AMARILLO, Texas - Bell Helicopter announced the successful first flight of the Bell 525 Relentless on July 1. The maiden flight of the super-medium helicopter took place at the company’s aircraft assembly center in Amarillo, Texas.
"We have diligently executed our schedule to design, develop, build and test the aircraft, and look forward to the next phase of flight testing as we work towards certification," said Matt Hasik, executive vice president of commercial programs at Bell Helicopter. The Bell 525 was designed with input from Bell's Customer Advisory Panel as an aircraft to meet future requirements for operational safety, payload and range, cabin comfort and configuration and reliability. One of the unique characteristics of the Bell 525 is the ability to perform CAT-A takeoffs and landings, to and from a helipad at maximum gross weight. Even in the event that one of the two engines fails, the Bell 525 provides sufficient power to maintain occupant safety while lifting off with a single operational engine.
The Bell 525 is powered by General Electric CT7-2F1 turboshaft engines rated at 1,800 shp (1,342 kW).
With over 60 helicopters reserved under letters of intent, the Bell 525 is designed to provide operators and end users with a high level of situational awareness and the ability to perform a wide variety of missions under challenging weather conditions.
The first flight test started with taxi testing and maneuvers. The aircraft then went into an initial hover, performing various hover maneuvers. Also tested were were low speed handling qualities with winds gusting to 20 knots.
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