CH-149 Cormorant

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CH-149 Cormorant

Canadian CH-149 Cormorant
Type	Medium SAR helicopter
Manufacturer	AgustaWestland
Maiden flight	9 October 1987
Status	Active service
Primary user	Canadian Forces
Produced	1990s-present
Developed from	AgustaWestland EH101
Variants	VH-71 Kestrel

The CH-149 Cormorant is the Canadian Forces designation for the AgustaWestland EH101, a helicopter used exclusively for air/marine search and rescue in Canada.

Developed as a joint venture between Westland Aircraft in the UK and Agusta in Italy (now merged as AgustaWestland), the EH101 is a medium-lift helicopter for military applications but also marketed for civil use.

1 History
2 Specifications (CH-149)
3 References
4 External links
5 Related content

[edit] History

In 1977, the UK Ministry of Defence issued a requirement for an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter to replace the Royal Navy's Westland Sea Kings. Westland responded with design WG.34 that was approved for development. Meanwhile, the Marina Militare (Italian Navy) was also seeking a replacement for its (Agusta-built) Sea Kings, leading Agusta to discussions with Westland about the possibility of a joint development. This culminated in the joint venture being finalised in November 1979 and a new company (EH Industries) being formed to manage the project the following year. EH is an abbreviation for Elicottero Helicopter, incorporating the English and Italian words for "helicopter." As the design studies progressed, EH became aware of a broader market for an aircraft with the same capabilities required by the British and Italian navies, leading to a more generalised design that could be customised. After a lengthy development, the first prototype flew on October 9 1987. EH Industries no longer exists, having been incorporated into the parent when the two companies merged.

Following the lead of the UK and Italy, the Canadian government placed a $4.4 billion (CAD) order in 1987 for 48 (later 42) EH101s to replace the Canadian Forces's CH-124 Sea Kings and CH-113 Labradors. These were to be assembled in Canada under the designations CH-148 Petrel (33 originally, reduced to 28) and CH-149 Chimo (15) in the anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and air/sea search and rescue (SAR) roles respectively. The whole programme was cancelled, however, after a change of government in 1993, leading to the payment of $500 Million in cancellation penalties.

In 1998, the Canadian government announced that the CH-113s would now be replaced by a new search-and-rescue variant of the EH101, carrying the designation CH-149 Cormorant. Unlike the Petrel/Chimo contract, these 15 aircraft were to be built entirely in Europe. The first two aircraft arrived in Canada in September 2001 and entered service the following year.

The first operational CH-149 flight occurred in 2002 when a Cormorant of 442 Squadron performed a medevac from a merchant ship 200 km offshore in Hecate Strait. An even more dramatic demonstration of Cormorant capabilities occurred in late 2002 when a 103 Squadron CH-149 successfully flew a 1,200 km round-trip rescue mission to a container ship off Newfoundland. Two refuelling stops at the Hibernia oil platform were required.

On July 13, 2006, a Canadian CH-149 Cormorant crashed of the coast of Nova Scotia killing 3 personnel and injuring 4 during a joint search and rescue exercise. This helicopter belonged to 413 Transport and Rescue Squadron. An investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing. At this point, the Military investigators have ruled out mechanical failure of the tail rotor and all normal operations have been restored.

When it became obvious that the Sea Kings were in need of immediate replacement, the EH101 was again part of a Canadian competition (the Maritime Helicopter Project), versus the Sikorsky H-92, for a total price tag of $5 billion. The Sikorsky entry won the competition on July 23, 2004; it is to be known as the CH-148 Cyclone.

[edit] Specifications (CH-149)

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General characteristics

Crew: 4
Capacity:
- 30 seated troops or
- 45 standing troops or
- 16 stretchers with medics
Length: 74 ft 10 in (22.81 m)
Rotor diameter: 61 ft 0 in (18.59 m)
Height: 21 ft 10 in (6.65 m)
Disc area: 2992 ft² (271 m²)
Empty weight: 23,150 lb (10,500 kg)
Useful load: 5,443 kg (12,000 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 32,188 lb (14,600 kg)
Powerplant: 3× Rolls-Royce/Turbomeca RTM322-01 turboshafts, 2,312 shp (1,725 kW) each