Robinson Helicopter has announced its new R88 helicopter, the largest in the line.

What is known about the helicopter at the moment?

Visually, the helicopter has become much larger, which is reflected in the capacity of the helicopter. Robinson 88 will now be able to take on board up to 8 passengers, which is twice as much as the R66 helicopter model with a capacity of up to 4 passengers.

Despite the fact that the helicopter has become larger, it will significantly expand its capabilities in performing not only passenger transportation, but also all kinds of rescue operations and medical missions, cargo transportation, and so on.

This will also be facilitated by a flat floor. Structurally, a flat floor allows you to install various equipment, including various mechanical lifting systems, as well as take cargo on board not only in the luggage compartment, but also install stretchers and medical equipment for air ambulances.

I would also like to note the convenience of boarding, loading and unloading thanks to two large sliding doors on both sides of the helicopter.

Such doors are not afraid of gusts of wind when the helicopter is located, especially at heliports, airports and airfields with a lot of aircraft traffic, and they can also be fixed during a flight, hovering, etc.

Robinson 44 helicopters do not have a luggage compartment, Robinson 66 is already equipped with one and it is located on the starboard side, with the possibility of loading a maximum of 4 medium-sized suitcases. But the R88 luggage compartment with hinged doors is located on the rear side of the fuselage. This design feature is due to the displacement of the engine higher and closer to the main rotor.

In general, the helicopter will retain the usual two-bladed main rotor and open rear tail rotor. The presence of fenestron has not yet been observed and is not announced by the designers, but in practice any machine can be modernized and modified not only before leaving the assembly line, but also during operation.

The helicopter is equipped with an Arriel 2W engine from the French manufacturer Safran, formerly known as Turbomeca. With this engine, the helicopter can travel a distance of up to 650 kilometers, which is on average 100 – 150 km more than its predecessors.

Robinson 88 will be equipped with Garmin avionics with large displays, a four-axis autopilot, a crew notification system for helicopter systems, and the helicopter will also be certified for instrument flights with one pilot.

Visually, the new helicopter retains the familiar lines of Robinson helicopters, but thanks to changes in the design, it strives to get closer to the widely used helicopters from the Eurocopter 135 and 145 series. These machines have become irreplaceable in Europe, in Kyiv and Ukraine for various passenger and medical flights.

On our part, we are very interested and we hope to see Robinson r88 for flights in Kyiv soon and experience the capabilities of the new machine.

R88 is already available for pre-order, as evidenced by the feedback form on the official website of the manufacturer.

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