Menominee, MI, April 30, 2008 –  Enstrom Helicopter Corporation is excited to announce delivery of a brand new 480B to Mr. Fredric R. (Rick) Boswell, of New Hampshire.  The stunning blue and yellow turbine powered helicopter is equipped with the most advanced avionics suite ever put into an Enstrom.  For starters, this aircraft will be only the second OEM helicopter delivered with a Chelton Flight Systems’ 3D Synthetic Vision EFIS 6.0B glass cockpit.  Additionally, the aircraft has a full Garmin avionics package, including a GMX 200 MFD with traffic and ChartView, WxWorx satellite weather and radio via a GDL 69A, a GTX 330 mode S transponder, a SL 40 backup Com, and a SL 30 Nav/Com to drive the EFIS.  The latest offering from PS Engineering, a PMA 8000B audio panel ties it all together.

“This is an incredibly capable helicopter,” states Enstrom’s Director of Engineering, Bill Taylor.  “The Chelton EFIS already provides a high degree of situational awareness, but when you couple that with real time traffic information and satellite weather, you pretty much have the ultimate package.  Installing all this equipment and getting it working together went very smoothly thanks to our engineers and technicians, and our ACO gave us great support.  It couldn’t have worked out better.”

The quest to have the latest and greatest equipment started almost a year and a half ago for Mr. Boswell when he initially put a down payment on a 480B.  “We had a deposit for a much earlier aircraft, but when I saw the new Chelton EFIS coming down the pipe I knew that Rick would be interested,” says Tracy Biegler, Enstrom’s Director of Sales and Marketing.  Enstrom was able to switch the deposit onto a later aircraft in order to fulfill his desire for the most state of the art avionics available.  “Rick has been extremely patient as we worked through certification with the Chelton system.  This is actually the third serial number that was assigned to him, but I think we can all agree that it was worth the wait.”

Integral to the program was Enstrom’s dealer, Sharkey’s Helicopters, Inc. of West Lebanon, NH.  Owner Roger Sharkey is a legend in the helicopter world, and is Enstrom’s oldest and largest dealer.  Already a turbine rated fixed-wing pilot, Mr. Boswell utilized Sharkey as his instructor to add his helicopter rating, doing the majority of his training at Sharkey’s.  “After only one day with Roger, I knew that Sharkey’s and the 480B were right for me,” says Mr. Boswell.  “Not only is Roger a great instructor, but the helicopter is easy to fly, and it suits my needs very well.  Right from the start I really got a sense that both Sharkey’s and Enstrom were much more concerned about getting me what I wanted, and fulfilling my needs, than just simply cashing a check.  Let’s just say that since then I haven’t been disappointed.”  Neither is Roger Sharkey.  “Rick is a great pilot, and he’s got a phenomenal ship.  Enstrom really topped themselves this time.  I think once people see this helicopter, and what Enstrom is capable of, we’ll be fielding a lot more phone calls about the 480B.  To date I have never flown a single engine turbine helicopter with an avionics package this sophisticated.”

Sharkey’s Helicopters, Inc. is a mid size helicopter company based in tax free West Lebanon, New Hampshire.  In business since 1973, Sharkey’s specializes in sales, parts, and service for both Enstrom and Bell helicopters.  In addition Sharkey’s offers full flight instruction (basic up to turbine transitions), as well as charter flights.  For more information, contact Roger Sharkey at 603-298-8728, or visit www.sharkeys.com

Founded in 1959, Enstrom Helicopter Corporation manufactures a complete line of helicopters. The three-seat, piston-powered F28F and 280FX are popular training, sport, and light commercial aircraft. The larger turbine-powered 480B is available as a three-place advanced trainer and patrol aircraft, or as a three to five place executive transport. For law enforcement applications Enstrom produces a specialized variant of the 480B, known as the Guardian, and the F28F, called the Sentinel. For more information, contact Enstrom at 906-863-1200, or visit www.enstromhelicopter.com

Source: Enstrom Helicopter Corporation
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