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58-646: Bell Textron Inc. is an American aerospace manufacturer headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas . A subsidiary of Textron , Bell manufactures military rotorcraft at facilities in Fort Worth, and Amarillo, Texas , United States as well as commercial helicopters in Mirabel, Quebec , Canada . The company was founded on July 10, 1935, as Bell Aircraft Corporation by Lawrence Dale Bell in Buffalo, New York . The company focused on

116-516: A new variant may require re-certification. Again the basic process of type certifications is repeated (including maintenance programs). However, unaltered items from the basic design need not be retested. Normally, one or two of the original prototype fleet are remanufactured to the new proposed design. As long as the new design does not deviate too much from the original, static airframes do not need to be built. The resultant new prototypes are again subjected to flight tests. Upon successful completion of

174-740: A particular type design. ADs are used by the certifying authority to notify aircraft owners and operators of unsafe conditions and to require their correction. ADs prescribe the conditions and limitations, including inspection, repair, or alteration under which the product may continue to be operated. With increasing in-service experience, the type certificate holder may find ways to improve the original design resulting in either lower maintenance costs or increased performance. These improvements (normally involving some alterations) are suggested through service bulletins to an aircraft owners/operators as optional (and may be extra cost) items. The owner/operator shall exercise their discretion whether or not to incorporate

232-544: A separate unit to Hurst, Texas in 1951. Textron purchased Bell Aerospace in 1960. Bell Aerospace was composed of three divisions of Bell Aircraft Corporation, including its helicopter division, which had become its only division still producing complete aircraft. The helicopter division was renamed Bell Helicopter Company and in a few years, with the success of the UH-1 Huey during the Vietnam War, it had established itself as

290-687: A significant milestone with the delivery of the 500th Bell 429 helicopter. This notable aircraft was received by the Mendes Group, a prominent operator headquartered in Latin America, intended for corporate transportation purposes within Brazil. Established in 1986, its Mirabel, Quebec facility assembles and delivers most of Bell's commercial helicopters and delivered its 5,000th helicopter on December 12, 2017. Bell manufacturing and support facilities are: Aerospace manufacturer The aircraft industry

348-422: A similar alliance with either Embraer with its E-jet E2 or Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and its MRJ . On 21 December, Boeing and Embraer confirmed to be discussing a potential combination with a transaction subject to Brazilian government regulators, the companies' boards and shareholders approvals. The weight of Airbus and Boeing could help E2 and CSeries sales but the 100-150 seats market seems slow. As

406-508: A special program to restore U.S. competitiveness across all U.S. industries, Project Socrates , contributed to employment growth as the U.S. aerospace industry captured 72 percent of world aerospace market. By 1999 U.S. share of the world market fell to 52 percent. In the European Union , aerospace companies such as Airbus , Safran , BAE Systems , Thales , Dassault , Saab AB , Terma A/S , Patria Plc and Leonardo are participants in

464-456: Is Japan ), strong transportation infrastructure (#5, #1 is Hong Kong ), a healthy economy (#10, #1 is China ), but high costs (#7, #1 is Denmark ) and average tax policy (#36, #1 is Qatar ). Following were Canada , Singapore , Switzerland and United Kingdom . Within the US, the most attractive was Washington state , due to the best Industry (#1), leading Infrastructure (#4, New Jersey

522-403: Is #1) and Economy (#4, Texas is #1), good labor (#9, Massachusetts is #1), average tax policy (#17, Alaska is #1) but is costly (#33, Montana is #1). Washington is tied to Boeing Commercial Airplanes , earning $ 10.3 billion, is home to 1,400 aerospace-related businesses, and has the highest aerospace jobs concentration. Following are Texas, Georgia , Arizona and Colorado . In the US,

580-442: Is available. An STC is less expensive because the design change can be developed by a specialized design organization, a generally more flexible and efficient process than going through the original manufacturer. The STC defines the product design change, states how the modification affects the existing type design, and lists serial numbers of the aircraft affected. It also identifies the certification basis for regulatory compliance for

638-511: Is based. Several consolidations took place in the aerospace and defense industries over the last few decades. Airbus prominently illustrated the European airliner manufacturing consolidation in the late 1960s. Between 1988 and 2010, more than 5,452 mergers and acquisitions with a total known-value of US$ 579 billion were announced worldwide. In 1993, then United States Secretary of Defense Les Aspin and his deputy William J. Perry held

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696-425: Is in compliance with applicable airworthiness requirements established by the national air law . For up to three seats, primary category aircraft certification costs around US$ 1 million, US$ 25 million for a general aviation aircraft and hundreds of millions of dollars for a commercial aircraft ; certification delays can cost millions of dollars and can decide a program's profitability. A type certificate (TC)

