Sikorsky S92(Jarvin)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Sikorsky S-92 is an American twin-engine medium-lift
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 ...
built by
Sikorsky Aircraft Sikorsky Aircraft is an American aircraft manufacturer based in Stratford, Connecticut. It was established by the Russian-American aviation pioneer Igor Sikorsky in 1923, and was among the first companies to manufacture helicopters for civilian ...
for the civil and military helicopter markets. The S-92 was developed from the
Sikorsky S-70 The Sikorsky S-70 is an American medium transport/utility helicopter family manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. It was developed for the United States Army in the 1970s, winning a competition to be designated the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, UH-60 ...
helicopter and has similar parts such as flight control and rotor systems. The H-92 Superhawk is a military version of the S-92 in the utility transport role, capable of carrying 22 troops. The H-92 can also be configured for specific missions, including
search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...
and executive transportation. The CH-148 Cyclone is a shipboard maritime helicopter variant developed for the
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...
to support naval operations of the
Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...
. The Sikorsky VH-92 is a variant under development to replace the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
'
Marine One Marine One is the call sign of any United States Marine Corps aircraft carrying the president of the United States. As of 2024, it is most frequently applied to a presidential transport helicopter operated by Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX ...
U.S. Presidential transport fleet.


Development

After the
1973 oil crisis In October 1973, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) announced that it was implementing a total oil embargo against countries that had supported Israel at any point during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, which began after Eg ...
, major oil and gas companies began exploration further offshore, thus creating a need for aircraft such as the S-92 with sufficient capability. Sikorsky Aircraft first displayed a S-92 mockup of the planned helicopter in 1992. The S-92 was to be offered for sale beginning in 1993, but due to a decline in the international market for helicopters, this was delayed. In 1995 Sikorsky formed Team S-92 with international partners and launched the helicopter program at the Paris Airshow that year.Frawley, Gerald. "Sikorsky S-92 Helibus". ''The International Directory of Civil Aircraft, 2003/2004''. Aerospace Publications, 2003. . Sikorsky developed the S-92 to compete with civil aircraft such as the Aerospatiale/Eurocopter Super Puma.Donald, David, ed. "Sikorsky S-92". ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft''. Barnes & Nobel Books, 1997. . The helicopter uses a new airframe with dynamic components based on the S-70/H-60 components. The S-92 took its maiden flight on December 23, 1998 at the Sikorsky Development Flight Center, West Palm Beach, Florida.Frawley, Gerald. "Sikorsky S-92". ''The International Directory of Military Aircraft, 2002/2003''. Aerospace Publications, 2002. . In July 2000,
Sikorsky Sikorsky or Sikorski may refer to: * Sikorsky (comics), a Marvel Comics character * Sikorsky (crater), a lunar crater * Sikorsky Aircraft, an American aircraft manufacturer People with the surname * Brian Sikorski (born 1974), Major League Basebal ...
announced design changes to the S-92. The fuselage of prototype #3 was lengthened by 16 in (40 cm) aft of the cockpit, the tail pylon was shortened by 41 in (1.04 m), and the horizontal stabilizer was repositioned from the left side opposite the tail rotor to the right side at the base of the tail pylon. The modifications to the tail solved a pitch stability issue discovered during flight testing, and were reported to allow the aircraft to meet a key requirement of the Nordic Standard Helicopter Program (NSHP) for shipboard stowage. The lengthening of the fuselage and shortening of the tail pylon shifted the aircraft
center of gravity In physics, the center of mass of a distribution of mass in space (sometimes referred to as the barycenter or balance point) is the unique point at any given time where the weighted relative position of the distributed mass sums to zero. For ...
(CG) forward, permitting a more level attitude in flight. The longer fuselage allowed for an additional row of three seats, as well as a larger passenger door option for Search and Rescue (SAR) customers. Sikorsky incorporated the changes into the following two prototypes as the production standard configuration. Some reports suggested that the modifications were actually to resolve damage from structural design flaws. The S-92 is built and customized in Sikorsky's
Coatesville, Pennsylvania Coatesville is the only city in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 13,350 at the 2020 census. Coatesville is approximately 39 miles west of Philadelphia. It developed along the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike ...
facility. The S-92 received
Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...
(FAA) part 29
type certification A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). Certification confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production is in compliance w ...
on December 19, 2002,Searles, Robert A
"A Truly New-Generation Helicopter"
. Aviation Week's Sporlight, June 2003.
and received International
European Aviation Safety Agency The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is an agency of the European Commission with responsibility for civil aviation safety in the European Union. It carries out certification, regulation and standardisation and also performs inve ...
/Joint Aviation Authorities (EASA/JAA) certification on June 8, 2004."Sikorsky S-92 Achieves International Type Certification"
. Sikorsky, June 8, 2004.
In June 2009, Sikorsky Aircraft entered into a joint-venture with
Tata Advanced Systems Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) is an Indian aerospace manufacturing, military engineering and defense technology company. It is a fully owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, a holding company for the Tata Group. History TASL entered into a j ...
for S-92 manufacturing in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
for export and domestic markets. A US$200 million manufacturing plant will be operational in
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
by 2010. Initially, TASL will supply the complete cabins for the S-92 to Sikorsky. The first cabin was delivered in November 2010.


