Aircraft overview
The AS365 Dauphin is a twin-turbine helicopter distinguished by its Fenestron: a tail rotor enclosed within a circular duct in the fin. The N-series also has a four-bladed main rotor and retractable tricycle landing gear.
The N2 uses two Arriel 1C2 engines and a 4,250 kg maximum mass. The specifications below describe the N2; earlier Dauphins and the later EC155 have different engines, airframes or rotor arrangements.
Photograph: Craig Sunter · 2012-05-27 · Photo source: Eurocopter Dauphin (Bond Helicopters) at Blackpool (7281624820) · CC BY 2.0 · Unmodified photograph.
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At a glance
AS365 N2 · Arriel 1C2 installation
- Engines
- Two Turbomeca Arriel 1C2 turboshaftsN2 configuration.
- Main rotor
- Four blades · 11.94 m diameterArticulated rotor.
- Tail rotor
- Fenestron · 1.10 m diameterDucted rotor within the tail.
- Fuselage length / width / height
- 11.63 m / 3.26 m / 3.81 mN2 dimensions.
- Maximum mass
- 4,250 kgN2; N3 has a different limit.
- Cabin
- One pilot + up to 13 passengersPilot in the right seat; mission layout can reduce seating.
- Fuel · total / usable
- 1,158 / 1,135 litresN1/N2/N3 tank quantities.
In Air Defender
Role guidance · v0.8.16.0
Air Defender v0.8.16.0 lists the Dauphin as an offshore transport helicopter, with southern North Sea gas-field support as its example role.
Compare the S-76 and the Bell 412. Flight-plan information helps explain an individual helicopter’s route.
Game catalogue values · v0.8.16.0
In-game specifications
These figures come from the game’s general aircraft reference. A matching civilian register entry can supply different fields in Aircraft Data. How to read the two layouts →
- Role
- Offshore Transport Helicopter
- Category
- Light Helicopter
- Service ceiling
- 16,500 ftA reference upper height. Read Flight Info for the contact’s present height.
- Maximum speed
- 165 knotsA reference maximum, not the speed the aircraft is flying now.
- Cruise speed
- 145 knotsA typical speed for the main part of a flight, not a guaranteed commanded speed.
- Stall speed
- Not specified as a stall-speed valueA zero in the game catalogue means no usable stall-speed figure is supplied; it does not mean the rotor blades cannot stall. FAA helicopter handbook: rotor-blade stall →
- Typical crew
- 2
- Powerplant
- Twin turboshaft engines (Turbomeca Arriel) Compare engine types →
- Manufacturer
- Aérospatiale/Eurocopter (France)
Use the right procedure
In depth
The N-series development
The N-series introduced a major airframe revision to the twin-engine Dauphin, including retractable tricycle landing gear. Successive N variants changed engine installations and approved weights.
The N2 flight manual was approved on 25 October 1989. The N3 followed with an approved manual dated 6 October 1997, placing both within the period leading to Air Defender’s 1998 setting.
The Fenestron tail
The Fenestron encloses the rotating tail blades in a circular duct. It supplies the tail-rotor function in a distinctive fan-in-tail arrangement, rather than using an exposed rotor at the side of the tail.
The surrounding duct reduces the likelihood of the blades contacting people or objects on the ground. The N2’s Fenestron diameter is 1.10 m.
Arriel engine installations
The N2 uses Arriel 1C2 engines. The N1 has Arriel 1C1 engines and the N3 uses Arriel 2Cs, so the short N designation does not identify a single power installation.
The N2’s maximum mass is 4,250 kg; the N3 limit is 4,300 kg. Engine installations and weight limits vary by model and approved modification standard.
Cabin and loading
The N2 permits one pilot in the right seat and up to thirteen passengers. Offshore, rescue and other mission fits use different combinations of seats and equipment.
Tank capacity is 1,158 litres total, with 1,135 usable. The baggage-compartment limit is 200 kg; the aircraft’s overall weight and balance limits also apply.
The separate EC155 development
The EC155B developed from the N3 and was originally known as the AS365 N4. It introduced a larger cabin, a five-bladed Spheriflex main rotor and an integrated digital flight-control system.
The EC155B1, approved on 16 July 2002, added uprated engines. It belongs to the later EC155 branch; the N2 retains the four-bladed rotor and dimensions shown above.
Variants
AS365 N1 / N2
Arriel 1C1 and 1C2 installations respectively.
AS365 N3
Arriel 2C-powered development, with a 4,300 kg limit and 1997 approved flight manual.
EC155 B / B1
Larger cabin and five-bladed Spheriflex rotor. The B1 was approved in July 2002 with uprated engines.
After 1998
2002 · EC155B1
The EC155B1 received type approval on 16 July 2002. Its uprated engines belong to the larger, five-bladed EC155 development, rather than to the AS365 N2.