754-446: Is issued by the aircraft operator and approved by the regulatory authority of the state of registry to maintain the airworthiness of the aircraft of the type owned by the operator. Maintenance tasks outlined in the maintenance program have to be scheduled and timely accomplished in order for the airworthiness certificate of their aircraft to remain valid. Other continuing airworthiness activities include additional tasks associated with

812-562: Is issued for each aircraft that is properly registered if it conforms to its type design and ready for safe operation. The CoA is valid and the aircraft may be operated as long as it is maintained in accordance with the rules issued by the regulatory authority. The concept of a 'type certificate' was introduced by the "Air Navigation Regulations" published in May 1919 by the UK's Secretary of State for Air , Winston Churchill . The Buhl-Verville CA-3 Airster

870-460: Is issued to signify the airworthiness of the approved design or "type" of an aircraft to be manufactured. The TC is issued by a regulatory authority, and once issued, the design cannot be changed unless at least part of the process for certification is repeated to cover the changes. The TC reflects a determination made by a regulatory authority that the type design is in compliance with airworthiness requirements. Examples of regulatory authorities are

928-417: Is the industry supporting aviation by building aircraft and manufacturing aircraft parts for their maintenance . This includes aircraft and parts used for civil aviation and military aviation . Most production is done pursuant to type certificates and Defense Standards issued by a government body. This term has been largely subsumed by the more encompassing term: " aerospace industry". In 2015

986-471: Is the successor company to numerous British aircraft manufacturers which merged throughout the second half of the 20th century. Many of these mergers followed the 1957 Defence White Paper . Marconi Electronic Systems , a subsidiary of the General Electric Company plc , was acquired by British Aerospace for US$ 12.3 billion in 1999 merger, to form BAE Systems . In 2002, when Fairchild Dornier

1044-465: The A320 . Tier 1 consolidation also affects engine manufacturers : GE Aerospace acquired Avio in 2013 and Rolls-Royce took control of ITP Aero . Type certificate A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design ( type design ). Certification confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production

1102-500: The Airbus A380 , less than 100 major suppliers outsource 60% of its value, even 80% on the A350 . Boeing embraced an aggressive Tier 1 model for the 787 but with its difficulties began to question why it was earning lower margins than its suppliers while it seemed to take all the risk, ensuing its 2011 Partnering for Success initiative, as Airbus initiated its own Scope+ initiative for

1160-567: The Bombardier Global Express pioneered the "Tier 1" supply chain model inspired by automotive industry , with 10-12 risk-sharing limited partners funding around half of the development costs. The Embraer E-Jet followed in the late 1990s with fewer than 40 primary suppliers. Tier 1 suppliers were led by Honeywell , Safran , Goodrich Corporation and Hamilton Sundstrand . In the 2000s, Rolls-Royce reduced its supplier count after bringing in automotive supply chain executives. On

1218-474: The CSeries partnership between Airbus and Bombardier Aerospace could trigger a daisy chain of reactions towards a new order. Airbus gets a new, efficient model at the lower end of the narrowbody market which provides the bulk of airliner profits and can abandon the slow selling A319 while Bombardier benefits from the growth in this expanded market even if it holds a smaller residual stake. Boeing could forge

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1276-703: The Department of Defense and NASA are the two biggest consumers of aerospace technology and products. The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States reported that the aerospace industry employed 444,000 wage and salary jobs in 2004, many of which were in Washington and California, this marked a steep decline from the peak years during the Reagan Administration when total employment exceeded 1,000,000 aerospace industry workers. During that period of recovery

1334-503: The "Last Supper" at the Pentagon with contractors executives who were told that there were twice as many military suppliers as he wanted to see: $ 55 billion in military–industry mergers took place from 1992 to 1997, leaving mainly Boeing , Lockheed Martin , Northrop Grumman and Raytheon . Boeing bought McDonnell Douglas for US$ 13.3 billion in 1996. Raytheon acquired Hughes Aircraft Company for $ 9.5 billion in 1997. BAE Systems

1392-761: The A340-600 which is based on the Airbus A340-200 and the A340-300. Any additions, omissions or alterations to the aircraft's certified layout, built-in equipment, airframe and engines, initiated by any party other than the type certificate holder, need an approved supplementary ("supplemental" in FAA terminology) type certificate, or STC. The scope of an STC can be extremely narrow or broad. It could include minor modifications to passenger cabin items or installed instruments. More substantial modifications may involve engine replacement, as in

