Our project has great expectations for the future, with many Spanish provinces and aeronautical companies expressing their interest to build the factory where Helicats will be assembled. This interested is due to the fact that Helicat will bring them many well paying jobs and promote the economy of their region.
At Helicat we like to pay attention to even the smallest of details. For a young company this may mean to go a little slower than others, but we believe it is important to have a good, well-constructed foundation. Along these lines we have spent much time and energy in a long series of tests proving the validity of our patent, which is centered on Helicat’s rotor.
The rotor has been designed to decelerate very rapidly, and then stop all together transforming the Helicat from a helicopter or autogiro into an airplane. As an airplane the Helicat should be able to go faster then 600 km/hour, thus breaking the world speed record for a rotor aircraft.
Businesses owning a Helicat with and a rooftop heliport will save countless hours on travel time. The benefits are the same as using a private jet, coupled with the time saved not dealing with travel to and from the airport. Those without a heliport can still save time by flying out of smaller airports where parking hassles, crowds and lost luggage are nonexistent.
However, while the Helicat saves time like a private jet, it will cost only a fraction of the price. It is now estimated that the Helicat should retail for about 400,000 euros.
Another benefit of the Helicat is that is much simpler then a helicopter or a private jet. Thus, the maintenance costs and per hour flight costs, will be much less expensive. As an example of this simplification the cyclic has been replaced by a computerized system, which is only one of the technological developments of the Helicat.
Additionally, with our advanced computer controlled fly-by-wire system operating the Helicat, in any of its three modes of flight, is little more complicated then driving a common passenger car, and the transition between all these modes is taken care of automatically by the computer depending on the Helicat’s velocity.
The range of the Helicat is 2,500 km carrying five passengers and their luggage.
The University of Girona in association along side the University of Madrid’s aeronautical department, have designed the specific carbon fiber rotors needed for the Helicat.
The French multinational engineering company ESI, who specialize in fluid dynamics and mechanical stress, have run a series of tests on the feasibility of our patent. Their results confirm all that we have predicted, that the Helicat will experience no problems on its transitions between flight modes. These tests confirm the studies done by professors, José Luis López Ruiz and José Luis López Díaz of the Escuela de Ingenieros Aeronáuticos de Madrid, as well as Javier de Luis, PhD (MIT’89) CEO and Chief Scientist of Payload Systems Inc. all which indicate that the integrity of the rotor will not be affected by rapid deceleration nor will the in-flight stability be affected by this deceleration.
Through the Helicat the name, Juan de la Cierva, the inventor of the Helicat, will become a household name for those in the aeronautical world.
From a safety standpoint the Helicat should be the safest aircraft in the sky, this is because the Helicat also functions as an autogiro and as such it can make a safe landing even with a complete loss of power.
In the autogiro mode the Helicat is able to fly very slow speeds very efficiently, thus making it much less expensive to operate then a helicopter.
Because Helicat is also an airplane it can land as an airplane, thus with heavy loads or when fuel saving are necessary, it can land at any airport, or as a helicopter or autogiro it can land wherever there is adequate space, in a heliport, in a meadow, or in one’s backyard.
As a company, with all our initial tests and theoretical research done, we are at a point to begin constructing the first prototype.
As a young company we are also interested in finding partners for the next stage of development. Engineers to help speed us through the creation of our prototype, as well as specialists in the aeronautical field who maybe excited about such an innovative new type of aircraft. We would be especially interested in future partners who would be willing to donate their time and expertise now, with the prospect to owning a share of Helicat and being a leader in this exciting new market. A market that will not only include Helicat, but the entire substructure necessary to support this new type of transportation. |