Design

The S-92 is multi-purpose helicopter powered by twin GE CT7-8A turboshaft engines and has an aluminum airframe and some composite components. The four-bladed fully articulated composite main rotor blade is wider and has a longer radius than the Sikorsky S-70. The tapered blade tip sweeps back and angles downward to reduce noise and increase lift. Most of the rotor system components aside from the blades are titanium. The S-92 features an
active vibration control Active vibration control is the active application of force in an equal and opposite fashion to the forces imposed by external vibration. With this application, a precision industrial process can be maintained on a platform essentially vibration- ...
system, using vibration sensors and structurally mounted force generators to increase flight comfort and lower acoustic levels to below certification requirements. A 2008 study by Norway's Flymedisinsk Institute found that the S-92's vibration levels were 42 percent above that of the
Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma The Airbus Helicopters H225 (formerly Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma) is a long-range passenger transport helicopter developed by Eurocopter as the next generation of the civilian Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma, Super Puma family. It is a twin-engine ...
; Sikorsky disputed this finding, saying that the study hadn't used their latest anti-vibration technology. In February 2011, as published on a Norwegian newspaper's website, the noise and vibration levels were reportedly subject to health concerns, allegedly causing
tinnitus Tinnitus is a condition when a person hears a ringing sound or a different variety of sound when no corresponding external sound is present and other people cannot hear it. Nearly everyone experiences faint "normal tinnitus" in a completely ...
and heart problems. A number of safety features such as flaw tolerance,
bird strike A bird strike (sometimes called birdstrike, bird ingestion (for an engine), bird hit, or bird aircraft strike hazard (BASH)) is a collision between an airborne animal (usually a bird or bat) and a moving vehicle (usually an aircraft). The term ...
capability, and engine burst containment have been incorporated into the design. Adherence to FAA FAR part 29 has led the FAA certification board to call the S-92 the "safest helicopter in the world"."Superhawk may succeed Nuri"
. NST Online, December 12, 2007.
The S-92 was not able to meet the
Federal Aviation Regulation The Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) are rules prescribed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) governing all aviation activities in the United States. The FARs comprise Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR). A wide var ...
"run dry" specification for loss of oil pressure in the main gearbox, but was certified with an exemption due to the unlikelihood of such a situation occurring; this was a factor in the fatal crash of Cougar Helicopters Flight 91 in 2009.


Operational history

The S-92 received FAA certification in 2002, and International certification in June 2004. The first S-92 was delivered in late 2004 to launch customer PHI, Inc.


