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New King Air 250 to feature BLR winglets
November 12, 2010 By Carey Fredericks
Nov. 12, 2010, Everett, WA - Growing support of BLR Aerospace products
from Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) peaked earlier this month
when Hawker Beechcraft Corporation introduced its new King Air 250,
featuring BLR Winglet Systems as a key performance enhancement.
Just in the past year, both Hawker Beechcraft Corporation and Bell
Helicopter also announced plans for factory installation of BLR Winglet
and FastFin™ Systems, respectively, on new aircraft.
“This growing OEM acknowledgement of our technology represents an
important milestone and a new level of success for BLR,” said Dave
Marone, vice president of Sales and Marketing. “At the same time, we
congratulate our OEM customers for demonstrating their willingness to
listen and respond to evolving market needs.”
In addition to the recent King Air 250 announcement, Hawker Beechcraft
Corporation last year introduced the King Air 90GTx, with Winglets from
BLR as standard equipment. For aftermarket customers, Winglets are
certified for installation on King Air 90, 200 and 300 aircraft. BLR’s
entire portfolio of Winglet Systems is certified by the FAA, EASA and
ANAC, and 320 systems are operating worldwide. Sales of King Air 90
Winglets have been especially brisk, Marone said, with nearly 70 systems
sold in the past seven months.
On the rotorcraft side, Bell Helicopter Textron in May announced its
intent to install BLR’s FastFin Tail Rotor Enhancement and Stability
System as standard equipment on new Bell 412EP helicopters. FastFin is
also available for Bell 204, 205, 212, Huey II, and most UH-1
derivatives as an aftermarket upgrade. More than 175 FastFin Systems are
in operation worldwide.
Winglet Systems, available through BLR and dealers, deliver an array of
important benefits to King Air operators, including improved handling
qualities, reduced fuel burn, and increased vertical rate of climb.
The FastFin System improves productivity and safety while reducing
workload for helicopter operators. FastFin also expands lifting capacity
and performance while enabling greater stability in hover operations.
“Having a close association with these fine organizations (Bell
Helicopter and Hawker Beechcraft Corporation) is a point of pride for
our team,” Marone said. “Most importantly, it’s a validation of two
value-added technologies.”