Vector Aerospace Helicopter Services-North America (Vector Helicopter Services – www.vectoraerospace.com), a subsidiary of Vector Aerospace Corporation and one of the world’s leading independent providers of helicopter maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services has been granted a Federal Aviation Administration Amended Supplemental Type Certificate (STC), #SA1230AK-R STC; for an Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) Integrated Cockpit Display System (ICDS or “glass cockpit”) installation and Attitude and Heading Reference System (AHRS) for the Sikorsky S-61L and S-61N series helicopters. The system is certified for Dual Pilot Instrument Flight Rules; Category A and B operations.

Vector Helicopter Services’ Vice-President of Structures and Avionics Sales, Phil Kemp, notes this newly FAA-certified S-61 cockpit upgrade solution offers a variety of operator and pilot-focused improvements. The system incorporates four Sagem displays supporting the engine and caution systems; two Rockwell-Collins AHRS and Primary Function Displays and other state-of-the-art, flight critical avionics from Garmin, L-3 Communications and Aerospace Optics.

Kemp explains that the new S-61 integrated class cockpit display system offers a more reliable and cost effective alternative to the more difficult to maintain legacy cockpit instrumentation; achieved by replacing the old instrumentation, sensors and gyros with digital, solid-state equipment. The light-weight cockpit installation also offers enhanced flight safety benefits through the integration of the latest situational awareness tools, and the capability to upgrade or modify the system to accommodate various operational requirements.  In developing this latest version of the S61 glass cockpit solution, Vector Helicopter Services collaborated with Carson Helicopters, Rockwell-Collins and Sagem Avionics, Inc. (Safran Group); organizations that rank among the industry’s elite for glass cockpit and avionics systems manufacturing.

Vector Helicopter Services has earned an industry-wide reputation for the development and integration of glass cockpit solutions for both legacy and new production aircraft; having successfully created glass cockpit solutions for various aircraft types, including the Bell 205 / 206 and 407 series, the Eurocopter AS350 and AS355 series, the Heli-Lynx 355FX, the Eagle Single, and the Sikorsky S61 and S76 helicopters.

Vector Aerospace Corporation is an independent provider of aviation repair and overhaul services.  Through facilities in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Africa, Vector provides services to commercial and military operators for various types of gas turbine engines, dynamic components, airframes and avionics.