Enstrom’s Newest Turbine 480B Approved and Ready

Enstrom Helicopter has met all the FAA and EASA requirements to once again sell new turbine 480B helicopters manufactured at its Menominee, Michigan production site. The model’s crash-resistant fuel system (CRFS) was approved late last year, and now 480B production has resumed to fill new orders. Aircraft 5261 is the first new 480B signed off for full airworthiness and is available for sale, according to the company.

Although this and a subsequent 480B are equipped with a legacy six-pack instrument cluster and a Garmin GTN 650 navcom, upcoming versions will feature a Garmin G500H display,  GTN 650, ADS-B Out/In, and a Howell engine indication system. A larger GTN 750 will be an option.

Meanwhile, the company’s piston-powered 280FX’s CRFS is expected to be certified in the next couple of months, according to Enstrom senior v-p of product, sales, and customer excellence Charles Wade. “Our engineering team is working very closely with the FAA to push this project across the finish line. We are expecting to perform FAA flight tests in May, which would mean we could be ready to deliver factory-new 280FXs as early as July.” Enstrom also plans to offer the G500H in the 280FX but hasn’t set a timeline yet.

Work on the 480B’s Moog Genesys autopilot is done, he added, and once the G500H upgrade is approved, the autopilot will be approved shortly thereafter. Enstrom has six 480Bs in inventory and expects to build four more by the end of the year, along with four to six 280FXs.

“We’ve done a lot of good work here lately on getting the supply chain beefed up,” Wade said. “There are a number of key components we have aligned on secondary sources to help some of the lead times. We’re sitting in really good shape, and the pieces are coming together nicely.”