Competitions

Sikorsky entered a
Search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...
variant of the H-92 in
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...
's CSAR-X combat search and rescue competition beginning in 2006. Its competitors were the
AgustaWestland EH101 The AgustaWestland AW101 is a medium-lift helicopter in military and civil use. First flown in 1987, it was developed by a joint venture between Westland Helicopters in the United Kingdom and Agusta in Italy in response to national requirement ...
and HH-47, but by December 2012 all other manufacturers had withdrawn. ''
Flight International ''Flight International'', formerly ''Flight'', is a monthly magazine focused on aerospace. Published in the United Kingdom and founded in 1909 as "A Journal devoted to the Interests, Practice, and Progress of Aerial Locomotion and Transport", i ...
'' magazine expects Sikorsky to bid a version of its MH-60 special operations helicopter. After Sikorsky successfully challenged in court the preferred supplier status of NHIndustries NH90 for the Nordic Standard Helicopter Programme an open competition was held. Sikorsky entered the S-92 as a candidate for the Norwegian All Weather Search and Rescue Helicopter (NAWSARH) that is planned to replace the
Royal Norwegian Air Force The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) () is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian Armed Forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peacetime establishment is approximately 2,430 employees (officers, enlisted ...
Westland Sea King Mk.43B in 2015. The other candidates for the NAWSARH contract of 10 to 12 helicopters were
AgustaWestland AW101 The AgustaWestland AW101 is a medium-lift helicopter in military and civil use. First flown in 1987, it was developed by a joint venture between Westland Helicopters in the United Kingdom and Agusta in Italy in response to national requiremen ...
,
Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-use, tiltrotor military transport and cargo aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities. It is designed to combine the functionalit ...
, Eurocopter EC225, and
NHIndustries NH90 The NHIndustries NH90 is a European medium-sized, twin-engine, multirole military helicopter. It was the first production helicopter to feature entirely fly-by-wire flight controls.Perry, Dominic"Rotor club: Our top 10 most influential helicop ...
. The V-22 was eliminated from the competition in 2012. The S-92 was removed from the competition in July 2013 and was subsequently won by AgustaWestland with an order for 16 AW101s. The S-92 competed with the Eurocopter EC225 for the UK Search and Rescue – Helicopter (SAR-H) program. In February 2010, the S-92 was selected by the UK in a £6bn deal to replace 40 Sea King search and rescue helicopters with 25 to 30 S-92s; it subsequently announced that Soteria, the preferred supplier, will not be used due to irregularities with its bid. The UK government subsequently opted for a smaller £2.5bn contract with the Bristow Group to operate 11 S-92s (and 11 AW189s) from 10 bases. The
Irish Coast Guard The Irish Coast Guard (IRCG; ) is part of the Department of Transport (Ireland), Department of Transport in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The primary roles of the Coast Guard include maritime safety and search and rescue. The ''Irish Marine Se ...
replaced its
Sikorsky S-61N The Sikorsky S-61L and S-61N are civil variants of the SH-3 Sea King military helicopter. They were developed and produced by the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. The commercial version of the Sea King was developed during th ...
fleet with the S-92, beginning in 2012. The aircraft are operated by
CHC Helicopter CHC Helicopter is a Texas-based helicopter services company. CHC Helicopter maintains its global headquarters in Irving, Texas and operates more than 250 aircraft in 30 countries around the world. CHC's major international operating units are ...
. In the wake of the deadly 2016 crash of a
Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma The Airbus Helicopters H225 (formerly Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma) is a long-range passenger transport helicopter developed by Eurocopter as the next generation of the civilian Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma, Super Puma family. It is a twin-engine ...
contracted by
Statoil Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger, Norway. It is primarily a petroleum company operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. In th ...
, that company announced that it would not use that type again and instead use the Sikorsky S-92 to meet its needs, stipulating that operators it contracts with, such as CHC Helikopter Service, will be required to use such equipment.


Variants


S-92A

The S-92A is the civilian variant and is available in a number of versions. The civil transport version has an airliner-type interior that seats 19 passengers. The utility transport version has 22 side-facing seats with a full cabin width rear ramp. The cabin volume can also be configured to accommodate up to three airline-style LD3 cargo containers. Additional stowage space is available in the volume located in the aft ramp compartment. During development it was referred to as the S-92C Helibus.


