Airbus Helicopters, Vector Aerospace And Rockwell Collins Sign Cockpit Upgrade Agreement

Airbus Helicopters, Vector Aerospace and Rockwell Collins have entered into an agreement to jointly develop and market the scalable and flexible Pro Line Fusion integrated avionics solution to upgrade Airbus Helicopters platforms.

“Pro Line Fusion provides Airbus Helicopters with one of the most advanced avionics and the highest level of efficiency for the rotary wing cockpit,” said Troy Brunk, vice president and general manager of Airborne Solutions for Rockwell Collins. “The enhanced situational awareness features provided by Pro Line Fusion will result in reduced pilot workload and greatly increase flight safety for operators of Airbus Helicopters platforms.”

The first platforms targeted for the upgrades will be AS332 / 532 MK1 helicopters, with the first implementation expected in the summer of 2016.

“In our constant search for customer satisfaction, we have identified the need to offer modern but affordable glass cockpit retrofit solutions to our customers to allow them to extend the operational life of their helicopters. Entering in this cooperative agreement with Vector Aerospace and Rockwell Collins to develop a state-of-the-art upgrade solution for the existing fleet of AS332 / 532 MK1 using Pro Line Fusion will allow us to answer this need in a competitive way,” said Matthieu Louvot , senior vice president, Customer Services for Airbus Helicopters.

“We are thrilled to be part of this program,” said Declan O’Shea, president and CEO of Vector Aerospace Corporation. “Vector Aerospace, a world leader in aircraft retrofit and modernization, will bring the reactivity and flexibility needed to develop affordable upgrades. We are confident that this cooperative program will be a great success to the benefit of our customers.”

Featuring advanced graphical interfaces, intuitive icons and easily configurable multi-function display windows, Pro Line Fusion makes it easy for pilots to keep their eyes forward and stay focused on the mission during all phases of flight and in all flying conditions.

The mission-specific operational profiles featured in Pro Line Fusion for helicopters include offshore platform approaches, hover in place, extended search and rescue patterns, and other critical mission capabilities. Combining large, high-resolution displays with the ease of touch-screen operations, complemented by intuitive keypad and cursor controls, Pro Line Fusion can meet the demands of helicopter missions today and in the future.

The Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion integrated avionics system has been selected for 20 aircraft platforms, including business jet, air transport, tilt-rotor and military flight decks.

(Image provided by Airbus Helicopters. Right: Matthieu Louvot, senior vice president, Customer Services, Airbus Helicopters, Center: Troy Brunk, vice president and general manager, Airborne Solutions, Rockwell Collins Left: Declan O'Shea, president and CEO, Vector Aerospace Corporation. Bottom image from file)

FMI: www.airbushelicopters.com, www.rockwellcollins.com