E-Jet family of aircraft,” said John Bolton, President of Air Transport & Regional Honeywell Aerospace. “We look forward to continuing our partnership, and pursuing additional E-Jet opportunities that our unique breadth of products and services affords us.”

Honeywell’s Primus Epic system has accumulated more than nine million flight hours to date, on the E-Jets alone. Because these avionics are software based, Embraer will be able to easily and effectively integrate future communication, navigation and air traffic management functionalities.

As in the current family of aircraft, the second generation of E-Jets will be optionally equipped with dual Head-up Displays (HUD). The supplier selection for this system will occur later this year.

The second generation of E-Jets will be a significant step in Embraer s commitment to continuously invest in this line of commercial jets. State-of-the-art engines in combination with

new aerodynamically advanced wings, full fly-by-wire flight controls and other systems evolutions, will result in double digit improvements in fuel burn, maintenance costs, emissions and external noise. The Company’s objective is to offer the best product and maintain its leadership in the 70 to 120 seat market, where more than 900 E-Jets are currently in service. A total of 62 customers from 42 countries are flying or will soon take delivery of Embraer E-Jets.

“An incredibly innovative, highly integrated and proven technology”

“Aviation is in our DNA”

Oceania Aviation’s Ardmore maintenance facility at full capacity

Honeywell’s Primus Epic 2 integrated avionics system


AIRbell’s new 525 to Carry elite Performance and Control technologies…Bell Helicopter’s 525 Relentless will break new ground by carrying a number of new technologies designed to enhance performance and capability. The evolution of the 525 is the company’s boldest move yet to reclaim share in the commercial market and the production phase of the first prototype began in November 2012.

Capable of carrying up to 16 passengers, the Bell 525 Relentless is designed to support customers in various mission configurations including oil & gas, search & rescue, helicopter emergency medical services and VIP/corporate transport.

Bell Helicopters is confident that the 525 will be the first commercial helicopter to define the ‘super-medium’ class and plans to deliver best-in-class performance characteristics and passenger amenities with maximized situational awareness to be delivered by the ARC Horizon flight deck.

The company is claiming three firsts with the 525 Relentless:

• The first commercial helicopter to incorporate fly-by-wire flight controls

• The first commercial helicopter to incorporate the Garmin G5000H, a touchscreen avionics suite, for enhanced situational awareness and improved pilot integration

• The first commercial helicopter to incorporate Bell’s LATD™ tail boom technology for improved hover performance.

Fly by Wire controls and associated computers will be supplied by BAE Systems under a systems development and demonstration contract that will deliver flight-qualified units to be used for flight test and certification, with follow-on production work over the next five years. The development work will be conducted in the Southern Tier of New York, with production at BAE Systems’ facility in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

The fly-by-wire system will provide pilots with the ability to fly demanding missions in uncontrolled environments, without external navigation or landing aids. The system is a full-authority digital flight controller that provides fly-by-wire flight control, integrated flight and propulsion control, aircraft centre of gravity computation for stores and fuel contents, structural air loads alleviation, and superior handling performance. “BAE Systems has more than five decades of experience developing and producing flight control and vehicle management systems for all types of aircraft,” says Joe Senftle, vice president of communications and control solutions for BAE Systems. “Our industry-leading record of technology innovation, reliability, and successful development programs will ensure best-in-class operations for the 525 Relentless helicopter. The company’s pioneering technology and progressive advancements in the areas of redundancy management, fault-tolerant design, health monitoring systems, and failure mode analysis have established BAE Systems as a world leader in control system reliability and integrity”.

Garmin’s G5000H flight deck technology features one of the most intuitive interfaces available in any helicopter avionics system, completely revolutionizing the way flight data is accessed. Up to 4 helicopter system management touchscreens act as the gateway to the entire avionics suite. Icon-identified “touch keys” make functions easy to locate and access with fewer hand/eye movements in the cockpit.

Bell’s 525 incorporates an advanced technology tail boom to improve hover

performance. By aerodynamically tailoring the tail boom shape, Bell’s LATD system takes maximum advantage of rotor downwash to produce lift and supplement the tail rotor thrust. The tailored tail boom also reduces airframe lateral drag. In combination, the LATD provides greater hover altitude capability and improved sideward flight characteristics for an enhanced customer experience.

“I know as we work to move this product toward first flight and certification, it will

continue to make history as it leads the way in innovation and new technologies,” said John L. Garrison, President and CEO of Bell Helicopter.

