Photo: Airbus
Unlike in the auto industry, where things are moving at a much faster pace, the aviation industry sure takes its sweet time when it comes to releasing new kinds of aircraft. But when that does happen, most of us are left in awe.
Ever since 2015 European aerospace giant Airbus has been developing a new kind of medium-class helicopter we now know as the H160. Eight years later, the pieces are starting to fall into place for a global deployment of the aircraft.
Airbus got certification from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in July 2020, but it was only last week that the company said the helicopter has been cleared by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for flight in U.S. skies as well.
It will take a while though before North Americans get to enjoy what Airbus calls the revolutionary machine. That's because despite some American companies having already placed orders for the helo, Airbus will not begin showing pilots the secrets of the thing in simulators before 2025.
The H160 helicopter has been designed as a multi-role machine, meaning it can technically be used for anything, from police work and disaster relief to corporate or off-shore transport.
The helo fills a gap between two other Airbus models, the H145 and H175. It is powered by a pair of Safran Arrano engines capable of delivering a power output of 1,110 shaft horsepower each. That allows the H160 to lift up to 13,338 pounds (6.050 kg) at liftoff.
The helicopter can travel at speeds of 173 mph (278 kph) and for distances that can be as large as 547 miles (880 km).
A number of new and impressive technologies have been used when making the helicopter (68 different patents, according to Airbus), including things like noise-reduction rotor blades, a new tail rotor to allow for greater loads, and a new avionics suite.
To date Airbus says it has delivered a number of such aircraft to customers in Japan, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Europe, and the examples already flying have clocked some 1,700 flight hours.
That may seem small, but it allowed Airbus to snatch orders for 100 more H160s. As announced earlier this year, about half of them will be delivered to Chinese operator GDAT, marking the "largest single order for the H160 on the civil and para-public market since the helicopter was unveiled in 2015."
Depending on configuration and use, the cost of a single such machine can get to as high as $22 million. Its operating cost however could be lower than other similar machines, thanks to it eating 15 percent less fuel and being capable of running on at least 50 percent Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
Airbus got certification from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in July 2020, but it was only last week that the company said the helicopter has been cleared by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for flight in U.S. skies as well.
It will take a while though before North Americans get to enjoy what Airbus calls the revolutionary machine. That's because despite some American companies having already placed orders for the helo, Airbus will not begin showing pilots the secrets of the thing in simulators before 2025.
The H160 helicopter has been designed as a multi-role machine, meaning it can technically be used for anything, from police work and disaster relief to corporate or off-shore transport.
The helo fills a gap between two other Airbus models, the H145 and H175. It is powered by a pair of Safran Arrano engines capable of delivering a power output of 1,110 shaft horsepower each. That allows the H160 to lift up to 13,338 pounds (6.050 kg) at liftoff.
The helicopter can travel at speeds of 173 mph (278 kph) and for distances that can be as large as 547 miles (880 km).
A number of new and impressive technologies have been used when making the helicopter (68 different patents, according to Airbus), including things like noise-reduction rotor blades, a new tail rotor to allow for greater loads, and a new avionics suite.
To date Airbus says it has delivered a number of such aircraft to customers in Japan, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Europe, and the examples already flying have clocked some 1,700 flight hours.
That may seem small, but it allowed Airbus to snatch orders for 100 more H160s. As announced earlier this year, about half of them will be delivered to Chinese operator GDAT, marking the "largest single order for the H160 on the civil and para-public market since the helicopter was unveiled in 2015."
Depending on configuration and use, the cost of a single such machine can get to as high as $22 million. Its operating cost however could be lower than other similar machines, thanks to it eating 15 percent less fuel and being capable of running on at least 50 percent Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
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