Heli Austria is one of three launch customers to sign up to Safran Helicopter Engines' video assistance service Expert link. Along with Florida-based Rotortech Services and India's Heligo, Heli Austria will be the first to trial the service, which enables operators to connect to Safran personnel via a secure live video feed, in order to facilitate technical diagnoses or guidance through a maintenance task.

“With this new service, our mechanics will benefit from immediate visual support on our 19 aircraft without leaving the workshop,” states CEO Roy Knaus. “It will be very useful to maximise our fleet availability in case of urgent troubleshooting, and also to increase our expertise while benefitting from best maintenance practices.”

Safran EVP of support and services Olivier Le Merrer adds: “We have launched five digital services since last year and this is our first mobile application for helicopter operators. Together with our improved EngineLife customer portal, we are providing them with an effective range of digital services for closer support.”

Expert link is available at essential and premium service levels. Essential provides users with a remote technical diagnosis and real-time interactive visual assistance, while premium coverage adds hands-free support on scheduled tasks using borescopes or smart glasses. The service features a secure datalink and is compatible with most smartphones, tablets, bore-scopes and smart glasses. It also includes HD picture recording, image drawing, file sharing, three-person calls and a webex connection.