Dakota Air Parts Intl., Inc. — a specialist in the buying, selling and support of a variety of rotory- and fixed-wing aircraft, turbine engines, and parts — has announced that it is displaying a new-to-market composite tail rotor blade for the Bell 206A and 206B helicopters during Heli-Expo 2018, Feb. 27 to March 1 in Las Vegas.
Dakota Air Parts is exhibiting at Booth #N3025.
Together with Australian manufacturer Airwork Helicopters, Dakota Air Parts is proud to introduce new-to-market composite tail rotor blade for the Bell 206 JetRanger Series helicopters. AMT-206-1 tail rotor blades are a direct replacement for OEM blades.
The blade design incorporates a non-symmetrical airfoil section and a swept tip. The blades are primarily fabricated from uni-directional Graphite (carbon fiber) and Aramid (Kevlar) continuous fibers suspended in an epoxy matrix.
The nickel abrasion strip is designed to protect the blade under harsh operating conditions, like those encountered in agricultural work. The abrasion strip is 1-3/8 inches wide and covers 23 percent of the chord, providing protection to all of the blade surfaces exposed during flight, ensuring that erosion doesn’t impact the blade structure.
Operators flying in areas with stringent noise restrictions will find these blades especially valuable. Helicopters operating with the AMT-206-1 tail rotor blade demonstrate noise levels compliant with Stage 3 Noise requirements with an overflight noise level of 80.0 dB.
The AMT-206-1 composite tail rotor blades offer a 30 percent cost advantage with twice the life over the standard 206 tail rotor blades. Additional features include:
- 5,000 hour time life, twice the life of standard OEM blades;
- 30 percent lower hourly operating costs;
- Higher margin of safety due to increased strength;
- Corrosion resistant and impervious to saltwater;
- Replaceable bushings and abrasion strips;
- Significant noise reduction, 68 percent reduction over OEM blades;
- Improved ground clearance;
- Complies with FAA stage 3 noise requirements; and
- Tested for over 51 million cycles
The blades are manufactured in Australia under an Australian Parts Manufacturing Approval (APMA) and have CASA and FAA STCs:
- FAA STC: SR02644LA
- CASA STC: STC-SVR520
- APMA: 410142
Distribution and sales are managed by Dakota Air Parts and Airwork Helicopters with Airwork managing sales in Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea while all other regions are serviced by Dakota Air Parts.
Air Services International of Phoenix, Arizona, and Air Services International DWC-LLC of Dubai, UAE are also product representatives.
Operators interested in learning more information about the AMT-206-1 tail rotor blades, as well as to view a set of the blades, can visit the company during Heli-Expo at booth #N3025.
