Helibras
![]() | |
Company type | Joint Stock |
---|---|
Industry | Aerospace/Defense |
Founded | 1978 |
Headquarters | Itajubá,Minas Gerais,Brazil |
Key people | Gilberto Peralta,[1]President |
Products | Helicopters,aircraft components, mission systems for air and ground operation |
Revenue | R$703 million |
Number of employees | 500 |
Parent | Airbus Helicopters(Airbus) |
Website | helibras |
HelibrasorHelicópteros do BrasilS.A. (Helicopters of Brazil, Inc.) is aBrazil-basedhelicoptermanufacturer which is a wholly owned subsidiary ofAirbus Helicopters,a division ofAirbus.
Helibras has produced and delivered more than 800 helicopters,[2]70% of which being theEurocopter AS350 Écureuil(known in Portuguese asEsquilo). Ten percent of total production is exported to Latin American countries such asArgentina,Bolivia,Chile,Mexico,Paraguay,Uruguay,andVenezuela.[3]Helibras leads the Brazilian market of turbine helicopters in operation, the company's rotorcraft comprising 54 per cent of those used in the civilian market. It has a greater lead within the domestic military market, the company's share being roughly 66 per cent.[4]
History
[edit]Helibras was founded on 1 January 1978 inSão Jose dos Campos,São Paulo state,Brazil. Since 1980, the company has been located inItajubá,a city and municipality in southwesternMinas Geraisstate,Brazil.Formerly, Helibras was jointly owned by MGIParticipações(MGI Investments – owned by the government of the federal state ofMinas Gerais), Bueninvest andEurocopter.As of 2006, Helibras became a wholly owned subsidiary of Eurocopter (nowAirbus Helicopters) which in turn is owned byAirbus Group.[5]It is the only manufacturer of helicopters inLatin America.
The most numerous helicopter type to be produced by Helibras is theEurocopter AS350 Écureuil;of the 600 helicopters that the company has domestically manufactured for the Brazilian market by 2012, 70 per cent were AS350s.[6]Brazil has been a major market for the AS350; by 2011 more than 300 helicopters were reportedly operating throughout the country, including from the flight deck of theBrazilian aircraft carrier São Paulo.[7][8]Since 1984, theBrazilian Navyhas used AS350s to support theBrazilian Antarctic Program.[9]In January 2011, Helibras signed a contract with the Brazilian Army to substantially upgrade and refurbish their existing fleet of 36 AS350 Ecureuils.[10]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Brazilian_helicopters_conduct_deck_landing_qualifications_aboard_PCU_America_140804-N-LQ799-090.jpg/220px-Brazilian_helicopters_conduct_deck_landing_qualifications_aboard_PCU_America_140804-N-LQ799-090.jpg)
TheEurocopter AS565 Pantherhelicopter was another licensed design produced locally by Helibras. During 1988, theBrazilian Army Aviation Commandtook delivery of its first Panthers. In January 2010, Helibras was awarded a contract to upgrade 34 AS365K Panthers to the new AS365 K2 standard.[11]Changes on the Panther K2 include newTurbomeca Arriel 2C2CGengines which produce 40% more power, a glass cockpit containing new avionics and radio systems, a four-axis autopilot, a newweather radar,NVG-compatibility, and measures to reduce pilot workload, and shall extend the airframe's service life for a further 25 years.[12]In March 2014, the first two Panther K2 rotorcraft were delivered to the Brazilian Army.[13]In September 2014, the Panther K2 passed its technical operation evaluation, having reportedly demonstrated a 98% availability rating throughout the trial period, clearing the way for the full modernisation program to proceed.[12]
During September 2008, the Brazilian Government announced that Helibras' factory inItajubá,Minas Gerais,would produce an initial 50Eurocopter EC725sunder a $1 billion order.[14][15]These 50 helicopters are to be used by theBrazilian Navy,theBrazilian Air Force(FAB) andBrazilian Army Aviation Command.[16]By December 2010, three helicopters were undergoing flight tests prior to entering military service. In 2012, Helibras began assembly of the rest of the order.[17]In April 2014, Helibras andMBDAwere in the process of integrating the anti-shipExocetmissile, which are also 50%-built in Brazil.[18]On 19 June 2014, theBrazilian Navyformally accepted delivery of the first EC725.[19]By July 2015, the Brazilian armed forces had taken delivery of 16 H225Ms; deliveries were reported at the time to continue until 2019.[16]By 1 October 2015, Brazil's H225M fleet had attained 10,000 flight hours.[20]In December 2015, Helibras delivered the first pair of H225Ms to be delivered to a full operational capability (FOC) standard to the Brazilian military.[21]
Products
[edit]Civil
[edit]Military
[edit]See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Gilberto Peralta - Helibras
- ^Helibras
- ^Helibras
- ^Helibras
- ^"Eurocopter".Archived fromthe originalon 23 February 2010.Retrieved19 December2009.