H-92 Superhawk

The H-92 Superhawk is the military variant of the S-92. It has been demonstrated to the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. The H-92 has more powerful GE CT7-8C engines, rated at and, unlike the S-92, has
fly-by-wire Fly-by-wire (FBW) is a system that replaces the conventional aircraft flight control system#Hydro-mechanical, manual flight controls of an aircraft with an electronic interface. The movements of flight controls are converted to electronic sig ...
flight controls. The search and rescue variant provides space for seats,
litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. The waste is objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups, food wrappers, cardboard boxes or plastic bottles, but ...
s, auxiliary fuel cell and SAR emergency equipment. In July 2004, the H-92 Superhawk was selected by
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
for its Maritime Helicopter Programme (MHP) as the CH-148 Cyclone. Canada ordered 28 helicopters in November 2004. The program has been delayed multiple times. As of November 2019, nineteen CH-148 Cyclones have been built, delivered, and accepted by the government of Canada. The Canadian military declared initial operational capacity in June 2018, and expects full operational capacity by 2022.


VH-92

The S-92A variant, designated VH-92 will be used as the next Marine One to fly the U.S. President.


Operators


Civilian

; * Babcock Mission Critical Services Australasia *
CHC Helicopter CHC Helicopter is a Texas-based helicopter services company. CHC Helicopter maintains its global headquarters in Irving, Texas and operates more than 250 aircraft in 30 countries around the world. CHC's major international operating units are ...
*PHI International Australia ; * Silk Way Airlines - 2 in use ; * Líder Aviação ; *
Brunei Shell Petroleum Brunei Shell Petroleum (BSP) is a joint venture between the Royal Dutch/Shell Group and government of Brunei, primarily responsible for the exploration and production of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Originally known as the British Mal ...
; *
CHC Helicopter CHC Helicopter is a Texas-based helicopter services company. CHC Helicopter maintains its global headquarters in Irving, Texas and operates more than 250 aircraft in 30 countries around the world. CHC's major international operating units are ...
* Cougar Helicopters ; *
China Southern Airlines China Southern Airlines (branded as China Southern) is a major airline in China, headquartered in Guangzhou, Guangdong. It is one of the three major airlines in the country, along with Air China and China Eastern Airlines. Established on 1 ...
; * Heliservicio ; * Advanced Flight LTD on behalf of
Rocket Lab Rocket Lab Corporation is a Public company, publicly traded aerospace manufacturer and List of launch service providers, launch service provider. Its Rocket Lab Electron, Electron orbital rocket launches Small satellite, small satellites, and ha ...
; *
Bristow Norway Bristow Norway AS (formerly Norsk Helikopter) is a Norwegian helicopter company that transports crew to oil installations in the North Sea. It has headquarters in Stavanger and has additional operations out of Bergen, Florø, and Hammerfest. ...
* CHC Helikopter Service ; *
Gulf Helicopters Gulf Helicopters Company (GHC) is a Qatari helicopter services provider mainly servicing the oil and gas industry in Middle East, North Africa and Asia. It is a 100% subsidiary of Gulf International Services under the QatarEnergy umbrella, and h ...
; *
Bristow Helicopters Bristow Helicopters Limited is a British civil helicopter operator originally based at Aberdeen Airport, Scotland, which is currently a part of the U.S.-based Bristow Group () which in turn has its corporate headquarters in Houston, Texas, U.S ...
*
CHC Helicopter CHC Helicopter is a Texas-based helicopter services company. CHC Helicopter maintains its global headquarters in Irving, Texas and operates more than 250 aircraft in 30 countries around the world. CHC's major international operating units are ...
; *
Petroleum Helicopters International Petroleum Helicopters International, Inc. (PHI), is an American commercial helicopter operator, founded in 1949, by Robert L. Suggs. The company is based in Lafayette, Louisiana and provides service for the oil and gas industry, aeromedical ser ...