The Bell 525 Relentless represents the collaborative alignment between Bell Helicopter and its customers and is the culmination of more than a year’s worth of input from a group called the Customer Advisory Panel (CAP). “Having our customers engage with us on this unprecedented new aircraft validates our product development strategies – placing our customers at the center of everything we do. We appreciate the collaborative spirit we share with all of our customers who have participated in this innovative process,” Garrison said.

The CAP was formed in December 2010 and is comprised of 24 executive level members from nine different companies

that represent industries of potential Bell 525 markets, such as oil and gas, search and rescue, firefighting and corporate/VIP. All the members have decision-making authority and extensive helicopter backgrounds. Meeting bi-annually and exchanging information constantly, the CAP interacts with the design team to ensure that customer requirements are being met through every step of the process. This Validation of Program Design Decisions process has resulted in numerous changes that more closely align with the customers’ future mission requirements. “Our slogan is ‘creating an aircraft that’s fit for purpose,’” said Will Fulton, Commercial Product Marketing Manager for Bell Helicopter. “We have had resounding support from our members, many of whom have been on previous CAPs on other projects with other companies. Our actions prove that we are 100 percent focused on integrating the voice of the customer into a useful product offering.”

The CAP also remains with the program from entry into service, serving as a sort of “oversight” committee to validate engineering design decisions. “What we’re seeing is a transformation of the way we approach future helicopter development,” Fulton said. “I think the fact that we’ve made such good progress will keep this moving and successful. Bell Helicopter is committed to following through on a customer-driven design, and the CAP is proof of our commitment to execution excellence.”

“Creating an aircraft that’s fit for purpose”

Bell’s 525 launch at Heli Expo 2012 courtesy of Aerotech-online.comThe spacious interior of Bell’s 525 Relentless

The Bell 525 flight deck featuring fly-by-wire controls


AIR

Hawker Pacific Sells 4 diamonds to arena aviationHawker Pacific, Asia Pacific’s leading aircraft sales, services and product support company is delighted to announce the sale of two Diamond DA40-CS Lycoming aircraft and two Diamond DA20-C1 aircraft to Arena International Aviation (trading as Johnston Aviation Services), in Port Macquarie. The aircraft were accepted today at the 2013 Australian International Airshow and Aerospace & Defence Exposition at Avalon Airport Geelong.The four aircraft, which will be delivered in April, make up the first of 20 aircraft which the flight training and charter organisation have an option to purchase, with deliveries expected in 2014. The aircraft will be used for flight training, catering for up to 300 Chinese students from Hainan Airlines.

John Oppenheim Hawker Pacific’s Sales Manager, Australia, NZ, the Pacific said: “Hawker Pacific very recently made the first-ever sale of a DA20-C1 fitted with the G500 Glass Cockpit within Australia and New Zealand and we’re thrilled to have another two secured in such a short time. Additionally, the DA40-CS is a fantastic machine that continues to be popular with flight training schools because of its versatility as it can be customised with many options to suit a range of missions. Together, the four aircraft are an all-round smart business decision

for Arena, and we look forward to our continuing relationship with them.”

Kevin McMurtrie, Chief Pilot Arena Intentional Aviation said: “This is the first phase of our company’s training fleet renewal plan, with further DA20s and DA40s to be introduced in late 2013/early 2014. The four new additions will be of immense benefit to our students in achieving their training goals, whilst providing us with low maintenance costs, high dispatch rates and efficiencies and savings in hourly operating costs due to the DA20 and DA40’s low fuel flow. The purchases represent our company’s development into the Chinese pilot training market as we continue to provide high levels of pilot licence training that our students have come to expect.”

The factory-equipped Garmin Glass cockpit solution for the Diamond DA20-C1 was introduced in mid-2009, and joins the G1000 equipped DA40 and DA42, giving cockpit commonality across Diamond’s complete line of piston aircraft. The DA20 offers Garmin 10” wide PFD/MFD glass cockpit, redesigned panel, 125hp TCM IO-240 with Sensenich fixed pitch propeller, 5gph in typical flight training operations, 450lb full fuel useful load, utility category certification to max gross weight and is Spin Certified.

The modern, composite four-seater DA40-CS single engine aircraft are powered by the Lycoming IO-360-M1A Avgas engine, and are equipped with a Garmin G1000 glass cockpit. The DA40 is an overall outstanding entry-level, state-of-

the art aircraft for flying school operators. It is extremely well-equipped, carries leading edge technology and offers a high level of economy, safety and performance.

