• Defence Helicopter

  German Aerospace Centre testing poor visibility landing system

  6th March 2012

  The German Aerospace Centre (DLR) is testing a helmet-mounted display system to assist pilots with poor visibility landings. The display, currently in test on a …

• Defence Helicopter

  200th UH-72A delivered to US Army

  2nd March 2012

  EADS North America has announced that the 200th UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) has been delivered to the US Army during a ceremony at …

• Defence Helicopter

  Helidax reaches 30,000 flight hour mark

  1st March 2012

  Helidax, a subsidiary of DCI and INAER, has announced in a 28 February 2012 statement that it has exceeded 30,000 flight hours on EC120 Colibri …

• Military Logistics

  Kazakhstan orders two C295 aircraft

  1st March 2012

  Airbus Military has announced that it has signed a firm contract with Kazspetsexport, a State Company belonging to the Ministry of Defence of Kazakhstan, to …

• Defence Helicopter

  CH-53Es join Marine Corps squadron in Hawaii

  29th February 2012

  The first Marine Corps CH-53Es Super Stallions have arrived in Hawaii, it has been announced. Seven CH-53Es arrived at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay …

• Defence Helicopter

  Northrop Grumman awarded LN-251 navigation system contract

  28th February 2012

  Northrop Grumman has announced that it will be carrying out work to modify existing software for the LN-251 embedded GPS/fibre-optic inertial navigation system (INS) on …

• Defence Helicopter

  Dutch Lynx captured in Libya to be returned

  28th February 2012

  A Dutch Lynx helicopter seized by pro-Gadaffi forces in Libya after a failed evacuation attempt in February last year is being returned to the Netherlands. …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indian Air Force inducts Mi-17V5s

  27th February 2012

  The Indian Air Force has inducted the Mi-17V5 into service after the first aircraft went into operational service on 17 February. The air force has …

• Defence Helicopter

  APKWS heading for Afghanistan

  24th February 2012

  The US Navy has completed operational testing of the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) and the weapon will soon be deployed with US Marine …

• Defence Helicopter

  Wildcat completes shipboard trials

  24th February 2012

  The UK’s AgustaWestland Wildcat has completed shipboard trials on the HMS Iron Duke. One of the development aircraft, ZZ402, was subjected to 20 days of …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Marine Corps retires CH-53D

  24th February 2012

  The US Marine Corps has retired the CH-53D Sea Stallion after 40 years of service in a 'sunset ceremony' held on 10 February at Pearl …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA 2012: Boeing outlines CH-47F second multiyear enhancements

  24th February 2012

  Boeing executives used AUSA Winter 2012 to provide an update on current production numbers for the CH-47F as well as recent activities surrounding the pending …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army receives first UTA

  23rd February 2012

  The Longbow Limited Liability Company has announced that it has delivered the first production Longbow UAS Tactical Common Data Link Assembly (UTA) for the Apache …

• Naval Warfare

  Royal Navy to receive four new tankers

  23rd February 2012

  The Royal Navy (RN) is to receive a new generation of 37,000-tonne tankers to maintain its ability to refuel at sea and will provide fuel …

• Defence Helicopter

  DCNS conducts FREMM Aquitaine helicopter deck landing trials

  21st February 2012

  DCNS has announced formal qualification of the FREMM frigate Aquitaine's flight deck for operations with the Lynx helicopter. The milestone follows a successful deck landing …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72 Follow On

  Programme Background In March 2019, Airbus stated that it expected orders from the US Army for between 12 and 15 UH-72A helicopters. In March 2020, ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M - France

  Programme Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Programme Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of ...

• Military helicopters - attack, Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M / H145M Add-On [Romania]

  Methodology As part of a potential initial order for 12 H225M helicopters, Romania has included the option to acquire 30 additional helicopters from Airbus. Shephard estimates this ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Programme Background  In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH-90 [Spain]

  Programme Background Along with a range of other air programmes, the Spanish Government announced the nation has set aside 1 billion euros (USD$1.162 billion) to ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Future Aircrew Training Program (Helicopter Procurement) - Canada

  Programme Background The FAcT requires to graduate 120 pilots, 40 combat systems officers and 36 airborne electronic sensor operators per year with 15% fluctuation. Training services ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) (TH-57 Replacement)

  Programme Background Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M [Spain]

  Programme Background Spain announced the National Helicopter Plan in May 2025 culminating in five contracts awarded to Airbus on 18 December 2025, including procurement programmes ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training

  H145

  The light, twin-engine EC145 began as an initiative to increase the cabin size of the BK 117 C1 aircraft, involving Kawasaki of Japan and Airbus ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter (covered in a separate entry). It is ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175 and works to fill a gap in the H175 helicopter family, as well as offer ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Light Armed Helicopter

  The South Korean government selected Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in July 2014 to develop the Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) and the related Light Civil Helicopter ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AS365 N3+ Dauphin

  The AS365 N3+, manufactured by Airbus Helicopters (formerly Eurocopter), was developed from the Dauphin series of medium, twin-turboshaft rotorcraft. The AS365 N3+ was launched at the 2009 ...

• Military UAS - small

  Flexrotor

  Flexrotor, or U030 Flexrotor, is a VTOL small UAS manufactured by Aerovel. It can integrate different types of payloads, including electro-optical systems and advanced sensors, to suit ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 TTH

  Developed as a multinational programme between France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the European NH90 was designed to meet NATO requirements for multirole capability from ...