8-Sep-2010Source: HeliHub.com
Recently retired from being President & Chief Executive at Robinson Helicopter Company, is giving the Cierva Lecture at London’s Royal Aeronautical Society on Tuesday 5th October. The Cierva Lecture is named after Juan de la Cierva, FRAeS, an aeronautical engineer who pioneered rotary flight. In 1926 with the backing of the Weir brothers he formed... Read more
8-Sep-2010Source: Surrey Herald
Adrian Bell joins the charity in September following a career in the Royal Navy. He leaves his position as Commander British Forces Gibraltar to take up his new role with the air ambulance.... Read more
8-Sep-2010Source: Yorkshire Evening Post
Running on BBC1 throughout September, Helicopter Heroes chronicles the exploits of the two MD Explorers of Yorkshire Air Ambulance... Read more
8-Sep-2010Source: Vector Aerospace
Vector Aerospace Corporation (Vector – www.vectoraerospace.com), one of the world’s leading independent providers of aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services is pleased to announce the 2010 International Sea King Maintenance Symposium being hosted in Portsmouth, United Kingdom (Vector Aerospace Helicopter Services-UK ) from September 28th-30th has filled all event sponsorship positions and delegate registrations... Read more
7-Sep-2010
Atlas Helicopters has announced that despite the credit crunch woes affecting the majority of the transport industry, helicopter charter is making a slow but steady revival, with private and business helicopter hire experiencing an increased demand. Mike Burns, Chief Executive and pilot at Atlas Helicopters, who have been experiencing business growth despite the economic conditions,... Read more
7-Sep-2010Source: ThisIsLocalLondon
Air ambulance spokesman Jill Playle said despite next month’s decision, the change was unlikely to happen for another three to four years, saying “This is a long process and the planning application is the very first step to doing this”.... Read more
7-Sep-2010Source: Royal Navy
A Royal Navy Helicopter Squadron is deploying to the Horn of Africa and the Gulf of Aden to carry out specialist anti-piracy operations over the coming months. Personnel from 820 Naval Air Squadron including Aircrew and Engineers and their Merlin helicopter, will be embarked on a Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship (RFA Fort Victoria) and will... Read more
6-Sep-2010Source: The Helicopter Museum
The Helicopter Museum site on the airfield at Weston-super-Mare has been recognised by The Transport Trust as a Transport Heritage site, in recognition of its connection with the manufacturing of helicopters in the town between 1955 and 2002. The occasion will be marked with the unveiling of a special Red Wheel Plaque at The Helicopter... Read more
4-Sep-2010Source: Cambridge News
The pair allegedly aimed the shaft of light at the cockpit of the Cambridgeshire force’s aircraft while it was on a call... Read more
2-Sep-2010Source: BBC
The Chinook Project Team (IPT) and two other helicopter project teams will move to the MoD procurement site.... Read more
1-Sep-2010Source: Sloane Helicopters
Sloane Helicopters Ltd., the UK and Ireland distributors for the Robinson Helicopter Company, is pleased to be able to announce some preliminary performance information for the new Robinson R66 Turbine helicopter. The Robinson R66 is in the final stages of FAA certification and, as part of the certification programme, some pilots from Robinson operators around... Read more
1-Sep-2010
The source says Eurocopter believes that moving a 300 million pound contract back to the UK would may be accomplished without an impact on price.... Read more
1-Sep-2010Source: Yorkshire Press
North Yorkshire Police is in discussions with Humberside, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire Police about the possibility of pooling resources to pay for the servicing and engineering of their eyes in the sky.... Read more
31-Aug-2010Source: AAIB
The monthly bulletin from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch has been released. This month’s issue covers the accident of:- MD369E G-VICE at Poundgate, Devon on 24th May 2010... Read more
31-Aug-2010Source: BBC
Hampshire Police’s move to share Surrey’s EC135 and Sussex’s MD Explorer, rather than use its own Islander plane, has caused concern among officers... Read more
30-Aug-2010Source: Max-Viz
Max-Viz, Inc and Police Aviation Services (PAS) of England have received a Statement of Integration (SOI) export license from the U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC) allowing significantly quicker and more streamlined export of Max-Viz Enhanced Vision System technology abroad to civilian users through the PAS facility in Cheltenham, UK. PDF – Max-Viz and PAS receive... Read more
30-Aug-2010Source: UK MoD
Helicopters are crucial to the success of operations in Helmand, and, from medical evacuation and troop movement to resupply and ground attack, the men and women of the Joint Helicopter Force do it all. Report by Sharon Kean. There is no average day for Camp Bastion’s Joint Helicopter Force (JHF). It is responsible for around... Read more
30-Aug-2010Source: Royal Navy
Royal Navy warship HMS Ocean has arrived in the Caribbean where she will provide contingency support to British dependent territories during the hurricane season, as well as contribute towards ongoing anti-drug smuggling operations. Having already deployed to the Caribbean in 2007, when the amphibious assault ship made a major impact on drug smuggling by seizing... Read more
