Horizon took delivery of its first aircraft in January and completed its 12th helicopter registration by mid-April. Since then, all the Bell 505s are in operations and currently training Academy students. With a speed of 125 knots (232 km/h) and useful load of 1,500 pounds (680 kg), the Bell 505 is designed to be safe and easy to fly.

Among them is Sheik Zayed bin Hamad bin Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Nahyan, the first student to fly the Bell 505 for his Commercial Pilot License (CPL).

Sameer A. Rehman, Managing Director, Africa & Middle East at Bell Helicopters, said: “Crossing the 1,000-flight hour threshold in less than three months from its latest aircraft registration is a testament to Horizon and the Bell 505s ability to quickly meet mission requirements. It’s a privilege to work with the Horizon team to redefine flight training for the next generation of military and commercial pilots with the Bell 505’s proven operational capabilities in desert environments.”

Hareb Al Dhaheri, CEO of Horizon International Flight Academy, added: “We are proud to be operating Bell 505s in our training program. With the integrated glass cockpit, it enables our pilots in training to experience modern controls on a single engine aircraft. We look forward to logging more flight hours and hitting milestones in our Bell 505s.”