First Installation Will be on NH-90 Helicopter, Others May Follow

by ANN Correspondent Juan Jiménez @ Heli Expo 2003

Thermocoax, a French company based out of the Normandy area with offices in Georgia, has announced the first heated intake debris screen for turbine engines designed to protect them from ingested ice damage.

The screen, designed for installation on the intakes of the NH Industries NH-90 helicopter, utilizes an ingenious design to provide a heated barrier against any ice that may try to form on or enter the engine intakes on the aircraft. The wires on the screen are wrapped around an insulated heating element which transfers heat to the wire, but not electricity. The same concept is used by the company to produced custom items such as heated angle of attack vanes.

Senior Sales Engineer Gregory Slape told ANN that this particular design was produced specifically for the NH-90, but there is no reason why the models could not be produced for virtually any helicopter or fixed wing intake that could benefit from an ice protection screen. The heated screen can also be adapted to work in conjunction with the FOD screens that many rotorcraft use due to the turbulence that the rotors generate when close to the ground.

FMI: www.thermocoax.com