30-Aug-2010Source: UK MoD
Crews in the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) have got their hands on a new and improved door gun ahead of 16 Air Assault Brigade’s deployment to Afghanistan in October. 846 Naval Air Squadron began training aircrew on their new FN Herstal M3M .50-inch-calibre (12.7mm) door-mounted weapon system while supporting 16 Air Assault Brigade during their... Read more
18-Aug-2010Source: Yorkshire Evening Post
The initiative is designed to encourage more businesses to become brand partners of the YAA. In return, for an annual fee, firms will be allowed to use the network logo for promotional purposes, feature on the YAA website and reinforce their corporate social responsibility by supporting a recognised charity... Read more
18-Aug-2010Source: BBC
Surrey Air Ambulance spokeswoman Jill Playle said: “We are able to offer a very good service during the daytime but we’re unable to fly at night – and serious illness and injury happens 24 hours a day.... Read more
17-Aug-2010Source: Great Yarmouth Mercury
A lengthy consultation over possible plans to relocate operations from Great Yarmouth’s heliport to Norwich should be concluded by the end of the month.... Read more
16-Aug-2010Source: Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] recently delivered the TOPSCENE® Tactical Terrain Visualization System, a mission planning and rehearsal software package, to the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) in support of operations in Afghanistan. U.K. helicopter forces based at RAF Odiham will use TOPSCENE® to perform mission rehearsal with greater realism than is possible with their... Read more
16-Aug-2010Source: BBC
The laser was directed at the cockpit of Cheshire Constabulary’s aircraft as it flew over Winsford on Wednesday night, police said.... Read more
16-Aug-2010Source: CAA
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has announced changes to the regulation of permit to fly ex-military aircraft. Following a number of incidents and accidents involving ex-military aircraft over recent years, the CAA is taking steps to clarify the purposes for which ex-military aircraft can be operated. The CAA is therefore acting to remind the... Read more
11-Aug-2010Source: Daily Express
As part of the UK Government’s drastic cost cutting, the proposed 25-year S92 contract was set aside. AgustaWestland are proposing a life-extension to the current fleet as a cheaper option.... Read more
11-Aug-2010Source: Royal Navy
Members of 829 Naval Air Squadron based at Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose took part in exercises and training with the French Navy in Toulon recently. Also known as the “Kingfishersâ€, 829 Squadron usually provides Merlin helicopters for operations from Type 23 Frigates, such as HMS Sutherland, HMS Westminster, HMS Richmond and for ships of... Read more
10-Aug-2010Source: Police Aviation Services
Humberside Police Authority’s MD Explorer has just returned to service after a 10,000 hour inspection conducted by Police Aviation Services Ltd (PAS) in Gloucestershire UK. The helicopter is one of the busiest MD 902 Explorers in service and is now the second to have achieved the 10,000 hour milestone. PAS undertook a major role equipment... Read more
10-Aug-2010Source: West Yorkshire Police
A man has been arrested after a laser pointer was shone at West Yorkshire Police’s helicopter in the early hours of this morning. At just after midnight a laser was shone at the helicopter when it was flying over Leeds. The address was identified using specialist equipment on board the vehicle and the helicopter directed... Read more
10-Aug-2010Source: BBC
People who see the Sussex Police helicopter can now check what the force is doing on Twitter @suspol_heli... Read more
10-Aug-2010Source: BBC
The heliport at Southwell Business Park is being used for the 2010 Skandia Sail for Gold Regatta at Weymouth and Portland Sailing Academy. It will also open during the summer seasons of 2011 and 2012.... Read more
4-Aug-2010Source: BBC
Noise protestors at Land’s End Aerodrome raise concerns. Operator British International says there will be more concerns over tourism if they can’t operate a service from Cornwall to the Isles of Scilly. {Photo shows the current arrangement at Penzance HP]... Read more
4-Aug-2010Source: The Helicopter Museum
Tickets went on sale this week for a special one night only event to celebrate 100 years of aviation heritage in the South West. As part of the BAC 100 Celebrations marking the 100th Anniversary of the birth of the aviation industry in the West of England, The Helicopter Museum is hosting a Period Hangar... Read more
3-Aug-2010Source: Daily Mail
A man has been sentenced to a year in prison for endangering the safety of an aircraft when he grabbed a helicopter as it took off... Read more
3-Aug-2010Source: PSNI
Police today put on display a new £7 million helicopter which will be used to strengthen the fight against crime in Northern Ireland and to make communities safer. The Eurocopter EC 145 is a larger, more modern version of the existing PSNI helicopter, an EC 135. The new twin-engine aircraft can carry up to 10... Read more
3-Aug-2010Source: Dialy Echo
