The second helicopter in a line of 18 being made in Columbus will soon be delivered to the United States Army National Guard.
Airbus, the world’s leading manufacturer of helicopters, presented the new UH-72B Lakota at a press event on Tuesday. Airbus Vice President of Military Programs Scott Tumpak said this new helicopter offers enhanced features to give the National Guard more capabilities and better performance.
“We’ve delivered 463 Lakota A models, and we’re really excited to be delivering the B model here out of the factory in Columbus, to get that new capability fielded with the national guard customer,” Tumpak said.
The Lakota program is stationed solely at the Airbus facility in Columbus. UH-72 Lakotas are single engine helicopters used for various purposes, such as pilot training. Airbus opened in Columbus in 2004 and has been producing Lakotas since 2006.
The first UH-72B was delivered to the National Guard in August and Tumpak said 16 more helicopters will be produced and delivered over the next year.
“The UH-72B offers a significantly improved capability in terms of aircraft performance, some safety features with the new avionic sweep, some cost improvements in terms of maintainability,” Tumpak said. “The new model also has five blades on the aircraft instead of four and then a fenestron tail rotor, which leads to a big mission improvement for the National Guard.”
These helicopters take roughly four months to complete with nearly 250 workers contributing to their creation. Funding for the UH-72B comes from the U.S. Army’s baseline aviation budget.
Tumpak said every employee who works on these helicopters is specialized in a particular field. Everyone is geared toward producing the best product for the military, he said.
“The whole team here is focused on our customer’s mission,” Tumpak said. “Getting the UH-72B and its improved capability out to the field is something that really resonates with the workforce.”
Based in Dallas, Texas, President of Airbus Helicopters in North America Romain Trapp said this second UH-72B will be shipped out in the coming weeks. The exact location has not been determined, but he said it will travel to several different states for usage.
“I’m really proud each and every time I come here because we have such an engaged and motivated workforce, and they’re just so qualified,” Trapp said. “… We are very proud to be here in Columbus.”
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