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The AH 130 is a small, two seat helicopter of Italian origin produced by the Alpi Syton company. The AH 130 is based on another small helicopter, the Rotorway Exec. The Exec is a product of Rotorway of Arizona, an American company. Alpi Syton purchased the rights to the Exec’s design in 2008 and used it as the basis for their own product. While the AH 130 still looks very much like the Exec from the outside there have been significant change made to the aircraft. Of course, it is still a single-rotor, side-by-side twin-seater. It has a Solar T62 auxiliary power unit as its main engine. This turboshaft unit produces a 130 horsepower and is used in larger aircraft for non-propulsion purposes such as electricity generation. The AH 130 has a maximum payload of 225 kg or 496 lb which includes all passengers, but not the 90 liters (20 imperial gallons) of fuel. The Ah 130 has a peerless (in this market segment) 150 euro per hour operating cost. It represents a new generation of ultra light helicopters that are made possible through modern materials science. It has an enclosed cockpit and used a liberal mix of aluminum, composites and steel. The rotor blades themselves are fully composite with an aerodynamic profile that provides excellent efficiency in normal flight, but also good performance in situations where auto rotation is needed. Which means that the AH 130 is also a very safe aircraft. It is expected that the AH 130 will sell well and in March of 2015 it received a permit to fly, although it is not yet in full market production.
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