Saturday March 13th 2021
Aimed at up to 400 km / h
Airbus' new helicopter will not take off until 2022
The first flight of the new high-speed helicopter from Airbus is delayed by at least a year and a half. This is probably due to the corona crisis, which makes it difficult for the partners involved to work together. The assembly of the first prototype is apparently imminent.
The launch of a new helicopter model from Airbus is delayed by at least 18 months. According to information from the newspaper "Welt", the first prototype of the "Racer" model should take off by the end of 2020. Now the premiere flight is unlikely to take place until the second half of 2022, the report continues.
The "Racer" should also be able to reach enormous speeds thanks to its wings.
According to a report by the Airbus Board of Directors, assembly of the first machine should be completed in mid-2021. Upon request, Airbus Helicopters referred the newspaper to the complex structures. Around 40 partners were involved in the development of the prototype, including industrial groups, research centers and medium-sized companies from 13 EU countries. The corona pandemic "slowed down several production lines," the company told the newspaper.
According to the website "aerobuzz.de", Airbus presented its new high-speed helicopter at the Le Bourget aviation trade fair in 2017, albeit as a concept at the time. It should reach a speed of around 400 km / h in forward flight and also be quieter and more environmentally friendly than today's helicopters. For this, it not only has a rotor, but is also equipped with wings that generate lift and thus relieve the rotor.
. (tagsToTranslate) Economy (t) Airbus Group (t) Aviation