Day one at HAI HeliExpo in Orlando Florida

The Orange County convention centre in Orlando

Day one at HeliExpo started with the Eurocopter breakfast - information on the state of the company and an invitation to join them at their booth for the unveiling of the EC145T2.
The next press conference was Turbomeca, who make the engines for many of the Eurocopter products and who are closely involved in the new Eurocopter 'E' incentive to produce more environmentally friendly and cost effective engines.
This was followed by the ribbon cutting event to open the exhibition floor to the buyers, viewers and enthusiasts.

The SKYe SH09 Marenco Swiss Helicopter

11.15 was the unveiling of the SKYe SH09 'revolution in rotary aviation'. This turned out to be a 2.5 ton metric ton class helicopter with a full composite fuselage, bearing free rotor system of 5 blades and ... so they say - none were in sight - an electronically governed engine with a glass cockpit.
As one who has seen a few of this prototypes arrive and go nowhere we will see if anything happens - of course there is no doubt a wonderful Swiss Hedge fund or two behind the idea, but will it actually come to fruition or will the financiers pull out first?
The next excitement of light and smoke came from Eurocopter.

Eurocopter EC145T2

This was the unveiling of the EC145T2, an upgraded version of the EC145, which has a fenestron tail (the original EC145 had a conventional tail rotor) which will lower noise and increase safety (Lutz Berling said). Presumably, the technology to allow a helicopter the size and weight of an EC145 good tail rotor authority has now been developed. It has Turbomeca Arrile 2e engines and a new main gearbox, which give increased engine performance. It has a FADEC system and a new 4 axis autopilot, with a 20% increase in mission performance. The last bit is, of course, not a fact but an interpretation of possibility by the company. But, afterall, that is what marketing (or we call it spin in the UK) is all about.
Lights, smoke and another unveiling - the third in so many moments (well about 45 minutes) and in fact the third and fourth as Bell was unveiling two beautiful new helicopters. New? Well, ok no but new to you kids. It was the 407GX with a new super Garmin 1000 H console, which we were told was a beautiful machine, and then the 407 AH, a 407 with weapons, which was 'a beautiful machine' no lack of vocabulary there then.

Bell 407GX with the new helicopter Garmin 1000 H

CEO John Garrison, who is probably the fastest speaking man I have ever heard, introduced the machines, just as he later gave(a fast speaking) rundown of Bell finances. 3.2 billion revenues, one of the best years for a while, thanks to the rebound from military spending.
The next two press conferences were the HAI favourites: Robinson and MD Helicopters.
Robinson is just fun. This is now the Kurt Show, son of Frank Robinson, the old man of helicopter innovation, who is the new CEO, but we learnt that Frank still works 7 days a week, he just enjoys it more than he did when he was CEO. There was some chat about the Robinson R66 and - fascinatingly, the information that Robinson are already on the up and getting in orders - in fact 130 order to date on the Robinson R66. I get to fly it next week and I am told I will love it. I certainly hope so, and I will let you know.
And then finally the Lynn Tilton show. Why are we bothering with watching Charlie Sheene drooling and wombling about when we could have the lovely Lynn? Her press conference, like that of the Robinson family, was standing room only and she exploits us all, but who can blame her. It seems that the production problems in Mexico have been resolved, that the company that make the MD902 fuselage in Turkey has lost its way and the fuselages are returning to Mesa, and that if (and she seems confident here) they get the EMS contracts they have been promised in the Middle East (God willing) then MDs financial problems will be over.
Thus ended the first day of Heli Expo - roll on tomorrow.