AIR International – June 2018

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Heliswiss Super Puma in the UK


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France to supply Ukraine with 55 helicopters


LE MINISTÈRE de l’Économie et
des Finances (French Ministry of
Economy and Finance) announced
on May 29, 2018, that it had
signed an agreement with the
Ukraine government to supply 55
helicopters, of different classes, for
use in the parapublic sector.
Signed in Paris by Delphine
Gény-Stephann, undersecretary of
Le Ministère de l’Économie et des
Finances, and Ukraine’s Minister of the
Interior, Arsen Avakov, the agreement
covers a mix of new and pre-owned
heavy and light helicopters.
According to the French
government, the deal is valued at

€555 million, but sources in Ukraine
suggest the figure is actually €551
million. In addition to the supply of
the helicopters, the agreement also
covers the establishment of a training
and maintenance centre in Ukraine.
A spokesman for the French
government said: “This agreement
marks a decisive milestone for the
implementation of this bilateral
project, the most important one
between the two countries since the
independence of Ukraine in 1991.”
However, the spokesman noted
that the deal still had to be ratified
by the Ukrainian Parliament before it
could come into effect.

The helicopters, which include a
number of H225 Super Pumas, will be
operated by the Ukraine State Ministry
of Emergencies, Border Guards
Service, National Guard of Ukraine
and National Police of Ukraine.
Under the agreement, Airbus will
supply the helicopters in two tranches
with the first batch of four, configured
for search and rescue and emergency
medical service operations, to be
delivered later this year.
Ukraine Interior Minister Arsen
Avakov said: “Under the terms of
the agreement, the French side will
first supply 37 Airbus helicopters
to Ukraine and later another 18

helicopters. The agrrement includes
21 H225 helicopters able to carry
loads over 10 tonnes [22,000lb].”
Besides the H225s, the agreement
covers the supply of single-engine
light utility H125 Écureuils and twin-
engine light utility H145s. The new
fleet will supplant the Ukrainian
Government’s existing Mil Mi-8
helicopters, which have been in
service for many years.
No details were given about which
helicopter types are to be allocated
to which of the four state services
involved. Each service operates
its helicopters from bases located
around the country. Nigel Pittaway

EmbraerX, the research division of
Brazilian aerospace manufacturer
Embraer, unveiled its first eVTOL
concept during the 2nd annual Uber
Elevate 2018 summit held in Los
Angeles, California in May.
The eVTOL concept was
announced by Paulo Cesar de
Souza e Silva, President and CEO
of Embraer on May 8, 2018, who
said the electric vertical take-
off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle
was developed after “extensive
interaction” with potential operators.
Paulo Cesar de Souza e Silva
said: “We are relentless in our quest
for constant growth and through
EmbraerX we will drive disruptive
innovation and accelerate the
creation of new businesses with the
potential for exponential growth.”
He added: “Urban mobility is
ripe for transformation and we are

committed to having a major role in
this key market.”
EmbraerX President and CEO,
Antionio Campello, said his
organisation was already engaged
in several other projects, including
the development of various eVTOL
concepts in conjunction with a
number of businesses within the
Uber Elevate system.
Campello was bold with his
statements. He said: “We are
developing solutions to bring
on-demand air transportation
to urban areas to improve
the quality of life for millions
of people. Our collaboration
with key stakeholders will
accelerate the arrival of this
new ecosystem.”
Campello added: “This is one
example of how EmbraerX is
committed to exploring a range of

disruptive products and services that
could revolutionise the business of
air transportation.”
EmbraerX said the eVTOL concept
represented an air vehicle which
is designed to carry passengers
within an urban environment safely,
is required to be affordable, and to
have a low environmental footprint,

in terms of noise and emissions.
The company said: “Leveraging
Embraer’s experience and
longstanding relationships with
aircraft certification authorities
around the globe, EmbraerX will
ensure that safety design drivers
meet and exceed the highest
industry standards.” Nigel Pittaway

Embraer launches electric helicopter


EmbraerX’s eVTOL concept is the first of several the company is working on, together with companies like Uber, to explore the future urban air taxi role. Embraer
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