Date: Issue 93 - July 2019
Following the first official flight of the P0 prototype on September 6, 2018, the P1 which is the first flying prototype of the GÖKBEY helicopter, the production of which was completed in April, completed its maiden flight on June 29 at 06:00 a.m. The flight had originally been planned for June 18, and was postponed for a later date. With a fresh coat of paint, the prototype successfully completed its first experimental flight early in the morning with the completion of the necessary permissions obtained from the General Directorate of Civil Aviation. The P1 prototype soared at 50ft for about 45 minutes within a 500-meter route. Following this flight, the flight and ground tests will continue with the P1 prototype through the summer period. The production of the P2 prototype is scheduled to be completed in August and is expected to become involved in the test campaign in September. A target total of 1,500 of flight hours are to be completed throughout the test campaign, which is planned to occur over a period of two years. A total of 3 prototypes (P1, P2 and P3) be involved in the test campaign and P3 will take advantage of optimization.