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with a crew of three (pilot, copilot, and attendant), and can be configured to accommodate 28 passengers. The most recent purchase price quoted by Sikorsky for these units is $1,227,530, which includes the aircraft at $825,000, two engines at $174,000, and necessary spares and support equipment at $194,000 (assuming a three-fleet minimum).
Sikorsky is also conducting a study of possible future units and has reaches some conclusions as to a successor to the S-61 which will be designated as the S-65. This unit is expected to be approximately double the weight and cost of the S-61, be adequate to carry 60 passengers and designed to operate at a seat-mile cost in a range 35 to 50 percent less than the S-61. A firm decision as to the configuration and the time for the start of the design program has not been settled. Availability was estimated at three to four years from the go-ahead decision. A still larger version is also under consideration, a unit which would be powered by three engines and which would accommodate up to 90 passengers and be available at a price approximately $450,000 greater than the two-engined unit.
The company is also engaged in a funded program investigating the comparative advantages of other types of VTOL designs. It considers among the most promising a stowed-rotor configuration which would employ helicopter type rotor blades for takeoff and landing and jet thrust engines with wings for high speed cruise, during which the rotor would be folded and stowed within the fuselage. It is hoped such a unit would operate at a cruise speed in the area of 350 knots