Honeywell is to provide Italian aerospace company Leonardo with cockpit upgrades for the company’s AW139 helicopters. Honeywell’s Primus Epic 2.0 will employ ‘synthetic vision’ and other new technologies to provide the AW139 with improved maps, situational awareness at night and in marginal weather, and easier access through wireless connectivity.

According to Honeywell, it will be the first time in the industry that the cockpit will be track-based, meaning navigation follows the actual path of the helicopter and accounts for wind and other environmental factors.

“Since its first certification, our AW139 platform has been supported by the latest Honeywell software technology,” said, Paul De Jonge, vice president of marketing, Leonardo Helicopter Division. “With Honeywell’s Primus Epic 2.0 upgrade, we continue to stay ahead of the industry by enabling pilots to fly a variety of challenging approaches. We continue to support several helicopter-specific missions — be it corporate VIP transport, emergency medical services, oil and gas, or search and rescue operations, with increased levels of safety.”

The Primus Epic 2.0 Phase 8 upgrade includes new features designed to make operations safer, smarter and faster. The SmartView synthetic vision system is usable all the way down into the hover, helping pilots navigate during low-visibility conditions and challenging missions. These missions can include steep 9 degree descents into landing areas in challenging terrain and oil rig approaches. Flight crews will also benefit from a more user-friendly, iNAV map visual interface with easy-to-use displays and an improved Cursor Control Device that makes map manipulation and menu navigation quicker and more comfortable.

“Technology innovations are crucial to reducing pilot workload and making flights safer for crew and passengers,” said Mike Ingram, vice president and general manager, Cockpit Systems, Honeywell Aerospace. “With the Epic 2.0 Phase 8 upgrade, AW139 pilots will not only reduce the time and cost of some operations, especially those in weather and around challenging terrain, they will also experience some of the best safety features available anywhere in the helicopter market.”

The Phase 8 upgrade also increases connectivity capabilities, with Wireless Data Loading that lets pilots access data at high speeds remotely without a hard-wire connection, transferring flight plans wirelessly and accelerating pre-flight actions.