Bell 505 Makes Historic Test-Flight | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-06.23.25

Airborne-NextGen-06.24.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.25.25

Airborne-AffordableFlyers-06.26.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.27.25

Thu, Feb 23, 2023

Bell 505 Makes Historic Test-Flight

First Flight of Single-Engine Helicopter on 100% SAF

Bell Textron Inc.—the Fort Worth-based, rotorcraft manufacturing subsidiary of American industrial conglomerate Textron Inc—announced that a Bell 505 helicopter had completed a test-flight fueled solely by one-hundred-percent Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

The instance occasions the first-ever flight of a single-engine helicopter powered by one-hundred-percent SAF. For purpose of actualizing the milestone achievement, Bell collaborated with Safran Helicopter Engines; Neste, the world’s largest producer of renewable diesel and jet fuel; GKN Aerospace, the world’s leading multi-technology tier-1 aerospace supplier; and Virent Inc., a Wisconsin-based subsidiary of Marathon Petroleum Corporation and developer of catalytic chemistries that convert plant-based sugars into hydrocarbon fuels.

Bell Commercial Business executive vice-president Michael Thacker stated: “This flight is a monumental achievement for sustainability and decarbonization in the rotorcraft industry. Showcasing a single-engine aircraft’s flight capabilities with one-hundred-percent SAF signals Bell’s commitment to alternative fuel usage and builds on its sustainability practices in its flight operations.”

Safran Helicopter Engines executive vice-president Valentin Safir added: “SAF is one of the key pillars in our strategy to decarbonize the helicopter industry. Our engines are certified to operate on up to fifty-percent SAF and our objective is to certify in the coming years the use of one-hundred-percent SAF, which can potentially result in carbon lifecycle emissions reductions by up to eighty-percent.”

In preparation for the historic flight, Neste and Virent collaborated to blend, test, and deliver the requisite SAF as a one-hundred-percent drop-in fuel. Typically, sustainable aviation fuels made from used cooking oil or other bio-based feedstocks must be blended with petroleum products insomuch as they lack aromatics—cyclic but unsaturated hydrocarbons with alternating double bonds which are required constituents of approved SAFs. Virent manufactures an aromatics component synthesized from renewable plant sugars, which was added to Neste’s neat SAF, thereby eliminating the need for blending the stuff with conventional petroleum jet fuel. Ergo, the SAF supplied by Neste and Virent for the Bell 505 test-flight constituted a one-hundred-percent “drop-in” replacement for petroleum-based aviation fuel, and required no modifications to the test aircraft’s engine.

In addition to its obvious technological and historical significance, the Bell 505 SAF test-flight supported Textron’s Achieve 2025 Sustainable Footprint initiative, which seeks to achieve a twenty-percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across the company’s operations.

Since its first delivery in 2017, Bell’s 505 has been among the company’s best-selling, fastest-growing, corporate-and-VIP-market products. As demand for the 505 has increased, Bell has strived to broaden the model’s functionality with augmentations the likes of a fully integrated Garmin G1000H NXi avionics suite, a Safran Arrius 2R engine with a dual-channel FADEC system, and an optional Mecaer Aviation Group interior. The added benefits of a large cabin and panoramic window views make the Bell 505 an ideal conveyance for corporate passengers and discerning private owners.

FMI: www.bellflight.com

Advertisement

More News

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (06.30.25): Ground Stop (GS)

Ground Stop (GS) The GS is a process that requires aircraft that meet a specific criteria to remain on the ground. The criteria may be airport specific, airspace specific, or equip>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (06.30.25)

Aero Linx: Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) improves safety and public confidence in aviation, marine and rail transport thro>[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (06.30.25)

“The Palo Alto stopover confirmed—yet again—that flight schools and aero-clubs are no longer just curious about electric training; they are ready to buy. In just >[...]

NTSB Final Report: ICON A5

Pilot’s Failure To Maintain Clearance From The Water While Flying At A Low Altitude Analysis: The flight of two airplanes was in cruise flight on a north heading about 50 ft >[...]

Airborne Affordable Flyers 06.26.25: PA18 Upgrades, ‘Delta Force’, Rhinebeck

Also: 48th Annual Air Race Classic, Hot Air Balloon Fire, FAA v Banning 100LL, Complete Remote Pilot The news Piper PA-18 Super Cub owners have been waiting for has finally arrived>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC