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China Sees First "Hummingbird" Helicopter
An advanced light helicopter EC- 120 jointly developed by China, France, and Singapore, was delivered Wednesday to a Beijing-based company.
It is the first application for the helicopter, also known as a "hummingbird," in the Chinese market.
The buyer Capital General-Purpose Airlines Company is to use the helicopter for maintenance and inspection of high voltage lines in north China.
The Harbin Aeroplane Manufacturing Group in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province contributed the body of the helicopter to foreign engineers for final assembly.
The EC-120, the newest lightweight helicopter design in the world, has been under the joint research and development of three countries, with Singapore in charge of the tail section, and France responsible for its engine.
This has been the first successful cooperative endeavor for China's airplane manufacturing industry. Nearly 400 of the helicopters have been ordered since the model took its first successful test flight in 1995.
The 5-seat helicopter, with maximum take-off capacity of 1,715 kilograms and maximum voyage length of 750 kilometers, is considered an all-purpose aircraft used for transportation, rescue, topographic reconnaissance, air patrol, and pilot training.
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