THE ROYAL CANADIAN Air Force permitted its CH-148 helicopters to return to limited operations on May 15, ending a nine-week grounding. 1 Canadian Air Division ordered an operational pause for Cyclone flying in March, after one of the aircraft experienced a brief change in descent rate. The decision to allow the helicopters to return to the air follows a comprehensive safety and technical review that was conducted by the RCAF and Sikorsky, which determined that a software issue in the flight control system caused the event. The aircraft will operate within a limited envelope that is unaffected by the software issue while Sikorsky develops a system upgrade to rectify the issue. Some of the restrictions, which include limitations on specific types of take-offs, landings, maneuvers and in-flight operations, may be removed as the Royal Canadian Air Force prepares for full resumption of flight training and operational test and evaluation.
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