- ^"Eurocopter Unit Inaugurates Chopper Plant in Brazil.[dead link]",Defense news,2 October 2012.
- ^"Eurocopter’s Helibras Subsidiary to Modernize 36 AS350 Ecureuil Helicopters Operated by the Brazilian Army Aviation Command.Archived17 June 2015 at theWayback Machine",Helicopter Maintenance Magazine,1 February 2011.
- ^"Zentech to support Brazilian aircraft carrier São Paulo’s upgrade programme.Archived14 June 2015 at theWayback Machine",naval-technology,7 May 2015.
- ^Morant, Belen."The Brazilian Navy: The Ecureuil in Antarctica.Archived14 June 2015 at theWayback Machine",Rotor Online,April 2009.
- ^"Elixir of Youth for AS350Archived21 April 2017 at theWayback Machine",SavunmaSanayi.Net,6 January 2011.
- ^Hoyle, Craig."Helibras to upgrade Brazilian army Panthers."Archived8 December 2015 at theWayback MachineFlight International,11 January 2010.
- ^abTomkins, Richard."Modernization of Brazilian Army helicopters to continue."Archived8 December 2015 at theWayback MachineUnited Press International,17 September 2014.
- ^"Helibras begins deliveries of upgraded AS365 Panther K2 helicopters to the Brazilian Army."Archived8 December 2015 at theWayback MachineAirbus Helicopters,13 March 2014.
- ^Farias, Ivy (8 September 2008)."Brasil produzirá em Minas Gerais helicópteros para as Forças Armadas".Agência Brasil.[permanent dead link]Retrieved on 11 July 2009.
- ^"Brazil’s $1B+ Order for EC725 Cougar Helicopters."Archived25 July 2015 at theWayback MachineDefense Industry Daily,5 January 2012.
- ^ab"Continued delivery of the H225M for the Brazilian armed forces despite announcement of 2 year delay."Archived25 December 2015 at theWayback Machinedefesanet,3 July 2015.
- ^"Brazil's armed forces test-fly EC725".Archivedfrom the original on 25 December 2010.Retrieved2 January2011.
- ^"Helibras Integrating Exocet Onto EC725 Helicopter."Archived13 July 2015 at theWayback MachineAviation Week,29 April 2014.
- ^Perry, Dominic."Airbus Helicopters hands over first EC725 fully assembled in Brazil."Archived2 April 2015 at theWayback MachineFlight International,19 June 2014.
- ^"Brazilian Armed Forces Exceed 10,000 Flight Hours with H225M."Archived25 December 2015 at theWayback MachineAirbus Helicopters,1 October 2015.
- ^Dominic, Perry."Brazilian army and air force take first FOC-standard H225Ms."Archived25 December 2015 at theWayback MachineFlight International,22 December 2015.
External links
[edit]- Aircraft manufacturers of Brazil
- Defence companies of Brazil
- Airbus Helicopters
- Airbus subsidiaries and divisions
- Companies based in Minas Gerais
- Helicopter manufacturers of Brazil
- Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1978
- Multinational companies headquartered in Brazil
- Brazilian brands
- Brazilian companies established in 1978