British manufacturer Hill Helicopters has secured orders for 830 helicopters from customers in 59 countries and submitted plans to build a new factory in Staffordshire.
The team at Hill Helicopters say after working on their new revolutionary HX50 model for almost 20 years, they will be ready to unveil the first completed HX50 during an event at the Imperial War Museum later this year.
The HX50 is the first light helicopter to be specifically designed for private owners. Everything about it is about the use case and the mission that a private owner would want to take.
It delivers enough performance and payload to take you and 4 passengers, all your bags and 3 hours of fuel to go fly wherever you want to in fantastic comfort and in an amazing environment.
Due to be unveiled to the public on December 7th, the company says it has now finished its first complete HX50 fuselage and tailboom assembly and has nearly completed the design of its GT50 turbine engine. The company have also manufactured a variety of components such as turbine fans, gears, and bearings.
Hill CEO and founder Jason Hill said:
“When you come to the event, you will be able to experience HX50 for the very first time. You’ll be able to sit in the seats, you’ll be able to see the lines of the aircraft, use the digital cockpit and experience what it’s going to be like to own one of these for yourself.
“You’ll also get to experience the GT50 engine for the first time. And we’ll be rolling out the drivetrain and the rotor systems.”
According to Hill, the order book is split between 673 HX50 kit helicopters and 157 to-be-certified HC50 variants from customers in 59 countries.
