Canadian operators have made excellent use of the R22 and the larger R44. This R22 is operated by E-Z Air of Edmonton, Alberta. E-Z Air Photo

The Little Helicopter That Could As Robinson Helicopters' R22 celebrates its 20th anniversary its larger sibling, the R44, is enjoying its own success. By Gary Watson

          Despite early skepticism and in some cases outright derision, Frank Robinson’s dream to build a simple, low-cost, mass-produced helicopter has been successful beyond everyone’s wildest dreams. Robinson’s background in the helicopter industry goes back to engineering jobs at Cessna Aircraft Company in 1957. He worked on the CH-1 Skyhook four-place helicopter project, went for a short stint with the Umbaugh gyroplane and then spent four and a half years at McCulloch Motors carrying out design studies on inexpensive rotorcraft. Robinson worked at Kaman Aircraft on a gyrodyne-type rotorcraft, then at Bell Helicopters and ended his employee days at Hughes Helicopters, designing a new tail rotor for the Hughes 500. Robinson’s principal expertise was tail rotor design but his passion was for a new, revolutionary and affordable helicopter.
          In 1973, Robinson quit Hughes to form Robinson Helicopter Company (RHC) to pursue his dream of building a small, personal-type helicopter.
          RHC received its first type certificate for the R22 in March 1979. As the world’s top-selling helicopter, the R22 and its larger sibling, the R44, have established themselves as the leaders in the light piston-powered helicopter market. Initially, the R22 was mainly used for training but today the larger R44 is found in a wide variety of roles that most would equate with larger, more-expensive turbine-powered aircraft such as the Bell 206. Law enforcement, electronic newsgathering, forestry

Frank Robinson pursued - and achieved - his own personal dream. RHC Photo

patrol, fish-spotting, cattle herding and resource industry support are typical uses of both models of helicopter. Due to their low acquisition and operating costs, Robinsons are often used as personal or business transportation. They have become very popular in São Paulo, Brazil, where company executives use them to commute from their country estates directly to the roofs of their downtown office buildings. Flying to work allows the executives a means of avoiding some of the world’s worst traffic and the danger of kidnapping.

