Bell, Omni Helicopters sign agreement for operational evaluation of Bell 525

Bell Textron and Omni Helicopters International Group (OHI, Omni) today announced a joint offshore operational evaluation program for the Bell 525 helicopter. The program will be conducted over several months at Omni's operation in Georgetown, Guyana, pending type certification. Around 500 hours of flying are planned over a six-month period.

Following type certification, Bell will operate the Bell 525 helicopter in collaboration with Omni to undertake a program of offshore mission flights. The helicopter will be loaded to representative mission weights and integrated into the daily flight planning processes and flight schedule. It will visit multiple offshore installations in the region and will be loaded, unloaded, and refueled routinely to subject it to a sustained trial under actual field conditions.

The operational evaluation will see Bell fly the 525 integrated with the 200-flight-per-month Omni flying program. Loaded to representative operating weights, the aircraft will undertake the identical sequences of flights as the live operational fleet in Guyana, exposing it to the intensity and pressures of live commercial line operations. Special focus will be placed on operational resilience, supply chain robustness, and durability when exposed to frequent ground handling activity, both on and offshore. The Bell 525 continues to progress toward FAA certification.

(article source: Bell Textron / editor: Anton van Rijsbergen)
(image source: Bell Textron)