Dakota Air Parts Displays New Composite Tail Rotor Blade for Bell 206 at Heli-Expo

Dakota Air Parts has announced that it is displaying a new to market composite tail rotor blade for the Bell 206A and 206B helicopters during Heli-Expo 2018, February 27 – March 1 in Las Vegas. Dakota Air Parts is exhibiting at Booth # N3025.

Together with Australian manufacturer Airwork Helicopters, Dakota Air Parts is proud to introduce new-to-market composite tail rotor blade for the Bell 206 JetRanger Series helicopters. AMT-206-1 tail rotor blades are a direct replacement for OEM blades.

The blade design incorporates a non-symmetrical airfoil section and a swept tip. The blades are primarily fabricated from uni-directional Graphite (carbon fiber) and Aramid (Kevlar) continuous fibers suspended in an epoxy matrix.

The nickel abrasion strip is designed to protect the blade under harsh operating conditions, like those encountered in agricultural work. The abrasion strip is 1-⅜ inches wide and covers 23% of the chord, providing protection to all of the blade surfaces exposed during flight, ensuring that erosion doesn’t impact the blade structure.

Operators flying in areas with stringent noise restrictions will find these blades especially valuable. Helicopters operating with the AMT-206-1 tail rotor blade demonstrate noise levels compliant with Stage 3 Noise requirements with an overflight noise level of 80.0 dB.

The AMT-206-1 composite tail rotor blades offer a 30% cost advantage with twice the life over the standard 206 tail rotor blades. Additional features include:

5,000 hour time life, twice the life of standard OEM blades
30% lower hourly operating costs
Higher margin of safety due to increased strength
Corrosion resistant and impervious to saltwater
Replaceable bushings and abrasion strips
Significant noise reduction, 68% reduction over OEM blades
Improved ground clearance
Complies with FAA stage 3 noise requirements
Tested for over 51 million cycles

The blades are manufactured in Australia under an Australian Parts Manufacturing Approval (APMA) and have CASA and FAA STC’s:

FAA STC: SR02644LA
CASA STC: STC-SVR520
APMA: 410142

Distribution and sales are managed by Dakota Air Parts and Airwork Helicopters with Airwork managing sales in Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea while all other regions are serviced by Dakota Air Parts. Air Services International of Phoenix, Arizona (www.asimro.com) and Air Services International DWC-LLC of Dubai, UAE (www.asi.ae) are also product representatives.

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