PARIS, France – The Sikorsky CH148 CYCLONEâ„¢ helicopter will debut in a static exhibit at the 49^th International Paris Air Show, Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. announced today. Sikorsky is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX).

The aircraft on display was built under Sikorsky’s Canadian Maritime Helicopter Project (CHMP), and is one of 28 CH148 aircraft that will be produced for the Canadian Forces to replace a fleet of SEA KING™ helicopters that have been in operation for almost 50 years.

A multi-mission aircraft, the CYCLONE helicopter addresses the full range of maritime missions including anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), search and rescue (SAR), and utility missions. It is designed for full spectrum shipboard operations with a deck haul down and handling system, CT7-8 marinized engines, hover refueling and designed-in features for shipboard maintainability. The aircraft has a full glass cockpit with a fully digital fly-by-wire flight control system, automatic blade and tail fold, 360-degree Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR), self-defence suite, passive and active acoustics, Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR), electronic surveillance systems, digital data link and an extensive navigation and communications suite.

“We believe the CYCLONE helicopter represents the ‘aircraft of the future’ for maritime forces around the globe,” said Carey Bond, president of Sikorsky Global Helicopters. “This is a helicopter that offers significant advancements in technology. It is clearing a path for delivery of an extremely sophisticated, flexible aircraft that will be among the most capable maritime helicopters in its class ever designed and built anywhere in the world.”

The CH148 recently completed another phase of Ship Helicopter Operating Limits Testing, also known as sea trials, performing extremely well and verifying that flight and deck operations can be executed through a growing envelope and demonstrating an ease of maintenance on board. Canadian Forces technicians are now undergoing ground-based training, to be followed by aircrew flight training.

The CH148 CYCLONE is derived from and builds upon the state-of-the-art Sikorsky S-92^® search and rescue helicopter now in use with the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the Saudi Ministry of Interior, offshore oil operators and other users throughout the world. With the same robust structures and systems, the CYCLONE helicopter offers Navy users maximum availability with reduced inspection and maintenance costs.

Sikorsky has proposed the CYCLONE helicopter, based upon the CH148 CYCLONE helicopter developed for Canada, to the German Navy as a common, low-risk solution to Germany’s helicopter requirements.

Source and photo: Sikorsky