While HeliHub.com reports on the daily news around the world’s helicopter industry, there are some regular updates we run which bring continuity to our news output. This includes newsletters producted by organisations (such as the UK’s AAIB) and online free e-magazines (such as Police Aviation News).

HeliHub.com also provides registration updates from selected countries, varying from a weekly output for the US, with other countries done monthly, quarterly or even ad-hoc reports where there are only a handful of aircraft on a particular national register.

Today we are pleased to announce that we are going to start regular monthly reporting from China, to include a complete list of helicopters added to, or removed from the local register.  HeliHub.com is working in association with Rotorspot.nl to bring readers this data

10-20 years ago, civil helicopters and GA were so rare in China that their registration format was the B- prefix followed by just three digits, and in a handful of cases a suffix letter. Later that expanded to four digits and that system is still in use today. In 2015 the Chinese authorities expanded this and are now regularly issuing registrations with the B- prefix followed by two digits and then two letters.

Very few pre-owned helicopters are being registered in China – practically every new registration is a factory-fresh helicopter.

It should also be noted that Taiwan also uses the B- prefix, but their system is followed by five digits. There is a long-standing political stand-off between the two authorities which is outside the scope of HeliHub.com, but you can read about it here for further background reference.

Jeremy Parkin – HeliHub.com