fact that the pilot was using bleed air. He concluded that the RTB imbalance was specific to an elastomer that would recover as the temperature rose. “Tat, in fact, saved the maintainer a surprise trip to diagnose the problem on the aircraft.” Other vendors also see the value of a
single-unit, integrated HUMS/FDM system. In fact, Honeywell Aerospace’s new RECON incorporates both helicopter vibration-health monitoring and FDM, according to Pat Nuanez, Honeywell’s senior offering manager. “RECON could, and should, be a central
FDM system. We’re currently monitoring many assets within the helicopter that are used to provide valuable maintenance data,” says Nuanez. Decreased downtime, lower costs, and
improved safety due to the greater predict- ability of part failure or items needing main-
A technician consults the Foresight
dashboard for this
Bell 407GX; see the opposite page for a closer look at the types of data
available through Foresight.
Mann says that email and text message alerts, combined
with the data that is automatically downloaded after each flight, help operators plan for parts and repairs ahead of time. Te flow of real-time data from the aircraft reduces turn- around times and unscheduled maintenance downtimes while also improving flight safety.
HUMS and FDM According to GPMS’s Bechhoefer, integrating the function- alities of HUMS and FDM is key to gaining greater value for both systems.
“FDM and HUMS have always been closely related,” he
explains. “You might say that HUMS is information about how your aircraft is operating. FDM is information about how your aircraft is being operated. Te first focuses on the machine; the second, typically, on the pilot, but the two are highly interrelated.” For example, Bechhoefer says, if a pilot has a hot start, that will be captured by FDM and the exceedance recorded by HUMS. He points to a specific case involving a GPMS customer. “Te pilot called, hundreds of miles from base, com- plaining of low power and rotor vibration,” he says. “Te maintainer was able to look at the aircraft in Foresight and confirm—in the ‘Mechanical Diagnostics’ view—the drop in engine performance and confirm—in the ‘RTB’ view—that the rotor was at 0.3 IPS. But he was then able to use FDM information to see that the outside air temperature was -10°C for the trip.” As Bechhoefer explains, the maintenance technician was able to attribute the loss of engine performance to the
38 ROTOR 2020 Q3
tenance are the advertised benefits of RECON, which is targeted to the medium and heavy helicopter operator. Te data can be downloaded to a PC or a quick-access recorder— an airborne flight recorder designed to provide quick and easy access to raw flight data via USB, cellular network connections, or standard flash-memory cards. Data analysis can be done on a PC or web tool. “Modularity is a key innovation to RECON. Using mod- ularity, we can significantly reduce the need for long cables
Figure 1. Estimated Annual ROI on HUMS Investment for a Light Single Aircraft*
Preserved asset value through digital record-keeping
$12,500 $
Reduced costs through optimized troubleshooting and maintenance
$23,850
Increased revenue through greater aircraft availability
$9,570
*Estimate prepared using Bell 407GX and GPMS Foresight MX system Source: GPMS in collaboration with Conklin & de Decker, 2019
45,920 annual
return on net investment in HUMS
GPMS PHOTO
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