Armada Española (Spanish Navy) Welcomes First H135 Helicopter from Airbus Helicopters

The Spanish Navy has received the first H135 P3H helicopter out of a total of seven that will become part of the 12th Squadron of the Aircraft Flotilla (Floan) over the next two years. The Directorate General of Armament and Material (DGAM), which oversees the acquisition process, handed over the helicopter to the Navy at the Airbus Helicopters Spain facilities in Albacete.

Over a period of six weeks, this helicopter will conduct training flights with pilots from the 12th Squadron in Albacete. The H135 P3H helicopters of the Spanish Navy have undergone modifications to enable operations on ships. These modifications include pressurized fueling, manual folding of the main rotor, enhanced anti-corrosion treatment, float system, a night vision goggle-compatible cabin, weather and surface radar, electro-optical system (FLIR), side crane, baricentric hook, auxiliary fuel tanks, fast rope, and a MEDEVAC evacuation kit.

The Initial Qualification Campaign will take place on board a Maritime Action Ship in the first half of 2024. It is expected to achieve its Initial Operational Capability (IOC) in the second half of the same year, allowing it to be integrated into Deployable Air Units (Unaemb) and detachments (Unadest).

The H135 P3H is the first Airbus product to enter service with the Spanish Navy. It will replace the Hughes 500 helicopters of the 6th Squadron, which were acquired in 1972 and were used for anti-submarine warfare, liaison, transport, observation, among other tasks, and began to be phased out in June 2022.

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Spain receives first H135s from 36-helicopter order

Airbus has delivered the first two H135s to the Spanish Guardia Civil and National Police under the 36-unit contract signed with the General Directorate for Armaments and Materiel (DGAM) at the end of 2021 to supply the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Interior. The handover ceremony that took place at the Airbus plant in Albacete.

The new helicopters will enable the National Police and Guardia Civil to replace BO105 helicopters in a wide range of missions including police, surveillance, and rescue activities. In total, the Ministry of Interior will receive 18 units. 

As for the Spanish Air Force and Navy, which will receive eleven and seven H135s respectively, deliveries will begin next year and will be added to the 16 helicopters already operated by the Spanish Army for training and support missions for the Military Emergency Unit (UME). From 2023 onwards, the three armed forces will be able to benefit from synergies in terms of training, operation, and maintenance.

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