Helicopter Industry Veteran To Lead The Reintroduction Of The Brantly B-2B Light Helicopter

Helicopter industry veteran Kyle B. Hardman has joined Brantly International Helicopters as its new president, according to a company news release Tuesday.

Kyle Hardman

"We are extremely pleased to have Mr. Hardman join Brantly International," said Cheng Shenzong, Chairman of the Qindao Brantly Investment Group, owners of Brantly International. "His depth of experience as a program leader and helicopter engineer will be invaluable in guiding our efforts to bring the Brantly B-2B light helicopter back into production."
 
"I can't begin to express my excitement about this opportunity and the gratitude for the trust they have shown in me to take this project forward," Hardman said. "I guess you can say helicopters are in my blood. My father was with Bell for 36 years. I grew up across the street from the factory."

"People have forgotten what an incredible machine the Brantly B-2B is. At the height of its production, the company built one-half of the civilian helicopters manufactured in the U.S.," he added. "Being able to start the program with a proven design like the B-2B and improve it with today's computer-aided design and manufacturing techniques is going to help us make a great helicopter even better."
 
Hardman stated that the company is currently in the process of selecting a location for its new factory and is looking at sites in the Dallas/Fort Worth area as well as in other states.

Brantly B-2B

"After the building is completed, state-of-the-art production tooling and equipment will be installed and the training, production and re-certification process will begin with the FAA," he said. "With its mix of performance and low operating costs, I think the market is going to be very happy to see the B-2B back in production."
 
Prior to joining Brantly, Hardman was a Principal Engineer with Bell Helicopter Textron in Fort Worth, Texas. Before that he was Lead Engineer Senior with Vought Aircraft. Hardman is an aircraft owner with single- and multi-engine land, seaplane and glider ratings. He graduated from Texas A&M University in 1985 with a Bachelor of Engineering Technology degree.

FMI: www.brantly.com