Hawker Pacific is the appointed distributor for Diamond Aircraft in Australia and New Zealand.

blue Sky Solutions – north, South, east, West…Customer Service was the main theme at the recent launch of Blue Sky Solutions’ new ‘fleet’ of exclusively managed jets. A 10 seat Challenger 604 based in Sydney, and Citation Mustang C510 based in Perth, make up CEO Julie Abbott’s foray into the Australian marketplace offering her company’s unique brand of all round service to her clients.This new venture seems a natural progression for Julie Abbott, an experienced aviation professional but the turf is ‘new’ and will no doubt provide her with some significant challenges as she works to establish the brand in a highly competitive market. ‘I have worked in the aviation and travel industry for nearly 20 years’, she says, ‘firstly as a Travel Consultant, then in marketing with a large International Airline and most recently as General Manager for a charter operator. I’m confident that my experience and industry knowledge and my connections and contacts will stand us in good stead’ she says.

Julie will not be alone in the new venture and has recruited Ruhi Lacey as Business Development Manager to oversee services in the West. This appointment was strategic and whilst the two are good friends, it was Ruhi’s customer service credentials that Julie Abbott sought out. ‘Ruhi brings additional experience to the fold particularly in high end customer service. We’re part of a two woman team who share the same philosophy and that is to provide first rate customer service. We both realize that professional customer service generally leads to high degrees of satisfaction and we hope and expect that this will drive the company’s success in the future.’

Entering the competitive aircraft charter business will require the establishment of operating points of difference a fact well understood by Julie Abbott and addressed in her proposed business plans. ‘One of the most important things we knew we had to consider was the concept of independence’ she says. ‘We felt that it was important not to establish ourselves as a “fixed brand” operator because with this tag comes the need to push your own products. What we plan to provide is unbiased advocacy. We’ll seek out and offer our clients what we consider to be the best available aircraft and the best most cost effective charter package’.

Burning the midnight oil won’t be a problem for Julie Abbott either – she knows that charter is a 24/7 proposition and that her team will need to be on call 24 hours a day. ‘An aircraft charter is like your personal air taxi’ she says. ‘This will be an “on demand” service and our crew will always be ready to provide the necessary service. We don’t expect our clients to have to stick to a timetable, so if a meeting runs late or your new client invites you for dinner after you sign the deal, we expect you to say yes! We’re going to be flexible and responsive to changes in plans. Fly home afterwards, regardless of the time!’

With a sensible business philosophy and seemingly boundless enthusiasm this is a new venture that just might get the required traction!

Blue Sky’s Perth based Citation Mustang C510

Julie Abbott, Blue Sky’s founder and CEO

L - R: Bernhard Gruber, Fleet Sales Manager, Diamond; John Oppenheim, Sales Manager Australia, NZ and the Pacific, Hawker Pacific; Chunming Li, Director Arena International Aviation; Kevin McMurtrie, Chief Pilot Arena Aviation; Stephen Pembro, Aircraft Sales Executive Hawker Pacific

“The DA40-CS is a fantastic machine that continues to be popular with flight training schools”


AIR

avia aircraft acquires global Wings aviation…One of the Australia’s most innovative light business aviation companies, Avia Aircraft, recently announced that it had completed the acquisition of Global Wings Aviation (GWA), a Bankstown based full motion simulator company. The strategic acquisition was completed at the 2013 Avalon Airshow and will make Avia Aircraft the largest General Aviation full motion (6DOF) synthetic flight simulation company in Australia.

Avia Aircraft was founded in 2011 and has quickly built a reputation of providing the very best in light business and personal aviation, with a portfolio of services that include aircraft training, charter and rental, fractional ownership and aircraft management. With its headquarters at Moorabbin Airport, Avia Aircraft also offers a first-class FBO facility. The move to expand its training capability fits with the company’s recent endorsement as Australia’s second only authorised training centre and its longer term vision of becoming a leader in the field.

The acquisition of GWA will enable Avia Aircraft to deliver quality pilot training in both Melbourne and Sydney using the most advanced and realistic motion systems available. For the Company’s co-founder Charles Gunter the move was a logical one. ‘The GWA business model and its reputation as a high quality service provider made the proposition very attractive to us. The fact that the company is using complimentary simulation technology was also a significant input and will make it

easy for us to integrate and harmonise resources. We have acquired a suite of highly valued intellectual property indeed’.

Full motion simulation will now become a key corporate focus for Avia and will blend in well with its other key business activities. The concept and benefits are not foreign to Gunter, a former check captain with Cathay Pacific. ‘What I learned from considerable time in simulator environments is that it’s possible to create scenarios that cannot necessarily be experienced in actual flying. There are many things we can do in a simulator that you might not necessarily be able to experience in an aircraft. For instance we can simulate weather conditions or safety related events that a pilot may not experience in years of actual flying’.

