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DALLAS–A slew of sales prospects from the head-of-state transport and search-and-rescue (SAR) markets is prompting Sikorsky to ramp up S-92 production.
The company is targeting a renewed annual output of up to 12 of the twin-engine heavy helicopters. Sikorsky also says it is beginning to see more interest in the aircraft from the head-of-state market as the U.S. Marine Corps makes increased use of its new VH-92 Marine One platform, which is based on the commercial S-92.
“We still see a significant demand for the S-92,” Leon Silva, Sikorsky’s vice president of Global Commercial and Military Systems, told journalists on the first day of the Verticon rotorcraft industry exposition here on March 11.
Over the past year, the company has delivered two S-92s for VIP customers, and Silva anticipates additional orders this year based on the “activity that we have currently with customers.” In particular, there is an opportunity for SAR aircraft emerging from Brazil, he says.
Increased production levels could prompt the company to seek a new location for S-92 production, Silva said. Sikorsky moved the activity to West Palm Beach, Florida, from its Coatesville, Pennsylvania, site in 2022. But he said there was no longer enough capacity in West Palm Beach for increased rates of S-92 production, and that an announcement on a new production site could emerge with a future order.
But offshore operators are not expected to be placing S-92 orders. This is because they had concluded that the aircraft is “approaching retirement” despite continuing to be a workhorse for the segment. Silva unsurprisingly argues otherwise, pointing out that the current operational S-92 is only 40% of the way through its life, based on the airframe certification limits of 30,000 hr. Just one S-92 has reached that limit, and over the next five years one or two more will reach that milestone, he suggests.
“Some of the anticipated retirements of the S-92, I think, are a little aggressive compared to what the reality will be,” Silva said.
Some S-92 operators view the situation differently. One told Aviation Week here that they see the S-92 as “beginning to move into a very mature phase of its existence,” with companies like Bell assessing S-92 replacements as a market for their fly-by-wire 525 platform.
Silva said the company was also continuing to resolve supply chain issues that have forced several oil and gas S-92s to be grounded and prompted some companies to cannibalize aircraft for spares to keep others flying. The issues had attracted the ire of the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers, which said last summer that they were presenting “significant safety and operational risks” to the offshore industry. Part of the situation was caused by the increase in utilization of the S-92 by offshore operators as exploration and drilling restarted after the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the return to service of aircraft that had previously been in storage due to oversupply. Silva said the company has been steadily ramping up overhauls of gearboxes and increasing the time between overhauls for gearbox housings.
Efforts also include “redesigning, insourcing ... and leveraging the wider Lockheed Martin [enterprise] to address fragility in the supply chain,” Rich Benton, Sikorsky’s vice president and general manager, told journalists.
“We’ve learned a lot, not only in the aftermarket, but also on the production side ... and our level of visibility and ability to predict the challenges is significantly improved over that experience,” Silva said.
Today, the company is working on the certification of a new Phase Four main gearbox for the S-92. It will be available for retrofit on the existing fleet and be the standard fit on all future production S-92s.The new gearbox features an auxiliary lubrication system that automatically engages in the event of a primary oil pressure loss and eliminates the need for any immediate landings. All new S-92s will be built to the S-92A+ standard, Silva said. The upgrade will give the aircraft an increased maximum takeoff weight of 27,700 lb. from 26,500 lb. on the current S-92A. Flight testing in support of certification has been completed, and the first S-92A+ is expected to enter service in 2027.
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