Astronautics Providing Badger Pro+™ Integrated Flight Display System in Bell BasiX-Pro Glass Cockpit Retrofit Kit for 412EP Helicopters

Astronautics Corporation of America’s Badger Pro+ is the integrated flight display system for the Bell BasiX-Pro Glass Cockpit Retrofit Kit. Bell’s newest upgrade solution recently received supplemental type certificate approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for Bell 412EP helicopters with PT6T-3D engine types. The Bell BasiX-Pro Glass Cockpit Retrofit Kit with Astronautics’ Badger Pro+ display system will upgrade 412EP legacy helicopters from analog instrumentation to full-glass cockpits.

The 412EP retrofit kit is offered by Bell Aeronautical Accessories and installed by Bell’s global completion centers of excellence. The Badger Pro+ system consists of four 6”x8,” high-resolution, smart displays providing primary flight, navigation and engine data, along with a control panel and an engine data acquisition unit.

“Astronautics is pleased to enable Bell’s ongoing mission of improving performance, reliability and supportability for their medium-sized helicopter customers with our Badger Pro+ system,” says Eyton Zelazo, Astronautics’ director of displays and cockpit integration. “The Bell BasiX-Pro Glass Cockpit Retrofit Kit will provide Bell 412EP operators with modern flight-deck technology to improve situational awareness and decrease pilot workload, while also offering the same look and feel of a new production Bell 412 cockpit.”

Key highlights of the Badger Pro+ integrated flight display system, as part of the BasiX-Pro Glass Cockpit Retrofit Kit for the Bell 412EP, include:

• Common display unit hardware with new-production medium-sized platforms (SUBARU Bell 412EPX and Bell 429), simplifying maintenance and pilot training for mixed fleets
• Aircraft parameter, chip, and exceedance recording for 70+ hours of data, useful for maintenance tracking and planning
• Full-screen presentation of external video with pan feature
• Multiple high-definition digital video inputs (no conversion to analog)
• Weather radar / HTAWS displayed in both full and arc HSI formats
• Route mapping with five levels of declutter
• Two-second power-up time (not just in-flight recovery)
• Non-ITAR night-vision goggle-compatible.

Astronautics’ Badger displays have a proven dependability with hundreds of fielded units and over a million hours of flight time.

For more information about Astronautics’ Badger Pro+ integrated flight display system, email BusDev@astronautics.com.