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The article offers information on commercial uses of rotary wing aircraft in the U.S. It mentions that the Civil Aeronautics Board has certified two models of helicopters including Bell and Sikorsky as airworthy and can be used for commercial purposes. It highlights how aircrafts will be used in agriculture, store deliveries and geophysical prospecting. It informs that in New York, the Post Office Department conducted helicopters tests for local air-mail routes.

The article reports on the completion of the demonstration tour of the American Eurocopter Corp.'s X3 helicopter in the U.S. It states that the helicopter completes 40 demonstration flights as part of its Demo Tour in the country. It states that the company's president and vice president Marc Paganini and Steve Mundt highlighted the helicopters capabilities and how it could be adapted for the military market.

Discusses the author's experience of commanding a squadron to rescue the crews of U.S. aircraft that fell in China using R-6 helicopters. Downsides of using R-4 helicopters as reflected in a rescue of a pilot in Burma; Tests conducted to determine the load and altitude at which the R-6 could operate; Survivors of the crash.

The article focuses on the Sandblaster system developed by a Sikorsky-led team for the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The system, which prevents rotorcraft landing accidents, was flight-tested on a Black Hawk helicopter at the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Center in California in January 2009. The system has automated flight control laws developed by Sikorsky, as well as a Sierra Nevada 94-Ghz millimeter-wave radar able to produce a three-dimensional image of the landing zone.

Reports developments in the business aviation industry in the United States as of November 2000. List of companies involved in TheAviationHub online service for business aviation procurement of support services; Status of the Global Express program by the Bombardier Business Aircraft; Flight testing of the enhanced proximity warning system for helicopters.

The article reports that Bell is trying to determine both the cost and length of the testing program for its Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter. The company is switching to a larger engine, and Bell is hoping earlier U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certifications will hold and allow it to trim testing and cost. According to Bob Kenney, executive vice president of military programs for Bell, the company has removed other items from the Kiowa helicopter program to avoid costly flight tests.

The article reports that the U.S. Navy is preparing to send the MH-60R Seahawk and MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopters to sea for their operational evaluation in 2009. The helicopters SH-60B and SH-60F will be replaced by MH-60R, which combines the capabilities of both in a single airframe. The Navy's MQ-8B Fire Scout will fly from a Perry-class frigate alongside an SH-60B aircraft and will be maintained by the crew of the Seahawk helicopters.

The article presents information about advanced technology works by Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. The company will conduct advanced flight tests of its new tail fan system next year and is developing a propulsive antitorque system that in the future could replace tail rotors and fans altogether. In addition to commercial work with the tail fan, Bell recently demonstrated a full-scale example of its Propulsive AntiTorque System to representatives of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the U.S. Army.

Defense Department officials are tracking more than 1,000 current or projected "mission-impacting technical issues" that present "a high risk" to the CH-53K helicopter meeting its December 2019 goal, according to a program review document. Geurts recently met with Lockheed and Navy program officials "to discuss his concern about the testing schedule as planned" and "expressed his sense of urgency to improve" the situation. "Program officials reported that since the latest redesign, the program has successfully tested the main gearbox". [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the U.S. helicopter industry, its forecasted production gap after 2020, and the U.S. Army's funding of a Joint Multi-Role (JMR) technology demonstration program that will accommodate flight testing of advanced rotorcraft technology. The JMR program is said to be modeled after the U.S. Joint Advanced Strike Technology (JAST) program that fostered the making of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

The article reports that the U.S. Navy is preparing a formal evaluation of the unmanned reconnaissance helicopter FireScout, produced by Northrop Grumman to be completed in the fall of 2010. The aircraft's second operational deployment is to take place in 2011, and if successful could be followed by the Navy ordering full production of the 168 FireScout air vehicles it has planned to deploy.

The article reports on the plan of the U.S. Navy to begin flight testing fixes to its airborne mine countermeasures (AMCM) package for the MH-60S helicopter in one year, delayed by 20 months plans to achieve initial operational testing in July 2008. After 350 hour in operational testing of the Raytheon AN/AQS-20, a towed deep-water mine detection system, the Navy halted the testing process because of reliability problems.

The article reports that the U.S. Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) have begun testing Boeing Co.'s Smart Material Actuated Rotor Technology system in the 40 X 80-feet (ft.). The series of tests will focus on the rotor's forward flight characteristics in an effort to collect noise data for validating acoustic codes as part of a Darpa program to reduce helicopter noise levels.

The article reports on the first flight of the redesigned A/MH-6X Little Bird helicopter from Boeing in a manned/unmanned configuration in the U.S. The aircraft has a glass cockpit and digital maps as well as Ku -band communications and digital radios. The company has proposed the unmanned configuration for the 160th Special Operational Aviation Regiment of the U.S. Army. Regiment officials stated their preference of an unmanned rotorcraft to deliver supplies forward on the battlefield.

