The prototype of Airbus Helicopters’ VSR700 vertical take off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has performed its first free flight. The VSR700 performed a ten minute flight at a drone test centre near Aix-en-Provence in the south of France.
French minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, announced that rotary and fixed wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for the French Navy (Marine Nationale) will be procured ahead of schedule. The announcement came as part of a wider recovery plan to help the French aerospace industry cope with the current economic crisis.
The Commander of the German Navy (Deutsche Marine), Vice Admiral Andreas Krause, announced that the NH90 Sea Lion maritime helicopter was finally accepted into service.
Japan’s largest Super Puma operator, Japan Coast Guard (JCG), has placed a new order of two H225 helicopters. This follow-on order brings JCG’s Super Puma fleet to 15, comprising two AS332s and 13 H225s.
The French Armament General Directorate (DGA) is to supply four H160s to the French Navy for search and rescue missions through a partnership between Airbus Helicopters, Babcock, and Safran Helicopter Engines. The contract was awarded on January 31, 2020. The French Navy will start operating these helicopters in 2022 for a period of ten years.
Airbus Helicopters and the French Armament General Directorate (DGA) are pursuing a new set of studies to further the militarization of the H160 and to define its associated support ecosystem in the context of the Joint Light Helicopter program (Hélicoptère Interarmées Léger: HIL).
The Bulgarian Navy received an additional Airbus Helicopter AS365N3 + Dauphin II (tail number 905) naval helicopter on December 6, 2019, at the Chaika airfield in Varna. This unit was procured as a replacement of the AS565MB Panther that crashed in 2017.
The Airbus Helicopters VSR700 naval VTOL UAV made its maiden flight on November 8 at the Aix-en-Provence drone test center (south of France). Several test captive-flights were successfully performed on an enhanced version of the UAV.
Airbus Helicopters has delivered the first NH90 NTH Sea Lion naval multi-role helicopter to the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw), with a further two to be delivered by the end of the year.
The French Navy recently launched a tender calling for construction work at the Lanvéoc-Poulmic naval air base (BAN) prior to delivery of an interim fleet of Airbus Helicopter H160-type light multirole helicopters.
