The Ecureuil helicopter is called upon for almost every type of mission. If further proof of its versatility were needed, four Ecureuils participated in the Transoriental Rally last June.

Rally covered more than 10,000 kilometers between St. Petersburg and Beijing. This year’s course wound through plains, steppes, mountains and deserts, offering spectacular landscapes and extremely challenging trails for the 150 competitors who participated in this unique event. Four Ecureuils (two AS350 B2s and two AS350 B3s) also followed the course. Two of the helicopters were equipped with Wescam cameras for aerial filming, a third was used by the race management, and the fourth helicopter carried a physician, nurse and the necessary equipment to provide emergency medical care.
Each helicopter logged between 80 and 100 flight hours over the sixteen-day race. Not one of them had any downtime, and particularly rough weather was encountered, flying in excruciating hot and high conditions, with two days of wind storms when crossing the Gobi Desert. All four helicopters were equipped with sand filters to prevent erosion. The flight instruments had to be protected as well, and an inspection was performed each evening by the two technicians who provided support. The helicopters were covered and spent each night at the camp with the vehicles participating in the race. “In addition to the sterling technical performance of our helicopters, we were also proud to have crossed China from West to East,” added Franck Arrestier. “This was a first for non-Chinese helicopters.” When the Ecureuils arrived at Hohhot (about 650 kilometers west of Beijing), they were presented to a Chinese delegation accompanied by Christian Geandreau of Eurocopter China. The subsidiary then provided technical support for the disassembly of the helicopters prior to their return to France in a cargo plane.