Indra and Eurocopter make way for helicopters in China's simulation market

Indra, the premier IT company in Spain and a leading IT multinational in Europe, and helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter, will be the first to provide China’s helicopter pilots with training simulators. This way both companies open the door of a market which will expand as air space is deregulated and new helicopter companies are free to operate in the country.

Due to the growth potential of this sector Indra and Eurocopter signed this Wednesday april 13th a Memorandum of Understanding where both parties manifest their interest to introduce systems in order to facilitate and improve the training of helicopter pilots.

The signature of the MOU coincided with the visit of the Spanish delegation to China. The event took place at the Spanish embassy in Beijing in the presence of Spain’s President, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero; the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Commerce, Miguel Sebastian; and China’s Vice Minister of Commerce Mr. Gao Hucheng.

According to the agreement, the first stage deals with the development and implementation of what will be the first helicopter simulator to enter service in China. The system will be installed at Airbus’s pilot training centre in Beijing.

The new system, for one of Eurcopter's cutting-edge aircrafts, will train pilots for search and rescue missions, intervention in natural disasters, fire fighting or emergencies.

Entry in helicopter simulation reinforces Indra’s position in China’s simulation market since the company has previously delivered synthetic training systems for fixed wing aircrafts to Air China and Hainan Airlines.

A new market to explore

The signature of the memorandum of intentions by Indra and Eurocopter represents a milestone in the Chinese aeronautics sector as it is part of the deregulation process of the country's air space. So far, only the Administration and few firms are authorised to fly helicopters. This situation will change in the short run, to welcome new operators.

The demand to train helicopter pilots will grow as more companies start operating. Then both Indra and Eurocopter will be in an advantageous position to provide these services as they are the first to offer this type of training.

Besides the Chinese market, the demand for training helicopter pilots has grown during the last years. There are several reasons behind this growth: the need for safety, countries set more strict safety standards, the cost of the aircraft which includes each time more complex technology systems or the high price of the fuel necessary for training. 

All this has made Indra's presence stronger in the simulation segment for civil helicopters. Last year, for instance, the company signed a contract with Eurocopter UK to develop simulators for the EC225 transport aircraft and delivered the simulator of the AS350 police surveillance helicopter which is already into service at the American Eurocopter training centre in Dallas. Besides this, we should also mention the units Indra developed for EC135 and EC145.

Indra’s presence is becoming stronger thanks to its experience for decades in the Defence sector with simulators for Chinook, Cougar, Tiger or Sea Hawk, among many others.

Indra in China

The company has been active in China since 1997 and set up a subsidiary in 2002 in Beijing to manage expansion in Asia-Pacific. The company has carried out projects dealing with air traffic control, simulation, traffic control systems for tunnels and motorways, railway access control and security systems. 

In the transport and traffic sector, the gateway for Indra in this country, the company is developing urban traffic control systems in Changde, Guilin, Bazhou, Chonqing and Liaocheng.

In air traffic control, it is engaged in the deployment of the radar surveillance system which will control nearly 60% of China's air space. It is also implementing the technology necessary to manage the upper airspace of eight provinces from Xian and Chengdu centres, covering an area similar to Western Europe in extension. In addition to this, it finished the deployment of the maritime surveillance system in Honk Kong to control maritime traffic.

Indra 
Indra is the premier Information Technology company in Spain and a leading IT multinational in Europe and Latin America. It is ranked as the second European company in its sector according to investment in R&D with nearly € 500 M during the last three years. In 2010 revenues reached € 2,557 M of which a 40% came from the international market. The company employs more than 30,000 professionals and has clients in more than 100 countries.