Heli-One's Flight Test Organisation
Did you know that Heli-One Norway has an EASA-recognized Flight Test Organisation? Find out why flight testing is so important and meet Tore Reimers, the Head of Flight Test.
Under new EASA regulations, companies that wish to perform their own flight testing must do so through a Flight Test Organisation. Heli-One Norway established such a Flight Test Organisation which was recognised by EASA in February 2016. They became the only non-OEM organisation in Norway to be recognized and is one of the first in Europe. The inaugural test flight was for the Electronic Flight Information System and Flight Management System upgrade on behalf of a third-party customer.
One of the key people involved is Tore Reimers, who is the Head of Flight Test. He is also a fixed-wing Test Pilot and acts as a Flight Test Engineer on rotary-wing aircraft. He leads a team that includes a Category 1 Chief Test Pilot, Chief Flight Test Engineer, and additional staff needed for any given project. This small but mighty team work closely with Design Engineers, operators, external vendors and regulatory representatives to ensure the thorough and safe helicopter flight testing.
Flight testing is not simply a matter of “will it work?” but is a combination of applying methodology and best practices to demonstrate the safe operation and
airworthiness of new modifications across a variety of situations. This means performing flight testing in a
different scenarios, climates, and terrains to ensure that the modification performance can be tracked, detailed and if needed, adjusted accordingly.
Testing can be broken down into three general stages: preparation & planning, execution, and reporting. Tore notes that the team learns the most from the first test - you are really able to see if the extensive planning translates into reality. He also commented that every project is unique - not only in the aircraft and modification but with operators/customers and regulatory challenges. These variables make each project a great learning
opportunity and challenges the team to be flexible and adaptable but still keeping with stringent safety and regulatory standards.
The team performs work for Heli-One’s Design department but can also contract out for 3rd party flight testing for other design organizations or operators. Many thanks to Tore & his team for the valuable contribution they make to Heli-One!