Based at Moorabbin and Bankstown airports, Avia’s simulator centres will utilise the latest technology developed by CKAS Mechatronics to offer a full motion 6 degrees of freedom (6DOF) experience. In a move to consolidate its simulation training program, Avia Aircraft has ordered the latest full motion simulator which offers 200 degree visuals and three Garmin G1000 screens. The new CKAS MotionSim6 will be operational from May and will be housed at Avia’s FBO facility at Moorabbin airport. It will be capable of delivering precision training, including recency and re-current training, for a number of aircraft types including Cirrus SR20/22, Cirrus Vision SF50, Beechcraft King Air 200, Embraer Phenom 100 and Boeing 737NG.

According to Charles Gunter, the benefits of simulation training are endless. ‘Simulators save lives and reduce the risk of accidents triggered by the training environment. For instance, we have developed a training program for asymmetric and emergency procedures that are critical in ensuring pilot safety and efficiency. Our goal is to give pilots an airline standard of training’ he says.

Avia Aircraft will continue to operate Global Wings Aviation out of Bankstown and will retain the Global Wings name.

Photographed left to right are Santino Guercio (GWA), Alex Karavias (GWA), Graham Van Damme (Avia) and Charles Gunter (Avia)

agustaWestland receives another order for the aW169 in australia...AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, has announced the sale of a further VIP-transport configured AW169 light intermediate helicopter in Australia. The contract was signed with an undisclosed customer during the opening day at the Avalon Airshow on February 26th.

This order brings to four the number of leading Australian businessmen who have selected the new generation AW169 twin engine helicopter to meet their VIP transport requirements. This latest helicopter will perform its missions in New South Wales.

Emilio Dalmasso, Senior Vice President Commercial Business Unit, AgustaWestland said ‘this latest sale testifies how popular the all new AW169 has become among VIP customers in Australia and elsewhere in the world. We are proud to support this customer’s VIP transport needs with a product which represents a significant advance compared to anything available today in its weight category. This order further expands the success of this all new model in Australasia, where the type has already been chosen by several operators, particularly for VIP/corporate and emergency medical service missions.’

Over 70 AW169s have already been ordered by more than 30 customers in over 10 countries worldwide to perform a range of roles. The programme development is on schedule with all four prototypes now in flight and civil certification to be obtained in 2014.

A versatile, new generation twin engine light intermediate category helicopter, the

AW169 has been designed in response to the growing market demand for an aircraft that delivers high performance, meets all the latest safety standards and has multi-role capabilities.

The 4.5 tonne AW169 incorporates several new technology features to provide the highest levels of safety and operational benefits for its customers. New generation technologies are incorporated in the rotor system, engines, avionics, transmission and electric power generation and distribution systems.

The AW169 is set to be the most advanced and most cost effective helicopter in its class for EMS, SAR, law enforcement, corporate and offshore transport missions. The AW169 is part of the AgustaWestland family of new generation helicopters that includes the AW139 and AW189 models which posses the same high performance flight characteristics and safety features as well as sharing a common cockpit layout, design philosophy and maintenance concept. This commonality will allow more effective operations for customers operating helicopter fleets across the 4 to 8.5 tonne categories.

AgustaWestland has sold more than 40 commercial helicopters of various types in Australia to perform various roles including corporate/VIP transport, search and rescue, offshore transport, law enforcement and medical transport. AgustaWestland’s commitment to enhance the level of maintenance services supplied locally will be crucial to providing greater support for the growing customer base in Australia where it sees significant business opportunities in the future.


co-axial main rotor system and no tail rotor – an oddity to Australian eyes.

The Kamov Ka-32A11BC is produced by Russian Helicopters (a company), who design and manufacture their helicopters from inception to flying within extreme weather conditions. They claim to offer a host of specific innovative solutions to tackle all of the conditions and challenges in Australia’s area of operations. At present, the back orders for all Russian Helicopters products totals 900! In addition, the military may soon order 1,000 military types to be delivered by 2020 (seven years) a rate of just under 300 per year.

The Ka-32A11BC helicopter was developed from the Russian Navy Ka-27 helicopter used for ferrying supplies to ships and anti-submarine warfare. Design work began in 1970 and the first Ka-27 prototype flew in 1973. It was intended to replace the decade-old Kamov Ka-25, and is similar in appearance to its predecessor due to the requirements of fitting into the same hangar space. Like other Kamov military helicopters it has a co-axial rotor, removing the need for a tail rotor.

History shows the Ka-32A11BC was the first Russian helicopter to gain Western certification. It received certification by Transport Canada on 26 February 1999. Its roles in Canada were logging and firefighting where many thousands of hours have been flown. At a guess about several hundred of this model have been built; it appears over half have been exported.

