The Robinson Helicopter Company, based at Zamperini Field in

Torrance, California Torrance is a coastal city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the metropolitan ...

, is an American

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which Lift (force), lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning Helicopter rotor, rotors. This allows the helicopter to VTOL, take off and land vertically, to hover (helicopter), hover, and ...

manufacturer. , Robinson produces three models: the two-seat R22, the four-seat R44, both of which use Lycoming

piston engines A reciprocating engine, more often known as a piston engine, is a heat engine that uses one or more reciprocating pistons to convert high temperature and high pressure into a rotating motion. This article describes the common features of all ...

, and the five-seat R66, which uses

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

turbine engines. In March 2025, concept for the ten-seat R88, which uses the Safran Arriel 2W turbine, was announced.

History

The company was founded in 1973 by

Frank Robinson Frank Robinson (August 31, 1935 – February 7, 2019), nicknamed "the Judge", was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams over 21 seasons: the Cincinnati Reds (1956–196 ...

, a former employee of

Bell Helicopter Bell Textron Inc. is an American aerospace manufacturer headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. A subsidiary of Textron, Bell manufactures military rotorcraft at facilities in Fort Worth, and Amarillo, Texas, United States as well as commercial heli ...

and Hughes Helicopters. Since delivering its first helicopter in 1979, Robinson Helicopter has produced over 12,000 aircraft. Plans for production of the Robinson R66 were announced in March 2007. It is a five-seat helicopter of similar configuration to the R44, but with the addition of a luggage compartment, wider cabin by , and powered by a Rolls-Royce RR300 gas turbine engine. In 2013, Robinson was the global market leader, selling 523 light helicopters, a 1% increase from 2012. Production in 2014 dropped to 329 aircraft. In 2015, Robinson produced one R22, four or five R44s, and one or two R66s per week, and contracted with Rolls-Royce to supply 100 RR300 turbines per year for 10 years for the R66. The factory can produce up to 1,000 helicopters per year. In 2024, Robinson bought Ascent Aerosystems, a maker of drones for the government & military.

Products

* Robinson R22 *

Robinson R44 The Robinson R44 is a four-seat light helicopter produced by Robinson Helicopter Company since 1992. Derived from the company's two-seat Robinson R22, the R44 features hydraulically assisted flight controls and a larger engine. It was first ...

* Robinson R66 * Robinson R88 Robinson also produces the Robinson Helipad, a modular

helipad A helipad is the landing area of a heliport, in use by helicopters, powered lift, and vertical lift aircraft to land on surface. While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fa ...

designed for light helicopters.Robinson Helipads
. Robinson Helicopter Company. Accessed May 12, 2010. Image:flight.rob.arp.750pix.jpg, Robinson R22 Beta Image:robinson r44 raven2 helicopter arp.jpg, Robinson R44 Raven II Image:R66 at RHC.jpg, Robinson R66 Turbine

Mast-bumping controversy

Mast bumping is a dangerous condition helicopters can encounter when load on the helicopter's rotor assembly is temporarily reduced during flight (for example, during a low-''g'' maneuver or turbulent weather). The reduction of load triggers excessive flapping in the helicopter's rotor blades, which can cause the entire rotor assembly to shear off the aircraft. Robinson helicopters use a patented design for their main rotor, with a triple-hinged rotor assembly "teetering" atop an extended mast. Several Robinson helicopters have been destroyed in incidents where mast bumping was determined to have occurred. A May 2018 article in the ''Los Angeles Times'' reported Robinson helicopters seemed to have increased susceptibility to mast-bumping incidents. In 2016, the New Zealand Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) released a report summarizing 14 mast-bumping accidents or incidents involving Robinson helicopters in New Zealand, in which 18 people died. The TAIC report noted that "Helicopters with semirigid, two-bladed main rotor systems, as used on Robinson helicopters, are particularly susceptible to mast bumping in "low-G" conditions". In 2018, a U.S. lawsuit accused the Robinson Helicopter Company of defective manufacturing after a mast-bumping event caused the in-flight breakup of an R66 helicopter.

References

External links

Robinson Helicopter Company website
{{Robinson aircraft Helicopter manufacturers of the United States Manufacturing companies based in Greater Los Angeles Companies based in Torrance, California