A full autopilot option has been added as an option to the HeliSAS system. This includes altitude hold, heading
select/hold, VOR/LOC track, ILS track, and GPS steering. The autopilot functions are checked out and working extremely
well.
Shawn Coyle, an instructor at the National Test Pilot School and former CAA certification pilot in Canada conducted
a flight evaluation of the HeliSAS and it has been published in Helicopter World magazine (published in the U.K.). This
article is reproduced on the next three pages of this website.
Robinson Helicopter Company mailed a Safety Alert to all R44 owners that is dated July 7, 2004. It notes that
there have been 7 fatalities in R44s in the past two years due to flight at night. It further notes that all the helicopters
were equipped with an artifical horizon and two of the three pilots had an instrument rating. It warns R44 pilots not
to fly at night. The HeliSAS has been specifically designed to prevent this type of accident.