From the Helicopter editorAs you read this, Avalon Airshow 2013 is now history and the AHIA Board members will be looking to continue with the new association’s development. This includes planning for the AHIA inaugural AGM where office bearers are formally elected. Part of this process will be appointing new board members. The AGM will be asked to confirm the Steering Committee’s thoughts on inviting a military and CASA helicopter specialist to the Board. At present the Board consists of President, Peter Crook, Vice President, Mark Scrymgeour and Rob Rich, Company Secretary. It is anticipated the AHIA will eventually need board members from the airworthiness and maintenance providers and maybe the SAR/HEMS operators to name a few. Some legal experts advise a maximum of seven board members would be appropriate for an association of our size and purpose. This will be a good topic for future AGMs and other meetings now being organised.

The formation of the association’s divisions will be an urgent priority. This means seeking potential chairpersons get the divisions moving in accordance with the Objectives of the Association. These divisions will cover particular roles; aeromedical, fire fighting, mustering, offshore oil and gas operations, SAR, tourism, training, etc, etc. Divisions are the powerhouses of the AHIA. This is where rank and file members can get involved with issues of the day; or seek help from those who may know the answers to a particular problem.

Our next major promotional event will be Rotortech 2013, being held in conjunction with Pacific 2013 from Mon 7 to Wed 9 Oct ‘13 at The Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, Darling Harbour, NSW. The harbour city is hosting an International Maritime Exposition celebrating the Centenary of RAN Fleet entry to Sydney 1913 – 2013. The AHIA’s sponsor Aerospace Australia Limited (AAL) has arranged for us to have our event alongside the Pacific 2013 venue. Apparently there will be a number of naval helicopter carriers visiting Sydney, so a lot of “helicopter talk” around the waterfront bars at Darling Harbour! Rotortech 2013 will also appeal to the off shore helicopter operators, a rapidly growing segment of our industry. We are also seeking other events where we can provide an AHIA presence and assist the local industry in achieving better exposure and provide a meeting place for our regional members. As an aside, we have noted the demise of Shephard Conferences and Exhibitions Limited, who ran the annual Heli-Pacific event on the Gold Coast, Queensland. The company was placed into administration in July 2012 and. As a result, the Heli-Pacific event at the Royal Pines Golf Course is no more.

Russian Helicopters had a major public relations event during the AHIA Symposium on 26 Feb ‘13. Most of their team had come to us via

helIcopters In focus

the russians are Coming!Introducing Russian helicopter technology to Australia.

Australian families enjoying a family outing at a capital city waterfront park may see the remains of a naval gun emplacement which once contained large naval guns designed to stop an enemy force entering our waters. During the Russian - Japanese War of 1904 - 1905; the Russians were not doing too well and decided to send a large naval force from Europe to Japan to destroy the Japanese fleet. As history shows, the Russians totally underestimated the capability of the Japanese navy and Russian’s naval ‘might’ was destroyed at Tsushima Bay and Port Arthur, Russia’s only all year naval base in the Far East was captured by the Japanese in January 1905.

At that time the British Empire did not fully understand why the Russians were sending a naval force to the Far East. As a result, politicians decided to build a number of defensive gun positions around Australian harbours, just in case the Russians decided to attack Australia. Thus the expression often uttered by past generations, “The Russians are coming!” Today, some of the historic naval artillery gun sites are used as picnic grounds.

Now 105 years later, on 5 December 2012, the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority certified the first Russian helicopter for inclusion on the CASA helicopter register. This allowed Australian operators to nominate the Kamov Ka-32A11BC rotorcraft, in their bid for a National Aerial Firefighting Centre contract planned to start in 2014. The newcomer is a large twin engine rotorcraft with a

Aero India 2013. Australians need to be aware there is an enormous amount of activity in some of these “helicopter poor” nations. The Russians are hell-bent on providing around 150 helicopters to the Indian Army. The current Indian civilian fleet is around 270 helicopters and the potential for an expansion of civilian activity is enormous when you consider the emerging middle class of India, and China for that matter. The Russians are looking at establishing manufacturing or assembly facilities in China and India. The Chinese attended Aero India 2013 where fruitful negotiations have been carried out conceptualising future joint ventures. It appears the current edgy political relationship between India and China is not stopping serious discussions about the design, manufacture and integration of helicopter services within the civilian community and government agencies of both countries.

As we go to print, the Russians may have a marked advantage over one of their competitors. India is investigating alleged bribery of government officials by Finmeccanica, after the head of the Italian aerospace giant was arrested. Italian police arrested chairman and chief executive Giuseppe Orsi as part of the country’s investigation into alleged kickbacks paid to Indian government officials, media reports in Italy said on Tue 12 Feb ’13. The alleged kickbacks related to Finmeccanica’s AUD$A731 million sale of 12 AW101 helicopters to India, according to Italian media.”A probe by the Indian CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) has been ordered,” Indian defence ministry spokesman Sitanshu Kar recently told a media outlet.

