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First S-70i Helicopter Fully Assembled At Sikorsky Facility In Poland

Aero-News Network

Quote:

Sikorsky and its Polish subsidiary PZL Mielec announced the completion of final assembly on the first S-70i Black Hawk helicopter Monday, an international variant of the Black Hawk helicopter. This new international variant is the first Black Hawk helicopter assembled in Europe using a global supply chain.

http://www.aero-news.net/images/cont...i-0110a_tn.jpg

File Photo

The helicopter, a new aircraft in the Sikorsky product line, is also the first rotary wing aircraft to be produced at PZL Mielec, a longtime fixed wing manufacturer in Poland.

The aircraft, fully assembled at PZL Mielec, will be tested and qualified at Sikorsky's Development Flight Center in West Palm Beach, FL. Production flight tests are planned at PZL Mielec later this year as that facility continues to undergo modernization.
The milestone completion took place almost exactly three years to the day of PZL Mielec's acquisition.
http://www.aero-news.net/images/cont...0403-1a_tn.jpg "In just three years, PZL Mielec has become a world-class facility capable of producing one of the finest utility helicopters operating today, the Black Hawk helicopter," said Robert Kokorda, Sikorsky Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Synergy. "The production of the S-70i Black Hawk helicopter here is expected to further the growing network of Polish companies participating in the building of Black Hawk aircraft for the world."
PZL Mielec is planned to be the centerpiece of the S-70i Black Hawk helicopter program for international customers. Debra A. Zampano, S-70i Program Manager, International Military Programs, said, "The S-70i Black Hawk helicopter is an example of the collaboration of superb workmanship, advanced technology and pioneering legacy."

Plans call for approximately 20 S-70i Black Hawk helicopters to be produced per year, beginning in 2012.
Janusz Zakrecki, President of PZL Mielec added, "As we witness the unveiling of the first Black Hawk helicopter built in Poland, we are sharing the pride in this significant milestone as it signals the important contributions of PZL Mielec to the global aerospace marketplace."

I like these all American helicopters.

Is the S-70i the fuel injected version?

No, i stands for international.

When is the CBi version rolling out? :E

Does that mean the S76D they are making is a Diesel variant?:confused:

Quote:

No, i stands for international.

Ah, I see now. :)

So they're not fuel injected then.

UTC, yet another exporter of jobs from America. :p

Did Senator Lieberman have anything to say about this, I wonder?

Truly unfortunate to see a lower trim grade of the UH-60M being knocked off in Eastern Europe.

It makes me wonder how UTC's lobbying effort to dillute the domestic content rules for military suppliers is progressing. The UTC 2010 Annual Report appears silent on the subject.

I am happy that the engines appear to be Lynn, Ma built GE machines.

Quote:

Truly unfortunate to see a lower trim grade of the UH-60M being knocked off in Eastern Europe.

The foreign content is an attempt to produce an aircraft that can be sold globally without being barred by the US Dept of State under Export Restrictions. It is nothing at all to do with "lower trim" or performance, it simply allows the aircraft to be built without US Defense Articles becoming a barrier to sales.

International Hawks

Two's In, your observation is correct.

Perhaps the NON SAC contributor needs to get a better source on the Housatonic:

From memory:

The first S-70 design with a certified NAV and FMS coupled autopilot to include all approved IFR approaches was delivered to.....Gov't of Brunei.
The first S-70 glass cockpit with all of the above plus an automated GPS/Inertial approach to hover at any global coordinate was delivered to...Gov't of Turkey.

So, some of the "trim" accessories are delivered to meet international customer requirements that may not have yet made the US DoD needs list.

Thanks,
John Dixson

Quote:
No, i stands for international.
Ah, I see now. http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/sr...lies/smile.gif

So they're not fuel injected then.

They are still fuel injected- all the S-70 models are

John,

Please, one must have better eyes to monitor the Housatonic from Hobe Sound.

"a certified NAV and FMS coupled autopilot to include all approved IFR approaches" sounds like a critical cold-fusion like magic to sell through Poland. Are you suggesting the "i" is an ITAR/USML dodge engineered to circumvent the tirany of the US FMS framework?

That would be an audacious allegation.

Cheers!
- NonSAC

FYI: The striper fishing is excellent in the Housatonic this year.

Quote:

It is nothing at all to do with "lower trim" or performance...

Data from monufacturer's web pages:

S-70i performance:
Maximum Gross Weight 22,000 lbs 9,979 kg
Maximum Cruise Speed 149 kts 277 km/h
Maximum Range - No Reserve 248 nm 459 km
HIGE Ceiling 9,000 ft 2,743 m
HOGE Ceiling 4,300 ft 1,310 m
OEI Service Ceiling 3,700 ft 1,127 m
AEO Service Ceiling 13,200 ft 4,023 m

UH-60M performance:
Maximum Gross Weight 22,000 lbs 9,979 kg
Maximum Cruise Speed 151 kts 280 km/h
Maximum Range - No Reserve 276 nm 511 km
HIGE Ceiling 10,520 ft 3,206 m
HOGE Ceiling 6,010 ft 1,831 m
OEI Service Ceiling 6,500 ft 1,981 m
AEO Service Ceiling 15,180 ft 4,626 m

Arrakis

International Hawks

NON SAC,

FMS stands for Flight Management System.

I don't know which specific coupled autopilot system is in the PZL Hawks, but the point is that an implication that international ships are by definition a " lower trim grade " isn't necessarily true.

Thanks,
John Dixson

Will the S-70i be bio diesel compatible?

TTi

S-70i Performance

Arrakis, I think if you dig a bit you'll find that the 70i has the L model main blades while the M has the new all composite wider chord blades. I don't know why, but an educated guess is that production priority is the answer. The tip off is that the 70i has the 701D engine but with 701C fuel control software.

Thanks,
John Dixson

It was all about cost.

I’m sure from early press releases that the S-70i reasoning was about getting international customers into a low cost BlackHawk, as opposed to the more costly UH-60M, which was built to satisfy US military requirements. Although the ‘Mike’ has greatly improved performance, it has a number of unique US mission systems that would not suit foreign buyers and would likely come with additional ITAR restrictions.

With wide chord blades, 701D engines and fuel control software, the UH-60M is a world apart from the UH-60L (and even a baseline S-70i) when it comes to H&H OPS and has proven to be a game changer in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but it lost some of its useful load.

However, take a baseline S-70i (without the US mission systems) and add the EPP options and the maximum performance gains are likely to put a noticeably broad grin on the mugs of even hardened ‘Mike’ crews.