Westland 30

Westland Helicopters · United Kingdom · first flew 1982 · transport aircraft

The Westland 30 was a British twin-turboshaft medium helicopter derived from the Lynx and designed for civil passenger and offshore oil-support operations.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	High-mounted, rotary
E — Engines	2 × turboshaft, fuselage-mounted
F — Fuselage	14.33 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Enlarged derivative of Lynx with twin-engine layout
Wide cabin for up to 17 passengers
Tall main rotor pylon with distinctive sponsons

Clear Lynx lineage in rotor head and tail boom; much wider and taller fuselage than a Lynx; side-mounted sponsons housing retractable undercarriage; prominent twin-engine cowlings atop fuselage.

Specifications

The Westland 30 has a length of 14.33 m (47 ft).
It has a wingspan of 12.8 m (42 ft).
Its maximum speed is 259 km/h (161 mph).
Typical crew: 2.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Westland developed the WG.30 in the late 1970s as a commercial spin-off of the successful Lynx military helicopter, enlarging the fuselage to carry up to 17 passengers. The prototype flew in 1982 and it attracted limited orders from operators including British Airways Helicopters and Indian operator Pawan Hans. Production ended after only around 40 aircraft due to persistent reliability and commercial viability issues.

Variants

WG.30 Series 100 (initial), Series 200 with uprated Gem engines, Series 300 with General Electric CT7 engines for improved hot-and-high performance.

Where you'll see it

Operated by British Airways Helicopters on North Sea routes and by Pawan Hans in India for government utility work; withdrawn from service by the mid-1990s.

Related aircraft

AircraftIQ — the aircraft field guide: 4,893 recognition guides, live overhead identification, works offline.