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http://www.passarodeferro.com/2024/10/m ... ra-de.html2024-10-22
The Portuguese Army is looking to acquire new multirole helicopters, with the country's Ministry of National Defence (MND) launching a procurement programme for EUR40.9 million (USD44.3 million).
Disclosed in the Portuguese Official Gazette on 17 October 2024,
the ‘Support, Protection and Evacuation Helicopters' (Helicópteros de Apoio, Proteção e Evacuação, HAPE) programme budget
includes the helicopters, related equipment, support, and training.
Portugal had previously budgeted EUR50 million to acquire multirole helicopters as part of the Military Programming Law 2023–34.
The HAPE project calls for armed helicopters by 2029 to support, protect, and lift ground troops,
as well as to assist in disaster relief and humanitarian aid operations.
No details were provided on the number of helicopters to be purchased as part of the project.
Sources have indicated that three aircraft are intended to be ordered, with an option for a fourth.
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https://www.opex360.com/2024/10/23/larm ... on-legere/The market is interesting in more ways than one, despite a somewhat tight budget.
Under the name HAPE, for Helicópteros de Apoio Proteção e Evacuação ,
the Portuguese Ministry of Defense intends to purchase between three and four helicopters
to carry out combat search and rescue missions .
A notable feature is that it is not the Força Aérea Portuguesa that will implement the said helicopters
but the UALE, the Unidade de Aviação Ligeira do Exército ,
which has been dormant for nine years .
It is the Portuguese equivalent of our Army Light Aviation.
Three or four machines for a budget of nearly 41 million euros does not leave many aircraft available on the market.
And according to local media,
five aircraft are already favored by the Portuguese military, three of European design,
one from the United States, and the last from South Korea.
It is as if the competition had already begun.
This future HAPE could therefore be decided between the AgustaWestland AW.139M / AW.149 , the Airbus Helicopters H175M, the KAI KUH-1 Surion , and the Sikorsky S-70I .
However, the Portuguese Ministry of Defence does not want to cut itself off from other potential helicopters.
The American Bell UH-1Y Venom and the Turkish TAI T625 Gökbey are among the potential participants.
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27 Oct 2024 15:00
The Minister of National Defense, Nuno Melo,
signed the order that allows the Army to acquire helicopters for support and rescue,
like several allied countries, the government official announced today.
"I signed the order that will allow, for the first time,
the Army to acquire support, protection and evacuation helicopters,
which will mark the beginning of building the capacity of resources given to rotation in this branch", stated Nuno Melo.
“As with many other Armies of allied countries,
the Army will also have this additional and differentiated capacity,
which is actually provided for in the Military Programming Law,
which will allow the movement of people and materials when conducting land operations.
across the entire spectrum of military operations:
offensive, defensive, stabilization and civil support from a dual-use perspective,” he added.
In the minister's opinion, and taking into account the numbers normally processed in the Armed Forces,
“it is not even an exaggerated investment,
as it is absolutely crucial, taking into account the Army's missions”.
“It is a training that the Army has been demanding for a long time
and that will make a big difference in the future.
We are talking about up to four helicopters and they are dual-use,” said the governor.
According to the Army General Staff, the helicopters will be based in the Tancos military unit and the first will arrive in 2026.
Regarding the investment in question,
Nuno Melo clarified that “it is not just for helicopters”,
but also for “other related investments that have to be made,
namely with aerodromes, training and everything involved in the location” of these means.
“They will be at the service of the Army
and will support the troops wherever they are needed,
equivalent to other allied Armies, on many sides of the planet.
The Army Chief of Staff, Eduardo Mendes Ferrão,
added that the helicopters will, firstly,
“protect troops when they are on the ground, whether in operations in the European theater or,
above all, in operations in the Central African Republic.” ”.
“Then there is a support aspect,
because they have the capacity to transport our troops to carry out airmobile and airborne operations”, he indicated,
adding the value of transporting the wounded.
Eduardo Mendes Ferrão clarified that the aircraft
have capacity for “around 12 soldiers”, each,
and can be integrated into the Army's emergency military support system,
which coordinates with the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority for emergency missions. civil support.
“[Regarding] firefighting, we still don’t have a guarantee that they will be configured for this modality.
For now, transport, search and rescue on land,” he said.