Though development of the civil tiltrotor has lagged in recent years, the allure of tiltrotor technology remains strong, as it combines the vertical-lift capability of helicopters with the higher speed and longer range of fixed wing aircraft.
So far, so good.
In the executive/transport configuration, the aircraft will carry eight to nine passengers, but AWTR sees many other applications, including oil-and-gas operations...
Hmm. Let's ruminate on that a little.
Oil companies simply will *not* use the 609 on any sector that's already being served by a conventional helicopter. No matter how important those nine people are, they can go in the Puma with the rest of the roustabouts. No, the 609 would be used for
really deepwater rigs, the ones that are (or will be) beyond the practical range of existing helicopters.
Which leads me to ask...
What is the emergency procedure for loss of oil pressure in one of the 609's engines?
Oh, but that would never happen. Right?
Let's ask the Sikorsky S-92 certification team how "extremely remote" such a thing would be!