×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Infantry Arms Warships & Submarines Military Pay Chart (2023) Military Ranks
Advertisements
HOME
AIRCRAFT / AVIATION
MODERN AIR FORCES
COUNTRIES
MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE
BY CONFLICT
BY TYPE
BY DECADE
MODERN AIRCRAFT
Aviation / Aerospace

Bell Model 525 Relentless


Medium-Lift Passenger Helicopter [ 2022 ]



The Bell Model 525 medium-lift helicopter is expecting a first flight sometime during 2014.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 03/30/2021 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

GO TO SPECIFICATIONS [+]
Advertisements
The Bell 525 "Relentless" is a new Bell Helicopter offering for the medium-lift commercial market. The model is currently in development as of this writing (2013) with a first flight expected sometime in 2014. The Model 525 was debuted in 2012 at the Heli Expo (Dallas), utilizing many previous learned advantages in rotary-wing flight from the storied company. The Model 525 is expected to make heavy use of composite materials to promote a lightweight, yet strong, airframe. Additionally, its use of digital fly-by-wire controls will make it the first commercial-level helicopter product to be completed as such. The aircraft is geared primarily at customers seeking a modern VIP transport. The Model 525 will utilized a crew of two with up to 16 passengers.

Power for the Model 525 series will stem from a pairing of General Electric CT7-2F1 turboshaft engines developing 1,800 horsepower while driving a five-bladed main rotor and a four-bladed tail rotor (facing portside. Maximum speed is estimated at 160 miles per hour with a service range of 460 miles and a service ceiling of 20,000 feet. Bell lists a max gross weight of 19,300lbs (8,754kg) with a useful load weight of 7,400lbs (3,357kg).

Outwardly, the Model 525 will exhibit a very impressive design approach with clean lines throughout while remaining a largely conventional system. The cockpit for the two pilots is held at front aft of a short nose section. Aft of the cockpit will be the passenger cabin lined with rectangular windows. The engines will be fitted to the cabin roof, matching the contours of the airframe, with the systems exhausted via ports to either side of the aft fuselage. The empennage will be traditional, featuring a single vertical tail fin. The undercarriage is of a tricycle arrangement featuring two single-wheeled main legs and a twin-wheeled nose leg while being wholly retractable to preserve aerodynamic and fuel efficiency. The cockpit will be streamlined and highly advanced through various onboard digital suites. Both positions will have access to side stick cyclic/collective controls while four 12-inch touchscreen displays will dominate the instrument panel. Avionics includes the Garmin G5000H suite.

The Model 525 is expected to compete directly with the Sikorsky S92 as well as the AgustaWestland AW139 series. Beyond its obvious targeting to corporations, Bell also intends to market their Model 525 to offshore oil refinery firms, firefighting departments, MEDEVAC and the United States Coast Guard.

PHI, Incorporated of Lafayette, Louisiana is the Model 525's launch customer. PHI, Incorporated served as a rotary-wing transport concern servicing the oil and gas, mining, technical and medical industries.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.

July 2015 - It was revealed that Bell had completed a first-flight of its Model 525 product. This event was originally scheduled for late-2014 showing the delay in its development.

July 2016 - The prototype Model 525 crashed, killing its two pilots, on July 6th, 2016. In August the NTSB reported that the main rotor blades had hit both the nose and tail units of the helicopter during its high-speed simulated engine-out test.

January 2018 - Investigators have concluded that the Model 525 crash (see earlier note) was related to the helicopter's Fly-by-wire (FbW) system.

February 2018 - The Model 525 is expected to enter the market in early-2019.

January 2019 - Bell Helicopters will be operating a pair of Model 525s in Yellowknife, Canada to complete the product's required cold weather testing phase. Type certification is expected for sometime in 2019.

November 2019 - The Model 525 has been showcased at Dubai Air Show 2019 in a bid to increase the design's global appeal as it ramps up towards certification and series production.

August 2020 - At least four Model 525 helicopters have been built to date, amassing some 1,600 flying hours in the process.

March 2021 - An undisclosed Oil and Gas industry customer will become the first operator of the Model 525 helicopter series according to Bell sources. First deliveries are expected sometime in 2022.

Advertisements

Specifications



Service Year
2022

Origin
United States national flag graphic
United States

Status
IN-DEVELOPMENT
Program in Progress.
Crew
2

Production
4
UNITS


National flag of Canada National flag of the United States Canada (possible); United States (probable)
(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)
Transport
General transport functionality to move supplies/cargo or personnel (including wounded and VIP) over range.
Commercial Aviation
Used in roles serving the commercial aviation market, ferrying both passengers and goods over range.
VIP Service
Used in the Very-Important-Person (VIP) passenger transport role, typically with above-average amenities and luxuries as standard.


Width/Span
54.5 ft
(16.60 m)
MTOW
18,001 lb
(8,165 kg)
(Showcased structural values pertain to the base Bell Model 525 Relentless production variant)
Installed: 2 x General Electric CT7-2F1 turboshaft engines developing 1,800 shaft horsepower and driving a five-bladed main rotor and four-bladed tail rotor.
Max Speed
162 mph
(260 kph | 140 kts)
Ceiling
19,685 ft
(6,000 m | 4 mi)
Range
460 mi
(740 km | 1,370 nm)


♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)
Sub
Trans
Super
Hyper
HiHyper
ReEntry
RANGES (MPH) Subsonic: <614mph | Transonic: 614-921 | Supersonic: 921-3836 | Hypersonic: 3836-7673 | Hi-Hypersonic: 7673-19180 | Reentry: >19030


(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the base Bell Model 525 Relentless production variant. Performance specifications showcased above are subject to environmental factors as well as aircraft configuration. Estimates are made when Real Data not available. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database or View aircraft by powerplant type)
None.


Supported Types




(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)
Model 525 "Relentless" - Base Series Designation.


Military lapel ribbon for Operation Allied Force
Military lapel ribbon for the Arab-Israeli War
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Britain
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Midway
Military lapel ribbon for the Berlin Airlift
Military lapel ribbon for the Chaco War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cuban Missile Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for pioneering aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the French-Indochina War
Military lapel ribbon for the Golden Age of Flight
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars
Military lapel ribbon for the Iran-Iraq War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1982 Lebanon War
Military lapel ribbon for the Malayan Emergency
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Six Day War
Military lapel ribbon for the Soviet-Afghan War
Military lapel ribbon for the Spanish Civil War
Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for the Ukranian-Russian War
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for Warsaw Pact of the Cold War-era
Military lapel ribbon for the WASP (WW2)
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2
Military lapel ribbon for the Yom Kippur War
Military lapel ribbon for experimental x-plane aircraft


Ribbon graphics not necessarily indicative of actual historical campaign ribbons. Ribbons are clickable to their respective aerial campaigns / operations / aviation periods.

Images Gallery



1 / 1
Image of the Bell Model 525 Relentless
Image copyright Bell helicopter marketing material; All Rights Reserved.


Advertisements




Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies


2023 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content; site is 100% curated by humans.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons.

View day-by-day actions of the American Civil War with CivilWarTimeline.net. View day-by-day actions of World War II with SecondWorldWarHistory.com.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)