1974, January

During the discussion between the both parties, KHI mentioned its project for 6 to 7 passenger helicopter.

1974, March

1974, September

1975, July

During the visit of KHI at MBB Ottobrunn, the idea was suggested to develop the new helicopter with MBB, KHI and Boeing-Vertol.

MBB’s internal project number for this helicopter was BO107.

1975, October

After Boeing has left the programme, on October 1975, the first Programme Meeting BO107 / KH-7 was held at Ottobrunn.

1976, June

1976, July

1976, December

Co-Operation Agreement

The rough draft of the Co-Operation Agreement between MBB and Kawasaki has been finalized.

1977, 25^th Feb.

Co-operation Agreement to develop the common BK117 signed 25^th. February 1977

between Messerschmitt Bölkow Blom (MBB) and Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) for the helicopter BK117. It was agreed to have 2 different productions lines one in Donauwörth / Germany and the otherone in Gifu / Japan.

• 50:50 work sharing
• “Single-Source” policy, that means that each partner is producing part and systems which he has developped
• Market sharing

The main contract partners were: 

At Boeing-Vertol side: Messers. Von Dobbelhof, Grina, Ciechon

At Kawasaki side: Messers. Yamada, Kagitomi, Tobinaga, Tsuboi (lawyer)

At MBB side: Messers. Pfleiderer, Halff, Weiland, Denker, Musmann (the later BK117 programme director), Dr. Fabian, Dr. Turck (lawyer)

Further members of the Kawasaki delegation: Messers. Uchino, Sato, Iwata, Koshimuzu, Takeuchi, Tanaka, Tamura, Mori, Nakamuto (Reference: Dieter Halff)

1979, January

BK117 Mock-up presentation at HAA

1979, March

BK117 P1 (1^st prototype)

MBB ground test vehicle at Ottobrunn / Munich

1979, May

BK117 P2 (2^nd prototype) Roll out

MBB flight test vehicle

1979, June 13^th

BK117 P2 (2^nd prototype) First Flight conducted by chief test pilot Siegfried Hoffmann in Ottobrunn / Munich. This first flight started 13:55 MEZ with great success. The helicopter was equipped with two Allied Signal Lycoming LTS 101-650 B-1 engines.

1979, Aug. 10^th

BK117 P3 (3^rd prototype) First Flight in Gifu / Japan.

KHI flight test vehicle.

1980, January

BK117 Cold Weather Tests

Within the frame of the type certification process “cold-weather tests” have to be performed. This programme has been conducted by KHI with BK117 P3. The below mentioned systems have been tested:

• Heating- and ventilation system
• Engine starts under cold weather conditions
• Fuel tests

The programme took 30 days. 30 ground runs and test flights up to 15,000 ft, with outside temperature of -42°C, have successfully been performed.

1981, March 6^th

BK117 S-01 (pre-series production helicopter) First Flight of 50 minutes in Ottobrunn / Munich.

MBB Chief test pilot Siegfried Hoffmann and flight test engineer Walter Sinn undertook the first trials in hover flight and made six further flights the same day.

1981, June

Le Bourget Aero Salon

The flight performances of the pre-series production helicopter BK117 S-01 and the 2 mock-ups, in EMS configuration, respectively in utility version, at the static display were the attraction at the MBB stand.

1981, October

ADAC Helicopter Conference

October 1^st and 2^nd the German Automobile Club (ADAC) organized the 7^th Annual Helicopter Rescue Conference at the “Kurzentrum” (Convention Centre) in Schliersee. The predominant topics included fire in high-rise buildings and in the mountains, as well as rescue operations by night and under poor visibility conditions. MBB contributed with the mock-up of the BK117 in Bucher-EMS configuration.

1981, Dec. 1^st

BK117, SN 1001 - Maiden Flight

The first BK117 series production helicopter of MBB partner company KHI completed its maiden flight on December 1^st in Gifu / Japan.

1982, April 23^rd

BK117 A-1, SN 7001, Maiden Flight

On April 23^rd 1982 the maiden flight of the MBB series production helicopter BK117, SN 7001, took place in Ottobrunn. The flight was performed by chef-test pilot Siegfried Hoffmann and flight-test engineer Walter.

1982, November

BK117 A-1, SN 7002

Delivery of the first series production BK117 helicopter to MBB Helicopter Corporation (MHC).

