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The British and Italian Governments have given the go‐ahead to the EH101 helicopter programme with the signing of an agreement which provides for joint funding of the project through development to the production stage.

RECENT rotary wing activity at Middle Wallop in Hampshire has included a Trade Show and emphasis here was on the Italian Agusta company which featured a range of helicopters and equipment. Types shown included the A‐129 Mangusta anti‐tank version which has two Rolls‐Royce Gem 1004 turbines and is the only aircraft of its class in Europe. It is able to operate at night and in conditions of poor visibility and has an advanced multiplex system to integrate the flight functions which supply the pilot and gunner with all the mission and flight information that is required. Other variants of the A‐129 include a naval type for use against fast moving surface vessels and as support for landing operations.

CONSIDERABLE interest is being shown in the progress of the Westland‐Agusta EH101 with the nine pre‐production aircraft exploring every aspect of the helicopter's development and potential applications. The Royal Navy order in 1991 for 44 of the anti‐submarine warfare (ASW) version has been followed by a Canadian requirement for 50 and the likelihood of an Italian order, also for the ASW version. Meanwhile, the UK, Italy and the Netherlands are considering the rear‐ramp equipped military utility variant for their long range logistic and tactical support helicopter. The 30‐seat Heliliner civil version is being considered by the North Sea oil support industry. Civil certification for the EH101 is planned for 1993 and two aircraft are scheduled to undertake a 6,000 hour maturity flying programme to ensure reliability when the aircraft enters service.

Outlines the development work on the tiltrotor undertaken during past decades and the more recent progress on the V‐22 Osprey now in production for the US Armed Forces. Also describes the first civil tiltrotor, the Bell Agusta 609, which is due to make its first flight in 2000.

A Max Holste Broussard with a P & W R985 AN‐4 piston engine was prepared for a local flight, the purpose of the flight being to familiarise a prospective purchaser with the handling of the aircraft. The captain, who was the owner of the aircraft, occupied the right hand seat and the other pilot occupied the left hand seat. Before take‐off, some oil was noticed on the windscreen but neither pilot considered that it warranted any action. An uneventful take‐off was made during which the engine and propeller functioned normally and course was set for Barton. On approaching Barton adjustment to the engine controls resulted in a significant increase in the amount of oil on the windscreen and the pilot in the left hand seat thought that he might have problems with visibility for landing.

Space limitations preclude more than a brief reference to other important developments in composites but several must be mentioned, the Bell‐Boeing V‐22 Osprey tilt‐rotor aircraft (Fig. 34), the Westland Agusta EH 101 Merlin helicopter (Fig. 35) and the MBB BO108 light twin helicopter (Fig. 36) share the need for the lowest possible structural weight and the maximum fatigue life of blades, consequently composites are widely used in these aircraft. Westland have, of course, achieved a high reputation with their advanced BERP rotor blades with an aerodynamic form said to be incapable of economic production in metal. Fitted with the new blades a Lynx helicopter established a world speed record for helicopters of over 216 knots in 1986.

A specially designed hydraulic power pack is providing the motive power to test landing and deck handling systems on the Royal Navy's newest helicopter, the EH101 Merlin, developed jointly by Westland Helicopters in the UK and Agusta of Italy.

The present investigation is oriented towards the design of an energy absorbing aluminium subfloor for a new Agusta helicopter. To identify the detailed design and the structural concepts for the most efficient mechanism of energy absorption, the typical subfloor components have to be investigated. Design aspects focus in more detail on the subfloor structural intersections, because, under vertical crash loads, they can create high deceleration peak loads at the cabin floor level and cause dangerous inputs to the seat/occupant system. The crash behaviour and energy absorption capability of the subfloor structural intersections are investigated by experimental drop tests and finite element analyses. Presents the correlation between crash data and numerical results.