08 November 2019
DURABILITY ISSUES LYCOMING 0-320, 0-360 AND 0-540 ENGINES FITTED TO ROBINSON HELICOPTER CO R22 AND R44 MODELS
Dear Industry Member,
In mid-2018 several members raised significant concerns with the AHIA board about the high failure rate of cylinders and valves in Robinson R22’s and Raven 1’s in the Northern regions of Australia.
At the time CASA had convened a group called the Northern fuel stake holders group to discuss the issues raised by industry, the AHIA CEO attended the last of the groups meetings and reported to the board that the outcomes were non effective and the issues were serious and had the potential for affecting the ongoing safe operations of the piston engine fleet in Northern Australia. At the time the AHIA board agreed that the issue should be elevated to a very high priority of the associations tasks and formulated an independent panel of experts to investigate the cause of the engine durability issues. The scope for the expert panel was to investigate every aspect and component of the engines operation including the environmental aspects and all consumables use in the engines operation.
The voluntary work carried out by the panel has provided excellent findings and recommendations for the major stake holders in the operation and supply chain associated with these engine types. The research has also highlighted the detailed operational data for operators of these aircraft to see how these engines perform internally in various ambient conditions and with variations to oil and fuel grades.
I would like to congratulate the panel for their excellent work and tenacity and determination to find the root cause of the excessive failure rates of the engine cylinders. The report will provide solid evidence for owners and operators to make changes to their practises where possible to ensure their operations remain safe and viable.
Thank you for your continued support of the association, it allows us to carry out this important work to ensure a safe and healthy industry.
Ray Cronin
President AHIA
21 June 2019
07 February 2019
The Australian Helicopter Industry Association (AHIA) and Aerospace Australia Limited (the conveners of AVALON 2019) have joined forces to present the ROTORTALK conference at AVALON 2019, providing a forum for discussion of the major issues facing the Australian helicopter industry.
The ROTORTALK Conference set for Wednesday 27 February and the morning of Thursday 28 February in the AVALON 2019 conference centre will continue industry dialogue between major biennial ROTORTECH expositions.
ROTORTALK 2019 will include information sessions from helicopter manufacturers, an update on major regulatory and safety issues and outcomes from the trial of night firebombing operations.
14 December 2018
ROTORCRAFT ASIA 2019
9-11 APRIL 2019
CHANGI EXHIBITION CENTRE - SINGAPORE
Rotorcraft Asia and Unmanned Systems Asia 2019 will be held in conjunction with the 7th World Civil Aviation Cheif Executives Forum.
As collaboration opens a myrid of fresh opportunities, the synergies from both events will bring about a more intergrated and holistic platform for industry stakeholders and participants to build new connections to drive insightful conversations.
