On the show floor, AgustaWestland announced two contract signings, with Norsk Luftambulanse of Norway contracting for an AW169 light twin-engine intermediate helicopter for Emergency Medical Services and Bel Air of Denmark taking delivery of its first AW189 super medium helicopter at an official ceremony staged during the exhibition. Another helicopter going into medical service is the Bell 429 which formed the centerpiece of the Bell Helicopter display and is now being handed over to Wiltshire Air Ambulance in the UK.
Alongside the new EC130 T2 and EC145 T2 versions on display, Airbus Helicopters announced two major services improvements – an extended Secured Standard Exchange policy offering customers the possibility of immediately exchanging a part needing repair or overhaul with another serviceable part and a Secured Turnaround Time (TAT) service of 45 days for equipment repair and overhaul.
Waypoint Leasingused the Amsterdam event to announce a contract with Bristow for the sale and leaseback of two Sikorsky S-92 helicopters. Waypoint also announced the establishment of a partnership with Avincis. Under the arrangement, Avincis will lease two AgustaWestland AW139s which will operate for its subsidiary INAER Aviation Italia.
Mecaer Aviation Group exhibited its AW169 VIP mock-up interior cabin and Bell Helicopter announced on the first day that it had made the first Bell 429 Wheeled Landing Gear (WLG) sale in Europe, which would be outfitted with the world’s first Bell 429 MAGnificent luxury cabin interior, created by Mecaer.
“With our sponsorship of the Education Program at this year’s event, which itself has been a great success over the three days covering a wide range of topics and issues, I can certainly say our attendance on the show floor was worth our time and investment as we talked to a wide range of key visitors from around the world interested in our VVIP cabin interiors. Helitech International is an essential tool in our European marketing outreach,” said Grayson Barrows, director of marketing and sales for Cabin Comfort Systems at Mecaer Aviation Group, Inc.
First-time exhibitor Inventec, based in Spain, was pleased with the overall level of visitors at Helitech International. “Inventec s.l. selected Helitech International to promote its innovative and patented helicopter aerial delivery systems to an international audience. We were really delighted with the high level of interest shown by leading rotary-wing companies; given it was our debut appearance. This attention reflected the industry’s keen research into the latest technology developments to maximize a helicopter’s profitability throughout the year. As a result, many visitors valued the multi-function capabilities of our systems, which can be deployed for aerial firefighting and other spraying applications. We were therefore very pleased with the enquiries we received and for the kind consideration from many companies,” said Joan Saurina Casals, partner and project director at Inventec.
Helitech Internationalenabled companies to showcase their latest innovations to an international audience. This year’s show provided BAE Systems with a platform to promote its head-up display (HUD) and helmet mounted display (HMD) systems to the civil rotorcraft market. The company’s equipment is used on advanced military platforms, such as the Eurofighter Typhoon, but reductions in size and weight have opened up possibilities for civil applications.
Cobham used the event to launch two new products. The manually-operated wearable personal overboard survival system ‘Survivor+’ is a new class of maritime safety system incorporating a SOLAS-approved inflatable life jacket and a tethered single person life raft into a compact, while the Helicopter Emergency Egress Lighting System (HEELS) offers superior brightness, making it easier for passengers to identify exits after an emergency over-water helicopter ditching.
Other exhibitors showcasing new products and technologies included Pall Aerospace with its PB110D PUREair dry barrier filters for the Bell 206L and 407 helicopters, Blue SkyNetwork, which featured two new satellite communication technology solutions, and ATC with a compact mobile ATC unit designed for helipads and heliports. Making its first European appearance was the StartStick start battery from Telemeter Electronics.
The Education Program at this year’s Helitech International made a significant contribution to the success of the event. The Business and Strategy Conference, which was staged on 14 October, attracted a large audience which heard Jonathan Baliff, president and CEO of Bristow Group, outlining the urgent need for sharing safety practices. He reiterated that there is ‘no profit without safety’ and detailed the latest industry collaboration on safety through an initiative called HeliOffshore.
The safety theme was continued on the second day of the event with the EHA Rotorcraft Seminars while the last day saw the European Helicopter Safety Team (EHEST) and the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST) staging a Safety Workshop focusing on key elements impacting rotorcraft safety.
Helitech International event director, John Hyde, said: “This was the first time that Helitech International had been staged outside the UK and there is no doubt that the show has successfully transitioned from a regional to a truly global event. The feedback to date from exhibitors and visitors has been very encouraging as many have commented on the fact that they met visitors from countries they had not previously engaged. We now look forward to the next event which will be held at ExCeL in London from October 6-8, 2015.”
