Enstrom Helicopter signed a contract at Helitech International this week to deliver a new Enstrom 280FX to its dealer, Rotor & Aircraft Sari. The aircraft will be delivered to a French customer, Golf Tango, in the spring of 2019 and will be used to expand Golf Tango’s helicopter training operations. Golf Tango is an established ATO operating from Toussus-le-Noble Airport near Versailles, west of Paris.
Powered by a lightweight, turbocharged four-cylinder Lycoming IO-360 engine, the 280FX has a wide, spacious cabin capable of seating three abreast, and uses direct mechanical controls with electric trim and a fully articulated, three-blade rotor system. Enstrom claims that this gives better performance and handling than designs that use a teetering two-bladed main rotor.
Dennis Martin, director of sales and marketing at Enstrom, said that Golf Tango “picked the perfect machine for flight training. The 280FX is one of the safest aircraft out there, and it is especially rugged enough to handle the trials of a training helicopter.”