The French Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) and the Airbus Helicopters announced today (24) an agreement to purchase 42 helicopters for the country's public security forces. The H145 model aircraft will be acquired for the Ministry of the Interior, which will distribute the helicopters to agencies.
According to Airbus, of the 42 H145 helicopters, 36 will be destined for the Sécurité Civil, the agency responsible for search, rescue, firefighting and disaster response actions. The remaining six helicopters will be handed over to the National Gendarmerie, a police force under the French Ministry of Defense. The contract includes an option for a further 22 H145s for the Gendarmerie and a range of solutions and services from training to spare parts, as well as a full initial package for the aircraft.
“We have a long-standing relationship with the Gendarmerie Nationale and the Sécurité Civile and I am very proud to be adding another chapter to our shared history”, said Bruno Even, CEO of Airbus Helicopters. “The H145 has already proven its worth with the Sécurité Civile conducting many rescue missions in the difficult mountainous environment of the French Alps,” he added. “The H145 is operated by many law enforcement agencies around the world. The Gendarmerie will benefit from a state-of-the-art helicopter equipped with the latest mission systems.”He explained.
Currently Sécurité Civile operates four five-bladed H145s, ordered in 2020 and 2021. The new models will take the place of another 33 EC145s, used in rescue and air medical transport activities.
The Gendarmerie, in turn, uses the Ecureuils (Squirrel), EC135 and 145. The new H145 will begin the gradual renewal of the French national police helicopter fleet. They will be equipped with an electro-optical system and a mission computer to carry out the most demanding law enforcement missions.
The H145 is the evolution of the EC145 from the old Eurocopter. The current version, purchased for French public security forces, features a new five-bladed rotor, increasing the payload by 150 kg. Powered by two Safran Arriel 2E engines, the H145 is equipped with full authority digital engine control (FADEC) and the Helionix digital avionics suite. Includes a high-performance 4-axis autopilot, increasing safety and reducing pilot workload. Its particularly low acoustic footprint makes the H145 the quietest helicopter in its class. Today, Airbus has more than 1.675 H145 family helicopters in service around the world, logging a total of more than 7,6 million flight hours.
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