It Depends On How You Look At It...

Bell Helicopter announced completion this week of its 747th production model Bell 412, one of the most popular medium twin helicopters flying in the world. According to Bell Helicopter Customer Engineer Daniel Currie, however, the number could also be 750 Bell 412s.

"It depends on what you actually call a Bell 412," Currie joked. Currie has worked for Bell Helicopter for nearly four decades and was a flight line electrician on the Bell 212s that were modified to serve as the new Bell 412 prototypes.

"We took three Bell 212s, added a 4-bladed rotor system, a new transmission and several more upgrades to build the first Bell 412s," Currie added. "Each prototype went through a different test regimes testing everything from handling qualities, possible blade deicing kit test, cowlings, autopilot and more."

Currie calls these prototypes as the great-grandfathers of today’s modern Bell 412, which is currently in contention for the Army’s new Light Utility Helicopter Contract.

"All the Bell 412s, whether one of the first that rolled off the assembly line in Fort Worth or one of today’s modern Bell 412 LUHs, they all share the same core qualities."

With Bell’s worldwide fleet of 412s, the airframe has logged more than three million hours, successfully performing LUH missions including search and rescue, firefighting, EMS and passenger transport in often very austere conditions.

And Currie was there from the beginning witnessing the evolution of the Bell LUH. The Bell LUH (above) is equipped with the modern Health and Usage Monitoring System, or HUMS, a modern avionics and communications suite and life saving crash worthy crew and passenger seats.

"It may not be the flashiest, but when you go out in the morning and push the starter switch, its ready to go to work," Currie said.

FMI: www.bellhelicopter.textron.com