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A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
Bell developed the 222 as a light helicopter with two engines. The 230 followed with a different powerplant installation and further refinements. The simulator products represent the 222B and 222UT, with photographs captioned for their depicted variants.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗A routine return ends on a rooftop
After completing a neonatal transfer, Kruse was thinking about a missed lunch and the return to St Paul. Paramedic Bill Yoch joined him in the front of the Bell 222UT. A metallic sound interrupted the routine flight, followed by violent, uncommanded movement that turned the familiar cockpit into a struggle to retain control. Yoch helped with the collective while Kruse worked to bring the helicopter down.
First-person recollection of 14 April 2000, St Paul, Minnesota. Bell 222UT N225LL with paramedic Bill Yoch; patients and the medical transfer team had already disembarked.
Just Helicopters · Read more ↗Autopilot standby retains the underlying stabilisation
The 222 autopilot guide says pressing SBY once removes armed or active autopilot modes while leaving Auto Trim/SAS active. It documents autopilot availability above 44 knots, with SAS required for those modes. This describes CowanSim’s software system.
Bell 222 family · CowanSim · CowanSim · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
CowanSim · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube Helicopter POV · 6 min ·
Airwolf Black Bell 222 Helicopter Startup Takeoff Flight and Landing
Startup, takeoff and landing of a black Bell 222 with an Airwolf-inspired appearance.
Real aircraft · Bell 222 family
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Bell 222 family
Bell developed the 222 as a light helicopter with two engines. The 230 followed with a different powerplant installation and further refinements. The simulator products represent the 222B and 222UT, with photographs captioned for their depicted variants.
Bell 222
Bell 222 family
Wikipedia contributors · Bell 222/230 ↗Aircraft type designators
Use the code for the model you are flying. The linked authority lists the applicable aircraft.
History & design
Operator memories are tied to their setting
The same discussion includes more favourable recollections from a pilot using a 222U in Iceland. The disagreement helps locate the California account in its own climate and mission; repeated forum opinions are not independent performance measurements.
PPRuNe · Bell 222/230 discussion, page four ↗Contrasting attributed recollections in the November 2005 thread
Development milestones
First flight: Bell 222: 13 August 1976 Bell 230: 12 August 1991
Wikipedia contributors · Bell 222/230 ↗Bell 222/230 · family/variant named by the source · Wikipedia revision 1366454940
Pilot accounts
A routine return ends on a rooftop
After completing a neonatal transfer, Kruse was thinking about a missed lunch and the return to St Paul. Paramedic Bill Yoch joined him in the front of the Bell 222UT. A metallic sound interrupted the routine flight, followed by violent, uncommanded movement that turned the familiar cockpit into a struggle to retain control.
Yoch helped with the collective while Kruse worked to bring the helicopter down. They eventually landed on a flat metal roof and both survived. Once out of the cockpit, the physical effect of the ordeal caught up with Kruse. His recollection makes the crew’s cooperation central to the outcome. It describes what he experienced that afternoon without establishing a technical failure cause beyond the evidence available in his account.
First-person recollection of 14 April 2000, St Paul, Minnesota. Bell 222UT N225LL with paramedic Bill Yoch; patients and the medical transfer team had already disembarked.
Read the full account · Just Helicopters ↗A thousand hours leave a practical impression
Asked to compare the Bell 222 with an older A109, IHL began with an important boundary: the poster had not flown the Agusta. The poster recalled roughly a thousand hours in the Bell during the mid-1980s. Its limited useful load after adding fuel was the frustration that stood out most.
The same recollection regarded the helicopter as adequate for instrument flying. IHL also described hover exits and loading, while making clear that the work had not involved hoisting. It is an experienced-sounding forum contribution with an explicit limit on what the writer could compare, preserved under the original handle and date.
PPRuNe · 28 February 2008, post 5. Self-reported experience of about 1,000 hours in early Bell 222s during the mid-1980s; the poster’s identity is not independently verified.
Read the full account · PPRuNe ↗The mission changes the verdict
After a couple of years flying Bell 222s on California medical assignments, inthegreen remembered a comfortable aircraft for instrument transport. The older autopilot installation in the B was preferred to the newer one fitted to the U aircraft in that operation. The judgement concerned particular equipment the poster had used.
Loading and summer conditions shaped the less favourable memories. The aircraft worked hard near the operation’s usual maximum loads, while mountain work became restrictive in the hotter months. Maintenance and parts concerns also featured in the account.
PPRuNe · 28 November 2005. Self-reported California EMS experience in Bell 222B and U models; an attributed forum recollection, with identity unverified.
Read the full account · PPRuNe ↗In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
Compare simulator versions →MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024Bell 222 family · CowanSim
CowanSim · Released
Bell 222 family · CowanSim
CowanSim · Released
X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12Bell 222 family · CowanSim
CowanSim · Released
Bell 222 family · CowanSim
CowanSim · Released
Manuals & resources
Find your next read
Choose a topic for a short introduction and a link to the original source. Simulator references identify the developer and edition they cover.
