At the 2025 European Rotors event in Cologne, Robinson Helicopter Company and Safran Helicopter Engines presented the overseas debut of the R88, Robinson’s clean-sheet, single-engine helicopter powered by Safran’s 950 shp-class Arriel 2W engine. Every R88 comes standard with Safran’s serenity support package.

The R88 was unveiled at Verticon 2025 and is a clean-sheet design featuring a dual-pilot, eight-passenger cabin. It is aimed at multi-mission use, with a focus on affordability, reliability and operational flexibility.

The Arriel 2W is the latest variant in the Arriel engine family and benefits from more than 66 million flight hours. Safran’s strong record in support and services was a major factor in the engine’s selection.

Safran has engineering staff embedded at Robinson’s Torrance, California facility to accelerate development. The companies are now preparing the aircraft for type certificate testing.

The serenity support package offers five years or 2,000 flight hours of coverage and includes unscheduled maintenance, AOG service, troubleshooting, digital monitoring and access to Safran’s global MRO network.

“Integrating the Arriel 2W engine through a continuous and closely managed engineering process since March 2025 ensures we are meeting our objective,” says David Smith, president and CEO of Robinson Helicopter Company.

Safran CEO Cédric Goubet adds: “The serenity service package will be a real asset to R88 users, providing them with guaranteed service from the moment the helicopter is delivered.”