Airbus Helicopters delivers first H135 to the Spanish Air and Space Force
It will be used for advanced training tasks for military pilots
Airbus has announced the delivery of the first H135 to the Spanish Air and Space Force in Albacete.
This is the eighth helicopter delivered under the 36-unit contract signed at the end of 2021 to supply the Armed Forces and State Security Forces.
The delivery is six months ahead of schedule, facilitating crew training and entry into service for the 78th Wing at the Military School of Helicopters in Armilla, Granada, where it will be used for advanced training tasks for military pilots.
Once the fleet of 11 helicopters is delivered to the Air Force, the H135 will become the helicopter of reference for pilot training for the Spanish Air Force, Army, Navy, the Civil Guard and other countries requesting training at the Granada base.
Fernando Lombo, Managing Director of Airbus Helicopters Spain, said: “We are very proud to know that all young pilots from the Ministry of Defence corps will now be trained on the H135, the standard for military training missions worldwide.
“It is a versatile, reliable and efficient helicopter, ideal for the transition to more complex aircraft, with more than 400,000 flight hours of military training for 12 military customers.
“We are confident that the H135 will represent a leap in the quality of teaching and will reinforce the Military Helicopter School as the benchmark it is, throughout the world.”
The H135 is already in service with the Spanish Army’s training unit (ACAVIET) and the Emergency Battalion (BHELEME II). The Navy is also expected to receive the first of the seven H135 units in the contract soon.
The helicopter is the most popular in the Spanish fleet, due to its operational versatility. It is used in flying missions such as military training, police surveillance and intervention, mountain rescue missions and emergency medical transport.