The Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) has granted production organization approval (POA) to Kopter, a milestone that the helicopter manufacturer says will enable it to ramp up production on its light single-engine SH09.
FOCA authorities handed over the production certificate on Friday to Kopter executives at the manufacturer’s facilities in Mollis, Switzerland. FOCA POA team leader for Kopter Urs Frei and national FOC POA coordinator Andreas Boss said the certification demonstrates that Kopter meets the highest aviation standards and possesses the capability, facilities, manpower, resources, and quality assurance to produce and support the SH09.
“We are extremely satisfied to receive this certificate, which acknowledges all the work we’ve done in building a well-performing team and organization,” Kopter COO Jan Nowacki said, calling the POA a key step in its efforts to bring the SHO9 to market.
The POA nod comes as Kopter recently nailed down the design of the helicopter and is working toward certification either later this year or early next year. PS4, its fourth pre-series flight-test helicopter, is anticipated to join the test campaign in the next few months.
POA approval also comes as the Swiss manufacturer is in the throes of being acquired by Leonardo, a transaction that is to close shortly.