Large order for the Airbus H135

Back in July 2021, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved a significant purchase with Airbus, including 40 helicopters and three A330 tanker aircraft. The helicopters consist of eighteen H135s for each of the Spanish Interior and Defence Ministries, and four H160s for the Interior Ministry.

On 23 December 2021, Airbus Helicopters officially reported on the signing of an order with the Spanish government for 36 H135s. From this order, eleven H135s will go to the Ejército del Aire (EdA, Spanish Air Force) as replacement for the eight Sikorsky S-76Cs used by 781 Escuadrón at Granada/Armilla and seven will go to the Arma Aeréa de la Armada (Armada, Spanish Navy) as replacement for the Hughes H369M used by Escuadrilla 6 (Essla 006) at Rota of which six are still operational. The helicopters are used for advanced pilot training.

The other eighteen H135s will go to Guardia Civil and the National Police, but it has not been reported how many will go each individual service. The H135s will replace the ageing MBB Bo105C light, twin-engine, multi-purpose helicopters which are used in a wide range of missions including law enforcement, surveillance, and rescue activities. According to the Scramble Magazine database, the Guardia Civil still has seventeen Bo105s in its active inventory and the unit already operates a fleet of thirteen EC135P2/P2+.

The Fuerzas Aeromóviles del Ejército de Tierra (Spanish Army) operates a fleet of sixteen EC135s. The standardisation of training fleets across the three armed forces will create synergies and lead to the implementation of new and more efficient training and support activities.

Delivery of the first helicopters (Ministry of Interior) will start in 2022.

Photo by Pablo Napoli (via airplane-pictures.net)