1450-659: The Blackhawk modifications to Cessna Conquest and Beechcraft King Air turboprops , or a complete role change for the aircraft, such as converting a B-17 or Stearman into an agricultural aircraft. STCs are applied due to either the type certificate holder's refusal (frequently due to economics) or its inability to meet some owners' requirements. STCs are frequently raised for out-of-production aircraft types conversions to fit new roles. Before STCs are issued, procedures similar to type certificate changes for new variants are followed, likely including thorough flight tests. STCs belong to

1508-693: The CSeries, renamed A220, and E-jet E2 are more capable than their predecessors, they moved closer to the lower end of the narrowbodies . In 2018, the four Western airframers combined into two within nine months as Boeing acquired 80% of Embraer's airliners for $ 3.8 billion on July 5. On April 3, 2020, Raytheon and United Technologies Corporation (except Otis Worldwide , leaving Rockwell Collins and engine maker Pratt and Whitney ) merged to form Raytheon Technologies Corporation , with combined sales of $ 79 billion in 2019. The most prominent unions between 1995 and 2020 include those of Boeing and McDonnell Douglas;

1566-818: The French, German and Spanish parts of EADS; and United Technologies with Rockwell Collins then Raytheon, but many mergers projects did not went through: Textron-Bombardier, EADS-BAE Systems, Hawker Beechcraft-Superior Aviation, GE-Honeywell, BAE Systems-Boeing (or Lockheed Martin), Dassault-Aerospatiale, Safran-Thales, BAE Systems-Rolls-Royce or Lockheed Martin–Northrop Grumman. The largest aerospace suppliers are United Technologies with $ 28.2 billion of revenue, followed by GE Aviation with $ 24.7 billion, Safran with $ 22.5 billion, Rolls-Royce Holdings with $ 16.9 billion, Honeywell Aerospace with $ 15.2 billion and Rockwell Collins including B/E Aerospace with $ 8.1 billion. Electric aircraft development could generate large changes for

1624-496: The STC holder and are generally more restrictive than type certificate changes. The TC holder remains responsible for the continued integrity of the approved aircraft type design and must continue to be the focal point for resolving issues that may require corrective action. This requires the continued capability, or access to a capability, of providing appropriate technical solutions for service difficulties or mandatory corrective action. If

1682-640: The United Kingdom's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Transport Canada , Brazil’s Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil and the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). When changes are needed to an airframe or on-board equipment, there are two options. One is to initiate a modification by the type design holder (manufacturer), and

1740-1036: The United States ( Boeing ), Montreal and Toronto in Canada ( Bombardier , Pratt & Whitney Canada ), Toulouse and Bordeaux in France ( Airbus , Dassault , ATR ), Seville in Spain and Hamburg in Germany ( Airbus ), the North-West of England and Bristol in Britain ( Airbus and AgustaWestland ), Komsomolsk-on-Amur and Irkutsk in Russia ( Sukhoi , Beriev ), Kyiv and Kharkiv in Ukraine ( Antonov ), Nagoya in Japan ( Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Aerospace and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Aerospace ), as well as São José dos Campos in Brazil where Embraer

1798-506: The aerospace suppliers. On 26 November 2018, United Technologies announced the completion of its Rockwell Collins acquisition, renaming systems supplier UTC Aerospace Systems as Collins Aerospace , for $ 23 billion of sales in 2017 and 70,000 employees, and $ 39.0 billion of sales in 2017 combined with engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney . Before the 1980s/1990s, aircraft and aeroengine manufacturers were vertically integrated . Then Douglas aircraft outsourced large aerostructures and

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1856-700: The aircraft production was worth US$ 180.3 billion: 61% airliners , 14% business and general aviation , 12% military aircraft , 10% military rotary wing and 3% civil rotary wing; while their MRO was worth $ 135.1 Bn or $ 315.4 Bn combined. The global aerospace industry was worth $ 838.5 billion in 2017: aircraft & engine OEMs represented 28% ($ 235 Bn), civil & military MRO & upgrades 27% ($ 226 Bn), aircraft systems & component manufacturing 26% ($ 218 Bn), satellites & space 7% ($ 59 Bn), missiles & UAVs 5% ($ 42 Bn) and other activity, including flight simulators , defense electronics, public research accounted for 7% ($ 59 Bn). The Top 10 countries with

1914-449: The applicable Minimum Operating Performance Standards (MOPS) applicable to that sub-assembly. MOPS are published by expert industry groups such as: RTCA Inc., EUROCAE, and SAE. When aircraft are produced to meet a given TC, each one need not be tested as rigorously but the confidence demonstrated by the TC is conferred, when the aircraft has been assigned a certificate of airworthiness (CoA). A CoA

