Airbus Helicopters announced this week that they had successfully achieved a speed of 420 kmh (227 kt) in their Rapid and Cost Effective Rotorcraft (Racer) demonstration helicopter.
The flight, conducted in June, came less than two months after the prototype first flew. The flight test crew consisted of Hervé Jammayrac, Chief Flight Test Pilot, Dominique Fournier, Flight Test Engineer, and Christophe Skorlic, Test Flight Engineer.
The Racer is a hybrid rotorcraft that uses a rotor for vertical flight and sustained horizontal flight, but is also driven by two propellers in pusher configuration.
“This achievement in such a short space of time is really a testimony to the hard work of our 40 partners in 13 European countries to bring all of this innovation to flight," said Bruno Even, CEO of Airbus Helicopters.
"On top of its performance, the aircraft's aerodynamic behavior and stability are promising.
"We are all looking forward to the next phase of flight testing, especially the eco-mode which will enable us to shut down one engine in forward flight, thus reducing fuel consumption, and lowering the CO2 emissions.”
Developed with Safran Helicopter Engines, the hybrid-electrical eco-mode system enables one of the two Aneto-1X engines to be shut down while in cruise flight.
The Racer demonstrator aims to achieve the best trade-off between speed, cost-efficiency, and mission performance targeting a fuel consumption reduction of around 20% compared to current generation helicopters of the same class.
Airbus Helicopters also plans to use the Racer to demonstrate how its particular architecture can contribute to lowering its noise signature.
The next phase of flight testing will focus on single-engine operations and finalise the flight envelope.