          It wasn’t always easy for RHC, as early accident rates were higher than the industry average resulting in problems with both regulators and insurance providers. The economic downturn in the eighties nearly finished off the company. Improvement in flight-instructor qualifications (many of the early accidents were due to low-time instructors) and self-insurance, cleared two of the major problems. Improvements in design and a lower accident rate than that of turbine-powered helicopters has made the regulators much more comfortable with the RHC product line. RHC is quick to point out that two percent of the 1993-1998 accident rate was attributed to power failure compared to five percent in the small turbine-powered helicopters. The market acceptance of the R22 and R44 has ensured the financial success of RHC, which had revenues of US$80 million in 1998 and has a current workforce of 600.
          More than 2,900 R22s and 600 R44s have been sold in over 30 countries. Canada is a major market with 123 R22s and 49 R44s currently registered. "I found Transport Canada to be very proactive when we were dealing with them," said Robinson in an exclusive interview. "They were very involved, spent lots of time at our facility in Torrance (California) and I feel they have done an excellent job in helping us achieve Canadian certifications." He added: "I think the superior quality of training in Canada has contributed to a lower accident rate in Canada as the training is more realistic."
          RHC is currently working on a number of product improvements for the R44. First was the Clipper version with pontoons and additional corrosion-proofing. Designed for overwater flight and seaborne operations, the Clipper has a low centre of gravity and is pontoon-equipped to ensure stability while on water. RHC is working on pop-out floats to reduce the speed and drag penalties caused by the fixed pontoons.
          "We are testing and carrying out the certification for pop-outs and hope to have them on the market in the next few months," said Robinson. "Another project we are working on is a new hydraulic power control system. This system will be much simpler than existing hydraulic systems on other helicopters and should be certified sometime in the next six months to a year. The test aircraft are flying with no problems and the system should be very low in maintenance." Robinson said it is too early to predict prices for this option.
          Asked about new helicopters beyond the R44, using turbine engines or the new Orenda V8, Robinson was succinct: "If I can identify a clear void in today’s helicopter market for a small turbine helicopter, then we would pursue it. There are a number of manufacturers in this market so it does not seem to have any voids for another helicopter in the 500-plus-horsepower range. I am very conservative with engines, I like a long, reliable track record. The Orenda engine is new and has not established such a record. This is not to say it is no good but that I would like to see it perform for a while before we would consider it." Worldwide sales continue to increase and the latest version, the R44 Newscopter, is expected to make major inroads into the turbine-powered electronic newsgathering business. "The Newscopter will be a big seller," said Robinson. RHC can provide a fully-equipped newscasting helicopter with gyro-stabilized, microwave transmitting gear for $500,000, and with operating costs only half that of a turbine aircraft. "And it is as fast, if not faster, than a JetRanger," he said.
          Canadian operators have made excellent use of the R22 and the larger four-place R44. Training remains the number one use for the R22 but the R44 is being used for a number of different tasks not usually associated with the Robinson. We talked to several operators to gain their impression of the rugged little helicopters:
          Aerial Recon Surveys, Whitecourt, Alberta is the largest Robinson distributor in North America. President Eric Gould has nothing but praise for Frank Robinson and his helicopters. "Since the first, we have worked closely with RHC to improve both the R22 and R44," said Gould. "We have developed a number of modifications that have been incorporated by the factory once we proved them out in the field." Gould also finds that Frank Robinson’s personal attention to the customer after the sale is unique in the industry. Aerial Recon has recently been approved as the first facility outside the factory to carry out the 2,000-hour major overhaul of both helicopters. "We carry nearly as many parts as the factory," Gould said. "This gives us a major advantage for providing product support to Robinson operators across the country. Gould feels that the R44 will be the best-selling model and that it is the Cessna 172 of the helicopter industry. The main improvement he would like to see would be the addition of a turbo-normalizer to increase the high-altitude performance for operations up to 8,500 feet ASL.
          Delta Helicopters, St. Albert, Alberta is a new Robinson R44 operator and is also an approved Robinson service centre. Delta received its first R44 in December 1998 and two more followed in March of this year. The helicopters are equipped with infrared cameras for forestry surveillance operations and are based at three different base camps in Alberta. An individual pilot is tasked for each R44 but most of the Delta pilots are checked out and have PPCs so pilot backup is not a problem.
          E&B Helicopters, Campbell River, Vancouver Island, has been providing helicopter services since 1990. Starting with one R22, Ed Wilcock, in partnership with Bill Alder of Sealand Aviation, secured a contract providing support for a balloon logging contract on the nearby British Columbia mainland.
          Today, E&B Helicopters has grown to become one of the largest suppliers and maintainers of Robinson R22 and R44 helicopters in Canada. E&B is a Robinson factory-authorized sales and overhaul centre for British Columbia and provides maintenance to over 50 R22s and 14 R44s in southwestern British Columbia.
          In addition to sales and service, E&B is still providing Campbell River’s local logging industry with R44 and R22 support. E&B utilizes helicopters to perform a wide range of services, mostly tailored to the logging industry.
          Black Stallion Helicopters, Toronto City Centre Airport, provides charter flights to a number of local destinations with its pontoon-equipped R44 Clipper. The Clipper is able to fly over as well as take off from and land on water, resulting in shorter flight times to Niagara Falls (across Lake Ontario). An additional feature is the ability to take passengers directly to cottages or resorts north of Toronto.
          Black Stallion Helicopters uses the R22, the R44 Clipper and a Bell 206 for training. The student has the flexibility to train on any one or several types of helicopters to ensure an advantage in the job marketplace upon completion of training. In addition to training, Black Stallion provides services to the film industry, television industry, executive charter, tourism flights and photographic companies in the Toronto area.
          Hayco Industries, New Westminster, British Columbia is a heavy-equipment dealer specializing in a variety of earth-moving and industrial construction equipment. It has both an R22 and R44, used to transport mechanics to the job site, view equipment from the air and function as a corporate aviation department.
          "The Robinsons are just fabulous for our needs," said President David Haywood. "The only problem we have is the high operating cost per hour due to our low utilization." Haywood said mandatory service bulletins and regular maintenance have created a high hourly cost for Hayco as it averages only 200 hours per helicopter per year.
          Low-cost, versatile and able to perform a wide variety of roles, the Robinson helicopters will likely continue to dominate the small-helicopter market for the foreseeable future.