1972-420: The applicant firm also draws up maintenance program to support continuous airworthiness after approval of the design. The program is drawn with inputs from tests results and also from initial customers' engineering departments. The proposed maintenance program is submitted to the regulators for comment and approval. After successful completion of ground and flight tests, along with an approved maintenance program,

2030-469: The applicant would have to change the design as a result of changed regulation. An initial design sample known as a prototype is built. This refers to either the aircraft, the engines or the propeller, depending on the basis of the certification. For the purpose of illustration, the discussion shall be limited to the aircraft. Normally a few prototypes are built, each subject to different tests. The prototypes are first used for ground and system tests. One of

2088-509: The bulletins and report the decision to the regulatory authority of the state of the aircraft registry. Sometimes SBs can become mandated by relevant ADs. Often the basic design is enhanced further by the type certificate holder. Major changes beyond the authority of the service bulletins require amendments to the type certificate. For example, increasing (or decreasing) an aircraft's flight performance, range and load carrying capacity by altering its systems, fuselage, wings or engines resulting in

2146-515: The certification program, the original type certificate is amended to include the new variant (normally denoted by a new model number additional to the original type designation). Typical examples are; the Boeing 737NG (737-600, 737-700, 737-800 and 737-900) which replaced the 737 Original family (737-100 and 737-200) and the 737 Classic family (737-300, 737-400 and 737-500) and the Airbus A340-500 and

2204-428: The design change. The TC implies that aircraft manufactured according to the approved design can be issued an airworthiness certificate . To meet those requirements the aircraft and each sub-assembly must also be approved. For example, in the U.S. these sub-assemblies must meet requirements in the applicable Technical Standards Order (TSO). To meet those requirements the design documents are examined for compliance with

2262-707: The designing and building of fighter aircraft. Their first fighters were the XFM-1 Airacuda , a twin-engine fighter for attacking bombers, and the P-39 Airacobra . The P-59 Airacomet , the first American jet fighter, the P-63 Kingcobra , the successor to the P-39, and the Bell X-1 were also Bell products. In 1941, Bell hired Arthur M. Young , a talented inventor, to provide expertise for helicopter research and development. It

2320-662: The exception of the AB139, which is now known as the AW139 . Bell and AW cooperated also on the AW609 tiltrotor . Bell planned to reduce employment by 760 in 2014 as fewer V-22s were made. A rapid prototyping center called XworX assists Bell's other divisions in reducing development time. The company was rebranded as "Bell" on February 22, 2018. In July 2024, at the Farnborough International Airshow, Bell Textron commemorated

2378-406: The final approval of such documents (after the required comments and amendments in order to fulfill the laws), becomes the basis of the certification. The firm follows it and draws a proposed timetable of actions required for certification tests. With the application, the regulations to be applied will usually be frozen for this application for a given amount of time in order to avoid a situation where

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2436-476: The frames outlined in a TC data sheet, and each given a serial number (a "series aircraft"). As the aircraft enters into service, it is subject to operational wear and tear which may cause performance degradations. The set of processes by which an aircraft, engine, propeller or part complies with the applicable airworthiness requirements and remains in a condition for safe operation throughout its operating life called continuing airworthiness . A maintenance program

2494-513: The global aerospace industry and research effort. In Russia , large aerospace companies like Oboronprom and the United Aircraft Corporation (encompassing Mikoyan , Sukhoi , Ilyushin , Tupolev , Yakovlev , and Irkut , which includes Beriev ) are among the major global players in this industry. Important locations of the civil aerospace industry worldwide include Seattle , Wichita, Kansas , Dayton, Ohio and St. Louis in

2552-452: The holder is no longer capable or if the TC is transferred to another holder a regulatory authority should take appropriate action in accordance with the national legislation. In the case of the TC being transferred to another holder the new holder shall be capable of fulfilling the TC holder responsibilities in following ADs and providing technical support to keep the type design current with the applicable airworthiness requirements, even after

2610-433: The largest division of Textron. In January 1976, Textron changed the division's name to Bell Helicopter Textron . Bell Helicopter had a close association with AgustaWestland . The partnership dated back to separate manufacturing and technology agreements with Agusta ( Bell 47 and Bell 206 ) and as a sublicence via Agusta with Westland ( Bell 47 ). When the two European firms merged, the partnerships were retained, with

