Reignwood Aviation Group has signed a SBH (support-by-the-hour) contract with Safran Helicopter Engines to support the Arrius 2R engines on its Bell 505 helicopters. This is the first SBH contract signed for the Arrius 2R engine in China, which is an important milestone in the growth of SBH service in the country.

The signature ceremony was witnessed by Zheng Gang, chairman of Reignwood Aviation and Cedric Goubet, CEO of Safran Helicopter Engines. In attendance were Marc Delort, general manager of Safran Helicopter Engines China; Yongqiang Yang, executive president of Reignwood Aviation; and Jing Luo, the general manager of Reignwood Northern (Beijing) General Aviation.

Reignwood Aviation is one of the most promising and strongly developing new enterprises in the Chinese general aviation area, and it is also currently the biggest civil operator of Bell 505 helicopters in the Asia-Pacific region. As of 2024, its fleet size has reached 65 aircraft, which serve various missions such as business flights, sightseeing tours, oil services and medical rescue, etc.

“I am very proud of the trust and recognition placed in us by Reignwood Aviation. This win-win cooperation fully demonstrates the value of SBH and serves as a model for all Bell 505 civil operators in China to join this service. We are committed to providing the best service to ensure the missions and actively support their strong growth in the Chinese general aviation market,” says Safran CEO Cédric Goubet.

The SBH support-by-the-hour service provides visibility on engine operating costs and smooths financial flows, while making scheduled and unscheduled maintenance operations more flexible. Today, half of Safran Helicopter Engines’ engine flight hours are covered by the SBH service.