 |
Following the delivery of their first two EC225s in Search and Rescue (SAR) configuration a month ago, these helicopters will be launched into operation by the Japan Coast Guard today at the Kansai International Airport. They will perform public service and coastal surveillance missions as well as patrol Japan’s territorial waters. Since 1989, the Japan Coast Guard has been using four AS332L1 Super Pumas to carry out these missions. In 2007, one of these Super Pumas rescued 44 people from a cargo ship in distress, under extremely difficult weather conditions.
By choosing the EC225, Japan is opting for the new-generation technical solutions that are specific to this aircraft, while extending its long-standing relationship with Eurocopter. This new helicopter was designed from the outset for SAR missions. The EC225 has a completely new five-bladed main rotor which provides optimum lift, a maximum takeoff weight of 11 metric tons, and unbeatably low vibration levels. Its range can also be significantly increased through the installation of auxiliary tanks to provide a total fuel capacity of 1180 kg. Because one is installed outside the fuselage and the other at the rear of the cargo bay, these tanks do not reduce the available cabin space. Amongst its different mission capabilities, the EC225 can rescue ten people at up to 300 nautical miles from the coast.
Another strong point of this aircraft is its autopilot whose totally unique advanced modes were specifically designed for SAR operations. Extraordinarily effective in terms of hover capture and control, the EC225’s autopilot can hold, for example, a position above a ship at sea within a range of precision of one metre. The EC225 is also the only aircraft in the world that automatically controls engine failure, whether this occurs during takeoff, cruising flight or even hoisting operations. All these features are absolutely essential to flight safety and mission success in the often extreme conditions faced by rescue crews at sea.
The EC725, the military counterpart of the EC225, has been in service with the French armed forces for nearly three years now. The EC725 went straight into service in the Lebanon and Africa, and it was also deployed in Afghanistan, where it showed off the full range of its capabilities by successfully performing a combat SAR operation at altitude.
In the civil domain, the EC225 has become the benchmark for offshore operations in just a few years. Operators are increasingly required to ensure the safety of their operations themselves using helicopters specially equipped to perform SAR missions. The Norwegian oil company Statoil has already chosen the EC225 twice because of its multipurpose capability to perform offshore SAR and transport missions. For public service SAR missions, the EC225 has therefore become the new reference on this market. The Rescue and Salvage Bureau in China was the first operator to deploy the EC225 for this kind of duty in December 2007.
|
