GPMS at the SHIFT Air Medical Transport Conference on October 31 announced it is pursuing a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for its Foresight MX Health & Usage Monitoring System (HUMS) on the Airbus H135 platform. To achieve the STC, expected in Q1 2022, GPMS will work with Metro Aviation, one of the largest providers of air medical transportation services and helicopter completions in the United States.
GPMS’s Foresight MX system offers a comprehensive aircraft performance monitoring system that is much needed in the air medical transport industry.
“In the Helicopter Air Ambulance sector, where operational reliability and safety are especially important, the data and insights provided by Foresight MX are critical,” said GPMS President Jed Kalkstein.
Kalkstein explains the value of Foresight MX goes beyond parametric Flight Data Monitoring by integrating the engine awareness of a HUMS system with vibration management, performance monitoring, and comprehensive analysis for sub-components, including gearboxes and rotor systems. This additional insight allows Foresight MX to also deliver early fault detection and estimates of remaining useful life. “This predictive capability allows HAA operators to more accurately order parts and schedule maintenance to help ensure aircraft availability and mitigate unscheduled maintenance and AOG events,” said Kalkstein.
GPMS currently has STCs on a range of helicopter platforms including Bell 407 GX/GXP/GXi, Bell 429, Bell 412/212, and the Airbus H125/AS350 B3. Several of these platforms are used in HAA operations. The Airbus H135 is one of the leading, twin-engine helicopter platforms for the air medical and air ambulance services market.
“We’ve been actively looking for a next-generation Health and Usage Monitoring system on the H135 and the GPMS team has done an impressive job creating an integrated package that automatically collects, offloads, and analyzes critical safety and maintenance data in a way that is unlike current HUMS systems,” said Milton Geltz, Managing Director at Metro. “GPMS and Metro partner, Outerlink Global Solutions, are also planning on integrating with the IRIS System providing inflight critical alerts to operational ground support teams.”
