A Helicopter for the Outback

A new age for helicopter enthusiasts…

Imagine a time when the typical citizen might be able to buy, own, and operate a helicopter without depleting his or her bank account. A new helicopter produced by Delta Helicopter, deemed Delta D2, is leading the way to this new revolution. Developers and engineers have been trying for decades to manufacture a helicopter that is not only efficient but also affordable. However Delta Helicopters just might have beaten them to it. The Delta Hawk has a unique feature that makes it one of the first of its kind and very cost effective.

The creator of the Delta D2 is the renowned helicopter architect named Graeme Smith. Smith, a native of Australia, who for his whole life has had a deep respect and fascination for the rugged people who lived in outback, Australia and utilized helicopters for their daily labor.

“I have always been inspired by those people living in the Outback, using Helicopters in their daily work,” said Smith in an interview. He set out to provide those frontier men with a helicopter that cannot only get the work done, but would can be easily managed by the owner.

Smith had been building the helicopter in his backyard for the last six years.

There are two aspects that make the D2 so unique and efficient. The first aspect is the engine. The D2 is equipped with a Deltahawk V4 engine that tips the scale at a very respectable 360 pounds. It produces up to 200 horsepower and is probably one of the most elementary engines powering a helicopter. The engine is crafted from aluminium-cast that allows it to be lightweight as well as durable.

The second aspect, and most important, is that the engine runs on diesel. This gives many advantages to the helicopter: diesel is a common fuel in the Outback, it does not run as hot as other fuels, and it lowers the overall cost of the rotorcraft.

The engine was designed from scratch by Dill Whitney. The engine was not made specifically for the D2, instead it was designed sort of like a stock engine that can be used by various aircraft. It comes in three different variants: 160, 180, or 200 horsepower.

The main niche Smith was trying to reach is farmers that need a helicopter that is not too complicated to operate or maintain. Those farms have easy access to diesel; in fact it is a product common on most farms. Smith most likely sees his helicopter selling in a kit style setting when it first hits the market for around $130,000. He would love for the D2 to be used one day as a vehicle which pilots can use to get trained and certified. Maybe even one day in the future as helicopters continue to get more improved and advanced, they will take a bigger role in daily transportation of man.