bpaggi
The OEM's awareness of the operating environment will be tested by the quality of the FCOM produced for each type. Airbus's attempt at an H225 Flight Crew Operating Manual wasn't greeted with universal applause I believe. The FCOM is a great opportunity for the OEM to show the industry how to get the very best out of their products. I know the team working on the AW139 FCOM are determined to do just that and if they are given the necessary resources then I am sure they will come up with the goods.
One reason for the AW139's tremendous success is that it is so powerful that it just soaks up the kind of everyday abuse (in terms of mass limits) that operators around the world subject their helicopters to. The old arguments about reducing mass to Cat A levels have all but disappeared when this machine is on the job.
G.