Military and government

; *
Government of Azerbaijan The politics of Azerbaijan take place in an Authoritarianism, authoritarian system where elections are not free and fair, political opponents are repressed, civil rights are limited, human rights in Azerbaijan, human rights abuses are widespread ...
; * Royal Air Wing ; *
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...
(RCAF) /
Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...
(see
Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone The Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone is a twin-engine, multi-role shipborne helicopter developed by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation for the Canadian Armed Forces. A military variant of the Sikorsky S-92, the CH-148 is designed for shipboard operations ...
) ; *
Irish Coast Guard The Irish Coast Guard (IRCG; ) is part of the Department of Transport (Ireland), Department of Transport in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The primary roles of the Coast Guard include maritime safety and search and rescue. The ''Irish Marine Se ...
(operated by
CHC Helicopter CHC Helicopter is a Texas-based helicopter services company. CHC Helicopter maintains its global headquarters in Irving, Texas and operates more than 250 aircraft in 30 countries around the world. CHC's major international operating units are ...
) ; *
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department The , known locally as simply the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), is the prefectural police of Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Founded in 1874, the TMPD is the largest police force in Japan by number of officers, with a staff of more than 4 ...
; *
Kuwait Air Force The Kuwait Air Force () is the air arm of the Armed Forces of Kuwait. The Air Force headquarters is located at Abdullah Al-Mubarak Air Base, with the remaining forces stationed at Air Defense Brigades, Ali Al Salem Air Base and Ahmad al-Jaber ...
; *
Ministry of Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, th ...
; *
Republic of Korea Air Force The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF; ), also known as the ROK Air Force or South Korean Air Force, is the Air force, aerial and Space force, space warfare service branch of South Korea, operating under the Ministry of National Defense (South K ...
, used for transporting the
president of South Korea The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (), is the head of state and head of government of South Korea. The president directs the executive branch of the Government of South Korea, government and is ...
*
Republic of Korea Coast Guard The Korea Coast Guard (KCG; ) is a South Korean law enforcement sub-agency responsible for maritime safety and control off the coast. The KCG is an independent and external branch of Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Ministry of Maritime Affa ...
– 2 in use ; *
Royal Thai Air Force The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) (; ) is the air force of the Kingdom of Thailand. Since its establishment in 1913 as one of the earliest air forces of Asia, the Royal Thai Air Force has engaged in numerous major and minor conflicts. During the ...
– 5 aircraft. Locally designated H.10 (). ; *
Government of Turkey The Government of Turkey () is the Central government, national government of Turkey. It is governed as a unitary state under a presidential system, presidential representative democracy and a Constitution of Turkey, constitutional republic wit ...
; *
Government of Turkmenistan The politics of Turkmenistan nominally takes place in the framework of a presidential republic, whereby the President of Turkmenistan is nominally both head of state and head of government. However, as of 21 January 2023 a "national leader" was ...
– 2 ; *
His Majesty's Coastguard His Majesty's Coastguard (HMCG) is the section of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency responsible, through the Secretary of State for Transport to Parliament, for the initiation and co-ordination of all maritime search and rescue (SAR) within th ...
(operated by
Bristow Helicopters Bristow Helicopters Limited is a British civil helicopter operator originally based at Aberdeen Airport, Scotland, which is currently a part of the U.S.-based Bristow Group () which in turn has its corporate headquarters in Houston, Texas, U.S ...
) – 4 * Babcock Mission Critical Services – 14 ; *
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
(see Sikorsky VH-92) ; *
Uzbekistan Air and Air Defence Forces The Air and Air Defence Forces (; ) are the aerial arm of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Uzbekistan. It was formed following the collapse of the Soviet Union, in 1991, though the military was not created by the government of Uzbekistan, Uzb ...


