機体振動の軽減、メインブレードを4枚から5枚に増やすなどの改良された |
| Ceremony of Airbus Helicopters. |
| On the right, Hiroka Shimokawa (Executive Officer, President of Aerospace Systems Company) from Kawasaki Heavy Industries. |
| On the left, Bruno Even (CEO) from Airbus Helicopters. |
To commemorate the delivery of the 2,000th BK117 helicopter series and the achievement of 8 million flight hours, Kawasaki Heavy Industries held a commemorative ceremony on December 4th at Airbus Helicopters' factory in Donauwörth, Germany. Executives from both companies also attended the ceremony, celebrating the past successes of the BK117 helicopter series and the strong cooperative relationship with Airbus that has lasted nearly 50 years.
The BK117 helicopter is a medium twin-engine aircraft developed and manufactured jointly by Airbus and Kawasaki Heavy Industries, widely used around the world for emergency medical services, police, firefighting and disaster prevention, media, personnel transport, and cargo transport. Since the delivery of the first unit in 1983, approximately 1,000 units have been delivered over nearly 30 years. Subsequent improvements to the aircraft have led to outstanding technical capabilities and high reliability, allowing for additional orders to be obtained in about a decade, culminating in the milestone of 2,000 deliveries worldwide.
In the future, the company will continue to develop performance enhancements and equipment tailored to various applications for the BK117 helicopter together with Airbus, and leverage the high reliability supported by past delivery records, as well as a detailed support system that encompasses development, manufacturing, sales, and after-sales service, to actively promote sales activities for the highly evaluated BK117 D-3 model both domestically and internationally, contributing to comfortable and safe aerial mobility.
| Main history of the BK117 helicopter series. | |
| 1977. | A joint development contract was signed with MBB (Messerchmitt-Bölkow-Blohm GmbH, now Airbus Helicopters) in West Germany. |
| 1983. | The first unit of the BK117 helicopter series was delivered. |
| 2001. | Sales began for the "BK117 C-2" model, which greatly expanded the cabin space. |
| 2012. | The cumulative delivery of BK117 helicopters reached 1,000 units. |
| The year 2016. | Started selling the "BK117 D-2 type" equipped with a new engine and improved tail rotor. |
| 2019 year |
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| 2024. | Achieved a cumulative delivery of 2,000 units of the BK117 helicopter series. |
Started selling the latest model "BK117 D-3 type" with improvements such as reducing aircraft vibration and increasing the main Blade from 4 to 5.(Related Links)
<川崎重工ウェブメディアANSWERS：高機能多用途双発ヘリコプター BK117 D-3型>