Prosecutors in Italy were reported to suspect bribes worth around 10 percent of the deal were paid to ensure Finmeccanica’s AgustaWestland helicopter unit won the contract. Orsi and state-controlled Finmeccanica have long denied any wrongdoing and said all business with India was conducted through official channels. The Italian magistrate in the case also issued an order for the head of AgustaWestland, Bruno Spagnolini, to be put under house arrest, Italian reports also said. The Press Trust of India said the ministry has decided to “put on hold the receipt of the remaining nine of the 12 AW101 helicopters”. So a lot is happening to our north?

Rob Rich – Helicopter Editor AIRWAVESE: [email protected]: 0415 641 774

“At present, the back orders for all Russian Helicopters products totals 900!”

Canada was the first Western Country to certify the Russian Ka-32A11BC.


Helicopters In Focus

Sales people often pitch the Ka-32A11BC against the Aérospatiale SA-330 Puma; which the Russian claim had very high operating costs. The service life has been extended up to 32,000 flight hours.

Russian Helicopters is a leading player in the global helicopter industry. Headquartered in Moscow, Russian Helicopters is one of the few companies worldwide with a complete “in house capability” to design, manufacture, and service and test modern civilian and military helicopters. It operates five helicopter assembly plants, two design bureaus, two components production plants, one overhaul plant and one helicopter service company providing aftermarket services in Russia and abroad. Although Russian Helicopters Joint Stock Company was established only in 2007 as a conglomerate corporation, some of the company’s subsidiaries have existed independently for more than 60 years.

At present the company supports customers in Algeria, Brazil, Venezuela, Vietnam, Greece, Egypt, Spain, India, Canada, China, Lithuania, UAE, Peru, Portugal, Slovakia, USA, Ukraine, Croatia, Chile, Ecuador, RSA, South Korea and Japan. The unprecedented growth of Australian resources markets has warranted Russian Helicopters to examine the feasibility of developing a presence in Australia. Russian Helicopters first exhibited at Avalon Airshow 2011 and again at Avalon Airshow 2013 where they officially launched their commercial presence in Australia at the Australian Helicopter Industry Association’s symposium.

Compared with traditional helicopters with a single main rotor and tail rotor configuration, the Ka-32А11ВС helicopter has a number of advantages due to its co-axial configuration. The lack of a tail rotor ensures increased load lifting capacity, higher hovering ceilings and ability to fly up to 16,393ft. The higher

efficiency of the helicopter co-axial system is obtained by avoiding the 10-15 % loss of engine power to the tail rotor when in flight.

It is also claimed the shorter tail boom and absence of a tail rotor make the helicopter very compact with good piloting qualities. An unusual design feature allows the fuselage and tail section, to remain within the area of the main rotors. This allows operations into very confined areas such as oil rigs, ships or built up areas. The high rotors also provide an advantage when operating from unprepared sites. Workers on the ground are not exposed to the usual tail rotor hazards as the absence of tail rotor dramatically reduces the risk to personnel moving around the machine.

Henry Bright’s dream of 1859 – he designed a coaxial rotor system where a pair of rotors is mounted one above the other on concentric shafts, with the same axis of rotation, but both turn in opposite directions (contra-rotation). This configuration is a feature of helicopters produced by the Russian Kamov helicopter design bureau. However, in 1859, the British Patent Office awarded the first helicopter patent to Henry Bright for his co-axial design. This was forty-four years before the Wright Brothers managed to achieve heavier than air flight.

One of the problems with a conventional rotor system is the tendency of the fuselage to begin spinning in the opposite direction to the rotor. The tail rotor system produces thrust to stop this happening. But this is at a cost. About 10% of the engine power is lost to the tail rotor at the hover; and something less in the cruise. The co-axial system avoids this loss as the contra-rotation cancels

out the tendency to spin. This prevents a loss of power to the main rotors, which in theory, means the rotorcraft can lift more.

Another well known problem is called dissymmetry of lift which is an aerodynamic phenomenon caused by the rotation of a

helicopter’s rotors in forward flight. One side of the rotor is going into the airflow and the other is moving downwind. Rotor blades provide lift proportional to the square of the velocity of the air flowing over them.

Thus an advancing blade enjoys a lot more lift than the retreating blade. This causes the helicopter to pitch up and roll, requiring control forces to keep the machine level. Co-axial rotors reduce the effects of dissymmetry of lift as the two rotors are turning in opposite directions,

causing blades to advance into the airstream on either side at the same time.