1982, Dec. 9^th

BK 117 A-1   LBA - VFR Type Certification

• LBA TCDS-No. and Approval-No. 3049
• FAR Part 29, Category A, Amendment 29-1 to 29-16
• Maximum Gross Weight 2,850 KGs
• 2 x Allied Signal Lycoming LTS 101-650B-1 engines
• Main Rotor Transmission KHI KB 03
• Hingeless Rotor System with Composite Rotor Blades
• Fail Safe and System Redundancy Design (valid for all versions)

1982, December

BK117 A-1 Start of series production and delivery out of Donauwörth / Germany.

1983, February

BK117 A-1, SN 7002, Height Certification Flights

From February 24^th until March 3^rd  MBB and MHC performed further flight tests in order to improve the flight envelope of the BK117. The extreme elevation of Leadville airfield (9,927 ft or 3,025 m) / Colorado was perfect to prove hover flight in and out of ground effect (HIGE, HOGE) up to 11,000 ft..

1983, March

BK117 A-1, Delivery of First Japanese Series Production Helicopter

On March 18^th 1983 the first helicopters from the Japanese production line were delivered to New Japan Domestic Airlines.

1983, March 29^th

BK117 A-1   FAA - VFR Type Certification

On March 29^th  MBB received from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) the Type Certificate for the BK117. The document has been handed over by C.R. “Tex” Melugin, Director of FAA Southwest Region, to C.W. “Wes” Moore, president of MHC, during a ceremony at MHC / Westchester.

1983, May

BK117 A-1, SN 7017, High Temperature Tests

Further flight test have been performed in May 1^st until 12^th in Khartoum / Sudan. Airfield elevation 1, 250 ft or 381m with extreme outside temperature between 44° and 52° C. Under these conditions the tests covered:

• hover flights
• take-offs and landings
• rate of climb
• speed tests up to Vne

1984, February

BK117 A-1, SN 7005, ADAC “Christopher 1”

February 3^rd , the first BK117 helicopter in EMS Version operated by ADAC went into service in hospital Munich-Harlaching. The helicopter is still in service.

1984, February

BK117 A-1, SN 7010, Low Temperature Tests

The low temperature tests have been performed by an outside temperature of -42° C in Cambridge Bay / Canada, about 850 km north of Yellowknife.

The right-hand photo shows the evaluation team: Siegmund Mertlbauer, Peter Dahm (engine system engineer), Walter Sinn (flight test engineer), Winfried Schulenberg, Kurt Intveen (test pilot) and O. Humplmair.

1984, August

BK117 A-1   LBA - DPIFR Type Certification

1985, January

BK117 A-1   FAA - DPIFR Type Certification

1985, March

BK117 A-3 – 7^th Joint Type Certification (T/C) Board

From March 4^th until 7^th , 1985, in Ottobrunn, the KHI – MBB Joint T/C Board prepared the final documents to be presented to the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA) and Japanese Civil Aviation Board (JCAB) in order to get the type certification for the BK117 A-3.

The photo shows from left to right: Dr. Tapavicza (MBB), Rep. (KHI), Rep at MBB (KHI), Rep. (KHI), Dr. Masdue (KHI), Rep. (JCAB), Schönemann (LBA), W. Reinl (MBB), Sukesada (KHI), W. Sinn (MBB), Rep. (JCAB), Franzmeier (LBA), Merklein (MBB), Forster (MBB), J. Thiele (MBB).

1985, March 15^th

BK117 A-3   LBA - VFR Type Certification

• Maximum Gross Weight, increased to 3,200 KGs
• 2 x Allied Signal Lycoming LTS101-650B-1 engines
• New twisted tail rotor blades
• Minor production improvement modifications
• Yaw CSAS
• Improvement of longitudinal stability (SPAS)

1985, May – June

The BK117 A-3M, the new Military Multi-Purpose Helicopter

At the 1985 International Aérosalon in LeBourget, MBB unveiled a mock-up of a new military version of the BK117 multi-purpose helicopter. The BK117 A-3M unites new-generation weapon systems such as:

