HELICOPTER NEWS R. Fred Polak | Editor Bell Helicopter’s Short Light Single (SLS)
If you weren’t at the Paris Air Show in July 2013, you might have missed Bell Helicopter’s announcement that
it is developing a new fi ve-seat aircraft it calls the short light single, or SLS for short. According to Bell, “the focus is on safety, effi ciency and reliability through the use of advanced technology. The new helicopter will be multi-mission capable with exceptional performance characteristics.” The SLS will be powered by a single Turbomeca Arrius
2R powerplant rated at 504 shp for takeoff . The max range is 360+ nm and the useful load is 1,500+ pounds. In mid-December 2013, Bell Helicopter, along with the state of Louisiana, announced plans to produce its SLS helicopter in Lafayette, LA. It will fi ll the Bell JetRanger’s historic position in Bell’s product portfolio. Bell will create 115 new direct jobs, averaging more than $55,000 per year plus benefi ts, and will invest $11.4 million in equipment and tooling to produce the helicopter. The Louisiana Economic Development Authority (LEDA) estimates the aerospace project will result in another 136 new, permanent indirect jobs, for a total of more than 250 new jobs in Acadiana, LA.
Bell Helicopter will lease space for its SLS assembly operation in a new 82,300-square-foot, $26.3 million hangar facility at Lafayette Regional Airport. The hangar facility will be owned by the Lafayette Regional Airport, and built there on a 14.5-acre site that is located adjacent to U.S. Highway 90. Construction will begin in the fi rst half of 2014. Bell will begin hiring employees for the facility by 2015 and assembly operations will start by 2016, following certifi cation of the facility and the aircraft. Bell Helicopter’s production of the fi ve-seat, single-engine, turbine-powered helicopter will unveil a contemporary version of the aircraft pioneered by the company more than 50 years ago as the Bell JetRanger. Bell selected Louisiana for the new facility after a highly- competitive site selection process in which several states were seriously considered. At the core of Louisiana’s competitive advantage was the strength of its business climate. In recent years, the state has enacted reforms to create an atmosphere that Forbes magazine calls, “America’s new frontier for business opportunity.” Louisiana now ranks in the Top 10
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HelicopterMaintenanceMagazine.com February | March 2014
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