The resurgent offshore energy industry is driving fresh demand for the S-92A, Sikorsky’s largest civil helicopter. Sikorsky delivered just four in 2022 and three last year. But three more are on the assembly line at the company’s West Palm Beach, Florida facility, and the company is in the final stages of negotiations for a block of 14 new-build helicopters for delivery in 2025 and 2026.
These helicopters will be delivered in the upgraded “A+” configuration that includes the new Phase IV main gearbox and a menu of choices including uprated GE CT7-8A6 engines that offer better high/hot performance. The upgraded gearbox uses a supplemental oil pump and additional oil lines to reuse main gearbox oil that is accumulated in a lower sump in the event of primary lubrication failure.
The A+ kits will also be available for retrofit. Leon Silva, Sikorsky's v-p for commercial business, told AIN that Sikorsky has made “good progress” toward certification of the A+ kits. The company anticipates receiving FAA approval in 2025.
Most of the certification work has centered around the Phase IV gearbox “and improvements associated with that,” he added. “We made a lot of nice progress last year and have it [the A+ program] fully funded and going full speed this year.”
Record S-92 post-Covid flight activity created a “perfect storm” for the OEM, with the helicopters flying many more hours at a greater tempo than anticipated, Silva said. “They’re more active than ever before. While that validates the quality and strength of the design, it also creates supply chain issues.
“We are trying to work through them, and they are improving slowly. Time is the biggest challenge. Most of these parts have long lead times, and it takes time to recover from that.”
Though Sikorsky has made progress in keeping customers supplied with parts and assemblies, Silva admitted that it remains a problem. He said the lead time for a new S-92 main gearbox is 2.5 years but often customers can accept a refurbishment as opposed to a replacement.
That said, Sikorsky boosted gearbox output by 40 percent in 2023 compared with 2022, delivering 39. It anticipates increasing that number by 25 percent in 2024 and being caught up with the main gearbox backlog, as well as future anticipated needs, by year-end. Silva said Sikorsky produced a record number of gearbox housings in 2023—a component that requires highly complex fabrication.