·         HOT-2 Euromissile anti-tank guided weapon system

·         Stabilized SFIM APX-M 397 roof sight

·         Under the nose mounted machine gun cal. .50

·         ECM (electronic countermeasure) system

·         Elevated landing gear

Reference: MBB international, issue June 1985

1985, July

BK117 A-3   DOT - VFR Type Certification in Canada

1985, Sept. 10^th

BK117 A-3   FAA - VFR Type Certification

1985, November

BK117 A-3   LBA - DPIFR Type Certification

1986, July 27^th

BK117 A-4   LBA – VFR Type Certification

• Maximum Gross Weight, 3,200 KGs
• 2 x Allied Signal Lycoming LTS101-650B-1 engines
• Extended standard fuel tank capacity plus 80KGs
• Electrical torque indication system
• Torque limitation increased to 83%
• Improved flight performance for: HIGE/HOGE, rate of climb, range/endurance

1986, December

BK117 A-3   DOT – DPIFR Type Certification

1986, December

BK117 A-4   FAA – VFR Type Certification

1987, February

BK117 A-4   DOT – VFR Type Certification

1987, Nov. 4^th

BK117 B-1 Joint Type Certification (T/C) Board

From November 4^th until 6^th , 1987, in Ottobrunn, the KHI – MBB Joint T/C Board prepared the final documents to be presented to the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA) and Japanese Civil Aviation Board (JCAB) in order to get the type certification for the BK117 B-1.

The photo shows (from right to left) the members of the Joint T/C Board: Thiele (MBB), P. Dahm (MBB), F. Musman (MBB, Programme Director), Kitazawa (JCAB), Niehaus (LBA), Tabuchi (JCAB), Schönemann (LBA), W. Reinl (MBB), W. Sinn (MBB), Merklein (MBB), Terni (KHI), Sukesada (KHI).

1987, November

BK117 1^st Airframe made of Fibre-Compound-Material (FCM)

After a 3-year development period MBB have completed the first helicopter airframe (BK117 A-3, SN 7045) made of fibre compound material (FCM). They handed over the airframe to the company IABG (Industrie-Anlagen-Betriebsgesellschaft) on November 12^th. At IABG, extensive static testing under various load conditions was carried out. The information gained from this research programme had a strong influence to the development of future helicopters, the NH90, for example.

1987, Dec. 10^th

BK117 B-1   LBA – Type Certification

• Maximum Gross Weight, 3,200 KGs
• 2 x Allied Signal Lycoming LTS101-750B-1 engines
• Improved “hot and high” performance
• Take-off/landing limitation increased to 15,000 ft
• Improved flight performance for: HIGE/HOGE, single engine service ceiling

1988, Oct. 6^th

new

1,500 Titanium Rotor Head from Donauwörth

On October 6^th., the 1,500^th main rotor head was completed at MBB’s Donauwörth plant and delivered to final assembly of the preliminary BO105 and BK117 production. For the rotor head, forged components of titanium consisting of the rotor star and inner sleeves are required. These are supplied by the Böhler Company.

1990, April 6^th

BK117 C-1 Maiden Flight with ARRIEL-1-E Engines

On April 6^th 1990 the first BK117 with Turbomeca ARRIEL-1-E took off in Pau / South-West France. The programme started in October 1989. The trial installation has been performed on BK117 SN 7007 by CGTM, a daughter company of Turbomeca. CGTM has a large know-how in integration of engines.

The photo shows (from left to right) the project team: Strowik (ECD flight test), Adam Teleki (ECD flight test engineer), Barteau (CGTM chief test pilot), Bertsch (ECD project team leader BK117 C-1), Attlfellner (ECD chief flight test centre), Maniol (CGTM flight test engineer), Director CGTM, Director Turbomeca, Head Technique Turbomeca).

1990, April

200. BK117 B-1 delivered to Police Nordrhein-Westfahlen

April 1990 MBB delivered the BK117 B-1, with serial number 200, to the Police Nordrhein-Westfalen in full police configuration, such as 360° search light, enlarged window for co-pilot-door, autopilot, self-sealing feeder tanks and weather radar.

1990, June 29^th

BK117 B-1C   CAA – Type Certification

The British Civil Aviation Authority in London has authorized operation of BK11 B-1C (“C” means CAA) for United Kingdom on June 29^th.

1991

BK117 with Digital Automatic Flight Control System (DAFCS)

A DAFCS manufactured by Sperry/Honeywell has been approved for BK117. In conjunction with a modified electrical system, with SN 7184 onwards, the BK117 may now be flown by only one pilot with IFR.

1991, February

BK117 C-1, SN 7007, Certifications Programme – Icing Tests

In February/March Icing-Tests were performed at Vienna/Austria.

