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Not every aviation enthusiast will risk taking the time to design and build their own airplane or helicopter. Many more people prefer to fly right away, sometimes saving money and time by assembling equipment from kit kits. True, some go even further and outsource the assembly to professionals. Demand breeds supply. So the company “Aviation Technologies of Ukraine” appeared in Bila Tserkva. The city is aviation city, and there are enough professionals to set up assembly of light planes and helicopters. We started with the products of Van’s Aircraft, Inc. i.e. RV-7 and RV-10 aircraft. There were four at the rally, two of each type. However, the RV-10s were assembled in the USA, and the aircraft of Ukrainian assembly did not participate in the current rally. The machines themselves are excellent, and with the same quality of assembly the result was encouraging.

The next step is the assembly of Hummingbird 300LS helicopters. This unique machine is famous not only for many engineering solutions, but also for its rich history. Its prototype was I. Sikorsky S-52 helicopter, the first flight of which took place back in 1947. Four decades later, in 1991 the FAA made an unprecedented decision for those times and certified this helicopter, assembled from the kit kit.

Vertical Aviation Technologies Inc. previously produced the Hummingbird 260L kit. We wrote about it in AON #6’2010. At that time the company Avia-Nanny presented it at HeliRussia-2010 under the name Colibri 260L. L index means that the helicopter is equipped with 260 hp Lycoming VO-435 engine. Today Vertical Aviation Technologies Inc. presents two kits Hummingbird 300L and 300LS.

At the rally in Zhytomyr a helicopter was shown with a General Motors company V-shaped eight-cylinder injector LS7 engine with a capacity of 7 liters and 300 hp, which was specially designed for this helicopter. True, the LS7 is able to develop up to 325 hp at 3200 rpm, but the helicopter is nadrosellited so that up to 12 thousand feet to develop 280 hp The main advantage of this engine before the Lycoming VO-435 not in power, but in the ability to run on automotive gasoline with an octane number of 92, which is relevant today in most countries. At the same time it consumes about 49 liters per hour. It should be said that the flight characteristics of 260L and 300LS differ in the direction of increasing speed and range of 300LS. About how a specific aircraft was assembled and exhibited at the Korolev rally. Vladimir Ivanovich Dyachenko, representative of Aviation Technologies of Ukraine Ltd:

The helicopter was delivered to our facility last November, and we began assembly on December 6. Vertical Aviation Technologies Inc. sells kit kits in two versions: quick assembly and completely disassembled. We bought a kit that was completely disassembled. We assembled it on the premises of the customer’s company near Buzovaya near Kyiv. Five of our employees together with the customer, who according to the Ukrainian aviation legislation must perform at least 51% of assembling works, have practically finished by the beginning of the meeting. The adjustment of the bearing system, propeller-engine group is left to be performed, the helicopter has to be flown around and registered.- The helicopter was delivered to our facility last November, and we began assembly on December 6. Vertical Aviation Technologies Inc. sells kit kits in two versions: quick assembly and completely disassembled. We bought a kit that was completely disassembled. We assembled it on the premises of the customer’s company near Buzovaya near Kyiv. Five of our employees together with the customer, who according to the Ukrainian aviation legislation must perform at least 51% of assembling works, have practically finished by the beginning of the meeting. The adjustment of the bearing system, propeller-engine group is left to be performed, the helicopter has to be flown around and registered.

Hummingbird 300LS flight specifications

A special feature of this model is the conversion engine. It was originally installed in the Corvette sports car. In the aircraft version, it features a computer that automatically sets the octane number corresponding to the gasoline consumed.

We installed digital avionics: Odyssey EFIS by MLG avionics with a 10″ display, and an Icom-210 radio. The analog instruments duplicate the altitude and speed information. In other words, there is a complex installed on board, which allows flying in simple weather conditions in the daytime, as the helicopter is designed to be operated as an AON aircraft.

Hummingbird 300LS is the first helicopter of this type in Ukraine. We hope that many pilots will like it and there will be new orders.