Low flying helicopters, can really rattle windows and upset people on the ground. The Vietnam era “Huey” can be heard a long time before it comes into view. That - thump – thump, so popular in war movies, is not tolerated nowadays. The Russians state co-axial rotors do not produce a loud ‘slapping’ noise from interaction between the airflows from the main and tail rotors.

But there are disadvantages as a coaxial rotor has a more complex rotor hub. The linkages and swash plates for two rotor systems are on top of the mast, resulting in a more complex design due to the need to drive two rotors in opposite directions. Critics claim the coaxial rotor system is more prone to mechanical faults and possible failure. However, Kamov claims to have a good mechanical reliability record after decades of use often in demanding conditions.

“That - thump – thump, so popular in war movies, is not tolerated nowadays”

Sikorsky-X2 used a co-axial rotor to achieve high speeds.

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Introducing new technology – night Vision Case StudyDuring the January 2013 flood emergency at Bundaberg, Queensland, the media reported about 1,000 people were lifted out of Bundaberg North by helicopters, often at night. The civilian and military helicopters were using night vision equipment, now used routinely by civilian operators and considered to be safe, provided training and supervision standards are appropriate.

During the late nineties, an alarming trend had started around the world due to night accidents involving aeromedical helicopters. One helicopter was lost every week in the USA. Australia also had a series of night incidents, after which aeromedical teams refused to go on some night flights.

In 2004, the Helicopter Association of Australasia (HAA) had a number of ex-Army members who had served with the both the US and Australian armies. Most were Night Vision Goggle (NVG) qualified; some were current instructors in the Special Army Aviation Reserve. Due to the increasing accident rate, the HAA President, Rob Rich, called a meeting of international experts at the Sea World Resort, on Queensland’s Gold Coast in May 2004. A company modifying US aeromedical aircraft with night vision capability sent experts to advise Australian and New Zealand attendees how the US government approved use of NVG in civilian helicopters.

Critics then claimed a number of CASA staff attended and appeared to show little interest. (No follow-up occurred). Later, Australians felt let down when NZ CAA

investigated the American legislation and quickly implemented the US standards in NZ. (They were probably driven by a couple of near misses during NZ night medical flights).

To be fair to CASA helicopter specialists, the army was the only organisation using NVG in 2004. Most of CASA’s ex-RAAF or ex-RAN staff had not used NVG as these services had not purchased the technology. Despite advice from the Australian army, the American FAA NVG specialists and later the NZ CAA who had certified equipment for use in NZ, the use of NVG was not approved, as they were considered high risk and unsafe in civilian hands.

After seven months of debate, with many emerging “unqualified experts” the HAA issued a position paper at their AGM in December 2004. It reflected the concept there were no regulations banning the use of night vision devices provided in-flight night visual procedures were observed. The HAA position paper of December 2004, stated in brief:

“The HAA commends the use of Night Vision Imaging Systems for night helicopter operations – particularly for emergency service operations involving night landings at unsurveyed helicopter landing sites.

HAA believes current Australian air legislation permits operations using NVG and encourages CASA to prepare and promulgate an Aviation Ruling clarifying the legality of NVG use in Australia as a matter of urgency.

HAA commends the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand for its sensible and progressive attitude towards use of NVG by civil helicopters operators in that country.

HAA notes that precautions are necessary for the safe utilisation of NVG, including the following specific measures: Air crew to undertake appropriate initial and recurrent training in the use of NVG’s, operators to observe airworthiness regulations in

providing an NVG compatible cockpit, appropriate guidance and company limitations for NVG operations to be contained in operators’ procedures manuals; and either, crew training for recovery from inadvertent IMC, or detailed procedures for detecting and avoiding IMC be adopted.

HAA supports new Australian legislation clarifying NVG requirements and procedures, but strongly opposes legislation imposing unnecessarily onerous training or operational

requirements on NVG use where such stringency would be likely to discourage their use otherwise.

HAA notes that flight profiles for civil NVG operations are different to the profiles for military use and that therefore training to military standards is not necessary for safe civil NVG operations.

HAA stands ready to consult with CASA in the preparation of any draft legislation relating to NVG-use in Australia.”

Fortunately, after several years, CASA and the industry managed to introduce new legislation approving NVG. Today, they are just another tool in making night operations safer.

Today, we now have two more hurdles to overcome;

• The establishment of a night fire fighting capability along the lines of current developments in the USA, and

• Approval of synthetic and enhanced vision systems to enable all weather operations, especially in darkness and obscurants, such as fog and cloud causing low visibility conditions.