Currently Hampshire’s air ambulance has to land on a council playing field two miles away in Lordshill, with patients then taken by ambulance to the site. The new helipad will be built on the top of an existing car park at the Hospital... Read more
2-Aug-2010Source: PremiAir
PremiAir was delighted to receive a visit from Sikorsky President Jeffrey Pino to the company’s Blackbushe Airport, Surrey, helicopter maintenance base during Farnborough Airshow week. Mr. Pino, who is a retired U.S. Army Master Aviator and is type-rated on several Sikorsky aircraft including the S-76®, took time out from his busy show schedule to visit... Read more
2-Aug-2010Source: Gazette
Chief executive of the air ambulance Paul Weir said: “We are delighted Eastwood Park has been able to accommodate us and at very charitable rates”... Read more
30-Jul-2010Source: British Army
His Royal Highness Prince Charles presented Afghan service medals this week to members of 1st Regiment Army Air Corps (1 Regt AAC) who have recently been operating Lynx helicopters over Helmand. The Prince of Wales, who is the Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps, visited 1 Regt AAC at their base in Germany. The Prince... Read more
30-Jul-2010Source: Royal Air Force
After several weeks providing support to troops on the ground in Helmand province, the Merlin helicopter crews from 28 (Army Cooperation) Squadron’s B Flight, based at RAF Benson in Oxfordshire, are coming home. B Flight arrived at Bastion Airfield in late May 2010. Following multiple detachments in Iraq over the past five years, this was... Read more
30-Jul-2010Source: This is Bristol
Having run the event for 20 years on the seafront at Weston-super-Mare, organisers are facing higher costs. Additinally, both North Somerset Council (on which event director Elfan ap Rees is a councillor) and the local Weston Parish Council have withdrawn their sponsorship.... Read more
30-Jul-2010Source: British Army
Army helicopter pilots, ground crew and technicians who have served in Afghanistan were presented with campaign medals by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales yesterday. 3 Regiment Army Air Corps (3 AAC), based at Wattisham Flying Station, Suffolk, was also awarded the Honorary Freedom of St Edmundsbury, at the presentation in Bury St Edmunds.... Read more
29-Jul-2010Source: Jet Booking Direct
In partnership with Ham Polo Club we are very pleased to announce that we can offer Helicopter Landings at Ham Polo Club in Richmond with immediate effect. Only 8 miles from Hyde Park Corner and with great road and river links to Westminster and The City, Ham is very well positioned for all of your... Read more
29-Jul-2010Source: Stroud Life
Bond Aviation Group, Britain’s fastest growing privately owned helicopter service provider, has unveiled a new £1 million Design and Completions Department at its UK headquarters... Read more
29-Jul-2010Source: BBC
A man has been cautioned by police after admitting shining a laser beam at the Thames Valley Police EC135 helicopter.... Read more
29-Jul-2010
The proposed South East Air Support Unit would bring together an MD Explorer from Shoreham and an EC135 from Odiham. Note, neither operate the AS355 featured in the BBC story!... Read more
29-Jul-2010Source: ARINC
John M. Belcher, Chairman and CEO of ARINC Incorporated, today announced the creation of a new International Division to lead the company’s operations in Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The International Division will be based in the United Kingdom, and will also include ARINC’s Airport Technology Center. In addition to managing most of... Read more
28-Jul-2010Source: UK MoD
Royal Navy Sea King helicopter pilots and their crews from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) have been training for their deployment to Afghanistan in the Californian desert. The pilots and aircrew from 845 and 846 Naval Air Squadrons have been undergoing environmental qualification training at the Naval Air Facility El Centro, just north of the... Read more
27-Jul-2010Source: HeliHub.com
British operator Tiger Helicopters are to lease two AB206 JetRangers from Castle Air. The lease commences 1st October 2010 for an initial period of two years, with each JetRanger expected to fly 1,000 hours during that time on an intensive training contract. Tiger are providing ab initio training for Algerian military pilots who will then... Read more
26-Jul-2010Source: Royal Navy
HMS Ocean is currently participating in Exercise Kearsarge – a US led exercise being conducted off the coast of North Carolina, in support of the deployment training package for the United States Navy’s Amphibious Ready Group. As a result, the Royal Navy’s largest helicopter carrier has been operating with some of the US Marine Corp’s... Read more
25-Jul-2010Source: HeliHub.com
One of the most well-known and long-running onshore operators in the UK, Alan Mann Helicopters, has had its operating licence withdrawn by the CAA. In a published announcement in their “Official Record Series 2” document, issue 1961 dated 20th July 2010, it confirms in a terse and formal statement “Alan Mann Helicopters Limited – This... Read more
23-Jul-2010Source: HeliDays