This article reports that the U.S. Army Aviation Museum's unannounced destruction of the XCH-62 Heavy Lift Helicopter prototype, the largest rotorcraft ever built in the nation, has upset a number of historians and engineers. Some consider the timing poor because of the current interest in large helicopters from the Army-led Joint Heavy Lift program. Designers often seek to gain ideas by looking at prior aircraft, but this is now no longer possible. The early-1970s-vintage XCH-62 was the first helicopter designed with a fly-by-wire flight control system and featured elastomeric rotor bearings, fiberglass blades with titanium spars and varying airfoil sections, and extensive co-cured composite honeycomb structure in the fuselage.

The article presents news related to the U.S. aviation industry as of June 30, 2005. A series of flight tests was recently completed on Danish F-16 fighters fitted with EADS' AAR-60 Missile Launch Detection System. The five Bell AH-1Z and UH-1Y helicopters undergoing flight testing at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland have accumulated more than 3,000 hour in the air since the first aircraft flew in December 2000. L-3 Communications' Link Simulation and Training division will upgrade the U.S. Army Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer reconfigurable manned simulator suite for the AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter.

Focuses on the developments of the RAH-66 program in the U.S. Assessment of the project by Army officials; Schedule for the first flight testing of the helicopter; Problems facing Army officials.

The article offers news briefs at the helicopter industry in the U.S. as of February 2013. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has purchased 15 Boeing Chinook CH-47F heavy-lift helicopters to be used for transporting troops and delivery of cargoes. Four Eurocopter UHT Tigers from Germany have been upgraded to Afghanistan Stabilization German Army Rapid Deployment-Full standard. The Slowed Rotor/Compound (SRC) VTOL gyrocopter demonstrator of Carter Aviation Technologies has been tested in November 2012.

The article announces that Boeing Co., an aerospace and defense company, made the first flight of its AH-6i light-attack or reconnaissance helicopter with Apache avionics in September 2009 in Washington. According to Jeffrey Shelton of Boeing Co., this framework is based on one previously deployed with the U.S. Special Forces. He adds that the helicopter is designed for international military users and chooses avionics capabilities from the Apache Longbow Block III upgrade.

The article reports that the development of the new heavy lift helicopter of the U.S. Marine Corps has started under the 4.4 billion dollars development program with Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. The "Cost Plus Award Fee" contract for the system development and demonstration phase is projected to be at around 2.9 billion dollars. It covers continuing risk reduction efforts and sub-system selection, research, design, test and evaluation efforts. The new marinized heavy lifters will be called CH-53K.

The article reports that the U.S. Army pilots has conducted a flight test for the Sikorsky Autonomy Research Aircraft (SARA), an S-76 helicopter modified by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and subsidiary of aerospace company Lockheed Martin.

The article reports that Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. has completed CH-53K Ground Test Vehicle, the U.S. Marine Corps' (USMC) heavy lift helicopter replacement. Production of the ground test vehicle (GTV) began in July 2011. Four flight test helicopters will join the testing program during 2014-2015. There is still a distance to go on this program with the low rate production decision set for late summer 2015 and an initial operating capability (IOC) not expected before 2019.

The article offers information on the flight testing for failures for helicopters and informs on the various factors that govern the range of operations of the helicopters. It is mentioned that the U.S. Federal Aviation Regulations' parts 27 and 29 define the airworthiness standards for Normal and Transport category rotorcrafts. Also, several preparations are required before conducting flight testing and helicopters should have methods for alerting pilots for any failure.

The article reports on the successful flight of the X2 helicopter prototype of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. in the U.S.

The article reports on the test flights conducted for the unmanned helicopter Fire Scout on the frigate McInerney in April 2009. According to manufacturer Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems, Fire Scout is set for deployment aboard McInerney to engage in a counternarcotics mission of the U.S. Navy. The unmanned helicopter will be used by the service for anti-submarine, mine and surface warfare missions. Features of the Fire Scout are cited which include three radios and Rolls-Royce engines.

The article elaborates on the Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group's (ESG) integration exercise held on October 7-16, 2008 in the U.S. It was found that the Medium Helicopter Squadron 163, Rein, was aboard the Boxer LHD 4 during the exercise, who were trained with the new version of the Huey in preparation for the ESG's deployment in January 2009.

The article reports on the U.S. Army authorization given to Boeing Co. for its full-rate production and fielding of the CH-47F CHINOOK helicopter. The approval has been followed by the completion of operational testing at Fort Campbell, Kentucky in April 2007 and the First Unit Fielding in July 2007. Features of the helicopter include a Rockwell Collins Common Avionics Architecture System cockpit and a BAE Digital Advance Flight Control System.

Features the Lockheed XV-4A Hummingbird aircraft used by the U.S. Armed Forces in the 1960s. Background on the development of the aircraft; Description of the aircraft; Procedure used in the testing of the aircraft.

Reports on the maiden flight of the model 210 helicopter from Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. in the U.S. Expected certification for the aircraft from the Federal Aviation Administration; Features of the model which is a version of the company's UH-1H single-engine utility helicopter; Price information.