Let us hope we have learned a lot since 2004!

“They were considered high risk and unsafe in civilian hands”

An Anvis – 9 NVG fitted to a helmet at CareFlight.



RMS Titanic sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after colliding with an iceberg, causing the deaths of 1,502 people. It is one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in modern history.Radio pioneer Marconi (1874 – 1937) established the Marconi Company in 1897 and had installed radios on large ships, including the Titanic. Radios then could only transmit Morse Code. The signals could be received by direction finding equipment on other ships and land based radio stations. Operators receiving RMS Titanic’s distress calls probably used direction finding equipment to locate the source of the distress messages. This was at a time when radio navigation was in its infancy.

Since those early days, and now a century later, we have seen the development of NDB, VAR, VOR, ILS and other fixed base navigation equipment. Air space managers simply placed these devices along the aerial highways that grew from the needs of commercial aviation. However, confining aircraft to IFR air routes saw the problem of congestion occurring as the lack of accuracy of older aids required significant separation between aircraft. Suddenly GPS appeared and it was initially used to support fixed base services. However, the IFR routes remained somewhat inflexible despite the advantages of the GPS and better radar facilities. Profit hungry airline operators wanted to use

GPS to go directly to their destination and bypass the crowded IFR air routes.

Further advances in GPS technology means we can now fly with such accuracy that auto-land systems and IFR approaches to non aid equipped airports are possible. The last GPS triumph is the introduction of ADS-B which can replace radar based surveillance of aircraft. ADS-B is a major change in surveillance philosophy – instead of using ground based radar to interrogate aircraft and determine their positions, each aircraft will use GPS to find its own position and then automatically report it to control centres or other aircraft. It is also more accurate than radar.

We are now entering the transition to a new way of navigating. It is called Performance Based Navigation (PBN) which requires additional radio equipment in most IFR aircraft in the future. This will also produce a need for pilot training in the new procedures. PBN is used to describe technologies moving aviation away from a ground-based navigation system toward a system relying more on the performance and capabilities of equipment on board the aircraft. The PBN is more accurate and allows shorter and more direct routes between two given points, reducing fuel burn and airspace congestion.

US Military Madness – Can Industry Meet the Challenge?The US Army has an ambitious programme to replace the utility and attack helicopter fleet from mid 2030s.

Due to the size of the utility and attack helicopter project Boeing and Sikorsky have once again joined forces to prepare for the tender due out in about a decade. Also running parallel to this enormous project is the Armed Aerial Scout development which may have technology transferrable to the civilian industry. Boeing and Sikorsky have worked together before, on the US Army’s RAH-66 Comanche armed helicopter programme, cancelled in 2004 after an expensive research and development project.

Are the goal posts realistic? A Fort Rucker spokesperson was quoted as saying, “Speed is absolutely important to enable forcible entry into denied areas, support geographically distributed forces and engage time sensitive targets, as well as improve survivability and responsiveness. In summary, the army is looking for increased speed, range, payload, hot and high-performance and commonality with other types of helicopter.”

In particular the new utility helicopter must be able to achieve 230 kts, which is 50% faster than the UH–60M and 40% more range. HOGE (hovering) specification will increase to a density height of 6,000 feet;

up from the current 4,000 feet. So how will the designers meet these standards? Have the bureaucrats overstated the capability of the industry. Let’s look at several aspects of suggested specifications.

Speed. To obtain 230 kn with a conventional rotor system you must have a stub wing and a pusher propeller or both or maybe go down the tilt rotor path, such as the V-22.

Extra range. The solution here is to fit the helicopter with larger fuel tanks. This will of course reduce payload. Another option is to install engines which are extremely fuel-efficient, but they have not yet been developed and will probably be very expensive. The best option is to go to tilt rotor technology, but this may not be suitable for a battlefield helicopter, due to a smaller cabin.

Hover performance. To achieve a higher hovering performance you need a larger rotor with a lower disc loading. However, low speed performance is always at the expense of high-speed capability. Thus, a designer would need very powerful engines. These use more fuel – less payload.

But at what cost? To make a helicopter fly faster beyond existing rotor limitations, there has to be a mix of additional rotor systems, stub wings, pusher propellers and larger engines to provide the power required. All of this means the airframe is heavier; the engines are larger and burn more fuel thus reducing range and payload.

Solution – give the US bureaucrats an aerodynamics text book. After all helicopters are not really meant to fly are they?

Performance based navigation

The new Australian and New Zealand PBN procedures are shown at: • www.casa.gov.au - enter “pbn” in search bar This document provides some helpful time lines. • www.caa.govt.nz/PBN/pbn.htm

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