Notable accidents and incidents

* On July 2, 2008, an S-92A servicing an oil platform in Australia lost gearbox oil pressure due to fractured oil pump studs and was forced to make an emergency landing. This incident led to Sikorsky issuing a notice to replace titanium gearbox studs with steel studs. This refit had not yet been conducted on the Cougar Helicopters S-92 that crashed the following year. * On July 19, 2008, an S-92 carrying Rev.
Sun Myung Moon Sun Myung Moon (; born Moon Yong-myeong; 6 January 1920 – 3 September 2012) was a Korean religious leader, also known for his business ventures and support for conservative political causes. A messiah claimant, he was the founder of the ...
crashed in South Korea. The helicopter was flying in inclement weather that forced it down on a hillside. The 16 people aboard were slightly injured in the crash. * On March 12, 2009, Cougar Helicopters Flight 91, an S-92A operated by Cougar Helicopters carrying 18 passengers and crew en route to oil platforms off the coast of Newfoundland, crashed and sank in of water during an attempted ditching. One person was rescued from the North Atlantic with serious injuries"AVIATION REPORTS – 2009 – A09A0016 – Occurrence Summary – Main Gearbox Malfunction/Collision with Water Cougar Helicopters Inc. Sikorsky S-92A, C-GZCH St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, 35 nm E 12 March 2009"
. Transportation Safety Board of Canada, 2010. Accessed: 26 November 2011.
and the others did not survive. The crash was determined to be caused by 16 separate factors. The primary cause was galling or fracture of titanium gearbox studs that had not yet been replaced with steel. * On December 28, 2016, a S-92 (registration G-WNSR, serial number 920250) operated by
CHC Helicopter CHC Helicopter is a Texas-based helicopter services company. CHC Helicopter maintains its global headquarters in Irving, Texas and operates more than 250 aircraft in 30 countries around the world. CHC's major international operating units are ...
experienced "unexpected control responses" whilst in mid-air on a routine shuttle flight between two oil installations in the
North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
. The pilots conducted an emergency landing on the West Franklin platform. The helicopter is reported to have spun on the helideck during the landing, damaging the helicopter wheels and rotor blades. The helideck also sustained damage during the emergency landing. There were no reported injuries amongst the nine passengers and two crew during the incident. The aircraft was transported back to Aberdeen via ship, at which time the
Air Accidents Investigation Branch The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigates civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents within the United Kingdom, its British Overseas Territories, overseas territories and crown dependencies. It is also the Space Accident I ...
began their investigation into the incident. Sikorsky issued a notice on January 9, 2017 grounding all S-92 aircraft until the tail rotors have been inspected. The inspection work takes approximately 11 man hours to complete. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch issued an update on January 11, 2017 that reported that the tail rotor pitch change shaft bearing had seized. The bearing showed signs of severe overheating and significant wear. The failure of the bearing allowed the tail rotor driveshaft to damage the tail rotor servo. The damage to the tail rotor servo is considered to be the cause of the loss of tail rotor control. The health and usage monitoring systems had discovered the flaw the day before flight, but the maintenance crew had not. * On March 14, 2017, a S-92 operated by CHC Helicopter under contract to the
Irish Coast Guard The Irish Coast Guard (IRCG; ) is part of the Department of Transport (Ireland), Department of Transport in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The primary roles of the Coast Guard include maritime safety and search and rescue. The ''Irish Marine Se ...
crashed off the west coast of Ireland with four crew members on board. Three of the crew were initially missing. Captain
Dara Fitzpatrick Dara Fitzpatrick (15 October 1971 – 14 March 2017) was the Irish Coast Guard's most senior helicopter search and rescue pilot. As a Captain, she piloted the Dublin-based Rescue 116 helicopter. She was killed in the 2017 Irish Coast Guard Resc ...
was recovered from the water but later died in hospital. The helicopter crashed into an unmapped island in poor weather. The helicopter fuselage was located. Captain Mark Duffy's body was recovered in the helicopter's cockpit on March 26. * On February 28, 2024, a Bristow Group S-92 search and rescue helicopter crashed west of
Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...
, Norway with six crew and passengers onboard.


Specifications (S-92)


See also


References


Notes


Bibliography

* Leoni, Ray D. (2007). ''Black Hawk: The Story of a World Class Helicopter''. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. .


External links


S-92 page on Sikorsky.com

H-92 page on Sikorsky.com

HELIS.com Sikorsky S-92/H-92/CH-148 Helibus/Super Hawk/Cyclone Database




* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20081211140619/http://www.webmags.co.uk/mag.aspx?magcode=DIGITAL_003 S-92 article on ROTORHUB {{Authority control 1990s United States helicopters S-092 1990s United States civil aircraft Military transport helicopters Search and rescue helicopters Twin-turbine helicopters S-92 Aircraft first flown in 1998