Sikorsky Aircraft has opened the company's new MH-92 helicopter fly-by-wire system integration lab with a ribbon cutting ceremony at the site. The new lab will develop, integrate and test the fly-by-wire and avionic systems for the MH-92, a military variant of Sikorsky's medium-lift S-92 helicopter. Upon completion and certification, the fly-by-wire system will form the basis of future H-92 helicopter military configurations.

"The MH-92 fly-by-wire system will provide improved handling qualities, greater mission effectiveness, and enhanced safety," said Mark Miller, Sikorsky's vice president of research & engineering.

Officials from the Canadian Maritime Helicopter Project (MHP), the first customer for the fly-by-wire system, and executives from BAE Systems, Sikorsky's teammate on H-92 fly-by-wire development, joined Sikorsky at the ribbon cutting. Sikorsky was awarded a contract in November 2004 to provide 28 MH-92 maritime helicopters, designated the CH-148 Cyclone, to replace Sea King aircraft currently in service with the Canadian Forces.

Sikorsky plans to develop companion fly-by-wire integration labs for the U.S. Army UH-60M BLACK HAWK upgrade, the US Marine Corps CH-53X Heavy Lift Replacement helicopter, and Sikorsky's X2 Technology aircraft.

"This facility and the others that will follow underscore Sikorsky's commitment to invest in state-of-the art facilities and technology to expand our system integration capabilities in order to provide more value to the customer," Miller said.

The MH-92 lab is equipped with the full complement of aircraft subsystems that replicate the aircraft design and installation. These include electronic and mechanical flight controls, a complete avionics suite, and hydraulics, diagnostics and electrical power subsystems.

Fly-by-wire differs from traditional helicopter flight control systems because the mechanical linkage between the cockpit controllers and the actuators is replaced by a purely electrical system. In addition to more capability, fly-by-wire systems save weight and reduce maintenance costs compared with traditional systems.

FMI: www.sikorsky.com