2668-623: The largest industrial bases in 2017 were the United States with $ 408.4 billion (representing 49% of the whole), followed by France with $ 69 billion (8.2%), then China with $ 61.2 billion (7.3%), the United Kingdom with $ 48.8 billion (5.8%), Germany with $ 46.2 billion (5.5%), Russia with $ 27.1 billion (3.2%), Canada with $ 24 billion (2.9%), Japan with $ 21 billion (2.5%), Spain with $ 14 billion (1.7%) and India with $ 11 billion (1.3%). These ten countries represent $ 731 billion or 87.2% of

2726-504: The maintenance program and design changes to be accomplished via: Sometimes during service, the aircraft may encounter problems that may compromise the aircraft's safety, which are not anticipated or detected in prototype testing stages. The aircraft design is thus compromised. The regulators will now issue an airworthiness directive to the type certificate holder and to all owners globally. The directives normally consists of additional maintenance or design actions that are necessary to restore

2784-412: The other is to request a third party Supplemental type certificate (STC). The choice is determined by considering whether or not the change constitutes a new design (i.e. introduces risk not considered in the first type design). If so, then type design holder must develop and approve a modification to the type design. If the regulatory authority agrees the change does not introduce new risk, the STC option

2842-423: The production of the aircraft type has stopped but many out-of-production aircraft continue useful lives. STCs are also bound by the same rules. When the holder decides to stop supporting the aircraft type without the transfer of TC holder responsibilities, the TC is returned to the issuing regulatory authority and the remaining aircraft fleet can be grounded by the current states of registry until further decisions on

2900-399: The prototype is approved, and the firm is granted the TC for the prototype (as understood that it should include all furnished equipment for its intended role). The legal term for the firm is now the "type certificate holder". Subsequently, the prototype now serves as a template for serial aircraft production and the aircraft rolling out of the factory should be identical to the prototype within

2958-548: The prototypes (known as the "static airframe") is subject to destructive testing, i.e., the prototype is subject to stress beyond normal and abnormal operations until destruction. The test-results are compared with initial submitted calculations to establish the ultimate structural strength. Other prototypes will undergo other systems tests until the satisfaction of the regulators. With all ground tests completed, prototypes are made ready for flight tests. The flight tests are flown by specially approved flight test pilots who will fly

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3016-404: The prototypes to establish the ultimate flight limits which should be within the airworthiness rules. If a long range airliner is tested, the flight tests may cover the whole world. Tests may also cover different environments - high and low altitude, freezing and hot climates, and so on, to confirm correct performance throughout the aircraft's design envelope . In parallel with aircraft testing,

3074-399: The type's airworthiness. Compliance is mandatory and thus if an operator does not comply with an AD, then the datum aircraft is not considered airworthy and further operation of the affected aircraft type would be unlawful , making the operator liable to legal action by the relevant national aviation authority, and rendering null-and-void any of the operator's insurance policies relating to

3132-474: The type, such as hull loss and accident third party coverage. ADs may also be raised with changes of the local or global aviation rules and requirements, e.g., the requirement to fit armored cockpit doors for all passenger airliners after the September 11 attacks . The certifying authority issues an AD when an unsafe condition is found to exist in a product (aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance) of

3190-459: The whole industry. In 2018, the new commercial aircraft value is projected for $ 270.4 billion while business aircraft will amount for $ 18 billion and civil helicopters for $ 4 billion. In September 2018, PwC ranked aerospace manufacturing attractiveness: the most attractive country was the United States , with $ 240 billion in sales in 2017, due to the sheer size of the industry (#1) and educated workforce (#1), low geopolitical risk (#4, #1

3248-500: Was bankrupt , Airbus, Boeing or Bombardier declined to take the 728JET /928JET large regional jet program as mainline and regional aircraft manufacturers were split and Airbus was digesting its ill-fated Fokker acquisition a decade earlier. On September 4, 2017, United Technologies acquired Rockwell Collins in cash and stock for $ 23 billion, $ 30 billion including Rockwell Collins' net debt, for $ 500+ million of synergies expected by year four. The Oct. 16, 2017 announcement of

3306-471: Was the first aircraft to receive a type certificate in the US, (i.e. A.T.C. No. 1) issued by the Aeronautics Branch of the Department of Commerce on March 29, 1927. Initially, the applicant design organisation submits documents to their local aviation regulating body, detailing how the proposed aircraft type design would fulfill the airworthiness requirements. After investigations by the regulator,

3364-475: Was the foundation for what Bell hoped would be a broader economic base for his company that was not dependent on government contracts . The Bell 30 was their first full-size helicopter (first flight December 29, 1942) and the Bell 47 became the first helicopter in the world rated by a civil aviation authority , becoming a civilian and military success. Due to its burgeoning success, the helicopter division relocated as

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