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FARNBOROUGH, England—The FAA has begun trials on the Bell 525 Relentless Advanced Systems Integration Lab (Rasil) as one of the final steps to secure the type certificate for the long-awaited super-medium helicopter.
On Friday, FAA pilots began work on Rasil that has continued into this week, says Jeff Schloesser, Bell senior vice president for strategic pursuits, speaking to reporters here at the Farnborough Airshow. Bell expects the trials could be done around mid-August.
Once the Rasil work has wrapped up, the certification process will progress into so-called function-and-reliability (F&R) testing. F&R is expected to last around 150 hr., a key step to securing the type certificate.
Bell also is doing work for developments once the type certificate is in hand. “We're working hard on icing and cold weather operations,” Schloesser says. The company has already performed some trials and is hoping to conduct more this year with the FAA to secure icing certification, he adds.
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