Simulator documentation
Autopilot standby retains the underlying stabilisationBell 222 family · CowanSim · CowanSim · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
The 222 autopilot guide says pressing SBY once removes armed or active autopilot modes while leaving Auto Trim/SAS active. It documents autopilot availability above 44 knots, with SAS required for those modes. This describes CowanSim’s software system.
222 Autopilot System guide · PDF pp.1,4; undated
CowanSim · Read the source ↗Give the 222B collective and throttles separate controlsBell 222 family · CowanSim · CowanSim · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
CowanSim documents a collective axis and separate helicopter throttle axes for the two twist grips. A user without dedicated throttle hardware can operate the grips with the mouse. The idle-stop command is distinct from simply moving an axis.
MSFS 222B setup guide · PDF pp.1–3; undated
CowanSim · Read the source ↗The X-Plane 222B offers cabin and panel choicesBell 222 family · CowanSim · CowanSim · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
CowanSim’s listing describes luxury and medical interiors, configurable panels, AviTab integration and optional RXP GTN 750 integration. These features belong to the 222B product described by the page.
Developer product listing · captured September 2026
CowanSim · Read the source ↗Choose texture size to suit the installationBell 222 family · CowanSim · CowanSim · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
The listed package includes 2K and 4K versions, FMOD audio, window-rain effects and VR support. Its version summary gives separate X-Plane 11 and 12 release dates for v2.60.
Developer listing · X-Plane 11 v2.60 February 2022; X-Plane 12 v2.60 May 2023
CowanSim · Read the source ↗Pilot account
A routine return ends on a rooftopFirst-person recollection of 14 April 2000, St Paul, Minnesota. Bell 222UT N225LL with paramedic Bill Yoch; patients and the medical transfer team had already disembarked.
After completing a neonatal transfer, Kruse was thinking about a missed lunch and the return to St Paul. Paramedic Bill Yoch joined him in the front of the Bell 222UT. A metallic sound interrupted the routine flight, followed by violent, uncommanded movement that turned the familiar cockpit into a struggle to retain control. Yoch helped with the collective while Kruse worked to bring the helicopter down. They eventually landed on a flat metal roof and both survived.
Chris Kruse
Just Helicopters · Read the source ↗A thousand hours leave a practical impressionPPRuNe · 28 February 2008, post 5. Self-reported experience of about 1,000 hours in early Bell 222s during the mid-1980s; the poster’s identity is not independently verified.
Asked to compare the Bell 222 with an older A109, IHL began with an important boundary: the poster had not flown the Agusta. The poster recalled roughly a thousand hours in the Bell during the mid-1980s. Its limited useful load after adding fuel was the frustration that stood out most. The same recollection regarded the helicopter as adequate for instrument flying. IHL also described hover exits and loading, while making clear that the work had not involved hoisting.
IHL
PPRuNe · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Aircraft background
Bell 222/230Wikipedia contributors · Research background · retrieved 2026-09-12Product
222B for MSFSCowanSim · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 222UT for MSFSCowanSim · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 222B for X-PlaneCowanSim · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 222UT for X-PlaneCowanSim · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12Type designator
ICAO Doc 8643 — aircraft type designatorsInternational Civil Aviation Organization · Public search data retrieved 2026-09-14; authority update 2026-09-03Developer documentation
Autopilot ManualCowanSim · Gathered developer documentation User ManualCowanSim · Gathered developer documentation User ManualCowanSim · Gathered developer documentationAircraft documentation
EASA.IM.R.114 Issue 1, 16 December 2019EASA, hosted by UK CAA · EASA.IM.R.114, Issue 1 (16 December 2019), Bell 222B/222U section. Historical type data, not current operating limitations.Built-in force-feedback profiles
Read the documentary basis, editable starting settings and remaining questions for the aircraft you fly. Each explanation refers to the exact profile revision shown.
Catalogue programme-20261022-v1 · 6 profile choices
CowanSim 222B
CowanSim · Free and Pro · Revision 4 · Inherited starting point
MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
CowanSim 222B: The selected cyclic spring accompanies the named B or UT configuration; retractable wheels and fixed skids primarily distinguish ground and gear cues.
CowanSim 222B
CowanSim · Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
CowanSim 222B: The selected cyclic spring accompanies the named B or UT configuration; retractable wheels and fixed skids primarily distinguish ground and gear cues.
CowanSim 222UT
CowanSim · Free and Pro · Revision 2 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
CowanSim 222UT: The selected cyclic spring accompanies the named B or UT configuration; retractable wheels and fixed skids primarily distinguish ground and gear cues.
CowanSim 222UT
CowanSim · Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Inherited starting point
MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
CowanSim 222UT: The selected cyclic spring accompanies the named B or UT configuration; retractable wheels and fixed skids primarily distinguish ground and gear cues.
Bell 222B
Free and Pro · Revision 2 · Partial review
MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024 · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
Bell 222B: The selected cyclic spring accompanies the named B or UT configuration; retractable wheels and fixed skids primarily distinguish ground and gear cues.
Bell 222UT
Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Partial review
MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024 · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
Bell 222UT: The selected cyclic spring accompanies the named B or UT configuration; retractable wheels and fixed skids primarily distinguish ground and gear cues.
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