Eurocopter has fully launched the replacement program for its AS365/EC155 Dauphin and is targeting 2016 for entry into service for the first iteration, with a more advanced version to enter service several years later. Codenamed X4, the helicopter will feature a radically new cockpit, fly-by-wire controls and low-noise main rotor blades. It will compete with the AgustaWestland AW169 and the Sikorsky S-76D in the 9,000- to 12,000-pound category.
At the Paris Air Show, Eurocopter CEO Lutz Bertling told journalists that the first version, planned for 2016, will make use of technologies that have already been ground-tested. The second iteration, in 2020, will use technologies that are at the feasibility-study stage today. AIN understands this approach will enable Eurocopter to get the helicopter to market at a time when competitors are still reviewing their options, and pitch major technology advancements shortly thereafter.
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