Thu, Jul 06, 2006
$21M Contract Includes HUMS/CVFDR
Smiths Aerospace has
scored a $21M contract for the development and supply of its
comprehensive HUMS technology for the new Future Lynx Helicopter by
AgustaWestland. The award involves the implementation of the Smiths
combined Health & Usage Monitoring System and Cockpit Voice
& Flight Data Recorder (HUMS/CVFDR) capability on seventy (70)
Future Lynx aircraft for the UK Ministry of Defence.
"With more than 400 HUMS and two million flight hours, Smiths is
the world leader in the supply of HUMS for both military and
commercial helicopter applications," commented Dr. John Ferrie,
President, Smiths Aerospace.
Development is due to commence this year at the Smiths'
facilities located at Southampton in the UK and Michigan in the
U.S. HUMS production deliveries are scheduled to commence in 2011.
The HUMS application will be integrated into both the Army - 40
Battlefield Reconnaissance Helicopters (BRH) and Navy - 30 Surface
Combatant Maritime Rotorcraft (SCMR).
The Smiths Aerospace HUMS offers both improved safety and
reduced operating costs and can be readily configured for a variety
of helicopter platforms. The Future Lynx HUMS will continuously
monitor the fleet wide health and performance of safety-critical
components, providing advance warning of potential equipment
failures and collecting valuable data for routine maintenance of
each aircraft. HUMS sensors monitor the health and usage of the
engines, transmission, drive-train system, rotor system and
airframe by detecting and diagnosing potential failures, recording
usage, automating test procedures and providing alerts for
potential maintenance actions. The HUMS also provides continuous
Rotor Track and Balance capability, negating the requirement for
the installation of carry aboard equipment and the overhead for
dedicated RTB check flights. This feature will be operational for
the aircraft flight trials phase, in advance of customer
operational use of the aircraft.
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