Schweizer has received a full FAA production certificate for the S300C and S300CBi helicopters.
The company has produced the helicopters at its facilities in Fort Worth, Texas, under type certificate approval (PUTC). Working under a PUTC requires strict FAA oversight for each aircraft produced. With the issuance of a production certificate, Schweizer can manufacture the aircraft without limitations.
“With this certificate, the training wheels are off,” said Schweizer president and CEO David Horton. “Each aircraft will not require FAA oversight for every step of production, allowing us to increase production and reduce production time to meet our order demand.”
Horton added that, despite supply chain disruptions and other delays incurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, the FAA “remained very responsive to keep our production moving forward as we worked toward our production certificate.”
Schweizer (Booth C4420) received a certificate of airworthiness for the first S300C helicopter in July 2021, and it manufactured eight units under the PUTC. Four additional aircraft in the Schweizer S300C/S300CBi line are currently being produced “at a new accelerated pace thanks to the production certificate,” the company said. The FAA awarded the production certificate on March 1.
The S300C is a 2,050-pound utility rotorcraft powered by a 190-horsepower Lycoming HIO-360-D1A piston engine, with a 950-pound useful load and 95-knot top speed. The S300CBi trainer has a maximum takeoff weight of 1,750 pounds and is equipped with a 180-hp Lycoming HIO-360-G1A engine, delivering a 648-pound useful load and 94-knot top speed. Both models carry up to three passengers. Estimated prices are $450,000 for the S300C and $410,000 for the S300CBi.