HOUSTON and FARGO, N.D.,
Aug. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bristow Group
Inc. (NYSE: BRS) and Appareo Systems LLC announced today that the Federal
Aviation Administration has certified an innovative new flight data monitoring
solution jointly developed by Air Logistics, a subsidiary of Bristow, and
Appareo that is the first low-cost, lightweight, fully integrated system
specifically designed for small and legacy aircraft.
The FAA has awarded a Supplemental Type Certificate for installation of
the ALERTS system -- short for Aircraft Logging and Event Recording for
Training and Safety -- in Bell 206 and 407 helicopters.
The ALERTS system includes an inertial sensor suite and a recorder capable
of storing more than 100 hours of high-resolution flight data. The ALERTS
system also includes powerful 3-D graphic flight replay and analysis software
that provides for detailed flight tracking and analysis, including automatic
analysis of flight characteristics to determine if the pilot adhered to
standard operating procedures during a flight. ALERTS is designed for simple
field installation.
"The ALERTS system is a revolutionary technology that will help our
company dramatically improve safety performance of our small aircraft, and
this technology also has applications in medium-size helicopters," said Mike
Suldo, president of Air Logistics, a Bristow Company. "We believe this new
technology will improve the safety of the overall industry, consequently, we
plan to sell it at a small margin above our cost so that any helicopter
operator in the world will be able to afford the device.
"We have been using a high-cost version of this technology in our European
fleet for several years, but our smaller helicopters can't accommodate the
bulky flight data recording equipment required on the big aircraft. Now we
finally have a simple-to-install, low-cost, lightweight version for our
smaller fleet. Every customer I have discussed this new safety technology
with wants it installed as soon as possible," Suldo said.
"In addition to use in the energy industry, we believe the ALERTS system
also has commercial application in a broad range of other industries,
including air medical and corporate transportation," said Barry Batcheller,
president and CEO of Appareo Systems. "The ALERTS system is ideally suited
for standard configuration helicopters such as the Bell 206 and 407, but it
can also be used in S-76s, AS 350s, EC 135s and a variety of other helicopters
and light fixed-wing aircraft.
"ALERTS is also a powerful flight training tool that can be easily
integrated into existing training programs. For flight instructors, the
ability to immediately replay and analyze a student's flights vastly improves
flight debriefing and the quality of instruction," Batcheller added.
"Bristow has been a terrific partner in helping us develop this powerful
new tool for operators of light aircraft," Batcheller said. "Through our
cooperative relationship, Appareo was able to leverage its strong engineering
capabilities with Bristow's broad experience in helicopter flight operations
management to design and customize a completely new flight data monitoring
system that will have groundbreaking safety and pilot training implications
for the entire general aviation market."
Flight data recording and monitoring are top priorities for the
International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST), which has targeted an 80 percent
reduction in the worldwide helicopter accident rate by 2016.
"ALERTS is small, light weight, and affordable -- a high-quality system
that will greatly improve operational safety and pilot training programs,
especially for smaller and legacy aircraft -- and help helicopter operators
reach that 80 percent accident reduction goal set by the IHST," said Dick
Healing, former National Transportation Safety Board member and a recognized
expert on flight safety systems.
About Appareo Systems
Appareo Systems, based in Fargo, N.D., is a privately held engineering and
manufacturing company specializing in inertial measurement and playback
systems for general aviation. For additional information, visit
http://www.appareo.com.
About Bristow Group
Bristow Group Inc. is a major provider of helicopter services to the oil
and gas industry worldwide. Through its subsidiaries, affiliates and joint
ventures, the Company provides transportation services in most oil and gas
producing regions including the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and Alaska, the North Sea,
Africa, Mexico, South America, Australia, Russia, Egypt and the Far East.
Additionally, the Company is a leading provider of production management
services for oil and gas production facilities in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. For
more information, visit Bristow's website at http://www.bristowgroup.com.
Contacts:
Barry Batcheller Joe Baj
Appareo Systems LLC Bristow Group Inc.
701-356-2200, ext. 229 713-267-7605
bbatcheller@appareo.com joe.baj@bristowgroup.com
Print This Page
Email This Page
Archives
Copyright Permissions
