On the Record with

TERRY STINSON, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON

Bell Upbeat With Agusta and New Models

Details of two new Bell helicopter models might leak out here at Heli-Expo, but executives are keeping their lips tightly sealed on the specifics.

The company is "in the final stages" of evaluating a new entry-level turbine helicopter to replace the Bell 206 JetRanger, and is "looking at something" to replace the venerable, twin-engined Bell 412 utility aircraft that can carry up to 15 passengers, according to Terry Stinson, chairman and CEO of Bell Helicopter Textron. "We are very close on a 206 replacement, but no definite decision has been made on the 412 successor," he told Show News.

Bell's new joint venture with Agusta, under which the Italian company will take a 25% split of the BA609 Tiltrotor and Bell will take 25% of the new Agusta Bell 139 utility helicopter, will not affect the decision to replace the 412. Stinson sees the 15-passenger AB139 as fitting into the upper range of the 412's market in terms of speed, payload and price; Bell will be seeking a new model to come in just below the existing 412.

Stinson is excited about the partnership with Agusta, announced at the Farnborough Air Show last September. "Clearly we are anxious to field the AB139," he said. And he expects Agusta's marketing relationships to generate another 200 or so orders over time for the Tiltrotor. Bell has already sold some 75 of the aircraft "and customers want them sooner," he said.

"Agusta and Bell believe this is the beginning of a broader relationship," Stinson said. "We will get the 609 and the AB139 off to a good start, then determine where to go from there." Stinson, who is also chairman of the Bell Agusta Aerospace Company, doesn't expect Agusta's pending merger with GKN Westland to have any impact on the U.S.-Italian joint venture. "The Westland-Agusta merger does not include anything at all on the tiltrotor," he said. "And the Bell-Agusta activity is carved out to be separate from the Westland merger."

Back at the ranch, Bell is expecting to certify its new 427 light twin for VFR flight by the end of the first quarter, and for IFR flight just a few months later. It has already booked 85 orders for the aircraft, a phenomena Stinson describes as equaling the early demand for the 407 light single, which Bell is selling faster than it can build them.

Stinson is optimistic for this year, expecting sales to match those of 1998 which turned out almost on plan as stronger demand in the U.S. and South America offset a sharp decline in business from the Pacific Rim. Sales in that region will likely be only half their traditional levels for this year and next, a serious concern for Bell as Asia usually accounts for about 28% of its activity. Stinson is hoping that low oil prices and the Brazilian currency devaluation do not derail demand from South America , and that Europe will weather the ripples from a collapsing economy in Russia.

"We're watching all these factors carefully, but 1999 looks to be a continuation of last year," he said.

By John Morris