Thales in talks with Sikorsky about SVS for new S-76D
Avionics manufacturer and integrator Thales and helicopter OEM Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.

Avionics manufacturer and integrator Thales and helicopter OEM Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. are discussing plans to incorporate a synthetic-vision system (SVS) into the Thales TopDeck avionics suite in Sikorsky’s new S-76D, but whether it will be available by the aircraft’s expected FAA certification date in 2008 is still up in the air.

S-76D project chief pilot Greg Barnes told HAI Convention News that the two companies are currently in negotiations on SVS, and that while he’d hoped to have SVS in the first round of S-76D deliveries, that target may not be realistic.
“They put forth a proposal for us that’s tied to their TAWS database,” he said of Thales. “Certainly SVS is high on our priority list.