Bell 505 Jet Ranger X

[fredymac]

Some really short clips from Bell. I wonder if these are going to be pulled later.

Interior
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJzafeVT9DY

Avionics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4auGJxJ41uw

Frameless Door (I wonder if there is a rollover standard for helicopters)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nRwjIIQFKI

 

[hesham]

Hi;

http://aviationweek.com/business-aviation/pilot-report-bell-s-new-jet-ranger-x?NL=AW-05&Issue=AW-05_20170529_AW-05_544&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_4&utm_rid=CPEN1000002229670&utm_campaign=10215&utm_medium=email&elq2=82840d71744d428ba167240d56d1e52b

 

[jsport]

DOD should still find a mission and LRIP this thing.

 

[Moose]

DOD should still find a mission and LRIP this thing.

The Navy's been wanting a TH-57 replacement for a good long time. Just need the money.

 

[yasotay]

DOD should still find a mission and LRIP this thing.

The Navy's been wanting a TH-57 replacement for a good long time. Just need the money.

I have been thinking the same. This aircraft has basic training platform written all over it. I will even stretch it a bit to say that the training for the flight instructors and maintenance personnel would probably be minimal to transition them from TH-57 to TH-XX (505).

 

[RavenOne]

The Bell 505 is being offered as a cost effective military RW trainer but not for the US.

https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/farnborough/2018/07/16/bell-positions-505-as-military-trainer-but-not-for-the-us/

Last year I attended Dubai Airshow 2017 and the company was promoting the 505 for first time for the mil training marketplace. Here are my photos of 505 mock up was in the colors of UAE based Horizon Flight Academy which operates Bell 206B and Bell 407GX to train Gulf Co-operation states inital entry military rotary wing students. I asked Bell about if Horizon were looking to order the 505 and the reply was simply no.

 

[RavenOne]

I also attended the launch of the first UK Bell 505 G-DONE (doing the flying display) and G-JRXI at White Waltham Airfield end of April.

cheers

 

[Foo Fighter]

Looks ;like an updated UH-1

 

[robunos]

Interesting that both of those aircraft have British registrations . . .


cheers,
Robin.

 

[RavenOne]

Interesting that both of those aircraft have British registrations . . .


cheers,
Robin.

Lol its here in the UK thats why

cheers

 

[robunos]

I also attended the launch of the first UK Bell 505 G-DONE (doing the flying display) and G-JRXI at White Waltham Airfield end of April.
cheers

DOH!!
Sorry, I didn't see the text at the top of your message, I thought it was the same as the US event . . . :-[ :'( :-X


cheers,
Robin.

 

[RavenOne]

First military customer as Montenegro MoD going to purchase pair of Bell 505 for around 3.2 million Euros

https://twitter.com/x/status/1265937398724210689

As last year F-HJRX (first French Bell 505 - my photos from Helitech 2018) went to Montenegro to be evaluated with the Montenegro armed forces.

cheers

 

[RavenOne]

And the first one has been delivered with second one in Jan.

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/191655-bell-delivers-montenegro-air-force-s-first-bell-505
Cheers

 

[RavenOne]

Now Jamaica Defense Force Air Wing is next mil customer

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/1...ale-of-six-bell-505s-to-jamaica-defence-force

 

[RavenOne]

Here Is the 300th delivered for the JDW

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/199041-bell-announces-delivery-of-300th-bell-505-jet-ranger-x
cheers

 

[RavenOne]

And now Indonesia is next military customer

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...o-bell-505-helicopters-to-the-indonesian-navy
cheers

 

[RavenOne]

Now RoK is next customer with 40 on order to train their army and navy pilots.

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...ll-505-as-its-new-military-helicopter-trainer
Cheers

 

[yasotay]

I would not be surprised to see a number of countries take on the 505 for basic rotorcraft skills.

 

[RavenOne]

Forgot from year back, I atrended Dubai Air Show (just for the day!!) as had to fly to Koln for European Rotors last year so here are my photos of local registered B505




then 72 hours was in Koln and my photos of the First European 505 which went to Swiss operator Swiss Mountainflyers







cheers

 

[RavenOne]

Anyhow latest mil training customer for this is the Jordanians now

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...t3skGBCOtoYNbC4ojaxnnHMg8Dqd1jHa2v28feeXx-qc8
Cheers

 

[RavenOne]

So here are my 505 2023 adventures starting with attending Heli Expo 2023 in Atlanta back in March, notice high skid.