International HeliDays 2010 will launch this year at midday on Friday 23rd July with a demonstration of helicopter in flight refuelling by the US Air Force over the bay at Weston-super-Mare. Following the demonstration the USAF Pave Hawk search and rescue helicopter will land on the Beach Lawns where it will be on static display... Read more
23-Jul-2010Source: Bristow Group
Bristow Helicopters has named its new director who will drive forward the company’s European growth plans. Mike Imlach, who was previously Director of Bristow’s Nigerian Business Unit, has been appointed as the Director of European Operations. He will oversee all commercial and operational aspects of the company’s activities in the UK, Norway and Holland. Mike,... Read more
22-Jul-2010Source: AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica Company, is pleased to announce that Sloane Helicopters Ltd has signed a contract for ten additional helicopters comprising AW109 Power and GrandNew light twin engine models. This latest order extends to 2012 the multi-year multi-aircraft contract and distribution agreement signed in February 2006. This purchase marks the entrance of the GrandNew light... Read more
22-Jul-2010Source: Defense News
The military equivalent of an iPad for pilots’ mission planning will be among the features included in the avionics upgrade of 46 Royal Air Force Chinooks to the Mk.4 standard, said Peter Hitchcock, Avionics VP at Thales UK... Read more
20-Jul-2010Source: AAIB
The monthly bulletin from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch has been released. This month’s issue does not refer to any helicopters and this update is included in HeliHub.com for completeness.... Read more
19-Jul-2010Source: Eurocopter
On July 19, a brand new EC135 P2i was handed over to Assistant Chief Constable of West Midlands Police, Sharon Rowe, on the EADS/Eurocopter booth No. G12 in Hall 4 at the Farnborough International Air Show. The order for this aircraft had been placed in September 2009. Markus Steinke, Managing Director of Eurocopter UK Ltd.,... Read more
17-Jul-2010Source: PremiAir
The ultra modern new passenger terminal at The London Heliport in Battersea is now officially open for business – ahead of the Farnborough Air Show next week (July 19th to 25th), when many of the senior executives from the world’s leading aerospace companies will be using the heliport en route to and from the show.... Read more
17-Jul-2010Source: Eurocopter
Eurocopter and its Eurocopter UK Ltd. subsidiary are represented on the Farnborough exhibit stand of parent company EADS (Booth G12, Hall 4), where an EC135 for the West Midlands Police is to be officially handed over to the customer on July 19. Today, Eurocopter products are vital for the functioning of the United Kingdom, with... Read more
9-Jul-2010Source: http://www.aaib.gov.uk/publications/bulletins/february_2011/sikorsky_s_92a__g_sarc.cfm
During a manually flown SAR mission, in mountainous terrain, the aircraft entered IMC. While attempting to exit these conditions on a pre-briefed escape heading with the autopilot coupled, the autopilot entered an unexpected mode that resulted in the aircraft not responding as intended. The autopilot was disconnected and the flight continued manually without further incident.... Read more
7-Jul-2010Source: BBC
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has carried out tests of the pad using a Stornoway-based Sikorsky S92... Read more
6-Jul-2010Source: PremiAir
PremiAir, the award-winning UK based aviation services company, announces today (6th July) a significant step in its continued growth in business aviation. PremiAir has taken over the management of a fleet of LearJet private jets and in addition has acquired a new private jet operating and maintenance base at London’s Biggin Hill airport. This move... Read more
6-Jul-2010Source: Gazette Live
A man who shone a high-powered lamp at a police helicopter could face prison. Michael Kevin Renney was accused of twice shining the light into the skies, hitting the cockpit of the Cleveland Police aircraft.... Read more
6-Jul-2010Source: BBC
Commercial pilot Daren Elarmo, 40, who also uses the surname Jones, is accused of kidnapping two teenage boys for sex. Police say the pilot may now be living in Spain... Read more
6-Jul-2010Source: AAIB
The monthly bulletin from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch has been released. This month’s issue does not refer to any helicopters and this update is included in HeliHub.com for completeness.... Read more
2-Jul-2010Source: HeliHub.com
Yesterday, CHC added a second Sikorsky S92 to their Aberdeen-based North Sea fleet. Registered G-CHCS, and the 125th S92 off the production line, it joins sister ship G-CHCK which has been active supporting British offshore oil installations since spring 2006. CHC has other S92s in the North Sea operating from Stavangar in support of the... Read more
1-Jul-2010Source: Salisbury Journal
An air ambulance expert has been named the new chairman of the Wiltshire Air Ambulance Appeal. David Philpott, 52, the founding chairman of the Association of Air Ambulances, takes up his post today, 1st July.... Read more
30-Jun-2010Source: TVAC
The Thames Valley & Chiltern Air Ambulance (TVACAA) will be able to save more lives from July after the announcement that its current daily operational flight time will rise from 10 to 12 hours a day. Cost, flight regulations and the inability to fly in the hours of darkness are all factors influencing the deployment... Read more