1991, July

BK117 C-1 Certification Flights - High-Temperatures Tests

From July 6^th to 26^th  a flight test programme (part of the certification programme) was conducted under high outside temperatures up to +47°C and with increased take-off weight of 3.350 KGs (plus 150 KGs).

1992, Jan. 17^th

BK117 B-2   LBA – Type Certification

• Maximum Gross Weight, increased to 3,350 KGs
• 2 x Allied Signal Lycoming LTS101-750B-1 engines
• New tail rotor blades
• Improved “hot and high” performance
• Take-off/landing limitation increased to 15,000 ft
• Improved flight performance for: HIGE/HOGE, single engine service ceiling

1992, Dec. 7^th

BK117 B-2   FAA – Type Certification

BK117 C-1   FAA – Type Certification

1993, July 15^th

BK117   DGAC – Type Certification IM 216

On July 13^th the French Directorate Generale de L’Aviation Civile (DGAC) issued the Certificat de Navigabilite de Type for:

• BK117 B-1
• BK117 B-2
• BK117 C-1

1993

Technicl progresses and operational requirement have strongly influenced the development of the BK117. One requirement was to get more space for the more sophisticated avionics, which leads to the new nose section. For details have a look at the picture below.

1996/97

The BK117 acted as TV star in the well known TV Seies “Medi Copter.

End of 1996 beginning 1997 the TV channel RTL approached Eurocopter to make, the famous rescue helicopter BK117, available for an action series. My colleagues Mr. Rudi Squarra and Mrs. Karin Schöpf were dedicated to care about this special project, what they did with a lot of enthusiasm and dedication.

The success of this serial TV shows “Medicopter – each life counts” was based on the outstanding co-operation between Eurocopter, the Austrian company MR-Film and the German company HTM – Helicopter Travel Munich, with its owner Hans Ostler.

1997, November

1 Million Flight Hours on BK117

In November 1997 the BK117 fleet accumulated 1.000.000 flight hours. Up to this date 395 were produced and delivered.

1998

The experimental BK117 A-3, SN 7045, received the cockpit structure of the EC135. This cockpit structure is the basis for airframe of the EC145, the follower of the BK117. The new cockpit design should give better view for the pilots and significant more space for the advance avionics. For this reason the SN 7045 received 2 large-sized coloured displays

1999, June 12^th

EC145 (BK117 C-2) Maiden Flight at Donauwörth

On June 12^th 1999 at ECD Plant Donauwörth the Maiden Flight on EC145 helicopters was performed by ECD Test Pilot Helmut Rückert and Flight Test Engineer Hubert Müller.

The pictures shows the first pre-production EC145, SN 9001.

2002, February

BK117 – 25 Years of Co-operation EC / KHI

In 2002 Eurocopter (former MBB) and Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) celebrated the 25^th Anniversary of its successful co-operation in developing and producing the BK117. During this period over 400 BK117 helicopters have been produced.

2002, July 24^th

Advanced Technology for Rotor Systems

On the basis of the EC145 rotor system a research programme was conducted under the name: Adaptable Dynamic Rotor System for Helicopters (ADASYS). This “smart rotor system” was tested on the BK117, SN 7045. The test should prove the efficiency and function of controllable flaps in main rotor blades.

2002, October

1,5 Million Flight Hours on BK117 and EC145

In October 2002 the fleet of BK117 and EC145 accumulated a total of 1.5 Million flight hours.

2004

Delivery of the last BK117 C-1

With the delivery of the last BK117 C-1 to Transportes Aereos Pegaso / Mexico, after more than 30 years of production, Eurocopter stopped the programme of the BK117 A-1 / C-1 in favour to the EC145 (BK117 C-2).

Total number produced: 443 helicopters

Japanese Production:

• BK117 A-1 to C-1: SN 1001 up to SN 1112

German Production:

• BK117 A-1 to B-2: SN 7001 up to SN 7275
• BK117 C-1: SN 7500 up to 7555

2005, September

BK117 with Electrical Controlled Flaps on Main Rotor Blades

On September 8^th 2005, the experimental helicopter BK117 A-3, SN 7045, took off at ECD Test Centre in Donauwörth, fitted with an electrical flap control system. These Piezoceramic actuators integrated into the blade respond to varying voltages and thus moves the flaps. This flap control system can lower the overall noise level of the helicopter drastically.

2006, September

2 Million Flight Hours on BK117 and EC145

In September 2006 the fleet of BK117 and EC145 accumulated a total of 2 Million flight hours.