Two new Kaman Air Vehicles K-MAX® medium-to-heavy lift helicopters are expected to be delivered to operators in the U.S. and Canada before the end of the year.
Kaman Air Vehicles, a division of Kaman Corporation, announced the receipt of signed purchase agreements for the helicopters with delivery anticipated by the end of the fourth quarter of 2021. The company conducts business in the aerospace and defense, industrial and medical markets.
"We are thrilled that the K-MAX continues to be the helicopter of choice for external lift applications that require the need for precise, efficient and cost-effective operations,” Roger Wassmuth, senior director of business development, said in a press release. “The proven firefighting capabilities of the K-MAX and the tireless efforts of its operators throughout the 2021 fire season have garnered the K-MAX with the reputation of being the most accurate water placement, according to the United States Forest Service (USFS) hotshot ground crew survey.”
A low-maintenance helicopter, the K-Max can lift up to 6,000 pounds "with unmatched performance in hot and high conditions," the press release said. Another top feature, its counter-rotating rotor system, has been optimized to carry repetitive external loads.
Kaman Air Vehicles also continues to further develop its unmanned TITAN UAV aerial system with flight-testing that uses Kaman's test aircraft and the U.S. Marine Corps K-MAX aircraft.
A test vehicle with the TITAN UAV aerial system was a recent success story, and once FAA certification is complete, this system can be installed in commercial K-Max aircrafts.