Aircraft Tasked With Utility Operations And Cargo Lift Missions
Supporting DoD
Two Sikorsky S-92 helicopters have been delivered to airlift
services provider AAR CORP. for operations in Afghanistan. AAR will
use the aircraft to perform passenger and cargo lift missions on
behalf of the United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM), a
government agency that provides transportation for the Department
of Defense.
S-92 File Photo
Both aircraft are certified by the FAA to simultaneously carry
both passengers and cargo in the same cabin space.
"Deployment to Afghanistan is a tremendous opportunity for AAR
and the U.S. Government to see what the multi-mission S-92 aircraft
is capable of in some very challenging flight conditions at high
altitude," said Ed Beyer, vice president for Sikorsky Global
Helicopters. "The ... interior configuration of these two aircraft
also will give AAR greater mission flexibility to perform its
utility and transport missions."
The FAA certified an easily configurable interior with variable
seating while carrying up to three 4 ft. sq.-sized cargo pallets
secured to rings in the seat tracks and cabin walls to assure
crashworthiness. For each pallet, Sikorsky developed a special fire
containment cover to contain and suffocate flames, and added smoke
detectors. To separate the passengers from cargo, Sikorsky designed
a fabric partition, and added a fire extinguisher and Protective
Breathing Equipment for passengers and crew.
AAR purchased the two S-92 aircraft following an October 2010
USTRANSCOM contract award valued at $450 million to provide up to
five years of airlift service in Afghanistan. Both aircraft are
expected to begin operations in Afghanistan this month. AAR already
operates 15 Sikorsky S-61N aircraft in various mission roles,
including Afghanistan.
S-92 File Image
"We evaluated a number of alternatives before concluding that
the Sikorsky S-92 helicopter was the best choice to meet the
arduous demands of supporting tactical lift missions in remote and
extremely harsh environments," said Jeff Schloesser, president of
AAR's Airlift Group during an acceptance ceremony at Sikorsky
Global Helicopter's facility in Coatesville, PA, where the aircraft
are manufactured. "The selection came down to choosing the aircraft
that best fulfills the requirements and enables us to offer
reliability, responsiveness and the best long-term business case
for the military."
129 S-92 helicopters have been delivered since September 2004 to
commercial customers in the oil and gas industry, search and
rescue, VIP transport and utility sectors. During those six years,
the worldwide S-92 aircraft fleet has accumulated 285,000 flight
hours, a record for a commercial fleet of Sikorsky helicopters in a
similar timeframe. A military version of the S-92 airframe - the
CH148 helicopter equipped for naval operations - is being designed
and produced for the Canadian Government.