Sentinel Aviation is proud to announce the successful completion of a private helicopter charter, demonstrating exceptional coordination and expertise. The charter, conducted with an Agusta Westland AW109 helicopter, was made particularly memorable by the involvement of three former-British Army personnel who played a pivotal role in ensuring the trip’s success.

The charter was executed in collaboration with Pilot Simon Tindall from Voler Aviation, who provided the state-of-the-art Agusta Westland AW109 helicopter, and Steve Bowerbank from WH Prestige Chauffeurs, who offered impeccable limousine services for the client. This seamless service exemplified the dedication and professionalism of all parties involved.

Roland Dangerfield, Founder and Operations Director of Sentinel Aviation, commented on the successful charter: “This operation highlights the exceptional capabilities of our team and partners. The involvement of ex-British Army personnel underscores our commitment to providing the highest standards of service, safety, and professionalism. A huge thank you to Voler Aviation and WH Prestige Chauffeurs. We are proud to have delivered a flawless experience for our client.”

Key Highlights of the Charter

• Ex-British Army Expertise: The entire trip was orchestrated by three ex-British Army personnel, whose military precision and expertise ensured a smooth and efficient operation from start to finish. Their backgrounds brought an unparalleled level of discipline, coordination, and reliability to the charter.
• Agusta Westland AW109 Helicopter: The charter utilised the Agusta Westland AW109, a premier light twin-engine helicopter known for its speed, comfort, and advanced technology. This aircraft is renowned for its exceptional performance and luxury, making it an ideal choice for private charters.
• Seamless Coordination: The collaboration between Sentinel Aviation, Voler Aviation, and WH Prestige Chauffeurs ensured a seamless and luxurious experience for the client. From the moment of departure to the final destination, every detail was meticulously planned and executed to perfection.

AW109 Design
The helicopter airframe consists of a lightweight aluminium alloy and honeycomb structure with high crashworthiness. Two large sliding doors provide easy access and cargo operation and are in-flight operable. There are two separate pilot’s doors. The long tail boom configuration provides high yaw control for operation in strong winds.

The tricycle-type wheeled landing gear is fitted with air and oil shock absorbers for ground mobility and operation on rough terrain.

Energy-absorbing struts provide increased crashworthiness and a swivelling forward wheel gives easy ground manoeuvrability.

The four-bladed fully articulated main rotor has low vibration, low flicker and reduced noise level characteristics. The main rotor head is made of titanium with composite elastomeric bearings and blade grips.

The composite main rotor blades are ballistic tolerant for high survivability and reliability. The rotor is negative-g capable for high manoeuvrability. The tail rotor is a two-bladed stainless steel semi-rigid type.

AW109 Cockpit
The helicopter is equipped with an ergonomically designed glass cockpit with provision for mission dedicated displays and control instrumentation. The AW109 Power has single and dual pilot IFR (instrument flight rules) capability with a three-axis duplex automatic flight control system (AFCS).

The helicopter can be fitted with either Rockwell Collins ProLine II or Honeywell Silver Crown avionics suite. The navigation systems include an automatic direction finding navigation aid (ADF), distance measuring equipment (DME), a global positioning system (GPS), a radar altimeter, an emergency locator transponder (ELT), a VHF omnidirectional radio ranger (VOR), ground speed meter and inertial location system. The flight control system includes a collective, cyclic and anti-torque system. The cyclic and collective controls are powered by two hydraulic systems.

The anti-torque control system is hydraulically powered. A dual redundant three-axis stability augmentation system is fitted as an option. An optional Rockwell Collins cockpit management system is provided for monitoring and operating different avionics via one or more centrally located control and display units.

Engines
The helicopter is powered by two side-by-side Pratt & Whitney PW-206C or Turbomeca Arrius 2K1 engines with full authority digital electronic control (FADEC). Each engine is equipped with independent fuel and oil systems and independent engine controls.

The transmission system is rated at 900hp for improved high-temperature and high-altitude performance. For enhanced safety and reliability the helicopter has a 640hp single-engine emergency rating and the dry run capability is 30 minutes, allowing the pilot the opportunity to find a safe landing spot in the event of oil loss.

There are three fuel systems configurations, three cells of 605l, four cells of 710l and five cells of 870l. A crashworthy fuel system, with closed-circuit refuelling and self-sealing fuel tanks can be fitted as an option. The helicopter is fitted with two independent flight control hydraulic systems, each capable of operating main actuators in case of failure of the other system.

The utility hydraulic system has two accumulators (a normal and an emergency accumulator) to operate the rotor brake, the wheel brakes and the nose wheel centring device.

Performance
The AW109 helicopter can climb at the rate of 9.8m a second. The maximum and cruise speeds of the helicopter are 311km/h and 285km/h respectively. The service ceiling of the AW109 is 5,974m and the maximum endurance is four hours and 51 minutes. The helicopter weighs around 1,590kg and the maximum take-off weight is 3,000kg.

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