Metro Aviation delivered H125 to Pinellas County
Florida's Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) has received delivery of an Airbus H125 helicopter from Metro Aviation, who completed the law enforcement aircraft with support from CNC Technologies
The aircraft will replace one of the department’s older aircraft, a three-decade-old AS350B2 which has been operated by PCSO since 1991.
Metro has customized the aircraft to meet PCSO’s specific mission requirements – including the fitting of a TrakkaBeam TLX searchlight; a Tyler Fast Rope system for personnel deployment; a Boost Human External Cargo system; a Garmin Autopilot; Aero computer mapping system; and a Wescam MX10 imaging system.
The H125 features a Safran Arriel 2D turboshaft engine with two-channel full authority digital engine control, as well as a third independent automatic backup channel and automatic ignition. It has a cruise speed of 230km/h with an endurance of three hours, can carry 1,400kg at sea level and has a maximum flight altitude of over seven kilometers.
Metro also recently completed and delivered another H125 in law enforcement configuration to the Texas Department of Public Safety in June.
Oliver Cuenca
Oliver Cuenca was a Junior Editor at the Voyageur Group. He was previously a News and Features Journalist for the rail magazine IRJ until 2021, and studied MA Magazine Journalism at Cardiff University. His favourite helicopter is the AW169 – the workhorse of the UK air ambulance sector! He also led the creation of Waypoint: The AirMed&Rescue podcast, serving as its Production Editor and co-host.