Simplex Aerospace has reached an agreement with Japan Aerospace Corporation and Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) to develop and certify a new Fire Attack™ system for the BK-117 C2 and BK-117 D2 rotorcraft. The newly designed Simplex Aerospace system, designated Model 311 GII, will be delivered to Japan in early 2016.

The Simplex Model 311 GII Fire Attack™ system will include a 1,200 liter (320 US gallons) composite belly tank with a hover refill pump. The system will also be FAA certified (FAA STC) on the Airbus Helicopters BK117 C2 and BK117 T2 in the United States. EASA validation will be pursued after completion of the FAA STC.

Mark Zimmerman, President and CEO of Simplex Aerospace, commented, “The Model 311 GII is a response to strong customer demand for a Fire Attack™ system for the BK-117 rotorcraft. He further stated that, “Simplex will incorporate new innovative features on this system based on requests from our customers in order to deliver the most effective firefighting system available”. These enhancements will include the ability to perform aerial firefighting missions at night, and the ability to use a camera system instead of a conventional installed mirror system to observe the hover pump and dump doors. The camera system will be housed on the Fire Attack™ system, and will feed images/video directly to the aircraft multifunctional display (MFD).

Simplex Aerospace Fire Attack™ systems are regarded worldwide as a critical tool in aerial firefighting missions. Simplex Fire Attack™ systems are trusted by OEM’s, private operators and government firefighting agencies for their durability, reliability, efficiency and safety. Simplex Aerospace is committed to producing the most advanced certified aerial firefighting systems on the market with the features and quality customers demand.

Founded in 1946, Simplex has built a reputation as the leader in design, manufacturing, and certification of aerial application systems and mission equipment for helicopters. Simplex maintains its industry leadership by incorporating the latest technology in designing and manufacturing systems from high-strength, low-weight composite materials to produce reliable and cost-effective systems for firefighting, agriculture, utilities maintenance and other aerial applications. For more information, please visit our website www.simplex.aero.