Then attended Aero Expo Rotor Tech UK 2023 at Sywell beginning of this month with UK bell distributor and rep HelixAv one





Then last week, I was in Le Bourget and HelixAv ferried over a G reg Bell 505 to Paris Air Show to exhibited on Textron chalet.



So here are all my photos above form this year so far.

cheers

 

[RavenOne]

And in hot breaking news just now, Los Angeles Fire Department Air Operations have added a 505 to their fleet at Van Nuys Airport.

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...6V14ZG1rtGDPGxBwv30Hq51cfrqrGBnzR5QefknRACLBs
it was Feb 1st 2020, after Heli Expo 2020 me and buddy post show went in road trip and we went to see the LAFD Air Ops…where a white Bell 505 demo ship which was at the show, was parked in the hangar In front of the legacy LA Fire museum Bell 47G (used on road show and was at Heli Expo).

Congrats to Bell.

cheers

 

[RavenOne]

And for the US Army Flight School Next

https://www.bellflight.com/products/bell-505/flight-school-next
https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...y-s-flight-school-next-industry-collaborators






cheers

 

[RavenOne]

and US Army Flight School Next, Bell is moving into the advance phase

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...next-stage-of-flight-school-next-competition/
cheers

 

[Kiltonge]

Seems regressive to build a training programme around a teetering-rotor type, only to tell students to promptly forget about its quirks when transitioning to service types.

But the US Army's basic trainer selection has been off-kilter since the 1980s so I suppose it's no surprise.

 

[RavenOne]

have a MARVEL Hero here

https://news.bellflight.com/en-US/2...irframe-for-u-s-marine-corps-marv-el-program/



'Fort Worth, Texas (April 30, 2026) - Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced that it was selected by Near Earth Autonomy (Near Earth) as a partner on the prototyping of an autonomous Bell 505 for the U.S. Marine Corps’ Aerial Resupply Vehicle - Expeditionary Logistics (MARV-EL) Increment 2 program. The goal of the program is to prototype an uncrewed logistics aircraft ready for tactical-edge resupply in contested environments and serve as a middle-weight uncrewed logistics asset.

cheers

 

[HaveVoid]

Potential "dumb" question incoming... as neat as an unmanned 505 or R-66 is, was there no way for the Marines to adapt the recently-retired and surely very low-hour fleet of MQ-8C Fire Scouts that the Navy just parked?

Was there something fundamentally flawed with the MQ-8C that drove their very short service life?

 

[yasotay]

Potential "dumb" question incoming... as neat as an unmanned 505 or R-66 is, was there no way for the Marines to adapt the recently-retired and surely very low-hour fleet of MQ-8C Fire Scouts that the Navy just parked?

Was there something fundamentally flawed with the MQ-8C that drove their very short service life?

Totally RUMINT but I was led to believe there were parts issues and the station time was not as useful as one might hope.
I don't think it had the space and structures to cube a useful load. Likely a rebuid of the aircraft would cost near as much as a new one.

 

[HaveVoid]

Potential "dumb" question incoming... as neat as an unmanned 505 or R-66 is, was there no way for the Marines to adapt the recently-retired and surely very low-hour fleet of MQ-8C Fire Scouts that the Navy just parked?

Was there something fundamentally flawed with the MQ-8C that drove their very short service life?

That makes a lot of sense, Yasotay - and agreed that the complete rebuild would probably cost way more if more of a straight re-use was not possible.

It's a shame that the MQ-8C did not quite pan out for its intended mission set, I was a bit shocked to see one popping up in a museum in Texas recently... only to promptly take some nasty hail damage.

I am hoping the 505 will lend itself well to this application - I would think the 505 has a significant payload/lifting advantage relative to the R-66, and would have some decent volume to play with, and a flat floor for cargo. R-66 is definitely going to be cheaper - both to acquire and to run on a cost per flight hour basis.

Will be interesting to see what direction the USMC winds up going.

 

[TomcatViP]

As much as I love Robinson endeavor kicking the rotorcraft market in the rear, I am pretty sure that a teetering utility rotor would not fair well among civilians with straightforward access to litigation (noise complaints). What the USMC might save on one hand, could well prove to be very costly for the other.

Remember that USMC aviation is essentially training over CONUS.

(My comment applies to the R-66 discussed above. Not the 505).

 

[yasotay]

I agree that the 505 would likely be the better fit overall. BUT! Acquisition and maintainability cost may be on the R-66 side.